Very few in life are lucky enough to truly love what they do, and Merv Boyce, Alaskan's National Sales Manager, counts himself among them.
"I love this business, love what we do, and I have a great product to represent," says Merv, also affectionately and aptly described by his team as "Mervelous," "I still feel like I found a winning lottery ticket lying out in the street."
He enjoys his work so much that often you'll find him at his desk before 6:00 am -just ask his coworkers, who have requested he hold his phone calls until after 8:00 am, especially if he has just smoked them in a Brew Crew poker game the night before. 
Merv spent over 18 years in the restaurant business before joining a beer distributorship in Seattle. After a short time there, the opportunity to join Alaskan Brewing and move back to Spokane was an irresistible lure. "I returned to Spokane in 1998 and will be here until I retire," he says.
In his 13 years at Alaskan Brewing, Merv has spent a great deal of time with craft
beer distributors and retailers, and even brought many of them to Alaska. One of his favorite memories includes a visit to Yakutat with a group of wholesalers, one of whom had been talking to Merv about just such a trip for the previous seven years. However, once they got to Yakutat, the gentleman developed severe back problems and could not go out fishing with the rest of the group.
Not one to give up on the Alaskan fishing experience that easily, Merv went down to the lodge and requested a small kicker boat for fishing out in front of the lodge.
"I went back to the guest room, and told the him to get dressed . . . we're going fishing!" Merv assured the man that if his back started hurting, he'd run him back to the dock, no questions asked, but they fished all morning, trolling in front of the lodge. "When he hooked into a 25 lb King Salmon, the expression on his face - seeing that fish in the boat and the vast Alaskan landscape behind - that was priceless!"
An avid runner, Merv also spends time outdoors skiing, golfing and fishing. He dreams of someday owning a small cabin on a nearby lake, where he and his wife, Sheila, can spend time with their kids Kelsey (20), Ryan (17) and Peyton (13). Until then, his travel plans consist of a favorite family destination.
"We love to go to Central Washington each year, out near Grand Coulee Dam, and spend a week camping and boating as a family." He also plans have a seat at the World Series of Poker tournament in the near future, having honed his skills on countless fellow brewery employees.
It's not just the Alaskan lifestyle that inspires this guy. You'll always find a cold Alaskan IPA in Merv's fridge, but his favorite Alaskan beverage is the latest release from Alaskan's limited edition Pilot Series - Alaskan Imperial IPA. "I'll be consuming my fair share of this limited release I assure you." He'd also be the first guy order one for you too.
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