In this edition of 100 iGulu User Stories, Brett Pokorny goes by "Some Guy Who Cooks," and that name already says a lot about him.

Based in Florida and now working as a pilot, Brett has always been drawn to making things. He enjoys cooking, creating, experimenting with flavors, and exploring different ways to turn an idea into something real. Long before iGulu became part of his brewing routine, he had already tried making mead, fruit wines, craft sodas, and beer.

But Brett also knew the reality behind traditional home brewing. It can take time, care, space, and a larger equipment setup. For someone with many flavor ideas, every new experiment can feel like a bigger commitment than it needs to be.

That was why iGulu first caught his attention.

Years ago, Brett discovered iGulu through Kickstarter. What stood out to him was not only the idea of brewing beer at home, but the possibility of making home brewing easier, smaller, and more flexible. As one of the original Kickstarter backers, Brett waited a long time for the machine. But when iGulu finally arrived, it gave him exactly what he had imagined: a smaller, more approachable way to turn flavor ideas into real beer.

Starting Simple

Brett's first iGulu brew was an Amber Lager from one of the original ingredient packs. He followed the instructions carefully, took his time, and treated the first batch as a way to understand the machine. The setup was simple enough that the process quickly became familiar. He also tried the Belgian Wheat, which became one of his favorites from the original kits.

But Brett was never going to stop at following instructions. For him, kits were a starting point. Once he understood the process, he began thinking about what else iGulu could help him create.

He started looking closely at what was inside each kit, comparing ingredients at his local brew shop and trying to understand how each part shaped the final beer. When he could not easily find hop extract, he made his own — turning hop pellets into small bottles of extract for future batches.

When Brett couldn't find hop extract, he made his own from hop pellets.

iGulu was not the end of the brewing process. It became a starting point for learning, adjusting, and making each batch more personal.

A Small-Batch Space for Big Ideas

For Brett, iGulu became less like a standard appliance and more like a small flavor lab.

The one-gallon batch size gives him enough beer to taste, enjoy, and share, but not so much that every experiment feels risky. Instead of turning every idea into a large brewing project, he can test a flavor, learn from it, and decide whether it is worth making again.

That freedom is especially useful for someone like Brett, because his ideas are rarely ordinary.

One of his creations, Ho Ho Ho Baby, is a Blonde Holiday Stout built around contrast: light in appearance, but rich and full-bodied in taste. He wanted to create something creamy, smooth, and full of character while still using lighter malts. The final beer brought together a subtle nuttiness, mild sweetness, and a crisp finish that made it feel rich without becoming too heavy.

Another creation, Hop Scotch, started from a more playful place. Inspired by the idea of Butterbeer, Brett wanted to create something with a smooth butterscotch character as a standalone beer. The result was a Butterscotch Honey Cream Ale with a crisp, bubbly feel and a gentle sweetness on the back end.

Ho Ho Ho Baby — Blonde Holiday Stout	Hop Scotch — Butterscotch Honey Cream Ale

A holiday idea can become a stout. A fictional drink can become a real beer. A flavor combination can start as a question and end as something poured into a glass.

Creativity Without Making Brewing Feel Heavy

What Brett values about iGulu is not that it removes the creative side of brewing. It removes some of the friction around it.

He can start with a kit when he wants something straightforward. He can adjust, test, and experiment when he wants something more personal. He can try ideas on a smaller scale without worrying about wasting a large batch.

That makes the machine useful for beginners, but also meaningful for people who already enjoy brewing. Beginners get a more approachable way to start. More experienced users get a space to test ideas before going bigger. Brett specifically sees the one-gallon format as useful because it gives brewers room to experiment without the pressure of a much larger batch.

It keeps brewing accessible, but still leaves room for personality.

More Than Beer

Brett's interest in brewing comes from a broader love of flavor. His early experience with beer was mostly simple and familiar: mainstream beers at parties or family gatherings. But when a friend introduced him to a more complex Belgian beer, it changed the way he thought about what beer could be. Beer was not just light, simple, or predictable. It could be expressive, layered, and surprising.

From there, Brett did not only want to taste different beers. He wanted to imagine his own.

One idea still on his list is a chocolate raspberry stout he may call The Cosmos — the kind of beer he imagines as "the first beer worth enjoying in space": dark, rich, a little mysterious, and built around a flavor story larger than the glass itself.

Cherries Jubilee — a toasted oak cherry dark ale that shows where Brett's flavor imagination can lead.

Beer can be a memory. A joke. A holiday idea. A flavor experiment. A story. And with iGulu, those ideas don't have to stay in his head.

They can become one-gallon batches. They can be tasted. They can be shared.

What Brett's Story Says About iGulu

Brett's story is not about replacing traditional brewing. It is about making creative brewing easier to live with.

For him, iGulu gives structure to the process without taking away the personal side of brewing. He can begin with a kit, understand the rhythm, and then use each small batch as a place to test new ideas.

That is what makes the machine meaningful in his story. It does not turn brewing into something cold or automatic. It gives creativity a more manageable place to happen.

For Brett, brewing is not only about getting a finished drink. It is about asking: What could this become?

A holiday stout. A Butterbeer-inspired cream ale. Maybe one day, even The Cosmos.

And with iGulu, that question is easier to answer one small batch at a time.

Brett's Ho Ho Ho Baby — Blonde Holiday Stout.