
Quench Your Own Thirst
Business Lessons Learned over a Beer or Two
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $14.99
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Jim Koch
-
By:
-
Jim Koch
About this listen
Founder of The Boston Beer Company, brewer of Samuel Adams Boston Lager, and a key catalyst of the American craft beer revolution, Jim Koch offers his unique perspective when it comes to business, beer, and turning your passion into a successful company or career.
In 1984, it looked like an unwinnable David and Goliath struggle: one guy against the mammoth American beer industry. When others scoffed at Jim Koch’s plan to leave his consulting job and start a brewery that would challenge American palates, he chose a nineteenth-century family recipe and launched Samuel Adams. Now one of America’s leading craft breweries, Samuel Adams has redefined the way Americans think about beer and helped spur a craft beer revolution.
In Quench Your Own Thirst, Koch offers unprecedented insights into the whirlwind ride from scrappy start-up to thriving public company. His innovative business model and refreshingly frank stories offer counterintuitive lessons that you can apply to business and to life.
Koch covers everything from finding your own Yoda to his theory on how a piece of string can teach you the most important lesson you’ll ever learn about business. He also has surprising advice on sales, marketing, hiring, and company culture. Koch’s anecdotes, quirky musings, and bits of wisdom go far beyond brewing. A fun, engaging guide for building a career or launching a successful business based on your passions, Quench Your Own Thirst is the key to the ultimate dream: being successful while doing what you love.
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
So You Want to Start a Brewery?
- The Lagunitas Story
- By: Tony Magee
- Narrated by: Brett Barry
- Length: 7 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
So You Want to Start a Brewery? is the first-person account of Tony Magee's gut-wrenching challenges and heart-warming successes in founding Lagunitas Brewing Company. In just 20 years, the company has grown from a seat-of-the-pants, one-man operation to be the fifth largest--and the fastest growing--craft brewer in the United States.
-
-
I did not even like beer before I read this book!
- By D. Bessire on 09-18-15
By: Tony Magee
-
Brewing Up a Business
- Adventures in Beer from the Founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery: 2nd Edition, Revised and Updated
- By: Sam Calagione
- Narrated by: Kris Koscheski
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Starting with nothing more than a home-brewing kit, Sam Calagione turned his entrepreneurial dream into a foamy reality in the form of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, one of America's best and fastest-growing craft breweries. In this newly updated second edition, Calagione offers a deeper real-world look at entrepreneurship and what it takes to operate and grow a successful business.
-
-
Honest and Straight forward business advice
- By Greg F on 08-02-24
By: Sam Calagione
-
Drink Beer, Think Beer
- Getting to the Bottom of Every Pint
- By: John Holl
- Narrated by: John Holl
- Length: 7 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Right here, right now is the best time in the history of mankind to be a beer drinker. Globally, beer culture is thriving and constantly innovating. Drinkers can order beer brewed with local yeast or infused with moondust. However, beer drinkers are also faced with uneven quality and misinformation about flavors. And the industry itself is suffering from growing pains, beset by problems such as unequal access to taps, skewed pricing, and sexism.
-
-
Can't miss did beer lovers
- By Mitch Muhs on 01-21-19
By: John Holl
-
Shoe Dog
- A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
- By: Phil Knight
- Narrated by: Norbert Leo Butz, Phil Knight - introduction
- Length: 13 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this candid and riveting memoir, for the first time ever, Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight shares the inside story of the company's early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world's most iconic, game-changing, and profitable brands.
-
-
Just read it. (or listen, whatever)
- By Dan D on 07-07-16
By: Phil Knight
-
Sam Walton
- Made in America
- By: John Huey, Sam Walton
- Narrated by: Henry Strozier
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Meet a genuine American folk hero cut from the homespun cloth of America's heartland: Sam Walton, who parlayed a single dime store in a hardscrabble cotton town into Wal-Mart, the largest retailer in the world. The undisputed merchant king of the late 20th century, Sam never lost the common touch. Here, finally, inimitable words. Genuinely modest, but always sure of his ambitions and achievements. Sam shares his thinking in a candid, straight-from-the-shoulder style. In a story rich with anecdotes and the "rules of the road" of both Main Street and Wall Street, Sam Walton chronicles the inspiration, heart, and optimism that propelled him to lasso the American Dream.
