Beer Guys Radio Craft Beer Podcast: Recent Episodes

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This week, we’ve got brewery shutdowns, tax trouble, distributor bankruptcies, fading beer brands, political drama, and an endangered brewing tradition involving free candy.

We start with the troubling news that Salted Nut Rolls may be endangered. For brewers, these are more than just a gas station snack. Grain suppliers have been known to toss free Salted Nut Rolls into grain orders, and over the years they have become a bit of a brewing legend. If they disappear, brewers may have to face the horrifying possibility of ordering thousands of pounds of malt without receiving a complimentary candy bar.

From there, we get into the shutdown of Terrapin Brewery and what it means for one of Georgia’s most recognizable beer brands. Terrapin has been part of the craft beer landscape for decades, so we take a look at how things reached this point and what could happen next.

There’s also more drama surrounding Ballast Point. The brewery has changed hands, expanded, contracted, and survived a billion-dollar acquisition that became one of the biggest cautionary tales in craft beer. Now there are new questions about whether Ballast Point is in serious trouble again or possibly finished altogether.

21st Amendment Brewery is dealing with a massive tax bill, Minocqua Brewing has had its license revoked, and Bud Light continues to lose ground. We look at what is happening with each of these stories and whether Bud Light’s decline is finally beginning to level off or if the brand still has further to fall.

We also check in on Conservative Dad’s Ultra Right Beer. The brand arrived with a lot of attention, plenty of political messaging, and big promises about becoming an alternative to Bud Light. So where is it now, and did it ever become a serious beer company?

Meanwhile, the second-largest beer distributor in the United States has filed for bankruptcy. That is a massive development with potential consequences for breweries, retailers, employees, and drinkers across the country. We break down what happened and why distributor problems can ripple through the entire beer industry.

Finally, we lighten things up by asking a very important question: What exactly is a Pennsylvania Swankey? Is it a beer, a cocktail, an old regional drink, or something that sounds far more exciting than it actually is?

Grab a beer and join us as we work through another week of strange, frustrating, and occasionally ridiculous beer news.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Happy Holidays, y'all!

Recently we got together to celebrate Christmas in July. We've heard the term for a long time and just thought it was something that was really nothing, but apparently it has an origin story and we'll share that with you.

To celebrate we did the only appropriate thing. On the 25th of July we sat down and cracked into all 12 of the Bruery's 12 Beers of Christmas, in order. Way back in 2024 Brian acquired this set and it took us a couple of years to come together and enjoy but here we are.

We'll share our tasting notes and favorites. Let us know yours. Cheers!

The beers...

• Partridge In A Pear Tree| Belgian Quadrupel with spices | ABV: 12.0%
• 2 Turtle Doves | Belgian Strong Dark Ale Brewed with Orange Peel and Spices | ABV: 10.6%
• 3 French Hens | Oaked Belgian-Style Dark Ale | ABV: 10.0%
• 4 Calling Birds | Belgian-style Dark Strong Ale with Spices | ABV: 11.1%
• 5 Golden Rings | Belgian-Style Golden Ale with Pineapple and Spices | ABV: 11.7%
• 6 Geese-A-Laying | Belgian-Style Dark Ale with Cape Gooseberries | ABV: 11.7%
• 7 Swans-A-Swimming | Belgian-style Quadrupel Ale | ABV: 9.1%
• 8 Maids-A-Milking | Belgian-style Imperial Milk Stout | ABV: 11.3%
• 9 Ladies Dancing | Belgian Strong Dark Ale Brewed with cacao nibs, milk sugar, coffee, and vanilla | ABV: 11.0%
• 10 Lords-A-Leaping | Dark imperial wit ale brewed with dried apples and spices | ABV: 10.8%
• 11 Pipers Piping | Scotch-style ale brewed with Candi sugar and coriander | ABV: 11.0%
• 12 Drummers Drumming | Belgian-style quadrupel ale with bourbon barrel-aged old ale | ABV: 12.0%

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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This week, we start on a somber note as we remember Alan Sprints, founder of Hair of the Dog Brewing and one of the true pioneers of American craft beer. Sprints helped define what bold, unconventional brewing could look like, and his influence can still be found in breweries and beer cellars across the country.

From there, we move into beer politics. The Teamsters are pushing for a massive 75% tariff on imported beer, a proposal that could have a major impact on breweries, distributors, retailers, and anyone who enjoys grabbing a European lager without taking out a small loan. We break down what’s behind the request and what it could mean for the beer aisle.

Vermont breweries also scored a significant victory on self-distribution, giving smaller producers more control over how they get their beer into the hands of drinkers. It’s a development that could help local breweries compete, grow, and avoid some of the headaches that come with the traditional distribution system.

Elsewhere, Oktoberfest beers have already started showing up on shelves, because apparently summer is over the moment the beer industry decides it is. We discuss the annual race to release fall seasonals earlier and earlier—and whether anyone is actually ready for Märzen weather yet.

Goose Island has unveiled the 2026 Bourbon County Brand Stout lineup, bringing another round of barrel-aged variants, anticipation, debate, and inevitable bottle-hunting. We take a look at this year’s releases and decide which ones sound exciting, which ones sound questionable, and which ones we’ll probably buy anyway.

In BrewDog news, James Watt is reportedly trying to buy the company again. Yes, again. We revisit the ongoing BrewDog drama and try to figure out what another Watt-led takeover attempt could mean for the brewery, its employees, and the brand’s already complicated reputation.

Finally, Twisted Tea has introduced a split pack made for breakups. Because when a relationship ends, the most important thing is apparently making sure everyone gets an equal share of the hard iced tea.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We crack open another one and dive straight into our Beers of the Week before tackling the age-old debate: is there really just one best local brewery, or are we all just fiercely loyal to whoever's closest to the house? From there we take a lap around the beer world — the 2026 US Beer Open Championship results, a Senate race with an unexpectedly beer-adjacent name in Kleban, and the ongoing trade war fallout from the CANADA Act that's got our imports on edge.

Then things get weird (in the best way): amino acid-boosted beers are apparently a thing now, so we try to figure out if that's genius or just gym-bro marketing wearing a hop cone costume. We give a well-earned shoutout to Truck & Tap before turning to whether Gen Z is actually drinking more than we give them credit for. And because no episode of ours is complete without the macro-brew circus, we close it out with Natty Light's "CoolShed" and Busch's genuinely unhinged "Live Worm Can."

Crack one open with us, this one's got a little bit of everything.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Christmas in July, a 21-Foot Tallboy, and Farewell to a Brewing Legend

We're back from the 4th and comparing notes on cookouts, coolers, and what we actually drank while the burgers burned. There's also some obligatory World Cup chatter, because apparently we're a soccer podcast now, plus some fun stats on just how much beer this tournament is moving.

Then we take a stand. Every year the autumn seasonals creep earlier and earlier, and this year we're saying nein. No pumpkin, no Oktoberfest, not yet. Instead we're flipping the script entirely and cracking Christmas beer in July, because if the calendar doesn't matter anymore, we're going all the way.

In beer news, it's a busy one. Voodoo Ranger is unleashing a 21-foot tallboy tanker on the East Coast for the G-Force Tanker Tour, and it's kicking off right here in Atlanta. Costco is quietly killing off its Kirkland Signature beers as the Deschutes partnership comes to an end, so grab that Helles Lager while you can. We also tackle the big question of the week: is a $20 4-pack ever actually worth it?

Then things get heavier. Humphrey Smith, the famously eccentric owner of Samuel Smith's, has died at 81, and we raise a glass to one of the strangest and most stubborn figures in brewing history. Untitled Art is reportedly shutting down, Lost Coast Brewery is up for sale as founder Barbara Groom looks to retire, Ballast Point abruptly closed its San Francisco taproom, and we've got the latest on the never-ending Anchor Brewing saga, where there are signs of life at the Potrero Hill brewery but still no beer coming out.

Grab a pint (or a Christmas ale, we won't judge) and settle in.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Big thanks to Coach Rogers for the show idea!

This year America turns 250, and we figured there's no better way to celebrate than to crack open the history books (and a few cold ones) and trace the whole wild story of beer in this country.

We start all the way back in 1612 with the first commercial brewery in New Amsterdam, then jump into how beer became a genuine act of political rebellion in the lead up to the Revolution. Turns out the Sons of Liberty were planning the Tea Party over pints of local ale, and George Washington had his own version of "Buy American." We even found a transcription of Washington's actual home brew recipe, and we sample a modern version from Talea Brewing and the NY Public Library.

From there we trace the German immigration wave that gave us lagers (and a literal riot in Chicago over Sunday beer sales), the refrigeration and pasteurization breakthroughs that made national beer brands possible, and the gut punch of Prohibition that nearly wiped the whole industry out.

Then we get into the comeback. The three tier system, the first beer can, Fritz Maytag saving Anchor Brewing, the Miller Lite "tastes great, less filling" boom, and the moment that changed everything for guys like us: Jimmy Carter legalizing homebrewing in 1978. From there it's a straight line to the IPA arms race, the IBU wars, the late 90s shakeout, the hazy NEIPA revolution, and 2015 when American breweries finally broke the record set back in 1873.

It's a lot of ground to cover, but that's kind of the point. 250 years of beer deserves a proper toast.

Grab a pint, settle in, and let's talk about how we got here.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Archaeologists in Scotland just unearthed a 1,100 year old Norse drinking hall on Orkney, complete with stone benches, sea views, and possibly the personal watering hole of a legendary Viking chieftain. Meanwhile, in Wisconsin, Minocqua Brewing Co. just had $25,000 worth of beer seized by state officials in a tax dispute the brewery's outspoken owner claims is political payback from the governor, and now there's a lawsuit to match.

On the science side, a new study throws a wrench into "gluten-free" beer claims, revealing some labeled options in Germany still carry detectable gluten residue that standard tests miss entirely. That's bad news if you're brewing or buying gluten-free and assuming zero risk.

Then we head to Boston, where Scottish World Cup fans have reportedly drained planes, bars, and entire beer store fridges dry ahead of their opener against Haiti. Sam Adams needed an emergency resupply to keep up.

Plus: Tilray's plans to pour SweetWater, 10 Barrel, Terrapin, and other craft brands through BrewDog's UK taps, and the most baffling beer collab of the year: Heinz and Heineken's official six pack featuring five beers and one bottle of ketchup. We rank it against our own dream pairings (a PBR Pickle Pack, anyone?).

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Are you ready for the World Cup?

As beer nerds this would have been a great opportunity to capitalized on the World Cup hype. Maybe try to find a beer from every country playing? That sounds like a lot of work. Best we can do is some stats.

The "experts" say World Cup Fans will drink about a Billion pints of beer over the 31 days of the World Cup. I can believe that. But, a stat they compared it to was 2.6 Billion beers are consumed during the Super Bowl. You sure about that? We dug in a bit and it seems I'm not the only one that's skeptical. 2.6 Billion beers is a LOT of beer, and in one day, on a Sunday? Some say the number is closer to 500-600k, OK, maybe. We do like our beer and football.

Brian recaps his Kentucky trip that was a lot more bourbon heavy than last time. He got into some good stuff. And his wife got her hair did. Win-win.

And we're on the lookout to score the Coors Tallerboy. It looks like a triple-length can of beer to the uninformed eye but it's actually a koozie that holds 3 cans of beer. We need this.

In other news Atwater brewing is being sold back to one of the former owners, scientists are brewing a mummy beer, a 100-year old barrel sees new life.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Happy 250th, America!We're less than a month away from America's 250th birthday and there are some cool beers releasing to celebrate.

George Washington took some good notes on his beers and the NY Public Library collaborated with Talea Brewing to bring his "Small Beer" back to life. They brewed a version as true to the original recipe as possible and another that's revised to take advantage of modern materials and methods. Naturally, Boston Beer Co. / Sam Adams is releasing some patriotic brews as well, a limited 4 pack with recipes from four of the founding fathers.

If you want to take a shot at brewing your own presidential beer the National Archives have Obama's recipe for Honey Ale available online.

Vermonters are on the verge of having more friendly self-distribution laws. This is a fight many states have, we know it all too well in Georgia. In most states the distributors have the bulk of the power (and money) in the three-tier system so it's a tough battle. Congrats, Vermont.

If you're looking to take the family out for dinner and want an option other than Chuck E. Cheese or McDonald's we have good news for you - Hooter's is revamping their practices to be more family friendly. They say they were always meant to be a family restaurant but over the years many locations lost their way. So round up the kids and head to your local Hooter's for some wings... or breasts.

In other news a record-breaking 168 pack of beer launches, the world's largest craft beer museum opens in China, and Miller puts a "Juke Keg" up for auction on eBay.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Nate's on the road this week and Brian and I start off praising the glory of a good night's sleep. It's quite elusive these days, so we appreciate it even more. It can really work wonders.

We also discovered Haas Euphorics and chat about those. Botanical extract meant to be added to finished beer. They've got blends to add a rounded tropical profile or just a single fruit note if that's your thing. We're not sure what brewers are using these, we'll have to do some digging.

We just can't seem to get rid of James Watt. After the sale of BrewDog he's planning to open a new brewery called "Second Best." Is anyone excited for this? Sounds like he plans to give shares to the people that got the shaft in the Equity for Punks program. We'll begrudgingly follow this news to see where it goes.

On a more positive note it sounds like there's been some activity at the Anchor Brewery. Not much to report now outside of speculation but local reported seeing contractors there for things like refrigeration work. We'll follow this news with much more interest.

In other news scientists unearthed a 2,300 year old bottle of beer in pretty good shape for its age, Voodoo Brewing faces trouble but franchises should stay open, proof that Nubians drank antibiotic beer, and your Blue Moon is gonna get even more blue, temporarily.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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In this week's show...

• Pabst Is Calling It Quits on Schlitz
• Bale Breaker Buys Seattle's Cloudburst
• Gruit: We've Got It All Wrong
• Beer Drama: Armed Forces Brewery Lawsuits
• France Drinking More Beer Than Wine?
• Macro Beer Marketing Shenanigans Roundup

We forgot to publish this one on time so we're being lazy with the notes. We're ashamed but here we are.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We need a nap.Must have been something in the air this week as all of us seemed to be struggling getting a good night's rest. I remember my youth, way back in the late 1900s, and 4 hours of sleep on a concrete slab and I was good as new. Maybe that kind of activity is why it's a whole damn project to get a good rest these days. Zzz.....

Right in line with our chatter last week 10 Barrel reached out to us about some of their "functional beverages." That's the word we couldn't think of last week. They've got an NA RTD cocktail now that has guarana, ginseng, caffeine, mushrooms, and sea salt in it. We're not sure we need an energy RTD, but we're down to try it.

