Nearly two decades after independence South Africa’s multi-billion dollar industry has been dominated by larger commercial beer makers such as SABMiller. But now there’s a growing popularity for craft beers made by smaller microbreweries which are opening across the country, Voice of America reported.

After struggling for three years to get investors Ndumiso Madlala, a master brewer with a background in chemical engineering, has now become the first black South African to venture into commercial beer making. His brand called ‘Soweto Gold’ was launched recently

Madlala plans to hire 150 workers, exclusively from Soweto, by the end of January. His small brewery will produce about three million liters of beer a year. The brew master of Soweto Gold says if this beer catches on in South Africa he hopes to eventually sell it in England and the United States.

“The determination and the career path that I followed actually helped me to gain a lot of experience which I am using now to start my own business,” he said. “They (South Africans) prefer a little bit of sweetness in the beer and they love fruity beers. It [Soweto Gold] is a craft beer. It is different because it is much more richer, it is very fruity.  Yes, it is less hoppy and it has a very nice lingering sweetness in the background.”