-
-
Capitalism Is The Way
- By Nathan Ruff on 04-14-19
By: John Huey, and others
-
The Secrets of Master Brewers
- Techniques, Traditions, and Homebrew Recipes for 26 of the World's Classic Beer Styles, from Czech Pilsner to English Old Ale
- By: Jeff Alworth, Stan Hieronymus
- Narrated by: Stephen Bowlby
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author Jeff Alworth takes serious beer aficionados on a behind-the-scenes tour of 26 major European and North American breweries that create some of the world's most classic beers. Learn how the Irish make stout, the secrets of traditional Czech pilsner, and what makes English cask ale unique by delving deep into the specific techniques, equipment, and geographical factors that shape these distinctive styles.
-
-
Great for Novice to Advanced Brewers
- By Vivien L. Steele on 08-20-18
By: Jeff Alworth, and others
-
So You Want to Start a Brewery?
- The Lagunitas Story
- By: Tony Magee
- Narrated by: Brett Barry
- Length: 7 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
So You Want to Start a Brewery? is the first-person account of Tony Magee's gut-wrenching challenges and heart-warming successes in founding Lagunitas Brewing Company. In just 20 years, the company has grown from a seat-of-the-pants, one-man operation to be the fifth largest--and the fastest growing--craft brewer in the United States.
-
-
I did not even like beer before I read this book!
- By D. Bessire on 09-18-15
By: Tony Magee
-
Brewing Up a Business
- Adventures in Beer from the Founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery: 2nd Edition, Revised and Updated
- By: Sam Calagione
- Narrated by: Kris Koscheski
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Starting with nothing more than a home-brewing kit, Sam Calagione turned his entrepreneurial dream into a foamy reality in the form of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, one of America's best and fastest-growing craft breweries. In this newly updated second edition, Calagione offers a deeper real-world look at entrepreneurship and what it takes to operate and grow a successful business.
-
-
Honest and Straight forward business advice
- By Greg F on 08-02-24
By: Sam Calagione
-
Drink Beer, Think Beer
- Getting to the Bottom of Every Pint
- By: John Holl
- Narrated by: John Holl
- Length: 7 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Right here, right now is the best time in the history of mankind to be a beer drinker. Globally, beer culture is thriving and constantly innovating. Drinkers can order beer brewed with local yeast or infused with moondust. However, beer drinkers are also faced with uneven quality and misinformation about flavors. And the industry itself is suffering from growing pains, beset by problems such as unequal access to taps, skewed pricing, and sexism.
-
-
Can't miss did beer lovers
- By Mitch Muhs on 01-21-19
By: John Holl
-
Shoe Dog
- A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
- By: Phil Knight
- Narrated by: Norbert Leo Butz, Phil Knight - introduction
- Length: 13 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this candid and riveting memoir, for the first time ever, Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight shares the inside story of the company's early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world's most iconic, game-changing, and profitable brands.
-
-
Just read it. (or listen, whatever)
- By Dan D on 07-07-16
By: Phil Knight
-
Sam Walton
- Made in America
- By: John Huey, Sam Walton
- Narrated by: Henry Strozier
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Meet a genuine American folk hero cut from the homespun cloth of America's heartland: Sam Walton, who parlayed a single dime store in a hardscrabble cotton town into Wal-Mart, the largest retailer in the world. The undisputed merchant king of the late 20th century, Sam never lost the common touch. Here, finally, inimitable words. Genuinely modest, but always sure of his ambitions and achievements. Sam shares his thinking in a candid, straight-from-the-shoulder style. In a story rich with anecdotes and the "rules of the road" of both Main Street and Wall Street, Sam Walton chronicles the inspiration, heart, and optimism that propelled him to lasso the American Dream.