In the Apple Beer Battle we didn't know existed Kestone Light comes out swinging with "the most American" apple beer you can find. Take that, Busch! This reminded us of Natural Light's Naturday's, something we enjoyed sitting on the beach in FL. Good times.

Sad beer news this week that UK pubs are really struggling these days and closing at an alarming rate. With their pub culture that's some grave news. If everything wasn't so damn expensive these days maybe they could keep those pubs full.

Positive news though, Creature Comforts Brewing is growing and will surpass 100,000 barrels brewed this year as they also expand their spirits offerings. More good news from Maine Beer Co. as they announce they're doing well and planning a large expansion.

In other news Yoko Ono shrieks a lawsuit at a small brewer and Ball Corp. says their can supply is mostly spoken for this year, and possibly in 2027.

Wild stuff.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Gas, wings, beer... everything is too expensive.The wild times continue and everything is too expensive. I had to get a loan to fill up my tank this week, and 2nd mortgage for a six-pack. Is Two Buck Chuck even two bucks anymore? Doubtful.

With the rising costs of everything the tradition of pre-gaming is back. Knocking back a few before you head out for an evening can save a good chunk on your drink bill. It's just good financial sense. Drink wherever you want to, just keep support those breweries. Drinking everywhere is on the decline, even the Czech Republic reported it's at an all time low. Oof.

The results of the World Beer Cup are in and we break it down a bit. Some interesting details from the categories to the countries winning medals. Are any of your favorites on the list?

As expected the OG Fat Tire is making a return, for a limited time, at least. We call it McRibbing. Hyping a popular item for a limited return to get the fans to buy it. It works, and not just for beer or pork sandwiches. Even more rare than McRibbing is pulling a Lazarus. But Iron Hill Brewery seems to be doing just that, with the original founder as part of the team. They said they'll be streamlined this time around. We're curious to see what happens here.

Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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This week, we let the beer do the thinking.

We kick things off with our Beers of the Week before diving headfirst into chaos: breaking down malt liquor for the uninitiated, introducing a dangerously fun new boilermaker (hello, Naughty Chouffe), and reacting to big industry moves like Sapporo scooping up Stone Brewing.

From there, it’s a whirlwind—saying goodbye to local staples, questioning whether high gas prices might actually help beer, and geeking out over the art of the Japanese sharp pour. Along the way, we’ve got shoutouts, strange trends (yes, pickle beer is real), and one absolutely ancient beer tab that has to be heard to be believed.

It’s part beer news, part deep dive, part “what are we even talking about anymore?”—and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Home distilling may be coming soon, legally!Some big news this week as the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of ‌Appeals in New Orleans declared the ban on home distilling unconstitutional. Now this doesn't mean we can all run out and get our gear to start making whiskey, some states (like Georgia) have bans in place on top of the federal ban. The reason it was overturned is interesting, too. Not a free card to get distilling, but a step in the right direction.

Boston Beer Co. is facing a big lawsuit from one of the suppliers for not buying as many cans as they committed to, $175 Million worth. That's a lotta cans.

The Brewers Association has announce the 2025 list of Top 50 craft breweries. We do enjoy seeing this list each year, but we take it with a grain of salt. There are a lot of the big companies buying up breweries that make the list, like Tilray, so the info is a bit skewed. Still, some pretty great breweries are on the list as well.

In other news... Bapple is back, back again. The Guinndex is keeping pint prices in check. Pabst collabs on a pickle beer. And 12.5% of all beer dollars go to one brewery group.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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You see that? Episode 500. Crazy.We've been running our mouths about beer for over a decade now. What a time it has been. Thanks for sharing it with us!

Big news for the beer world this week as it was announced that Mitch Steele would be joining Abita Brewing. Mitch is best known for his time at Stone Brewing and also co-founded New Realm Brewing here in Atlanta. He's been a very active member of our craft beer community and we'll miss having him around, but he seems like a great match for Abita and we're curious to see what they'll do together.

Copacking seems to be a hot item now. Many breweries are leaning on it pretty heavily for growth. It's part of Abita's growth strategy, Tilray has worked it into their model, and Firestone Walker is partnering with Trumer Pils for their US production. Is this a good way to stay afloat in the modern beverage climate? I guess we'll see.

In "tech" news this week Heineken has created a device they're calling The Clinker. You put it on your beer glass and when you clink with another user it can share your social media profiles and music playlists. I hate this idea, what do you think?

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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One last report this week on the numbers for BrewDog's sale to Tilray. The deal is done and it's wild to see where it landed.

Nate's back after an adventure through the Midwest. Lots of breweries along the way and he naturally brought some back to share.

Brian shares a "Boilermaker of the Week." He's a bit obsessed but we'll let him at it, he's not hurting anyone.

You remember Innis & Gunn? Seems they were hot stuff a decade or so ago. They had some tasty offerings. Well, they went bust, but they were bought and the beer should keep flowing. We'll have to keep an eye out for them

We talk beer and taxes and historical beer prices. How much was a 6-pack when you turned 21?

In other news... pulling CO2 out of the air, special Craft Malt category at the 2026 GABF, and we "invent" Foam Toppers.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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In this episode, we kick things off with a surprise Irish whiskey that caught us off guard, then quickly pivot into venting about gas prices and the reality of celebrating without the usual green beer gimmicks. Somewhere along the way, we tell you why you should follow Garron (trust us, he’s “delicious”) and break down our Beers of the Week.

We revisit the legend of the infamous “4th segment” before jumping into industry news, including Tilray and BrewDog making moves with U.S. acquisitions and Sycamore reopening as Club West Brewing. We also give a shoutout to Truck & Tap and check out some legit green beers from Phantom and Lindeman’s.

From there, we zoom out a bit—talking about how non-alcoholic beer is oddly becoming an inflation tracker in the UK, taking a nostalgic look at the lifestyles of high-earning 1980s hired guns, and discussing why craft beer might be cooling on cans. We also dig into how Guinness helped pioneer scientific statistics long before most people realize.

To wrap it all up, we explore the discovery of a 100-year-old beer cave in Iowa and react to George Clooney jumping into the non-alcoholic beer game.

It’s beer, news, history, and plenty of tangents—just the way we like it. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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It is indeed a lovely day for a Guinness.

Despite all the madness in the world today it's nice that we have occasions to come together for a pint or two. St. Patrick's Day makes everyone Irish. Wear you green, grab a pint of Guinness, have an Americanized meal of corned beef and cabbage, and trade in your cheers for sláinte. You've earned it.

We have a special treat this year as Colm O'Connor from the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin joined us on the show. We learn about the festivities going down at the brewery and some of what makes Guinness special as we chat about some of the social media trends around this legendary beer.

In keeping with tradition we also share some news and stats, lore and legends of the holiday. Sláinte indeed.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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We just can't get these guys outta the news...

That's right, more BrewDog news. This one caught me off guard but maybe it shouldn't have. Tilray continues to stockpile breweries, and they got this dog for cheap. Let's see how it goes.

In funner news, we had a bottle share last weekend. Good times, it's been way too long. We had some sour beers, grilled meats, played some cards, and smoked some cigars. You should have been there.

We've got a new hop out of Australian, or at least a new named hop - Luna. It's a fruity blend and suggested for use in lagers. Interesting.

In the legislative world our Georgia beer bill failed. We used to that, but it still stings every time. On a bigger scale the CHEERS Act returns, pushing for more eco-friendly draft systems.

Next week... our livestream will be on Thursday to accommodate a special guest. Colm O’Connor, Guinness Brewery Ambassador from the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. He'll join us for our St. Patrick's Day show and it's sure to be a great time.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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Tilray strikes a deal that we're OK with.. for now.

Big news this week is that Tilray has struck a deal to brew and distribute several Carlsberg beers. From our point of view this is good to keep folks working at the breweries in their portfolio, and we love that. Let's see how it goes.

The FBI had some beer drama this week when Kash Patel chugged a beer while celebrating with the US Men's hockey team at the Olympics in Italy. Folks said he had work to be doing and shouldn't be wasting taxpayer dollars. We get that but if (big if) he was there on official business and happened to get the chance to hang with the team and celebrate we won't hold it against him.

We also talk about one of our favorite topics again, Gen Z's drinking habits. We're watching them like ants in an ant farm. This week, where they do spend money when their drinking and a classic tradition they think is cringe. Damn you, Gen Z!

Some chaos in Mississippi after a state ABC warehouse upgrade. Apparently the software that runs their conveyor belts has some bugs in it and has caused a huge backlog, like places not getting any liquor. They're currently working through the backlog but no news on fixing the issue.

In another news... super heavy beer mug challenges, the Topo's gone dry like Mississippi, and more tariff talk.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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We open the show with some sad news. Tim Very, drummer for Manchester Orchestra, died unexpectedly at just 42. We didn't know Tim well, but in our interactions he was always happy and super friendly. The death was unexpected and no cause has been reported. We're all big fans of their music and were saddened by the news. We wish all the best to his bandmates, family, and friends.

Curling is hot news right now. Olympic drama, guys curling cases of beer. I mean, it is an Olympic sport but from the stories of my Canadian friends it sounds like it's much like joining a bowling league here in the US. Get together and have a little fun while you drink some beers. Now that's what I call "training for the Olympics."

Speaking of sports... the Super Bowl was good for beer sales. No shocker there. Super Bowl parties and beer are a match made in heaven. I'll be concerned when I hear beer sales went down before Super Bowl Sunday. Definite sign of the apocalypse.

We also got some more chicken wing drama of the boneless variety with a guy suing Buffalo Wild Wings for fraud, and some hard data on the Chicken Wing Index. We got facts, y'all.

BrewDog is almost too easy of a target. Are y'all tired of hearing about them? I kind of like it, it's always some stupidity that they likely created themselves. They entertain me. The latest is that they're up for sale, quick sale apparently. Let's see what happens.

In other news... Boston Beer Co. to close a brewery we didn't know they owned and Australians are big mad about short pours.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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In this episode...

• Bottlesharing and Amaro-Inspired Stouts
• Dropping By Frog Rock Brewing
• Wholesalers vs. Brewers Association Takes
• Surprising 2025 N/A Beer Insights
• Generational Booze Stats
• 2026 Edition of Beer Style Guidelines Out
• Political Beer Drama in Wisconsin
• 150-Year Old Beer Found in Arizona
• Bear Poop Beer For The Super Bowl

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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2026 shaping up to be the year of convenience store beer. It's got Goldman Sachs feeling particularly bullish. They're throwing around "buy" recommendations on beer stocks. We're obviously long on beer. And by that I mean, Brian is driving the sales of Long Beers at Atlanta-area convenience stores.

BrewDog is also all over news lately, and in keeping with tradition it's all bad. James Watt- is he coming back? Did he ever really leave? Does anyone care? Did anyone know they had a distillery? All these questions and more are asked in this episode.

And then there's 44-year old bottle of bourbon that set an auction record, and study that raises doubts about neo-prohibitionist alcohol claims. Take that, activist teetotalers.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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70% of people doing Dry January are liars.

Here's one I find hard to believe. Apparently 70% of people taking part in Dry January so they won't go back to drinking. C'mon, you ain't fooling me. Maybe they asked them like a week into January and they were feeling good and high and mighty and thought they would keep it up, but I just don't see that many people calling it quits. We'll see what the numbers tell us.

Some news that didn't shock us this week is that former Rogue employees are suing the company claiming they didn't proper followed proper procedure per the WARN Act that says you have to notify employees of larger companies before a plant closure effecting 50 or more people. (I think it was 50.) Considering the company is going (went) out of business there may be exceptions in play here. Another that we'll see how it develops.

The oldest monastic brewery in the world has been sold. Weltenburg Abbey in Bavaria has been brewing for 1,000 years and they're being bought by Munich's Schneider Weisse. Another sign of the times but sad considering all the brewery has been through.

In other news, Beer Brulee is trending, Brian gets a new t-shirt, the Most Interesing Man in the World is coming back, and The WHO thinks beer is too cheap. Whatever.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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We got new drinking rules, Y'all!

New federal dietary guidelines came out in the US recently and there are some changes to the recommendation on alcohol consumption. Rather than the old 1 drink for women, 2 drink for men it's been changed to "Drink Less." That's it, just an ambiguous suggestion to drink less. Do with that what you will.

And we've found a loophole to comply, along with another Guinness trend - The "60/40." Apparently some pubs are mixing 60% regular Guinness with 40% of the NA variety. Technically this would meet the new guidelines and also provide some justification to say you're doing Dry January. I mean, you are drinking NA beer, right?

Firestone Walker is celebrating a big birthday as they turn 30. They do good work and it's one of the few breweries not in Georgia that I'd love to see here. Maybe one day.

In other news we've got another Sycamore update (which I promise will be the last one unless something notable happens), crazy laws don't allow vintage dates on cider and mead, and Bapple is coming back, Baby!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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Did you miss us?

Seems like forever since we did a show. Hope you had a nice Christmas and New Year! 2026 is starting off exhausting, good thing there's beer.

We probably should have made a bigger deal of this but with all the other stuff in our lives we didn't get to throw a big party. But, we turned 10! That's right, 10 whole years of Beer Guys Radio. It's been a crazy ride.

Of course with the new year comes the calls for Dry January. We chat about the stats on who's participating, and what their success may look like as well as potential loopholes for staying dry. Our vote? Enjoy your beers responsibly, as always. Your breweries need you to keep going and if everyone took a month off it would be a heavy hit. If you do choose to skip the booze maybe go check out their NA offerings, or grab a meal or two.

It seems alcohol sales were up over the holidays, but of course that's followed by the aforementioned Dry January. We'll still take any positive news available.

In other news... a beer that's also a vaccine, spent yeast helps lab-grown meat, and more updates on the Sycamore Brewing fallout.

Cheers! Happy New Year!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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We start the show this week reminiscing the days of chasing beers. Brews like KBS, CBS, BCBS (I see a trend here) were hard to come by and disappeared quickly. Now, they sit on shelves getting dusty. Do we have too much good beer?

We correct some bad intel we got recently. It seems that Anchor Brewing isn't leaving San Francisco and never intended to. American Craft Beer used AI to create their article and it got some info wrong. Never trust AI.

We also heard of the horrible charges against the founder of Sycamore Brewing. Initial a single charge but more has been added. And it looks really, really bad.

Note: Sycamore made the Top 3 in our Holiday Beer show. The show was recorded and scheduled for release prior to the news breaking.

