Beijing's 20 Most Interesting People: Carl Setzer

We have a saying here at the Beijinger that even if nothing interesting could be written about 99 percent of Beijing's approximately 20 million people, there would still be 200,000 great stories remaining. To us, what makes a person interesting was not only their long-term presence in Beijing, but that they had done something of note within the last 12 months. Here is one of our picks, and you can always find more in our October issue, now out on the stands.

Carl Setzer
Owner/Brewmaster, Great Leap Brewing
Years in Beijing: 5

Why he’s interesting: There was no hotter venue in Beijing this summer than Great Leap Brewpub near Xing Fu Cun, and the suds just keep coming. Behind the new site and their original spot off Nanluogu Xiang is Cleveland native Carl Setzer. A former IT security guy who traded in his password protection for brewing equipment, Carl and wife Liu Fang founded Great Leap in 2009, with the simple goal of making the best craft beer in Beijing. They parlayed the early hipster cred of their hutong speakeasy into their new Chaoyang location, and won eight awards at the Beijinger’s 2013 Reader Bar & Club Awards, including Bar of the Year and Personality of the Year for Carl. Cheers.

What he says: “On that one day when Beijing seems to have you beaten, the blue sky comes out and everything slows down. At that moment you catch a glimpse of what this city can truly be. I guess the fascination with wanting to see what Beijing will become and not wanting to miss it when it happens is the greatest thing about this city. For lack of a better term, it’s intoxicating.”

Photo: Ken