After an extensive career with the California State Legislature she began working for PicoBrew, a product development company in Seattle, WA that specialized in automated brewing equipment.
Shortly after she had heard about winning the AHA 2013 award she quickly accepted her job offer to be part of PicoBrew as Chief Brewing Office and recipe developer.
Her birth mother Colette, an Irish immigrant, met Johnson's father who was an African-American soldier stationed in Germany.
Johnson was particularly fascinated with her adoptive mother's beer stein collection which complemented the thriving European brewing scene.
Just prior to winning the National Homebrewer of the Year Award in 2013, Johnson relocated to Philadelphia where she attempted to reconnect with her birth father.
[8] Also following her relocation to Seattle, Johnson started working as the Brewmaster for the Bluebird Microcreamery and Brewery, which is a brewery/ice cream shop that specializes in dessert beers.