Irish Stouts seem to be having a moment. First Guinness said they're doing well and now Murphy's said things are going swimmingly. What happened that made these dry stouts have a moment?

ABInBev is making some changes. They'll close some breweries and sell others. All about efficiency in a tightening sector.

All that American alcohol that Canada decide not to sell? It's stuck in warehouse, taking up space, costing money. Although their reasoning may have made sense it was really more of a shooting yourself in the foot situation. Many provinces have state run liquor boards, so that alcohol was bought with taxpayer money. They should have bought it all up to get that money back in the system. Oh well.

In other news... Trashed Panda is the hero we all needed, Kirin is developing beer with AI, and Gen Z is giving up on giving up. Finally.

We are off next week for Christmas!

Thank you all for riding along with us this year. We'll be back for one more show in 2025 before ringing in the New Year. We hope you all have a Merry Christmas, or other holiday of your choosing. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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It is time once again to share some of our favorite holiday beers with the help of our Jewish friends Ron and Michael from Rainy Day Brewing.

We keep it simple. Blind tasting a bevvy of holiday brews and picking our favorites. No specific styles, just holiday themed and rated on how much we enjoy them.

This year's beers...

• Bell's Brewery Christmas Ale
• Brasserie d'Achouffe N'Ice Chouffe
• Brasserie Dubuisson Scaldis Noel
• Brouwerij Corsendonk Corsendonk Christmas Ale
• Brouwerij St.Bernardus Christmas Ale
• Deschutes Brewery Kirkland Signature Vintage Ale
• Highland Brewing Cold Mountain
• Huyghe Brewery Delirium Noel
• Rogue Ales Santa's Private Reserve
• Schloss Eggenberg Samichlaus Classic
• Spoetzl Brewery Shiner Holiday Cheer
• Sweetwater Festive Ale
• Sycamore Brewing Christmas Cookie Ale

We won't give any spoilers here but will say we had a solid showing this year and you have plenty of great beers to choose from.

Let us know what you think of the rankings and any favorites that we didn't try.

Happy Holidays, Y'all!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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Are you a connoisseur of cask ale?

Cask ales aren't wildly popular in the US, but they have their fans. For folks in the Atlanta area we do have a couple of places known for the quality of their casks, and they put up some unique offerings.

In a huge announcement the Siebel Institute announced they'll be leaving Chicago, a city they've called home for 157 years. The prestigious brewing school cited immigration policies as part of the reason for the move. Users on Facebook debated the validity of that claim. Either way, they'll be heading to Canada very soon.

Tilray is all over the news lately. A reverse stock split, closing Revolver, and rumors they may be interested in buying Rogue. They're really all over the place.

Boston Beer Co. is facing a class action lawsuit on the way they enforce non-competes. Apparently they're bending rules some in the way they compensate exiting employees that are under a non-compete. I generally think favorably of Boston Beer Co., but this sure doesn't sound good.

NO LIVE STREAM NEXT WEEK! We're recording our annual Interfaith Holiday Craft Beer Spectacular this weekend which will drop next Saturday, so no stream on Wednesday, but don't miss the show.

Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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Pioneering brewery Rogue Ales announces closure.

Reading the news of Rogue Ales' closing I saw several people react with surprise. These don't surprise me anymore, every brewery is at risk. Rogue isn't the biggest we've seen fall and I'm sure there will be more. It does still sting. Craft beer is really taking a beating.

Rogue Ales is credited with introducing the "bomber" to the beer world. The 22 oz. bottles were extremely popular for a while. My cellar is still full of them. I recall drinking macros in 22s back in the day, but we called the Double Deuces. I thought it was before Rogue, but Rogue was launched in 1988, even before my drinking days began, so maybe they did introduce them. Props to Rogue for that one.

Surprising news from the ashes of Iron Hill. Some of the recently closed locations have been purchased and may reopen, as Iron Hill. No real details on this one right now but we'll keep an eye out.

Not beer news here but the hemp ban passed. We don't love the competition with craft but we also don't think an entire industry should be banned. We're adults here and should be able to make these choices on our own. The industry does have a year to prepare and efforts are definitely in motion to loosen the restrictions.

In other news... GenZ invents coffee stout, Wilding Brands expands their portfolio with the purchase of Upslope Brewing, and a sweet new pinball machine is coming.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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The giants keep falling...

New came out this week that Monster will shutter the original Cigar City Brewing in Tampa. It's been nothing but a downward trend for Cigar City since Monster took over, even before the overall industry started to slide. Corporate and craft just don't mix. A sad day. (After the show taping we also learned that Rogue Brewing will be closing.)

More lighthearted fun news in the beer world - Carlsberg is making the world's smallest beer. This lil' guy isn't much bigger than a grain of rice but it is a real bottle, with a real cap, that hold real (non-alcoholic) beer.

We've also got a new Winter seasonal coming for Sam Adams. It's the first new Winter seasonal in over 30 years. BOLO for Sam Adams Winter White Ale and let us know what you think.

In other news Sierra Nevada's Celly Drippins gets a "national" release, a sour beer pioneer retires, and the beer institute is gunning for THC bevs... but I think our government just made that fight pointless.

Have a great week, Y'all. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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In this week's episode...

I normally like to do a nice write up here but I was off this week and haven't had a chance to listen through. I hope you'll forgive me for the lazy list this week. Cheers, y'all!

• Saying goodbye to Independent Distilling
• Innis & Gunn's 1875 Arctic Ale
• Beer From 45 Million Year Old Yeast
• Untappd For All Beverages?
• Big New Glarus Expansion Update
• The BA's “Brews to Barns” Tax Credit
• Faster Lambic Production With... Peas?
• Red IPAs The Next Big Thing?

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Do you remember the Randall?

Maybe 10 years ago you couldn't go into a craft beer bar or many breweries without seeing a Randall. If you missed this fad the Randall was/is a device that attached to beer lines and allowed you to serve the beer through ingredients to add flavor. Like berries, cinnamon sticks, coffee beans, etc. They were neat, but the fad was short lived. But they may be making a return, or at least a variation, the Renee. Now you can Randall at home. It's pretty fun and a neat way to experiment. Give it a shot.

We've heard about beer going to space a few times. Sometimes just yeast or hops, but I Japanese company is brewing a beer in space to see what kind of impacts it has on the beer, if any?

In other news... Brewery failure (may) present opportunities for trademark acquisition, craft beer makes its way to Jeopardy, meet the Vienna Lager, and what not to drink with your hot wings.

Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Can AI make our beer better?

AI is everywhere these days, and now it's coming for our beer. Is that a good thing? AI research was used to optimize beer fermentation and reduce the time to get to a finished beer, supposedly with the same quality. I don't trust it, but I'm open to tasting the results.

In keeping with tradition when Sam Adams Utopias releases every news outlet mentioning it has to include the fact that it's "illegal in 15 states." We know, we know. This year's version hit a milestone, clocking in at 30%. Are you going to try it?

More beer science suggest that both regular beer and NA beer improve our guy biome. I'm all for gut health and bringing beer to a health routine sounds good to me.

A Canadian airline is offering free beer on flights. Air Canada is making the "generous" offer to it's passengers. The catch, they're also implementing a $35 carry-on baggage fee. You'll pay for your beer one way or another.

In other news Main Beer Co's Dan Kleban is ending his running for Senate, Molson Coors is cutting jobs, and Godzilla-themed PBR cans are coming. Rawr.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Another GABF is in the books...

Reports from the field say this year's Great American Beer Festival was a shell of what it once was. That's not surprising considering the overall craft landscape, but still a bummer.

Seeing the beers and breweries that win, and what categories are popular is always fun. I learn about new breweries every year. Also, the West Coast IPA continues to make a comeback. There were 300 entries in the category with Hazy/Juicy edging it out for the top spot but just 1 more entry. Impressive.

More news on Iron Hill that somewhat unexpectedly shuttered all their locations. Their financial are pretty shocking. It's a bit surprising they stayed open this long.

On the international front, India is facing a major can shortage that could impact beer supplies and more news on pre-Incan psychedelic brews. Groovy.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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How much beer would it take for you to change your name?

What kind of beer? For how long? How about 19 years worth of Busch Light? That's the dream for someone, I'm sure. And Busch Light is ready to deliver.

Oktoberfest is officially over in Germany but in keeping with American traditions it will be going strong here for about another month. We're OK with it. More festbiers and schnitzels are fine with us. A little scare at Oktoberfest last week, it had to be shut down briefly due to a potential bomb threat.

We got an update on Asahi. Seems like they're back online after the cyberattack last week. We're getting mixed signals on whether or not data was leaked. We'll update if we find out more.

Gen X is now the king of packaged goods, including beer. That honor has gone to Baby Boomers for a while now, but Gen X took the lead. We're very proud of our accomplishment.

In other news... Winston Churchill's work around for American Prohibition, Dubai chocolate (stouts?), a real beer whale, and the longest of long beers.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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Another week and more Oktoberfest fun. We got out for some barrel aged goodness and hot pretzels as the Fest season rolls on.

Big news on a couple fronts this week as Iron Hill announces the closure of all locations. They'd previously stated few were slated to close so this was a surprise. Asahi also announced all (or several, it's unclear) of their breweries were shut down due to a cyberattack.

Michelob Ultra takes the top spot as the best selling beer in America, dethroning Modelo which took a bit quicker rise to the top after Bud Light alienated a large portion of their fanbase. Let's see how long they stay there.

Rumor is that Gen Z may be saving cask ale. Brian actually called that one. Good for them, they've been taken the blame for too much lately.

In other news there's some cool new science for using spent grains, Charlie Sheen's got an NA beer coming, and chimpanzees are total lushes. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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It is time once again to drink a bunch of Oktoberfest beers, for science.

Is it Oktoberfest again already? Almost. But we're ahead of the curve. Not enough to be seasonal creepy, mind you, just enough to get you prepped for the festivities.

Our annual Oktoberfest blind tasting is one of our (and your) favorite episodes. We sit down and sample a dozen Oktoberfest beers and pick our favorites. This year was a fun one.

Shout out to the Nates for hosting and catering the event. We had brats, charcuterie, beer cheese dip, hot German potato salad, and soft baked pretzels. Quite the smorgasbord.

The Contenders

• Ayinger Privatbrauerei Oktober Fest-Märzen
• Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn Oktoberfest
• Fat Orange Cat Brew Co. Bavarian Kittens
• Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest Märzen
• Hofbräuhaus München Oktoberfestbier
• Spoetzl Brewery Shiner Oktoberfest
• Tucher Bräu Festbier
• Samuel Adams Octoberfest
• Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. / Störtebeker Oktoberfest
• Six Bridges Brewing Feierabend
• Warsteiner Oktoberfest
• Weihenstephaner Oktoberfestbier

Have you tried these this year? Let us know what you think and how our list compares to yours.

Prost!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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How much would you pay for brewery swag???

Brian and I checked out Atlanta’s new soju distillery this week and learned a lot—everything from smooth 17% pours to a fiery 40% bottle, plus makgeolli, the cloudy, tangy rice wine that surprised us in the best way. Back at Halfway Crooks, I nearly bought a tote bag until I saw the $20 price tag, which sparked a whole chat about brewery swag sticker shock.

We also dug into the sad news that 21st Amendment is closing after 25 years, shared our beers of the week (including Focal Banger, Cold-Hearted IPA, and a big port-and-bourbon-barrel stout), and laughed about Gen Z putting ice in beer. Add in some global stories—Africa’s beer boom, mosquitoes loving beer drinkers, and even trace MRI chemicals in European lagers—and it was a packed episode.

Next week’s our Oktoberfest tasting show, so no livestream, but plenty of Märzens on deck!

Cheers!

Tim

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Big booze gets a beating from boycotts

Beer adjacent news here. It seems Canadian boycotts are hurting American whiskey wine report sales down massively across Canada. I imagine these aren't the only international pains we'll be feeling.

Some beer growth is happening, even if it's for Big Beer. Guinness announced they're undertaking a massive expansion to relieve pressure on their main brewery. The new location will also brew other brands under parent company Diageo's umbrella.

RIP to an OG. Gordon Bowker, co-founder of Redhook (and Strabucks!) has died. He was 82.

In other news more BrewDog drama as co-founder leaves suddenly, Maine Beer Co. founder Dan Kleban is making a run for US Senate, and the science of beer foam and why it matters.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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With so many ups and downs it's no wonder we need a beer.

Mo Mic Nate will be on the road next week on a great New England beer adventure. Hopefully he drinks a lot of great beers we can't get here, and brings plenty back to share.

Survey says that beer consumption is at an 86 year low. We're not sure we trust the math, but we know it's a struggle out there. Aluminum costs on the other hand, they're up, and may get even more upper. I'm sure higher costs will help breweries to do well and get people drinking more. It's foolproof.

In other news... More drama from BrewDog, as is tradition. Ballast Point is alive and kicking, and just got a big investment. Best of luck to them. In the world of SCIENCE! Apparently sound makes beer brew faster. Neat.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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What would be the first beers you put in the Craft Beer Hall of Fame?

We've talked a good bit about the Craft Beer Hall of Fame since their early planning stages. They added their inaugural group of brewers not long ago and new they've welcome their first beers. Those had to be some tough decisions.

The Great American Beer Fest is just around the corner and they've got some new things planned for 2025. There were some interesting changes last year as well. As we all know our beloved beverage is having tough times. The BA is doing amazing things to make GABF interesting to beer lovers and others. It's sure to be a good time.

We learned of some crazy laws in Wisconsin that is seriously hurting the brewfest scene. Apparently, out of state brewers will now have to pay a huge fee to come in for festivals. Reports are anywhere from $1,000 - $1,300, which is a massive amount for a small brewery. At one event over 60 breweries have already canceled their participation.

In other news... Fat Tire wants to give a Gen-Zer $100,000 to take a year off and chase their passions, Boston Beer Co. is closing a couple of taprooms, and a craft beer video game has a sequel coming. Check out Dude, Where's My Beer? on Steam for the free demo.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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It's a daggum good time to drink a beer, I tell you hwhat...

Have you watched the reboot of King of the Hill yet? It's pretty good. Push on through to Episode 2 and see Hank Hill take up a hobby that merges two of his true loves.

It's hold and cold here in Georgia. Hot, and cool. Either way, it's important to stay hydrated. We got tips.

Whether we like it or not, the Oktoberfest beers are out in full force. I know these breweries have to be first to market to get the early birds. But Brian found some Oktoberfest beers on the shelf from a brewery that's been closed for quite a while. Sad.

There's big shake ups for big beer companies at the executive level. Jim Koch is returning as CEO of Boston Beer Co. and Pabst has a couple c-level swaps happening.

