TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Bastet Brewing is a local Black-owned brewery that fuses together Egyptian culture, lessons and ingredients into their brew.

Located at 1951 East Adamo Drive, Bastet Brewing, has been a part of the Tampa community since 2020. However, the owners have had a passion for brewing for decades.

“I’ve always loved beer, but then my wife bought me a book that showed me how to make it,” Huston Lett said. “I’m sure my first batch was disgusting.”

Lett is one of the two owners of Bastet Brewing. He met his business partner, Tom Ross, while the two worked at a law firm.

“I was in marketing and he was in IT,” Lett said.

Things changed for the both of them in 2014.

“They laid us off and the two of us had already found a local home brew club,” Ross said.

That club is where the two of them would make beer at home. They even started working at a different local brewery to truly practice the trade. With aspirations of opening their own brewery, Lett knew he would face some challenges.

“Before I became I brewer, I was just an avid consumer,” Lett said. “I didn’t see a lot of people who looked like me when I went to breweries and kind of got the looks like, what are you doing here? When I became a brewer, I’ve seen my peers say hey I’m a brewer and everything’s cool. With me, I get grilled sometimes.”

As a Black man, Lett says he’s faced discrimination and racism while working in the beer industry.

“It used to bother me, but not so much anymore,” Lett said. “Now it’s more of a game for me because I’m like, how quickly can I make that person’s jaw drop because I actually know what I’m talking about.”

According to a 2020 study by the Brewer’s Association, there are a total of 368 breweries in Florida. However, only four are Black-owned.

In addition to being Black-owned, Bastet believes one thing sets them a part from all other breweries.

“Culture,” Ross sad. “One reason we chose this theme is because most people don’t know the ancient Egyptians were the first large beer brewing culture on earth.”

Even their name, Bastet Brewing, stems from an Egyptian tale. Egyptian culture is throughout their building design, within their ingredients and more. Ross said they incorporate several cultures in their brews.

“Every country, every culture on the planet ferments something,” Ross said. “I draw a lot of inspiration from that. We’re always inspired by culture around the world.”

The pair bring representation a diversity to the beer industry.

“Me and Rom aren’t huge fans of pumpkin beer, but we make a really good one,” Lett said. “However, I came up with the idea to make a sweet potato pie beer. It’s everything my mom put in her sweet potato pie, I put in the beer because that what we ate in the fall. I think those are things that would benefit from having other cultures in the industry.”

Lett and Ross love sharing the culture and history with their customers. They also love being involved in the community and giving back to local non-profits. However, they are in need of more business and are learning on the community for help. To support Bastet, visit them on Adamo Drive.