-
-
Capitalism Is The Way
- By Nathan Ruff on 04-14-19
By: John Huey, and others
-
The Secrets of Master Brewers
- Techniques, Traditions, and Homebrew Recipes for 26 of the World's Classic Beer Styles, from Czech Pilsner to English Old Ale
- By: Jeff Alworth, Stan Hieronymus
- Narrated by: Stephen Bowlby
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author Jeff Alworth takes serious beer aficionados on a behind-the-scenes tour of 26 major European and North American breweries that create some of the world's most classic beers. Learn how the Irish make stout, the secrets of traditional Czech pilsner, and what makes English cask ale unique by delving deep into the specific techniques, equipment, and geographical factors that shape these distinctive styles.
-
-
Great for Novice to Advanced Brewers
- By Vivien L. Steele on 08-20-18
By: Jeff Alworth, and others
-
The Everything Store
- Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon
- By: Brad Stone
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 13 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Amazon.com started off delivering books through the mail. But its visionary founder, Jeff Bezos, wasn't content with being a bookseller. He wanted Amazon to become the everything store, offering limitless selection and seductive convenience at disruptively low prices. To do so, he developed a corporate culture of relentless ambition and secrecy that's never been cracked. Until now.
-
-
Did you know how bad it is to work for Amazon?
- By Shamu from New York on 12-07-13
By: Brad Stone
-
How I Built This
- The Unexpected Paths to Success from the World's Most Inspiring Entrepreneurs
- By: Guy Raz
- Narrated by: Guy Raz
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Great ideas often come from a simple spark: A soccer player on the New Zealand national team notices all the unused wool his country produces and figures out a way to turn them into shoes (Allbirds). A former Buddhist monk decides the very best way to spread his mindfulness teachings is by launching an app (Headspace). A sandwich cart vendor finds a way to reuse leftover pita bread and turns it into a multimillion-dollar business (Stacy’s Pita Chips).
-
-
GET THIS BOOK!
- By Mattye LaSuer on 01-16-21
By: Guy Raz
-
High-Hanging Fruit
- Build Something Great by Going Where No One Else WIll
- By: Mark Rampolla
- Narrated by: Mark Rampolla
- Length: 6 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Mark Rampolla filled a notebook with potential start-up ideas, his wife asked him some tough questions. What about this idea is exciting, beyond the possibility of a profit? How will it fit into a life that makes you and your family happy? How will it change the world? Eventually Mark found his great idea: coconut water. He had seen the developing world use coconut water, but this valuable resource was being discarded in the US. While taking on the beverage industry was a big goal - high-hanging fruit - it was worth the risk.
-
-
10 Chapter Infomercial
- By KIM WILLIAMSON on 02-16-20
By: Mark Rampolla
-
Delivering Happiness
- A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose
- By: Tony Hsieh
- Narrated by: Tony Hsieh
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this, his first audiobook, Tony Hsieh - the widely admired CEO of Zappos, the online shoe retailer -explains how he created a unique culture and commitment to service that aims to improve the lives of its employees, customers, vendors, and backers. Using anecdotes and stories from his own life experiences, and from other companies, Hsieh provides concrete ways that companies can achieve unprecedented success.
-
-
Delivering Spin
- By Marc L. Mintz on 08-06-10
By: Tony Hsieh
-
Grinding It Out
- The Making of McDonald's
- By: Ray Kroc, Robert Anderson
- Narrated by: Stephen Bel Davies
- Length: 6 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Few entrepreneurs can claim to have radically changed the way we live, and Ray Kroc is one of them. His revolutions in food-service automation, franchising, shared national training, and advertising have earned him a place beside the men and women who have founded not only businesses, but entire empires. But even more interesting than Ray Kroc the business man is Ray Kroc the man. Not your typical self-made tycoon, Kroc was 52 years old when he opened his first franchise.
