When you arrive at the premises of the brasserie de la Plaine, a vast hangar of the Valentine, in the 11th arrondissement of Marseille, a photo sits prominently on the front door: that of Losseny Doumbia alongside Emmanuel Macron. . At the beginning of the year, the young man was indeed awarded his prize for best apprentice Marseille brewer at the Elysée, during the Rabelais ceremony for young talents in gastronomy.
A highly symbolic surprise consecration for this 20-year-old Ivorian. In 2018, Losseny Doumbia left his native country to risk his life crossing the Mediterranean on a semi-rigid, like many other migrants, until he returned to Marseille and pushed the door of this company. The brewer returns for 20 minutes on this path strewn with pitfalls that he evokes, despite everything, with a smile.
What was your reaction when you learned that you had been named best apprentice brewer in France?
I thought it was a joke. It was something I had never imagined, finding myself there, next to the President of the Republic. It’s unique. Afterwards, I think it’s deserved. I made a lot of effort to find myself there. I came to this company in 2018 thanks to a lady I met in Marseille. She was a friend of Sylvain, who is my trainer. So I did a two-week internship. During my internship, I gave myself, and they made me sign an apprenticeship contract in logistics. But afterwards, my colleagues showed me the craft of brewing. Since then, here, I brew a lot more than I do logistics. I work the logistics at home. I didn’t even know how beer was made. I didn’t even know it was the malt that made the drink. And that’s what I really like. You make, it works, it doesn’t work, but you try.
How did you feel at the Elysée?
When you know my background, it’s quite exceptional. I was happy for everyone, my friends, my trainers. But I was sad too. Me, you know, I come from very, very far away. I left my country, Côte d’Ivoire, when I was 15. I left because there were too many problems there. The school was stopped. I didn’t tell my parents: I only told them of my departure once in Libya. This trip, we did it with three people and it was very hard. At the Elysée, I thought of them. This prize is a symbol: it is for all “clandos”. I represent them. It made me think of the life that others have here, in Marseille. Everyone has something to contribute, but they weren’t so lucky, like me. They remained in nothing. They too have potential, but they cannot express it.
Do you think you got lucky?
I think I was lucky, and at the same time, I gave myself that chance. Sometimes it was hard. I wanted to stop. I had a time in my life when I was lost. All my family is still in Ivory Coast, and sometimes I feel alone. But I said to myself: “If you stop, what will become of you? So, I said to myself that I had to continue. I confided a lot in my trainer. He was able to frame me, tell me what was good or not.
How do you envision the future?
I do not know. I can’t project myself. I can still see myself in this brewery for a few more years. It’s booming. I like it here. I want to stay so I can give back what my colleagues have taught and given me. I would like, one day, to open my own cellar and create my own beer. Her name will be Sly. It is the contraction of my first name and those of my parents. Everything I do is for them.