Some good news for Europe. Beer production is up. I'm sure we'll here news next week of it being down, flat, whatever. But for now, it's up.

We also learn what draws people to buy a beer that they're not familiar. Packaging is important, and the "experts" think they have some insight.

That's all for this week. Cheers, Y'all!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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It's been a hot one here in Georgia. We had a few days where it "felt like" it was over 100 degrees. Terrible temps make for good drinking weather, though.

In this week's show...

• Hulk Hogan passes away but that seemed to boost his beer sales
• Brewdog announces closure of several brewpubs
• A new record is set in the Beer Mile
• King of the Hill beer release is delayed
• Bearded Iris is sold (And we didn't even know they broke up with Scofflaw)
• Buffalo Brewery vandalized and then shafted by insurance
• And Coors Light drops a cold-activated... deodorant?

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We finally got our hands on some Bapple, for better or worse. We'll find out if it's worth the hype.

We've also come to one of our favorite times of the year for complaining, Oktoberfest beer releases in July. I even saw an local business pitching their Christmas party events. Pure madness.

New Zealand was hit with heavy rain and widespread flooding. The hop growing region was hit pretty hard. What does this mean for the NZ hop harvest this year, and next?

As tourists avoid the US a Vermont beer fest has a plan to try and woo them back stateside. I hope it works.

In other news... winners and some trends from the 2025 US Open Beer Championship, how to efficiently load a cooler, and some unfortunate news on Anchor Brewing.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Sad news this week with the passing of Jack McAuliffe of New Albion beer. When you talk OGs in craft beer his name should definitely be in the conversation. Jacks was an innaugural inductee into the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame along with co-founder Suzy Stern and Jane Zimmerman.

How many of you have seen a bar on a plane? I feel like I flew on a couple when I was a youngin. I remember thinking how interesting it was to have a bar on a plane - then I took my seat in coach and carried on. Virgin Atlantic says people have moved on from the novelty of bars on planes and they're phasing them out. Sad.

More drama with Hulk Hogan's beer brand. Their facing a lawsuit that says the idea for Real American Beer was stolen. The Hulkster always seems to be in hot water.

Much to Brian and Nate's delight, we found out Spaghettsicles are a thing. But they're an expensive thing. Nate's going to try crafting his own. Maybe.

Rounding out the week we've got better beer taxes in Missouri, conveyor belt sushi, and unusual drinking customs from around the world.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Welcome back for another amazing episode of Beer Guys Radio.

We can't seem to get a full house lately. Nate's out this week but Tim and Brian roll on. Lots to recap from the holiday, some good and not so good brewery news. Always an adventure.

• Brian's Colorado Cold Brew
• 4th of July Excitement
• Beers of the Week
• How About Some Guinness Waffles?
• Alamo Beer: Broke to Breaking Out
• Braille Beer Label Printer Invented
• Shoutout: Truck & Tap
• Rice Could Improve N/A Beer Flavor
• TRVE Brewing Closing
• Zillacoah's 1st Beer Since Helene

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Tim's back after a battle with Covid that took him out had for two days and took his sense of smell for a week. Rough.

We re-hash the NA story from last week about it being not-so-healthy. We didn't think it was, but maybe some folks thought the absence of alcohol made it a health drink. I think it's just more bad press from the haters.

In our Style Profile series Nate breaks down the Italian Pilsner for us and we turn to ChatGPT to get the exact scoop in the difference between German, Czech, and Italian Pilsners.

We discuss our drinking habits across the seasons and whether not they change. Although we all said not really I think it changes up a bit just due to the availability of beers. Like the big and beautiful stouts of Winter.

In other news the Incans may have been powered by beer and even tossed in some hallucinogenics for the fun of it, big retailers share their predictions for Summer beverage trends, beer in bed, and the Giants are giving fans FREE BEER. What a time to be alive.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Tim was out sick again this week, Covid really hanging on. Brian likes to call it "being on assignment" for some reason. Covid is a terrible assignment.

But Brian and Nate held down the fort, here's what they talked about...

• Snow Beer and Bapple
• New "Publicly Developed" Hop Vera
• Is N/A Beer Really Healthier?
• US Alcohol Guidelines Being Dropped
• Constellation and Diageo Getting Sued
• Is Rice The Next Big Thing In Beer?
• Pairing Beer With Spicy Food

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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This week Brian and Nate recap their casual bottle share which they didn't invite Tim to or even tell him about. What the hell? Anyhow... they kept it chill and shared a few brews just like the old days. Good times were had by all those that knew it was happening

A company claims to have been the first to formulate a beer meant for drinking on a flight and brewed for the higher altitude. We feel like we've heard this before though.

More online conversations from a few places about kids in taprooms but it seems opinions may be changing. Our views vary, but what is usually a hot topic seemed to keep mostly level heads.

More brewery closures as Tilray closes the Redhook brewlab, a Voodoo Ranger and Malort collab with a twist is out, and knocking back boilermakers around the world.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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As we get things going this week we find out Nate has been flexing his culinary muscles on some ice cream adventures. Naturally, we ask if he's made any with booze. He has not. He continues to be a source of disappointment.

Seems like every week there's something new to blame on Gen Z. We've decided to embrace it. It's all Gen Z's fault - and they'll pay for this, one beer at a time.

GABF announced some new beer styles for this year's competition and in interesting one-time category for a new hop. On the competition front there's also a new #1 in Africa, a unique and traditional style called umqombothi. Neat.

We also found out Hulk Hogan's beer company is making a push to buy Hooter's, and they're apparently bidding against - Hooter's? Whatever happens it will have to get creative because, thanks to the 3-tier system, you can't own a brewery and a retailer. Let's see how this pans out.

To wrap things up we chat about the worst beers we've ever tried and the brews ranked as the worst in the world. We've tried a few and can confirm they deserve their spot on the list.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Before diving into the terrible news of increasing tariffs on the aluminum needed to make our beer cans we "review" the Miller & Pringles collaboration chips we talked about a while back. Are they good? Do they taste like beer can chicken and beer brats? Find out!

Nate gives us a style profile on American Cream Ale. We're fans, and there's more out there than you might realize. Coffee versions are especially tasty.

In some surprising news, or maybe note, Non-Alcoholic beer is poised to surpass Ale as the 2nd largest beer category. As beer nerds we get into a lot of ales but, around the globe, Lager still dominates - by a lot.

Another loss for the beer community this week with the passing of esteemed writer Martyn Cornell. Through blogs, articles, and books Cornell educated many on beer and debunked some popular myths on the origins of certain beers.

We've got a very small update on Anchor Brewing. Spoiler: Things are happening, but not much.

If you're a homebrewer, we've got some tips from the Brewers Association on how to win at beer competitions. Take notes and good luck!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Kentucky roads, Drop Bears, and weird drinking traditions

Fresh off a tiring vacation Brian shares his drinking adventures in Louisville, KY and educates on the proper pronunciation of it's name. A bit of beer, a lot of whiskey, and a disappointing chicken fried steak.

Two beer legends pass away

Oscar Wong, founder of Asheville's Highland Brewing Co. passed away this week. Highland was the first brewery in Asheville and Mr. Wong contribute immeasurably to the beer scene there and across the country. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends.

George Wendt, know to many as Norm from the 90s sitcom Cheers, also passed away this week. For those of a certain age bracket Norm's dry humor was an important part of their weekly entertainment. RIP, Norm.

Some good news out of Asheville

Hi Wire Brewing recently re-opened in Asheville after the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene. We also round up updates on a few others breweries in the area. Great to see some of them bouncing back.

Also on the show...

Weird Aussie drinking traditions, calories in popular beers, and Brian learns about the deadly Drop Bear. Spooky.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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What beer pairs with caviar and Doritos?

I should be able to answer this question as I have had caviar on Doritos. It's not bad, but I forget what beer I had with it. I'll have to revisit.

Outside of crazy caviar parties we learn there's a new world's strongest "beer." The method for making it means it doesn't technically qualify as beer some places, but that's how it's being billed.

We learn about distro laws for Thailand. I had no idea some of the limitations craft brewers had there. Guess there are struggles everywhere.

More news on Gen Z's drinking habits. That's such a hot topic these days. Gotta keep them coming to keep the industry alive.

In other news... We get falsely imprisoned, DoorDashing your booze is on the rise, and a six-way collaboration is coming.

Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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This week, we’re raising a glass to American Craft Beer Week—because if there’s one thing we do best, it’s drinking local and talking about it loudly into microphones.

Tim’s off on a secret beer mission (probably), so Brian calls in reinforcements in the form of Mo Mic Nate— beverage philosopher, and man of many hats (most of them ball caps).

The Setup

It’s been one of those weeks. Nate’s fresh off sweating through a Georgia scorcher with a frosty pint in hand, and Brian’s just survived a medieval dental visit where his dentist told him—get this—he has a small mouth. (Cue audience laughter.)

But never fear, the mics are hot and the beer is cold.

American Craft Beer Week – What's the Big Deal?

Craft Beer Week isn't just a clever excuse to drink more (though it helps). It’s a time to:

• Support local taprooms and breweries
• Try something new on the menu (yes, even the rice lager)
• Remind ourselves why independent beer still hits different

Brian and Nate break down what breweries are doing to celebrate—from limited releases and glassware drops to brewery crawls and collabs.

What Else Is on Tap?

• Brian’s post-dentist drinking logic
• Nate’s glassware superiority complex
• Craft beer trends that need to chill out
• Craft beer trends that need more love
• Shoutouts to the folks keeping local beer alive

Final Thoughts

It's a fun, slightly unhinged episode full of good laughs, better beer, and a reminder that even when the world feels like a flat IPA, craft beer still brings people together.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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"Bitter" Truths, Big Beers, and Bold Moves

This week, we crack open a triple dose of hop-fueled commentary, brewery gossip, and World Beer Cup bombshells. We even got a little salty—literally.

In Beers of the Week we pay tribute to a fallen Georgia brewer with Jekyll Brewing’s Big Creek Kölsch. Jekyll, a longtime staple with both supporters and haters, is set to shut down all locations on Mother’s Day. We dove deep into their history, rise, Kickstarter roots, and the harsh economics of brewery expansion in a post-industrial park taproom era.

Then came the ESB talk. What the heck is an ESB anyway? Brian broke down the style—medium malt, medium hop, and no, it’s not actually that bitter. We dug into the surprising World Beer Cup win: Sierra Nevada Pale Ale taking gold in the American ESB category. Wait, what? Pale Ale is an ESB now? According to the new guidelines, apparently so. The lines blur, styles evolve, and Brian drops knowledge.

Speaking of the World Beer Cup, Georgia showed up big: 6 breweries, 9 medals. New Realm, Bold Monk, Wild Heaven, and others brought home serious hardware. We raised a glass to our local heroes and called out a few surprise absences (no Creature Comforts?).

Economic chatter followed, and for once, the news wasn’t all doom and gloom. The U.S. beer industry contributed over $470 billion in 2024, thanks to jobs, taxes, and of course, your favorite six-packs. But challenges remain—Tilray teeters on delisting, and even success stories sometimes mask hard decisions behind closed taproom doors.

And finally, Tecate went weird: a salty light lager made with Gulf of Mexico water, available only on a floating bar off the Yucatan. No, really.

So whether you're crushing cream ales with bourbon chasers, debating beer style semantics, or lamenting your favorite brewery’s closure, this week’s episode has you covered.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Drink Local!

We've discovered over the years that local beer can mean different things to different people and that can vary depending on where you are. We're a bit flexible with the term and even our opinions have changed a bit over the years. How do you define local beer?

Analyzing beer with your phone. An app has been developed that can measure the level of DMS in beer. Scientifically known as Dimethyl Sulfide, it's presence can give beer flavor of cooked corn, cabbage, tomato juice, and even seafood. There's a bit more to it then just taking a pic of your beer, but it's still pretty neat.

Why do we put limes in Mexican lagers? The short of it? We're not sure where or why it started. Maybe it just tastes good. Brian built us up to expect an answer, but didn't deliver. There are a few theories though.

1.5 liters of beer for only 67 cents. That's a bargain no matter how you look at it. Aldi in China offers up this insane deal. I can't expect it's a medal winning beer but I would like to try it.

In other news... Beer made from urine (really), some big anniversaries, and we say goodbye to Duck Rabbit Craft Brewery.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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I do love a good hotel bar

Hotel bars. Like regular bars (OK, I guess they are regular bars) they run the gamut from super divey to classy. They've got their own vibe though and in some smaller towns they may be the best thing going. What are your thoughts?

With all the news of closures lately it was nice to see that Fifty-Fifty Brewing is planning a major expansion. These folks had a lot of hype 8-10 years ago. Their big, barrel-aged bombers commanded a hefty price and were always exciting to see at bottle shares. I haven't heard as much about them lately but maybe that's on me.

We can't get away from taxes and tariffs. Honestly, we don't really have a good idea of what is and isn't tariffed and from where. We share with you what we can, but it's confusing. Plus, Washington state is trying to hike up their taxes on beer. I think now would be a good time to chill, it's tough enough as it is.

It's not just the US that's feeling the pinch on beer. The German beer industry is struggling, too. And they've got a long-standing drinking culture without as much of the stigma that it has to some people here. Come on, Germany. Get to drinking.

In other news... Brian can brew coffee but cooking stresses him out, the beer delivery strike in Manhattan is avoided, and we recap our trip to the Georgia Craft Brewers Fest.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Everything sucks, but at least we still have beer

The Brewers Association released their 2024 brewing industry stats recently. As expected, it wasn't great, but it could be worse. There are still passionate people opening breweries and us consumers still have more options for great beer than we ever have before. Praise be.\

ChatGPT and Beer (and other things)

Do you use AI in your job? For Brian and I it's become a daily tool. It's advancing amazingly fast. There are fun beery things you can do with it, too. Get beer recommendations, have it create labels and action figures from your description, or research info on beer and breweries. One caveat - it gets things wrong, a lot, and it states them rather confidently. Question everything it tells you and verify the info. If something doesn't look right then call it out and the AI will take another look to verify its info... but it may tell you something else wrong again.

It's hard not to be political these days

Y'all, we have been doing this show for going on 10 years and we've always avoided politics. That's becoming difficult to do but we will (in most cases) try to present things as facts and information. But, it's getting crazy out there. The tariffs are hitting the industry already with one smaller local brewery saying the tariffs have already cost them an extra $60,000. Constellation Brands reports that the immigration policies are impacting their sales. I hope our countries can get their acts together, cause it's not looking good.

In other news...

