CBI033 - Drive-Through Booze and Revisiting Classic Beers with Leah Rainis

Leah Rainis is the Executive Director and the mind behind the Asheville Brewers Alliance (ABA). Starting her career in the investment industry, Leah worked in event management, which fostered her love of collaborating and bringing various people together to create something exciting. After a varied career in the brewing industry and following a road trip eating and drinking all over the US, she now lives in Asheville and uses her talents of connecting the right people across the brewing industry with the ABA.

Today, Leah joins me to share how the brewing community is coping in the current pandemic and the innovative ways they are adapting to new circumstances. She discusses how people are knowledge sharing and coming together to get through and the processes and products we see as a result. We discuss the changing market with the rise of ready to drink cocktails and hard seltzers and the drinks Leah is currently enjoying. She also explains how the pandemic is the perfect time to revisit those classic beers you may not have had for a while and the up and coming new products and flavors we can expect from brewers.

This week on Consuming the Craft:

  • How the brewing community is coping during the pandemic and what they are doing to adapt
  • Exciting innovations that are happening in the industry
  • How knowledge sharing within the Asheville Brewing Alliance is helping members
  • How the market is changing with ready to drink cocktails
  • The rise in hard seltzer from breweries as part of their non-beer products
  • How breweries are diversifying their portfolio
  • Booze Clues: AsomBroso La Rosa Reposado
  • The drinks that Leah is enjoying most right now
  • How the pandemic is the perfect time to revisit classic beers
  • New products and flavors coming from drinks producers

Connect with Leah Rainis:

  • Asheville Brewers Alliance website
  • Asheville Brewers Alliance on Instagram
  • Asheville Brewers Alliance on Twitter
  • Leah Rainis on LinkedIn
  • Leah Rainis on Instagram

This episode is brought to you by…

McConnell Farms - Taste the Way You Remember. Enjoy homemade ciders and ice cream made from only the best produce on the market. Visit the McConnell Farms website to learn more about our seasonal inventory and delicious creations you can make with our homegrown produce.

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