-
-
great book annoying narration
- By Brandon on 12-20-18
By: Ray Kroc, and others
-
Onward
- How Starbucks Fought for Its Life Without Losing Its Soul
- By: Howard Schultz, Joanne Gordon
- Narrated by: Stephen Bowlby
- Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 2008, Howard Schultz, the president and chairman of Starbucks, made the unprecedented decision to return as CEO, eight years after he stepped down from daily oversight of the company to become chairman. Concerned that Starbucks had lost its way, Schultz was determined to help it return to its core values and restore not only its financial health, but also its soul.
-
-
Interesting, but a bit annoying
- By Carla on 06-13-11
By: Howard Schultz, and others
-
Small Giants
- Companies That Choose to Be Great Instead of Big, 10th Anniversary Edition
- By: Bo Burlingham
- Narrated by: Bo Burlingham, Sean Pratt
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's an axiom of business that great companies grow their revenues and profits year after year. Yet quietly, under the radar, a small number of companies have rejected the pressure of endless growth to focus on more satisfying business goals. Goals like being great at what they do, creating a great place to work, providing great customer service, making great contributions to their communities, and finding great ways to lead their lives. In Small Giants, veteran journalist Bo Burlingham takes us deep inside 14 such remarkable companies.
-
-
fantastic book for small company builders
- By Amazon Customer on 08-01-17
By: Bo Burlingham
-
Becoming Trader Joe
- How I Did Business My Way and Still Beat the Big Guys
- By: Joe Coulombe, Patty Civalleri - contributor
- Narrated by: Mark Smeby
- Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Joe Coulombe founded what would become Trader Joe’s in the late 1960s and helped shape it into the beloved, quirky food chain it is today. Realizing early on that he could not compete and win by playing the same game his bigger competitors were playing, he decided to build a store for educated people of somewhat modest means. In this way, Joe laid down a blueprint for other business owners to follow to build their own unique shopping experience that customers love, and a work environment that employees love being a part of.
-
-
Many mispronunciations
- By Maria Francesca on 06-26-21
By: Joe Coulombe, and others
-
Pour Your Heart into It
- How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time
- By: Howard Schultz, Dori Jones Yang
- Narrated by: Eric Conger
- Length: 2 hrs and 55 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The success of Starbucks is one of the most remarkable business stories in decades. Since 1987, the coffee merchant has grown from a single retail store on Seattle's waterfront to a company with more than 1,000 stores nationwide and a new one opening somewhere every business day. According to Fortune magazine, Starbucks "has changed everything...from our tastes to our language to the face of Main Street."
-
-
wish it wasn't
- By Melissa on 12-27-08
By: Howard Schultz, and others
-
Beer School
- A Crash Course in Craft Beer
- By: Jonny Garrett, Brad Evans
- Narrated by: Andy Cresswell
- Length: 2 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Welcome to Beer School, brought to you by the heroes of YouTube sensation the Craft Beer Channel, a guide to everything you need to know about the wide and wonderful beers of the world. In Beer School, Jonny and Brad explain the intricacies of the finest artisan craft brews, including: ales, lagers, porters, stouts, IPSs, and bitters.
-
-
Good stuff!
- By Nathan Finch on 05-08-24
By: Jonny Garrett, and others
-
Operation Brewery
- A Step-by-Step Guide to Building a Brewery on a Budget
- By: Dan Norris, Eddie Oldfield, Mike McGovern
- Narrated by: Dan Norris
- Length: 3 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In July of 2014, Dan, Eddie, and Govs sat at a bar talking shit about making beer. Two years later, they'd opened their own brewery on the Gold Coast in Australia called Black Hops. It's been an epic journey, from "the little situation" in China, to a collaboration with the biggest entertainment franchise on earth, and finally - launching a brewery. Operation Brewery tells their story and gives you every last detail on how to build your own brewery on a budget.