More brewery closures announced of brands owned my Tilray and Monster, and Miller releases a beer-infused record of dive bar sounds. Seriously.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Record setting vintage beer can sold

I enjoy breweriana but I always struggle with saying it. Serious collectors will pay big money to add to their collections. Last week, a vintage beer can in excellent condition sold for over $100,000. Now that's a serious brewerianaian.

From the "We'll take any good news we can get" files, people are still preferring to go out for beers vs. grabbing them to drink at home. A surprising percentage of the population said they'd still go to a bar or restaurant even if they were tight on money. Hey, we all have to get out every now and then.

Utah's alcohol laws have always been a bit... unique. In a big move for Utahans, they'll soon be able to get beer delivered to their car. Sounds odd but it's really just allowing them to get the beer brought out to them when they do a curbside grocery order. Small victories are still victories.

In other news, we get an update on what's going to happen with Dry Dock Brewing, talk about the states with the most expensive cases of macro beers, and chat about contract brewing. Good times.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Spring has sprung and everything is covered in pollen

We attended Little Beer Fest in Duluth, GA last weekend and the Atlanta area set a record for pollen count. The sky was a bit yellow-green hazy. Madness. The sneezes and itchy eyes didn't keep us from enjoying a lot of great beers, though.

You ever think about the various "eras" of craft beer? The IBU wars, the race to be the most sour, Haze Craze. We ponder what the various eras have been and what may be next.

The tariffs we've been talking about have finally rolled out, so we share the latest on those. It's going to hit everything. Buckle up.

Some big news on the buyout front this week with Anderson Valley and Great Divide being acquired. Locally, our beloved Terrapin Brewpub at Truist Park is now a Blue Moon brewpub. Since Terrapin was sold and Miller-Coors has rights to beer at the stadium it was kind of expected this might happen.

In other news a thirsty gentleman has invented a self-cooling beer can and we find out what each generation's favorite beers are.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Craft beer is having some tiny victories.

Most of the news about craft beer these days, is not good. Breweries closing, being bought, layoffs. Blech. But there are some tiny rays of hope out there that shows this ol' drink still has life. In some locations craft beer is up. That's right. Up. And in others it's taking market share from wine and spirits. We'll take all the good news we can, now matter how small.

We also was poetic about being able to sell beer from your house, which is totally cool in some countries. I'm sure if we'd had this option when we were heavy into brewing we would have sold a few bottles. Imagine the utopia if every neigborhood had 4-5 pubs.

No new tarrif news, how about some tax news?

As far as we know there's nothing new to report on the tariffs this week. I'm sure there will be soon. But taxes, we got news on taxes. In the UK there's a proposed tax increase on their beloved, threatening to push the average price of a pint over £5, and the Brits aren't happy about it. In Oregon there's a proposed sales tax on beer which is double crazy since Oregon doesn't have sales tax at all right now. It's been proposed before and didn't go anywhere. Let's hope that trend continues.

In other news we reminisce on the old days when your beer didn't even have to be good for you to be a successful brewery, share some great news if you're over 90, and talk about the growing popularity of cans.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Four more beers!

We just can't get away from talking about tariffs. The ever changing topic that politicians are using to swing their johnsons around at each other. Well, it's really just one politician, but it's impacting everyone. And, it could impact your beer in a big way.

On a lighter note we learn about the highest brewery in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. Did you know the records thing was started by Guinness the brewery? Sir Hugh Beaver (seriously) got into a debate about the fastest game bird and commission a book for records and facts that eventually became the Guiness Book of World Records. They're no longer officiially connected, but they do have common heritage.

Science! The scientists say hanxiety is a real thing. That anxiety you feel a day (or two) after having one too many. We've got the details on why.

Canada is really taking a lot of heat in this political circus. Moosehead has a cure, at least a treatment, they created a Presidential Pack of 1,461 cans - one for each day of Trump's presidency. If you want to grab one you're out of luck, they sold out fast.

Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Grab a pint of Guinness and let's go!!!

As you all know, Brian and I are also cologne nerds. In the cologne world (fragcom) you have niche (craft) and designers (macro/Big Beer) but there are a few designers that get a pass by the "niche snobs" as being acceptable. Kind of like Guinness. It's really big beer, but most craft crazies don't mind and will still enjoy a Guinness. St. Patrick's Day is the perfect day for it.

You don't have to drink Guinness, there are several other great Irish stouts available. And many local breweries offer up a great Dry Irish Stout for the holiday. We share some suggestions for you to check out. Brian is also a fanboy of the "Half and Half," with the old Black and Tan being the most well known. There are a lot of other options there, too.

Outside of the beer we dive into who St. Patrick was, or might have been. Some info on the lore and legends of St. Patrick's Day, and some consumer predictions for this year's celebrations.

However you do it, have a Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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On again, off again tariffs will impact beer prices

I don't know what to say about these tariffs. We record a show and talk about them going into effect, then they're paused again. We can't keep up. However, a lot of folks aren't buying the delays and making big changes to the way they do business. In the end, if they do go into effect, it's going to impact the price of your beer, and mostly likely everything else.

Monster Beverage took a huge loss on their beer business. Good. They gobbled up some great breweries and did terrible things with them. Most of the people we cared about at these places have moved on. I don't wish ill will for any that remain, but Monster can go pound sand.

We've always said, "It's OK, if it's an a 3-way." It's kind of our motto. Monks took note and there's a 3-way Trappist collaboration brew coming out. Hopefully we can get our hands on it.

In other news... pairing beer and chocolate, Teamsters go after Boston Beer Co., and Isaac Newton's beer mug is on display in all its glory. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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The American Craft Beer Hall of Fame announces their first inductees

Recently the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame held a ceremony to announce their innaguaral group of inductees. Lots of familiar, and deserving men and women made the cut. I'm sure it wasn't easy to choose.

NA beer continues to have lovers and haters. Despite the haters, the popularity continues to grow and the NA beer category continues to break its previous sales records, most recently in January.

If you've went to a bar and had a beer that you know you love and it just wasn't hitting, it's likely the bar wasn't taken care of things properly. Storage temps, clean draft lines and glassware, and even the way a beer is poured can have a huge impact on how that beer drinks. The Colorado Brewers Guild aims to combat that by certifying bars that do everything right. We're totally behind the idea and hope it expands.

In other news... Brian shares info on the most expensive airport beers, we anxiously await the release of Beer Can Chicken Pringles, and a shift in sales to on premise? Madness.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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As craft beer struggles, brewers fight for better beer laws

The battle for better beer laws is a long one. I've personally been involved in the grassroots efforts for a decade now and many of Georgia's breweries have been at it 3x that long.

Beer laws don't get changed easily. The three-tier system is lonstanding and, with one tier have the majority of power (hint: it's not the brewers) they aren't keen on change.

This year Georgia's brewers and the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild have put forward Senate Bill 122 to fight for more change. The key elements are allowing limited self distribution, allowing breweries to donate to charities, and raising the to-go sales cap for breweries which is currently at 288 oz, or 1 case of 10 oz cans.

Schoolhouse Brewing's Thomas Monti joined us to talk about the bill, and beer laws in general. Thomas knows very well the tough times breweries are going through as he recently closed one location of his brewery. Fortunately, Schoolhouse's original location remains open. Although this bill is for Georgia this issues aren't unique to our state.

It's not likely breweries will get all they're going for with this bill, verbiage to reform franchise law has already been cut. But, hopefully some change will happen. And the people will continue to fight next year.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Big Beer doesn't love you like craft beer does.

We're back and we're ready to party. We missed a Super Bowl show but we're recapping the game and, more importantly, the beer commercials this week. On that note, Atlanta's Monday Night Brewing isn't happy about Coors' "Case of the Mondays" campaign. Monday Night has been selling a mix pack with the name for many years now. A cease and desist sent to Molson was replied with, essentially, "too bad, it's done now."

In Presidential news... tariffs. So hot right now. They're on, they're off, they're back on. We can't keep up. If they are on, they could hit your beer prices. Proposed aluminum tariffs will impact packaging costs for most producers. And if all these other tariffs go into place it could hit malt, hops, and who knows what else.

Some sorta good news as one beer purchasing index shows sales aren't down as much as they have been. It's a bummer when things been down less is good news. With all the breweries closing their doors (this week, Alamo) we'll take any ray of sunshine we can get.

Looking ahead, the folks at Total Wine shared some of their predictions for trends this year. What do you think will be the hot item???

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Quicksand isn't nearly as prevalent as I thought it would be when I was a kid.

Have you ever been stuck in quicksand. I have. Seriously. But, I really expected my adult life to be a constant battle to dodge the killer soup and I'm pretty thrilled that's not the case.

Brewers Association and American Homebrewers Association to split

Some big news this week with the BA and AHA announcing they'll split. The two have operated together for decades but feel the split will allow both groups to focus on their members more. It seems amicable and hopefully will mean good things.

Brian shares an update on the We Love LA relief beer. The movement has a website now and more breweries are joining the cause.

San Francisco's Toronado is up for sale. After 38 years the owner is calling it a day. Sounds like his hope is someone will buy it and carry on the torch.

Sapporo news is always disappointed. In the latest punch, they've laid off 2% of their workforce. Par for the course in beer these days, but still a bummer to hear.

In other news we talk about the weirdest beer names, QuikTrip (convenienve store change) is bringing back their own beer after a long hiatus, and the states with the highest beer taxes.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Are you dry, damp, or wet this January?

We're not gonna let this one go. It's January, and folks are dry all over. It's almost done though, we'll make it through this. Nate is dry, Tim is moist, and Brian is so, so wet right now.

The folks at Pub Beer are fighting back against all this dryness with their Wet January initiative. Leonardo DiCheapio shares cheesy videos, contest, and deals on Instagram @CheapFunBeer. Check it out.

It's not all fun and games though. The TTB is implementing some major labeling changes, and it could impact what and where we get our beer. We'll stay on top of this, but there are some huge changes proposed regarding nutrition labeling.

After news of MolsonCoors closing the Leinenkugel brewery broke the original owners offered to buy it back. MC said no, we waited for more info, after we recorded our show it was reported that they plan to use it as a pilot brewery. Sad ending for an OG.

Is pounding Guinness the key to a healthy, long life?

Probably not, but for one old Irish dude it seems to be working. He claims to down around 20 Guinness in a weekend, but he doesn't drink during the week. Docs say he's pretty healthy for his age. Rock on, old dude.

Breweries are taking the opportunity to renovate during the slow month of January. I'd say if someone is renovating that's a pretty good sign. If you're on the verge of closing you wouldn't be sinking money into upgrades, right?

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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A bit of good news for beer...

Per Brewbound the New Year started off OK for beer. Sales were up double digits for the sector as a whole, and craft beer saw an 8.7% increase.

After ringing in 2025 the numbers may dip a bit, as is tradition for January. For those choosing to go dry, NA beer is the beverage of choice. A poll showed 60% of those participating in Dry January chose NA beer over other NA beverages. 10% preferred NA spirits, and 13% chose NA wine. We have sampled NA win but the numbers aren't surprising based on the NA liquors we've tried. They still got some work to do.

Brewers come together for wildfire relief

Brewers are the best. As expected, there's a collective effort to support relief for the Los Angeles wildfires, spearheaded by Common Space Brewery. You can get more info at www.commonspace.la.

Tilray to eliminate 300 alcoholic beverages from their portfolio

Tilray just keeps at it, announcing a huge cut to their offerings. They say this will mostly impact products that are "duplicative." Let's see how they define that.

In other news... USDA issued their National Hop Report, with plantings down, as expected. And VinePair tells us all about the states that drink the most alcohol.

Hope you have a great week! Stay moist!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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You ever done some Zebra Striping?

The trend has been around for a while, but now there's a term for it. Alternating alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage is... Zebra Striping. Seems the practice may be a bit more refined than just having glass of water after a few beers, but it ain't new.

Is your January still dry?

Nate is dry, I'm kinda moist, and Brian is nearly drowning. But if you're still dry we've got a mocktail recipe using Guinness 0 that you might want to try out.

If you're in the pool with Brian we also have some tips on pairing beer and whiskey. Now we're talking.

Is beer good for you or not?

Science can never agree on this, or anything health related it seems. The Surgeon General wants to expand the warning on beer to note that it can cause cancer. At the same time another group of scientists say they've re-confirmed that moderate alcohol consumption can have health benefits. Our suggestion, play it cool and enjoy life.

This week in News We Thought Was Done Years Ago, the Stone vs. Molson Coors judgment has been upheld. Molson Coors has to pay out a big chunk for their Keystone marketing that Stone said confused consumers. Seems the courts agree.

In some good news for brewers the TTB has added several common brewing adjunts to their exemption list. This means if a brewer already has an approved beer they can add these ingredients without the need for a new approval. We'll take all the good news we can get, even if it's small.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Happy New Year and Happy 9th Anniversary to us!

We made it to 9 years. Wild. I know everyone looking back on things says how much they've seen change, but wow, we sure have seen a lot change since we started this thing. What a ride. Thanks for joining us for the trip. Maybe we'll throw a big party for the 10 year celebration.

This week we talk about Dry January. Nate's going dry, I'm dry for now due to #DoctorsOrders, and Brian is still very wet. If you do go dry, don't forget your local breweries. Go grab a bite, see if they have any NA offerings, maybe try a mocktail. They need you now more than ever.

Big news from the Brewers Association as Bart Watson is appointed President and CEO. Bart was formerly the Chief Economist at the BA and shared all the facts and figures on what was happening in the craft beer world. He joined us on the show back in 2018, you can check that out here. (I have no idea where the Duke's Mayo ad on that show came from.)

For the crappy news that seems so common these days we report that RateBeer is shutting down and that beer drinking in 2024 was the lowest it's been in a generation, and the report that it's possible the popularity of Ozempic is impacting beer sales. Pfft.

Cheers to 2025, Y'all! Hope it's a great one!

Tim

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Oh come all ye faithful, let's have a beer!

Once again it's time for one of our most favorite shows of the year, the Interfaith Holiday Craft Beer SPECTACULAR.

A few years ago our Jewish friends Michael Syrop and Ron Mitchell of Rainy Day Brewing joined us to help sample our holiday beers. We decided that was awesome and made it a tradition. The Rainy Day crew is back this year to blind taste holiday beers and choose our favorites.

