Steve Luke
Brewer/Owner | Cloudburst Brewing | Seattle
February 2020
Born in Massachusetts and raised in Connecticut, New Englander Steve Luke was surrounded by some of the best breweries in the country. Nevertheless, what peaked his interest in beer were the out of code, local, seasonal craft brews that he and his friends picked up at discount liquor stores. In 2005, the summer between Luke’s junior and senior year at Colby College in Maine, he got a job sweeping floors and making boxes at Allagash Brewing Company. Upon graduating with a degree in sociology and economics, Luke accepted a job washing kegs at Captain Lawrence Brewing Company in the Hudson Valley. He then moved to Boston to work in the marketing department at Harpoon Brewery.
Luke returned to Allagash in 2008, this time as a brewer, and later became head brewer of Cambridge House Brewpub in Connecticut, where he had freedom to play with the pub’s recipes. In 2010, Luke moved to California to attend UC Davis’s brewing school. With a degree in hand, Luke followed his now-wife to her Seattle residency program. He became head brewer of Rogue’s Issaquah Brewhouse, and one year later, the head brewer of Elysian Fields. In 2015, Luke left Elysian to open his own brewery, Cloudburst Brewing. Now with a full tasting room, Luke and his small team produce 2,500 barrels a year, sold throughout the city.