-
-
Great adventure story
- By Andrew E. Mossberg on 02-26-23
By: Dan Norris, and others
-
Play Nice but Win
- A CEO's Journey from Founder to Leader
- By: Michael Dell, James Kaplan
- Narrated by: Michael Dell
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1984, soon-to-be college dropout Michael Dell hid signs of his fledgling PC business in the bathroom of his University of Texas dorm room. Almost 30 years later, at the pinnacle of his success as founder and leader of Dell Technologies, he found himself embroiled in a battle for his company’s survival. What he’d do next could ensure its legacy — or destroy it completely.
-
-
Not perfect, but worth a listen
- By James S. on 11-09-21
By: Michael Dell, and others
Critic reviews
"Koch takes you into his confidence with an affable, gravelly voice, detailing lessons learned; frank stories of mistakes and failures; and thoughts on how a focus on quality, community, and innovation have propelled his work. You don’t have to be a hophead to glean insights, as Koch’s down-to-earth language, deadpan humor, and clear passion for beer help pull listeners in (his loving description of tasting the company’s signature Sam Adams Boston Lager charmingly borders on the erotic). With short chapters and amusing anecdotes, this is an enjoyable listen for budding entrepreneurs, craft-brew drinkers, and anyone who enjoys learning the ins and outs of a unique industry." -Booklist
What listeners say about Quench Your Own Thirst
Highly rated for:
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Chris Smith
- 10-02-16
Great Quick Book
Didn't have to be a beer lover to enjoy this book. Jim Koch tells his story about the American Dream.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Dirty White Boy
- 11-07-16
Excellent beer, Great book!
I've always loved Samuel Adams beer, and figured that Jim had a love for making it. Knowing that he narrated his own book makes it a little more special, to me. Very inspiring.
Thanks for what you've done for craft brewing, Jim.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Tyde
- 07-25-19
fantastic
coming close to just starting it over to listen to it twice. Thank you Jim
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- EBud
- 08-06-18
Enjoying a cold one with Jim
Really great book. Being narrated by Jim Koch was great. He has a great sense of humor and some great insights on business and beer.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Darryl J. Franklin
- 12-02-16
a great audiobook for the car
This is a book I intend to buy for a few people. It is a great read even if you have no interest whatsoever. in beer or Sam Adams
Jim has a lot of great things to say about starting and running a business. tHe is also an excellent narrator of his own book. If the beer thing doesn't work out he can always get a gig narrating as he does it better than most of the ones I listen to.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Sheppard McConnell
- 01-23-18
Made me thirsty.
If you could sum up Quench Your Own Thirst in three words, what would they be?
Inspiration to Create
Who was your favorite character and why?
N/A
Which character – as performed by Jim Koch – was your favorite?
Himself... Obviously.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
Yes. Goosebumps of inspiration.
Any additional comments?
Loving beer the way I do and being stuck in Oklahoma with the lack of great beer selection this book makes me want to read and learn more about the industry. Having just started home brewing myself a few months ago I take inspiration that your passion can become your career. I would also like to say I enjoy his voice even though he pokes fun at himself in the reading of the book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Yogi
- 09-04-16
totally insperational
it's great that jim reads his own book. being humble, visionary, and with a big batch of candour he illustraits not only his companies story but also a vast list of business lessons learned.
as an entrepenour I found this book to be very educative and supportive of creative but yet simple ideas.
its highly recommended (excuse my typos I wrote this review vis my mobile)
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 05-31-18
Fantastic and inspiring, i truly enjoyed it.
Have not enjoyed a book as much in a very long time. i might audio read this again.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 06-04-23
Powerful entrepreneurship book
So much wisdom applicable to any business packed in a catching story. Even for me, not an American, I feel proud for the author and the brand. Can't wait to go to Boston and drink the beer again!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mary K
- 05-20-16
Great Story!
This book is not one that you want to read if you are looking for advice on starting or growing a business. While you may pick up some helpful insight here and there, it's not that kind of book. What it is is a real-life success story that recounts the good, the bad and the ugly of an entrepreneur starting and growing what would become an almost $1B business. Jim Koch narrates the book himself and talks in detail about his journey - including funny anecdotes along the way. He has truly gained my respect. I definitely recommend this book!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
4 people found this helpful