The Holiday Beer List

• Bells Christmas Ale
• Barrel of Monks Father Christmas Holiday Ale
• Breckenridge Christmas Ale
• Bronx Brewing Jingle Jangle Holiday Ale
• Delirium Noel
• Fat Bottom Noel
• Highland Cold Mountain
• N'Ice Chouffe
• Ommegang Everything Naughty
• Samichlaus Classic
• Scaldis Noel
• Shiner Holiday Cheer
• Sierra Nevada Celebration
• Sloop Brewing (No) Santa NEIPA
• Southern Tier Chestnut Praline
• St. Bernardus Christmas Ale
• Straffe Hendrik Xmas Blend (Vintage)

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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THC and CBD beverages are on the rise, and they're taking over valuable shelf space that could hold delicious craft beer. What are you thoughts? Continuing trend or fad?

Beer stats show mixed signals for the industry. The Beer Purchasers Index (BPI) offers insights into industry trends with overall beer purchasing show "cautious optism" with a neutral score of 50. However, the craft beer sector isn't looking great, with a concerning BPI score of 18, indicating contraction.

Trump Tariffs are coming for your beers.

If all the tariffs that are planned are actually put in place it could have a widespread impact on the beer you drink. We import aluminum and grain from Canada and if you're on the trend of Mexican imports you Modelo and Corona are going to cost more. It remains to be scene what comes to be, and what impact that will have. We'll hold tight, for now.nd nostalgia.

Sapporo takes Stone Brewing down another peg. They are going to cease all international distribution in January 2025, and limiting US distribution to their core beers. Sad to see Stone as such a shadow of what it once was.

We chat about farm breweries. In some areas they're growing tremendously, but other areas aren't seeing the same spike. I like the concept, and if it's better for keeping breweries alive then lets get to farming beer.

Debunking Hangover Myths

Do you have a miracle cure for a hangover. Most of us probably do. Unless you one of the lucky 25% of the population that doesn't get hangovers. We talk about some of the myths of hangover cures, and give you the straight truth

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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OK, we got the sound fixed! Well, we found a fix where we shouldn't have the same issues again. (fingers crossed)

Our Brewery Closure of the Week is.... Elysian! AB-InBev is shutting down the Seattle production facility of Elysian. We can't even keep up over here.

We mentioned them earlier in the year but we have more info on the annual Bourbon County Brand Stout releases with ABV info. Looks like we'll be out of luck here in Georgia as our gov-mint thanks they're too boozy for us to handle.

Big Beer or not, we appreciate the ridiculous things Miller Lite offers up at the holidays. This year, a YuleLager, a beer tower/fireplace combo. You can try to snag one at shop.millerlite.com but these kitshcy items sell out fast.

Another fun discussion from a VinePair article. Brewery Taproom red flags. We've got a few of our own.

Because we care about your health, we're sharing some info from the nerologists about what age you should totally quit drinking to protect your brain and body. We'll share the info but it's totally up to you if you follow it.

Thanks for bearing with us through the technical issues. Hope you enjoy the show. Cheers! 🍻

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Keeping Beer Cold: The Physicist’s Verdict

Brazilian physicist Claudio Pellegrini found the pilsner glass—narrow at the bottom, wide at the top—keeps beer cold the longest. His research highlights how glass shape affects temperature, but he notes smaller glasses finished faster might work best in tropical heat.

Prague Bans Late-Night Pub Crawls

Prague, famous for its beer culture, has banned organized pub crawls from 10 PM to 6 AM to reduce public drunkenness and noise. Violators face fines up to $4,300, though earlier crawls remain allowed.

Historic Leinenkugel Brewery Closing

Molson Coors is shutting down the 157-year-old Leinenkugel Brewery in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, moving production to Milwaukee. The closure affects an estimated 56 employees, part of a broader effort to cut costs amid declining sales.

Brewers Call Out Overrated Trends

Brewers critiqued beer trends like negative online reviews, overly fruited sours, triple IPAs, and cold IPAs. Many argue for prioritizing balance and quality over fleeting fads.

NA and High-ABV Beers Thrive

Non-alcoholic beers (+6%) and high-ABV beers (+7.4%) continue to grow in popularity, reflecting a consumer shift toward extremes, while mid-range ABV beers lose market share.

Quit Drinking by 65 for Brain Health

Neurologist Dr. Richard Restak recommends reducing alcohol intake in your 60s and quitting by 70 to prevent neuron loss, dementia risk, and slower injury recovery.

Beer Drinkers and Poor Diets

A study shows beer drinkers score lowest on diet quality compared to wine and liquor drinkers, likely due to demographic factors like age, income, and lifestyle.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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No more brewery closure talk. Let's talk about drunk animals.

Did you know that animals enjoy booze, too? I'm sure we've all seen videos of some wild beast eating fermented apples and getting gazeboed. Turns out that may not just be a happy accident and animal friends may seek out the joys of alcohol. OMG, they're just like us!

So I don't want to talk about brewery closures, but there were a couple of notable announcements this week. Wicked Weed is closing their Funkatorium "indefinitely" and Revolution closed their original brewpub in Chicago. OK, moving on....

More in this week's show as we talk about French brewers and taxes, questionable beer art, and upcycled coffee beers.

Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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We've made it through Halloween and and the Holiday beers are already on the shelves. Here is Atlanta we're still seeing temps in the 80s. It's hard to get too excited for a Belgian quad when it's still t-shirt weather. The beers releases through the last few months of the year are some of our favorites. Let's cool it down so we can break them out!

As pseudo-foodies we were excited (mostly me) for the Michelin awards to return to Atlanta this week. We got 4 new 1-star restaurants but overall it was a bit underwhelming. I guess you just can't recreate your first time.

The American Craft Beer Hall of Fame announced their innaguaral group of nominees. So many great people in craft beer that had to be tough to come up with. You can't have everyone in the 1st year, then where do you go? Nevertheless, they've got a solid group to get things started.

Some good beer news

In light of all the closures it was nice to see New Glarus is in the process of a $55 Million expansion. Sounds like they are doing OK. Wisconsin loves their New Glarus.

More this week...Brooklyn Brewery launches Calling All Makers program, the cost of an NBA game (including beer), and a new simulator lets you brew with monks. Neat.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Sorry, Y'all! I totally spaced out forgot to upload the show! I'll keep it short and sweet.

This week....

• GABF recap and changes
• Coors and Wrangler collab?
• USA Curling has an official beer
• Elysian brewers plan strike
• Tilray's plans to take the craft out of craft
• Customers don't like it when their favorite breweries sell out

Cheers! Have a great week!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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What beer would you sip at a seance?

In preparation for Spooky Season Sam Adams has a seance kit available to help you connect with one of America's true patriots. So far, the problem there has been that it's always sold out. We'll keep trying.

As if regular life isn't spooky enough right now we are coming up on Halloween. We'll take any excuse to have some seasonal beers so we ponder what would be a good beer for Halloween. There are a few that directly target it, but several others seem like they could be appropriate.

In the category of "stupid fun" we have the latest social media trend of "Splitting the G." Grab a pint of Guinness and try it for yourself.

Big Changes at the Great American Beer Festival

Consumer expectations and beer fests have changed a lot over the last few years. Previously, as long as you had a lot of great beer, you had a great fest. That's not going to do it anymore. The Brewers Association took note and this year's GABF will see a shift. Beverages other than beer will be featured and the event and it will be a more "experience" focused fest. Hopefully it all works out for them. If you're a craft beer fan you're sure to have a good time.

In other news we're seeing more brewery mergers and acquisitions, a German company is using the waste from the hop harvest to make building materials, and New Belgium answers my prayers with their new Mini Ripper cans. Praise be.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We recorded this show on 10/02 and info was current as of that time. As with any developing story additional news could have been shard since then

Asheville and Western NC was devastated as Tropical Storm Helene moved through the area last week. The town was mostly destroyed, along with many breweries, other businesses, and homes.

Updates were difficult as Asheville was cutoff from passage in or out and cell phone and electricity were out. I'm sure that posting updates to social media was not high on the priority list, but we did the best we could to find out what info was availble.

North Carolina needs you

A lot of support will be needed for everyone to recover. Now, and in the future. We curated a list of some charities that are reported as reputable, but we recommend you vet any charity you choose to donate to. If you're in the area and able to volunteer resources are needed there as well.

How you can help:

• Drink!
  • Buy and drink North Carolina beer. A simple one that doesn't require much change from your regular drinking schedule.
  • NC Craft Brewers Guild Charity Beer | The guild is asking breweries to dedicate an existing tap to Helene recovery efforts. More info: https://drinkncbeer.org/nc-beer-helene-relief
• Donate
  • North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund | https://nc.gov/donate
  • Red Cross Hurricane Helene Relief Fund | https://www.redcross.org/donate/dr/hurricane-helene.html/
  • New Origin Brewing GoFundMe | https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-for-new-origin-brewing-after-hurricane-helene
• Volunteer
  • Visit the North Carolina Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NCVOAD) for info on verified volunteer organizations | https://ncvoad.org/
• Additonal Resources
  • https://www.bpr.org/bpr-news/2024-09-28/list-ways-to-donate-and-help-flood-victims-in-western-north-carolina-after-hurricane-helene

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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12 beers, 4 guys, and a bunch of sausage and pretzels

It's hard work, but we're up for the challenge. We sat down with 12 beers Oktoberfest beers, Festbier and Marzen, sampled them blind, and picked our favorites. Some Oktoberfest fun and lore thrown in for good measure.

The Rules

We're not beer judges and don't judge like beer judges. The simple criteria here is whether or not we enjoyed the beer and it's appropriate to the style. Our favorite gets 3 points, 2nd gets 2 points, and 3rd gets 1 point then we tally up the cumulative score and pick our Top 3. Boom.

The Beers (In alpabetical order, tasting order is different)

• Ayinger | Oktober Fest-Märzen | Märzen
• Edmund's Oast | House Oktoberfest | Märzen
• Highland Brewing | Clawhammer Oktoberfest | Märzen
• Paulaner | Oktoberfest Märzen | Märzen
• Samuel Adams | Octoberfest | Märzen
• Sierra Nevada / Brauerei Gutmann | Oktoberfest | Festbier
• Six Bridges | Feierabend | Märzen
• Terrapin Beer Co. | Oktoberfest | Märzen
• Tucher | Festbier | Festbier
• Warsteiner | Oktoberfest | Märzen
• Weihenstephaner | Festbier | Festbier
• Yuengling | Oktoberfest | Märzen

Have you tried these this year? Let us know you favorites or what else we should look out for before they get swapped out for Christmas decorations.

Prost!

Tim

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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This week on Beer Guys Radio...

Kernza Lager and Kernza NA Golden Brew are out. A collaboration between Deschutes and Patagonia using a pretty interesting grain.

Did you know France is growing hops? They want people to take notice of what they're doing. And French hops may be in some of your favorite beers already.

Stats are in for beer sales during NFL's opening weekend. We're curious whether people drink more when their team is winning or losing. What do you think?

Black Tuesday is turning 15 and throwing a big party. If you're looking for a big and boozy, sweet stout then this one's for you.

Weathered Souls announced the closure of their brewery. Despite gaining fame with their Black is Beautiful collaboration beer, they've obviously faced the same struggle as many others.

As the cold weather starts to creep in it's PSL everything. Are we softening on our disdain for pumpkin beers? Maybe.

NEXT WEEK! We're much later than we wanted to be but it's time for our annual Oktoberfest Blind Beer Tasting. Good times.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Bad news keeps coming for craft beer

A commenter online noted, "I thought they were the good guys," when discussing a recent round of massive layoffs at Tilray-owned breweries. We did too. Good guys or not, when breweries are owned by a huge corporation most (all?) of the emotional attachment is removed from ownership. Where a family-owned brewery may push through tough times and try to keep people working, for better or worse, a large corporation has no interest in such tomfoolery. Plus, when you merge several breweries you're definitely going to have some duplication of duties in the workforce.

And with that said Tilray cleaned house at 10 Barrel, Sweetwater, and Terrapin. No one was safe with Terrapin laying off brewery co-founder Spike Buckowski and President Dustin Watts. The entire Innovation Brewing team at 10 Barrel was let go, and several salespeople across all three breweries. This news always sucks, but this one hit us close to home with many of our friends impacted.

In other news... Anderson Valley Brewing is for sale. President and CEO Kevin McGee joined us in March (Beer Guys Radio Ep. 408) and everything seemed great then. His plan was for the brewery to be a multi-generational venture. Looks like those plans have changed.

The insane costs of attending an NFL gameAccording to data from bookies.com taking your family of 4 to an NFL game could cost you nearly $2,000 (including beers) if you're going to see the Lions. Their numbers include the cheapest tickets, parking, food, sodas, and beer. If you want a more affordable experience you better be a Jaguars fan. See all the data here.

We can't take much more over here, y'all. We need some good news for beer. Well, at least we have beer.

Cheers!

Tim

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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It's drinkin' season, Baby!

We made it! September 1st, the self-imposed Oktoberfest beer embargo has been lifted! I celebrated the occasion with a local offering, Feierbend from Six Bridges Brewing. Many more to come.

There are many styles that are traditional Oktoberfest beers but here in the US of A we mostly consider Festbier and Marzen to be seasonally appropriate. As we all know, many have been on the shelves and taps for a while, but more are coming. What's your preference during Oktoberfest? Team Festbier or Team Marzen?

September is Craft Malt Month

There are a lot of great reasons for using local malt in your brews. Supporting local farmers and making less impact on the environment are a couple of great ones. Craft maltsters have grown exponentially over the last decade, and the Craft Maltsters Guild wants to celebrate them. For more info check out this article.

GoFundMe for Rooftop Brewing staff after fire

We don't share GoFundMe's much, almost never, but this seems like a good cause. Rooftop Brewing is raisings funds to support their staff while they rebuild from a fire. You can check it out here.

More on this week's show...

• We know they are, but why are craft beer prices rising? We found a few possible causes.
• Pre Labor Day beer sales predictions.
• Discussion: Price vs. quality. What's your opinion?

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Do you really want to see the calorie count on that barrel aged stout?

The requirement for brewers to list ingredients and nutrition info on beers has been going around for a while. Regulators want it, breweries are fighting it. Listing all the ingredients and nutritional data isn't as simple as printed a label. There's a lot of time and cost involved. If implemented this would have a huge impact on smaller breweries, and ultimately on consumers as well.

BEER SCIENCE!

Courtesy of Hop Queries from Stan Hieronymus we're talking thiols this week. Those are the compounds that bring most of the flavor to beer. Scientists in Germany studied a lot (but not all) hops to give some data on the impact of thiols in various varieties.

Stone Virginia looks to unionize

More union talk, another brewery sold

Stone Virginia employees are moving forward with an effort to unionize. While I'm generally not a fan of unions, there are definitely situations where they are needed. We'l keep an eye on this story as it develops.

