Hugh J. Sisson
Founder and General Partner
A sixth generation Baltimorean, Hugh J. Sisson has been involved in all aspects of craft brewing. General Partner of Clipper City Brewing Company, L.P., Sisson is among Baltimore's premier authorities on craft brewing and a former manager of the state's first pub brewery, Sisson’s, located in Federal Hill.
In the mid-eighties, Sisson observed the potential for a small brewery in Baltimore, a historically "big beer" town. After researching the industry at its heart - in Germany, England, and the west coast of the United States – he, along with the help of Senator George W. Della, Jr., successfully lobbied the Maryland General Assembly in 1987 to pass legislation required to open a brew pub in Maryland.
After the inception of craft brew in Baltimore, Sisson immersed himself in the development and market recognition of both Sisson's and its beers. In 1994, he left Sisson’s to begin a new venture, Clipper City Brewing Company. Clipper City has been in operation for more than a decade and markets fine beers in 18 states, as well as Washington, DC.
Sisson is a member of the Master Brewers Association of America, the Brewer’s Association, and is past President for the Brewer’s Association of Maryland. He has served as President of the Cross Street Irregulars Home Brew Club, and co-hosts a weekly program on WYPR Radio entitled Cellar Notes that critiques fine wine and beer.
Sisson is a graduate of the McDonogh School in Baltimore County. He went on to receive his Bachelor of Arts from Washington and Lee University in 1976.
Ernesto Igot 
Brewmaster
Ernesto Igot has worked in the craft brewing industry for over 28 years. He has been a member of the Clipper City team for seven years, serving as the brewery’s Shift Brewer from 2000 to 2006 before moving into his current position as Brewmaster and Production Manager.
Igots’ expertise has enabled him to personally contribute to many techniques at the brewery such as spray wort bailing in the brew kettle; the warm maturation of lager beers; adjusting the proper grist-to-water ratios in the mash; correct pre-coating procedures during beer filtration; and many other improvements in the brewing process and raw materials usage.
From 1976 to 1997, Igot worked at the San Miguel Corporation, Southeast Asia's largest publicly listed food, beverage, and packaging company. Over the course of his career, he has received numerous awards recognizing his talent and proficiency. In 1979, Igot topped the Supervisor’s Brewing Course in the San Miguel Corporation. He earned that honor again in 1984 from the San Miguel Brewing School in the Philippines. In 1986, he placed third at the Versuchs-und Lehranstalt fur Brauerei (VLB) Brewing Course in Berlin, Germany. He was promoted to Assistant Brewmaster in 1987 and subsequently, to Brewmaster and Production Manager in 1990. In 1994, he became Brewing Technical Manager overseeing the day-to-day brewing operations of 11 San Miguel breweries in the Philippines, China, Indonesia and Vietnam.
Igot is a member of the Philippine Institute of Chemical Engineers, the Toastmasters Club (Philippines), and the University of the Philippines Beta Sigma Fraternity Alumni Association.
He graduated from the University of the Philippines in 1975 with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering. He currently resides in Montgomery County, Maryland with his wife and 3 children.
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