Our Story

At Arizona Brew Hopping, we believe that experiencing food and drink is the best way to explore a culture. Our goal is to help visitors connect to Arizona heritage and customs through our varied and unique microbrews. In Arizona, the spirit of the southwest is apparent in our Breweries and Tap Rooms. You can find connections to the Old West in every craft brewery in Arizona, paying homage to the harsh environment, our famous desert sunsets, and the unforgiving summer sun. We want to share this glimpse of our local culture with you by providing a memorable tour to several of our 125+ local breweries, cideries and meaderies.

  • CEO & COO

    Jonathan Young is an Army Veteran with over 14 years experience building and leading teams across industries including Software Development, FinTech, Government, and Logistics.

    As a beer and travel enthusiast, he has enjoyed local breweries and beer gardens across 3 continents (Asia, N. America, & Europe), 33 U.S states, and 2 U.S. territories.

    2 years ago during a staycation at a local Arizona resort he found that the resort wasn’t partnered with local tours or local small businesses. This experience prompted the first of many  brainstorming iterations with an advisor group, focused on ways to solve the problem for Metro Phoenix visitors. In December 2024, while searching for  a Christmas gift for a family member, he realized the full scale of the Arizona Brewery Scene, and that the tourism industry in Arizona had not yet caught up. He immediately began researching in earnest. On July 8th, 2024 he resigned from his leadership role in corporate America and kicked off the business with an aggressive 90-day “Go to Market” plan with a mid-October 2024 launch date.

    Outside of work he is probably hosting backyard BBQs or planning a road trip to a National Park. His preferred brew is a balanced Amber Ale with dinner or a crisp Mexican Lager when he’s got the BBQ pit going….but truthfully he will give all beers a chance at least once.

    He is excited to share the Arizona brewery scene with visitors and locals alike.

  • CPO & CMO

    Melody Young is an Arizona native passionate about supporting and building local small businesses. As a world traveler she firmly believes the most fun way to understand a culture is to drink their alcohol and eat their food.

    Melody comes from a family with a deep lineage of homebrews, her Great-Grandfather made bootlegged wine during the prohibition for the Catholic Church in Massachusetts. She continues to carry on the lineage by partnering with local Phoenix garage brewers and providing bushels of mulberries from her backyard garden for their homemade meads and wine. 

    On top of that she comes in with over 12 years experience leading a broad spectrum of teams including IT support teams, medical clinical operations teams, and has led multiple Product and Engineering teams. Melody also brings several years of experience in marketing and communications roles and has 6 years experience of working with vendor management and third party business partnerships.

    When not at work, she is likely gardening, hiking, thinking about which country to visit next or which local restaurant she wants to try.

    Her preferred brews are Porters and Stouts and the occasional Ciders when she’s out having a pint…even with her extensive brewery visits across the world and the U.S., her favorites are local Arizona Porters and Stouts.