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Once the beer was made, I faced my biggest hurdle yet: getting it into beer drinkers' hands. Distributors all said the same thing: "Your beer is too expensive; no one has ever heard of you." So I figured I had to create a new category: the craft-brewed American beer. I needed a name that was recognizable and elegant, so I called my beer Samuel Adams, after the brewer and patriot who helped to instigate the Boston Tea Party.
一旦啤酒釀造出來后，我面臨的最大問題就是：如何將它送到消費者手中。銷售商們幾乎異口同聲地說：“你的啤酒太貴了；沒人聽說過你的名字。”于是我想，我得創造一個新品種：手工釀造的美國啤酒。我需要為它取一個響亮而又高雅的名字，這樣，我便以曾領導波士頓傾茶事件的釀酒人及愛國音的名字來命名我的啤酒----塞繆爾·亞當斯。
The only way to get the word out, I realized, was to sell direct. I filled my leather briefcase with beer and cold packs, put on my best power suit and hit the bars.
我意識到，唯一能創出這個牌子的辦法就是直銷。我將啤酒及冰袋裝進大皮箱里，穿上我那套盡顯男人風度與地位的筆挺西裝，向一間間酒吧走去。
Most bartenders thought I was from the IRS. But once I opened the briefcase, they paid attention. After I told the first guy my story--how I wanted to start this little brewery in Boston with my dad's family recipe--he said, "Kid, I liked your story. But I didn't think the beer would be this good." What a great moment.
大多數調酒師起初還以為我是國家稅務局的呢。但當我打開皮箱時，便引起了他們的注意。我向第一個家伙講述了我的故事----我如何用父親家傳的啤酒配方開創了這家小小的波士頓啤酒廠——之后，他說：“孩子，我喜歡你的故事，但我沒想到你這啤酒會這么好。”多么激動人心的時刻啊！
Six weeks later, at the Great American Beer Festival, Sam Adams Boston Lager won the top prize for American beer. The rest is history. It wasn't supposed to work out this way--but in the end I was destined to be a brewer.
六周后，在美國大啤酒節上，我的“塞繆爾·亞當斯波士頓啤酒”獲得了美國啤酒的最高獎項。接下來的事情就成為歷史了。其實開始時，無論如何都沒有想到我會走這條路----但最終我注定還是要做個釀酒人。
My advice to all young entrepreneurs is simple: life is very long, so don't rush to make decisions. Life doesn't let you plan.
我對所有年輕的企業家有個簡單的建議：生活的道路是漫長的，因此不要急于作出決定。生活不讓你做計劃。