Magnolia Brewing has sold again. The brewery has changed hands a few times over the last several years. Much like Anchor Brewing, Magnolia has a long history and the effort to keep it alive is still strong.

More in this week's episode on milk-washed and clarified cocktails, the magic of ginger drink, and BANNED beer ingredients.

Hope you have a great week and drink all the good beers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Seasonal creep IS the spooky season!

Yes, we're still ranting about this, dammit. First the Oktoberfests hit the shelves in early July and now the pumpkin beers are out. I even saw one for "Spooky Season." Please. Stop. We still have a full month of Summer left and we want to enjoy it.

However.... Brian did propose a compromise. It's not a bad idea and it gives every beer the season and love it deserves. More info in the show.

Some cool news from NB2A (National Black Brewers Association) as two breweries received equipment grants from established breweries. A 20 bbl brewhouse and a canning line and heading to new homes. Always great to see how craft breweries help each other.

Not so cool news, Cambridge Brewing is closing after 35 years. Close to home, Southern Brewing Co. in Athens, GA announced their closure but said they hope to return one day. That Lazarus move is a tough one for brewery to pull off. Good luck to them.

In other news beer prices are rising faster than inflation, Abu Dhabi gets it's first brewery (the only one in 100,000 sq mi!), and more on brewing in space. Far out, man.

Have a great week and drink something good.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Tilray to buy 4 breweries from MolsonCoors.

Big beer news this week (or is it Big Beer news?) with weed warrior Tilray buying 4 breweries from MolsonCoors. Included in that sale is our beloved Terrapin Beer Co. If my math is right this will bring 15 breweries under the Tilray brand, plus some distilleries and cideries. Per Brewbound, the move will make them the #4 largest craft brewery on the Brewers Association's ranking. On the flip side of that coin, Monster Beverage is doing terrible. They posted a nearly 32% sales decline YoY. As we've seen with their huge layoffs and changes at Cigar City, they haven't shown much skill in being brewery owners.

Tough news for hop farmers in the Pacific Northwest as they announce a loss of acreage this year due to the declining craft beer market. They took a 12% loss last year as well. The domino effect of craft beer impacts so many more people and businesses than just brewers and breweries.

Some fun news for our friends at Athletic Brewing as they announced a partnership with English football club Arsenal to be their official non-alcoholic beer partner, the first for Arsenal. Good for them.

In the realm of Bro Science we discuss how ABV impacts hydration and what you can do to mitigate the negative effects. We won't stand by what we say though, Bro.

Hope you have a great week and drink some great beers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Who would you nominate for the Craft Beer Hall of Fame?

A lot of great people made craft beer what it is today and a group of passionate fans is working to recognize them. Craft beer writer, judge, and educator Marty Nachel kicked things off and selected and amazing group to help put things together. The website is live now with intentions to announce the first inductees this Fall. You can check it out here - American Craft Beer Hall of Fame.

It not-so-great news, World of Beer announced their entering Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Their locations in Atlanta didn't do well but the chain had a huge, and successful, presence in Florida and other areas. They were one of the last places we remember seeing a beer randall. J Wakefield announced their closing their taproom in Miami's Wynwood neighborhood but they're not going away. Expect more info on that soon.

More news in beer taxes, amazing grains, and we had to talk about tinned fish and our daily cologne. You don't want to miss it!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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No, Summer is not "almost over!"

It always happens around this time of year. Kids start going back to school and all the folks with children think that means Summer is over. They start yapping about it, stores have sales for it. Well, Summer isn't over, and I need you all to shut your mouth with trying to make it over. We got nearly 2 months left and I'm going to enjoy it.

As I enjoy my Summer sun, Summer heat, and (of course) Summer beers I'm gonna be smelling good, too. Our buddy Seth come through town from Houston last week and, after showing him some of the Atlanta beer scene, he gave us a mess of Texas beer. I cracked into a Lone Pint Yellow Rose this week, and Brian was sipping some Spindletap 5% Tint and Martin House The Silk Road. Good seeing ya, Seth. Thanks for the beers.

In the news this week Brooklyn and Carlsberg collab to do a larger release of a beer brewed with fonio. We've talked about this tough grain on past episodes and it's cool to see what they do with it. Diageo is down overall, but Guinness is killing it. Tilray's craft beer bet is paying off. What started with the acquisition of Sweetwater Brewing has grown to a substantial portfolio of breweries. Most recently purchasing a handful from AB InBev a year ago.

Have a great week, enjoy some great beers, and don't forget IT'S STILL SUMMER!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Would you drink a beer that tasted like a cowboy boot?

Hop Valley Brewing in Oregon has introduced a Pale Ale brewed with Elixir hops that are... “a robust and complex hop that offers unique aromas of cognac, leather, and tobacco…” I mean, OK? I'd try it out of curiosity but that does not sound like a flavor I'd be keen on.

Brian got to party last weekend with Atlanta United and Sweetwater Brewing. Their new collab, Rowdy Peach IPA, made it's debut and Sweetwater through one heck of a tailgate party to celebrate. Brian said the beer is tasty, and very peachy.

More beer stats this week as we talk about the countries producing the most beer. Any guesses who has the top spot? Japan is trying to get drinkers to slow down so one brewery they created a slow beer glass.

Goose Island announced the lineup for this year's Bourbon County Brand Stout release. We've still got a few months to wait for the release but it's never too early to start planning for drinking season!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Sometimes you're cursed, but just a little bit.

This week was... an adventure. Our streaming service didn't want to work and I found out they don't have live tech support. What kind of crap is that? We eventually got things going and then I immediately dumped ice water on myself. Brian said it was a Weak Witch curse. You know what we mean, something that happens to you but is just a minor inconvenience, we've all been there. This drink sounds like a Weak Witch curse. Evil Malort. A bartender decided to take Malort and make it worse. That's quite a mission.

The Brewers Association released some stats on drinking habits and it seems folks in general are drinking less craft beer. The drop is small, but it is a drop. Seems pretty consistent with other reports we've seen. The cause of the drop in consumption could be many things - younger generations drinking less in general, an aversion to carbonation, or maybe people are getting their buzz on with the advancing legalization of weed.

A couple big bits of news in the retirement of Bob Pease, CEO of the Brewers Association. He's been there for over 30 years and has led some major changes. Thanks for your service, Bob. Good Beer Hunting announced they're going on hiatus, potentially permanently. It's a big loss for true craft beer journalism.

And what's this about Pretzel Printers? A genius idea, that's what!

Thanks again for hanging with us. Hope you have a great week filled with great beers. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Dan Kopman knows a thing or two about beer.

Some of you may recognize the name Daniel Kopman. If you don't know his name, you undoubtedly know some of his work.

Currently, Kopman is a Professor and Lecturer at American University's Kogod School of Business and, likely more notable to us beer nerds, a Senior Policy Advisor for the World Brewing Alliance. Previously he was the co-founder and CEO of Schlafly Beer in St. Louis, CEO of Heavy Seas, voting member of the Beer Institute, and board member of the Brewers Association.

What is the World Brewing Alliance? In short, they're the trade association for trade associations. Over 70% of the world's beer production is represented by the WBA from small brewers to multinational conglomerates. Their mission is to corporate social responsibility, sustainability, responsible marketing practices, and invocation in the brewing sector. On the other side of things, they represent brewers to organizations like the UN and the World Health Organization. Bringing the two together their goal is for brewers to be responsible with their brewing and for health organizations to realize and support the cultural and economic benefits that brewers bring.

Low alcohol, no alcohol, and changing trends in drinking

We've talked about NA beer a good bit on the show and I think most of us know that lower alcohol beers are gaining popularity. Studies show younger generations are being more responsible in their consumption and aren't looking for a 15% stout. As the NA sector continues to grow, there are still plenty of people that will still want to grab a beer with some booze in it.

Despite the growth we've seen in NA beer in America, our market is still way behind many other countries. Through technological and scientific advances more brewers are now offering high quality low and no alcohol beer. We've still got plenty of room to grow in this sector.

Brewing around the world

Craft beer is booming in many places you may not think of. There's a growing scene in South Africa and you've probably enjoyed some South African hops in your hazy IPA. The scene in India is up and coming as well. Much like out locally sourced grains, hops, and fruits there's plenty of unique ingredients in these countries. Expanding the offerings of grains, hops, and other ingredients in local markets around the world is a boost for the environment as well as local economies.

We got deep into some amazing topics this week. We enjoyed it and hope you do, too. Let us know. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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It's Episode 420 - Drink 'em if you got 'em.

A momentous occasion as we celebrate our very own 420 day. We don't really get into the cannabis side of things much. We've sampled it and it just doesn't agree with us. I get sick and Brian gets all congested. Beer treats us much better. But, we know lots of people enjoy their THC and CBD, is that an issue for craft beer?

Some research suggests that, in states where legal weed is available, some people are opting to smoke/eat instead of having beer, or another beer. Will we see more of this as more states legalize? Beer Twitter even gave cannabis beverages a slight lead when asked if we were more likely to see more NA beer or THC-infused beverages on tap in 10 years.

The research was self-reported, and it's important to remember respondents were either high or drunk. If even they weren't, people tend to a very poor job of assessing themselves when asked, and some just lie.

Move over THC, Coca beer is here

As we fight to get cannabis legalized across the US, Colombia is coming out full force with coca-infused beer. You know, coca leaves, as in cocaine. Coca leaves are sometimes chewed or made into a tea for a bit of a stimulant bump. According to some Googling, a cup of coca tea prepared from one gram of coca leaves (the typical contents of a tea bag) contains approximately 4.2 mg of organic coca alkaloid. In comparison, a typical dose (a "line") of cocaine contains between 20 and 30 milligrams. So it's just a lil' bit of cocaine. Drink up!

More chatter or what would be on our Mt. Rushmore of beer, crazy Patagonian hybrid lager yeast, and why beer on the beach can give you a (worse) sunburn.

PS - My AI image generator wouldn't allow me to create a cover with two guys standing in a field of cannabis. What a prude.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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In a sea of closures Jekyll Brewing continues to grow

It's not a story you hear often these days. Not only has Jekyll Brewing weathered the storm of the last few years, they're thriving. Founder and CEO Michael Lundmark joins us this week to chat about beer, taking care of yourself, and what's been key to his growth.

Jekyll opened in the Dark(er) Ages of Georgia beer. Breweries weren't allowed to serve food and couldn't even sell beer direct to consumers. It was a land of tours and tastings and anyone around in these days may have some tickets or tokens stashed back.

In addition to expanding his locations, he's also expanded his offerings. Alongside a variety of beer you'll find spirts, seltzer, and wine. As the laws changed Jekyll took advantage of the new rules. They opened a restaurant brewery in city center of Alpharetta, GA. Woodstock and Gainesville, GA would follow, and Jacksonville Beach, FL. Jekyll's not done yet, Mike has his sites of a few more Florida locations in the near future.

Take Care of Yourself

Mike and his wife were always active and healthy people. His wife was very fit and never had any health issues, so she rarely visited the doctor. Unfortunately, after feeling unwell, she was diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer. Mike reminds us to make sure to get checked regularly, no matter how we feel. Mike also supports cancer research with annual brew and fundraiser at Jekyll Brewing.

Brewery Closures and Bottle Shares

Some bummer news this week as we hear of Cascade Brewing's closure. They were a favorite in the fruited sour game, we'll miss them for sure.

We also reminisce on he bottle shares of yesterday. They don't seem to happy like they used to, and it's nice to get any excuse to dust off something from the cellar.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Would you pay more for sustainably brewed beer?

We made it through another week and we have definitely earned a beer or five. It's hawt in Georgia. We're supposed to top 100° heat index this weekend. Say a prayer for us.

A survey suggests 50% of beer drinkers would pay 30% more for a beer that was sustainably brewed. I'm skeptical of those results, but that's what the survey says. Sustainably seems to be a goal of nearly every brewer now so I kind of expect my brewery is trying to be sustainable. How about you?

No more "best by" dates! We have to take a stand, y'all. Breweries have to start putting canning dates on cans. None of this best by stuff that you have to decipher. What do they consider best by? 3 months, 4 months, 6 months? Just tell me when you put that juice in the can and I'll make my own decision, thank you very much.

Following up on our discussion of adding a bit of saline solution to cocktails, Brian experimented with adding some distilled water to whisk(e)y. He says a bit of water really does open them up and can take a really good rye or bourbon to great. I'll have to play around some more. Based on previous tests I haven't found one I like more once it's been diluted a bit. Maybe I wasn't doing it right.

More news on Anchor Brewing as the deal with Chobani's founder moves along, a brew fest in Chicago that's been delayed for 4 years with no word from the organizer (and no refunds), and some chatter on the delicious contraband that is Cuban rum and cigars.

Next week we'll talk with Michael Lundmark of Jekyll Brewing. One of our local joints. Despite many others closing up shop, Jekyll is expanding. We'll find out what he's secret is.

Cheers! Make sure you drink something good this weekend!

Beers of the Week

• Smith & Lentz - Quackenbruck Pilsner (German Pils w/Sapphir)
• Good Word - Ron's Dinner Ale
• Created with the British beer writer Ron Pattinson. A historical AK Bitter made with marris otter and invert sugar.
• Hop Butcher - Super Megabite (NE TIPA, Citra & Amarillo)
• SweetWater 420 Citrus Haze Pale Ale
• Topo Chico with Lime and Salt (Nate's Dry Junuary pick)

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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New to tinned fish? We got you covered.

This was bound to happen. With our recently found love of tinned fish we had an expert join us to talk about the benefits of tinned fish and offer up some beer pairing suggestions.

We know cans of sardines and oysters aren't for everyone. But these delicious fishes get a bit of a bad wrap, especially here in the States. Season Brand marketing manager Sara Kelly hung out with this to share some of the pros of tinned seafood, info on their offerings, and even throw out some beer pairing suggestions.

Tinned fish is trendy now. I don't know how or why, but it is. TikTok influencers are throwing up videos of their favorite tins and recipes. It's crazy. BUT... sardines and other tinned fish do have a lot of benefits - not only are they convenient but they're packed with nutrients (get all those Omega-3s) and protein. Just watch that salt intake since they're usually pretty high on that as well.

If you're not down with skarfing whole little fishies there are boneless and skinless sardines or you can opt for salmon, trout, oysters, mussels, calamari, and octopus. Go all Pokemon on the tins and catch them all.

Don't worry, we've got some actual beer content as well!

Anchor Brewing has been purchased! This is the big one this week. The founder of Chobani (yes, the yogurt folks) has purchased Anchor Brewing. It sounds like he intends to honor it's legacy in his plans. We're very hopeful and we'll keep an eye on progress here.

Sam Adams sale rumors. Buzz around the internet this week said Sam Adams was in talks to sell to Suntory. Suntory said that's BS, Sam Adams said they don't comment on rumors. Is it possible this billion-dollar-brewery is up for grabs?

Shout out to Native Brew Works. I recently visited the old stomping grounds of Arkansas and was pleased to find Native Brew Works in Jonesboro. They're in a dry county and, as beer laws go, they are required to sell food to serve beer. But they CAN sell beer... even though it's a dry county. I tried their Kolsch and Dunkel and both were very solid. And the queso was banging, too.

Beers of the Week

• Sweetwater American Lager
• Anchor Steam beer
• Fairhope Brewing Willie Mays Haze (Hazy IPA)
• Q Mixers - Ginger Beer (Dry June for Nate so he'll offer up some NA suggestions)
• Brasserie de Blaugies / Hill Farmstead La Vermontoise Saison

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Former Cigar City brewmaster opening a North Carolina brewery

No shocker at all to hear that Wayne Wambles, the former brewmaster at Cigar City that was unceremoniously let go by the Monster Energy overlords, is opening his own brewery. Wambles has purchased UpCountry Brewing in Brevard, NC. Can't wait to see what he brews up.

In our constant (for some reason) pursuit of Malort news we hear bars in Chicago are serving shots infused with... cicadas. And people say craft beer comes up with crazy ingredients.

A legend of Oregon brewing has passed away. Art Larrance founded the Oregon Brewers Festival and co-founded Cascade Brewery. The industry definitely lost a great one.

More this week on yeast being used to recycle metal, using saline in cocktails, end of the Molson-Coors strike, and the Lagunitas Chicago closure.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We do love our Georgia beer

Last weekend we attended the Georgia Craft Brewers Fest in lovely Atlanta, Gee A. It's always nice to see what's happening across the state. We've grown in numbers to the point where we can't get to ALL of them, despite our best efforts. We tried some brews from new to us breweries like Crooked Culture, Local Ties, and Southern Philosophy and enjoyed some from old favorites as we caught up with our friends.

Speaking of Crooked Culture, Lucy Teusink joins us on the show to talk about their new brewery in Cumming, GA. We chat about brewery locations, alcohol laws, staying relevant, pergolas, and pinball. Good stuff.

We also sat down with our friend Skinny DeVille from Atlantucky Brewing and Nappy Roots. They've recently celebrated their 2nd anniversary and Skinny talks about what he's learned and where he wants to go with things next. We talk about the struggles with overindulgence for the regular guy, and for a hip hop star turned brewer. We ponder getting older, drinking lighter, and living our best lives.

Skinny also pitches the upcoming Crafted for Action beer conference taking place at Atlantucky and online. It's a great event focused on diversity in craft beer. Click here to get more info.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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All Tequila is Mezcal, but not all Mezcal is Tequila.

In my younger days grabbing a bottle of Mezcal was just taking the fast track to getting gazeboed. The bottle always had a worm in it, or at least I think it did. Exploring Mezcal today has a lot less worms, and a lot more tasty options. Learn a bit about this agave spirit from a couple of newbs.

Ibiza and Mallorca (and a handful of other islands) are sick of drunk tourists. To discourage people coming to visit just get ripped, they've made it illegal to buy alcohol after 9:30. There seem to be some loopholes in the law, so let's see how this pans out.

From the world of SCIENCE! there's a new gel that can convert alcohol to harmless waste before it hits the liver. It must be "applied" (we're not 100% sure what that means) before you get your drink on.

More brewery stats as we dive into which states have the most breweries per capita. Some surprises in the list, and others you'd expect. Also... Austria's Beer Party is back and they are super serious now, Harley Davidson collabs on an NA beer, and everything is so damn expensive.

No live stream this coming week! We'll be at the Georgia Craft Brewers Fest this weekend and recording a show there, look for it next week. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Beer and other things for a laid back week.

We took a bit of a road trip last weekend to beautiful Cartersville, GA to visit the Savoy Auto Museum. I can't explain the allure of Cartersville to museums, but they have 4 in a town of like 20,000 people. Crazy, right? The Savoy was a fun trip. Lots of classic cars, race cars, and a handful of famous cars from movies - like the Family Truckster from Vacation. Neat.

After our museum trip we headed over to Drowned Valley Brewing to try their World Beer Cup medal winning Bartow Brown. Definitely a winner. We also discovered a quirky beer bar with a crazy beer list. All in all our road trip was a successful one.

We recap some Cinco de Mayo drinks, make our plans for the upcoming American Craft Beer Week, share some more BrewDog stories, crazy Ballast Point updates, and some science behind the perfect serving temperatures for beer.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Another CBC is a wrap, and we have some new World Beer Cup winners

The Craft Brewers Conference wrapped up last week and as part of the festivities the World Beer Cup winners were announced. We're stoked to have a few home state winners in the mix, and we discovered a lot of new breweries that are (apparently) making great beer.

In news that we love, VinePair shared some stats on the Booziest Counties in the US. Can you guess who was #1, and who has the most teetotalers?

Some interesting beer-adjacent news as the FTC has banned non-competes. We've seen these battles play out in the past when a brewer from a popular brewery heads out on their own, most famously with Toppling Goliath. However, companies will still have some protection of their intellectual property via non-disclosure agreements. Also, some top execs could still be subject to non-competes. There will likely be some fighting on this one, so we'll stay tuned to see where it lands.

How much would you pay for an (empty) can of beer?

A record was set recently for the price of a single beer can. An empty one, at that. An undisclosed buyer paid over $60,000 for a vintage oil can of Perone Beer. I hope he feels he got his money's worth.

More news of acquisitions, surprising closures, seal hunts, and spruce beers. Good times.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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At least there's beer after Total Nuclear Annihilation

Brian and Nate have disappointed deeply with their lack of excitement for the Fallout TV series. I've played the games for 20ish years and am a huge fan. When the show was announced I was skeptical, like any video game fan when their fav game is "adapted." But they killed it with Fallout. Such an awesome series, and there's plenty of beer.

The State of Craft Beer

The Craft Brewers Conference was this week and Brewers Association chief economist gave us the scoop on the current state of craft beer. Overall, it's not great, but it could be worse. One ray of hope, 2023 ended with more net breweries that we had in 2022. So people are still opening, despite all the closures we're seeing. The Top 50 largest craft breweries were also announced. An interesting list for sure.

Oh yeah, we did something we haven't done in a long time, had a bottle share! It was great to get the crew together and open some bottles that have been collecting dust. A variety of IPAs, stouts, and sours were enjoyed, and an interesting wine-beer hybrid from the Bruery.

BrewDog does not have a green thumb

Any time I see BrewDog mentioned I assume the worst. Maybe I shouldn't, but they have been tied up in a lot of scandals. This time it sounds like they tried to do a good thing, and failed. After planting 10s of 1000s of trees to regrow a forest, most of them died. They say the harsh weather the past year did them in, and they're going to go back and try again. Good luck, Dogs.

This week market the 508th anniversary of the Reinheitsgebot. A lot of jokes are made about these laws, but they had good reason to enact them back in the day. Brewers were putting all kinds of questionable things in their beer, just like folks in America with your steak sauce. Check out the show for the full story. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Last Saturday was our favorite beer fest of the year. Good Word Brewing's Little Beer Fest.

This event brings the best of the very best of low ABV beers to Duluth, GA each Spring. It's been an adventure in previous years with weather ranging from scorching hot to sleet and snow, but this year gave us beautiful sunny skies and temps in the 70s.

We love little beers. Pilsners, low alcohol stouts, English Ales, bring it on. It's great to attend an event where you can try nearly every beer and still keep your senses. We did out best to make the rounds.

For the show this week we sat down with Todd Boera of Fonta Flora Brewing and Jason Glunt of Salud Cerveceria. We chatted a good bit about what makes a good tap list and low alcohol beers, of course.

We talk about adding fruit to beer and Todd tells Tim why his opinion on the matter is wrong, in the nicest way possible. We talk about breaking out of a mold of being known for a certain style of beer when you brew across the spectrum.

Jason shares his Michelada lager with us, and it's damn tasty, so we talk more about that cocktail and the Mexican Ashtray (New to me. Must try it.) and we talk about staying small and brewing great beer.

Keep an eye out in years to come for Little Beer Fest. In a time when festivals and bottle shares and beery get togethers in general seem on the decline we think this fest has the magic sauce to be something special. If you come next year, be sure to stop by and say hi, cause we'll definitely be there.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Beer Families, Closing Times, and a Bankruptcy

Glad to be back to it this week with all the beery talk we can handle.

You know we dabble in beer cocktails and Brian finally gets to try one he's been wanting for a while and shares how that turned out.

Remember when all of those crazy light macro beers came out making a big deal out of how few calories they had? Well Molson Coors says the consumer is now more concerned with lower ABV than calories, so they're making some changes to showcase that.

Beer families seem to be the thing these days. Both Voodoo Ranger and Two Hearted have had a family of beers for a while, and SweetWater announced they're going that route with their flagship 420 brand. Look for new brews soon.

We've talked about tinned seafood a lot but if we want you all to join us on this adventure we figured we better offer some actual recommendations. So this week we share our first one and ponder some beer pairings.

In news that was totally expected, D9 Brewing has filed for bankruptcy protection. If the name isn't ringing a bell they are part of Community Brewing Ventures, the parent company that also owns Bevana. Yep, exactly.

Some realllllly loose research suggests that couples that drink together and have similar drinking habits live longer. We don't know if that's a promise or a threat, but we do know their "research" was pretty weak.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Exploring the Future of Beer and Beyond with Anderson Valley Brewing

Anderson Valley Brewing president and CEO Kevin McGee joins us this week to discuss NA beer, FOMO, keeping it classic, and sustainability. The world of beer is constantly evolving, and we dive into some of the exciting trends and hidden gems that are shaping the industry.

NA Beer Stats and Future: A Sobering Rise

Non-alcoholic (NA) beers are no longer the afterthought at the party. Thanks to a growing health-conscious population and innovative brewing techniques, NA beers are experiencing a surge in popularity. The global NA beer market is expected to reach a staggering $40 billion by 2033. This trend suggests a future where delicious, alcohol-free options are readily available for everyone. But others aren't impressed with NA beer's growth, so is it "the next big thing," or not?

Beer Solera: A History Steeped in Tradition

For a taste of history, let's explore the Solera method. This unique aging process involves stacking partially filled barrels, blending aged and young beer to create complex flavors. Imagine a family recipe passed down through generations, each adding their own twist – that's the essence of Solera!

Surviving & Thriving in Beer Today: Beyond the Hype

But the craft beer scene isn't just about chasing trends. In a saturated market, breweries need to focus on building a loyal customer base and focusing on some key points like quality and consistency.

As the beer market becomes saturated with choices, FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) is losing its MO. If the latest big pastry stout or juicy and hazy IPA has another bigger and juicier and hazier release the next week, then we aren't really missing anything if we miss one. Wild One-Offs Are Good For One Time, But Consistency is King. Limited-edition releases can be exciting, but breweries that consistently deliver quality beers are the ones that stand the test of time.

Evolution: More Than Just The Beer

The craft beer scene is about more than just the beverage itself. It's about fostering a culture of community, creativity, and exploration. Let's celebrate the stories behind the beers, the passion of the brewers, and the ever-evolving landscape of this fascinating industry.

Decoding Boontling & Anderson Valley's Sustainability Efforts

Ever heard of Boontling? It's a nearly extinct language spoken by the indigenous people of the Anderson Valley region. The brewery honors this herita

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Ale Max Day - A celebration of Air and ale

Much like craft beer, sneaker fans love to see cool collaborations. And much like craft beer fans, they'll wait in crazy long lines and search local shops and the internet to get that elusive pair.

Atlanta's Ale Sharpton teamed up with marketing magician Craig Stroud to bring the culture of craft beer and sneakerheads together and Ale Max Day was born. 2023's inaugural even feature an intimate gathering and collaborative beer with Decatur, Georgia's Inner Voice. This year they're kicking it up a notch with a larger release party at Monday Night Brewing's Garage location followed by a release with Bearded Iris in Nashville. Ale and Craig share the origin story of Ale Max, what's happening now, and their plans for the future.

Ale Max 1 MAX IPA

We can't forget the beer! A juicy and hazy NEIPA hopped with Citra Cryo, Mosaic Incognito, Nectaron Cryo, Riwaka, and Strata. Expect big citrus and melon notes on this one. If this is your kind of beer, then this is one you don't want to miss.

It's all for a good cause, too. A portion of the proceeds from Ale Max Day will support PAWKids, an incredible, Atlanta based nonprofit and community hub that exists to support and provide holistic resources to children and families in need.

For more information follow Ale Max and Ale Sharpton on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/realalesharpton/

https://www.instagram.com/alemaxday/

https://www.instagram.com/alemax.official/

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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WTF is Bapple?

Bapple. Busch Light Apple that is. Apparently this abomination has quite a cult following. It's come and gone over the years and people are hoarding it when they can find it and paying crazy prices online. We had no idea.

Even crazier? R.E.M.'s Out of Time turned 33 this week. Making us feel old and stuff. For those in Atlanta you likely heard lots of R.E.M. on 99x back in the day. One of the last great radio stations. 99x is back, and they've got a collaboration beer with Mutation Brewing. 99Xtra West Coast Pilsner. A perfect pairing for an iconic album anniversary.

More St. Patrick's Day news, Savannah's SPD parade is turning 200! By our math that means it started in 1824. Madness.

Shifting gears, we'll head west to Wyoming where craft beer lovers are celebrating a big legal win. We'll break down the details and what it means for the future of suds in the Cowboy State.

Over on Beer Twitter there was some hot glassware talk this week. Discussions of the importance of branding on brewery glasses and one brewery dropping a super hot take on their glassware opinions.

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY! Go out and enjoy a pint or two. Green or otherwise. We don't judge.

Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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A pint of plain is your only man...

Drinking holidays are the best holidays. St. Patrick's Day is a drinking holiday now, but it wasn't always that way. The story is kind of crazy.

Join us as we talk about the lore and legends of St. Patrick and St. Patrick's Day while we sample some Irish beers and whiskey.

The Beer (and Whiskey) List

• Guinness & Smithwick's - Blacksmith (“Pint of Special”)
• StillFire - O’Farrell’s Irish Red (Red Ale)
• Sullivan’s - Black Marble (Dry Irish Stout)
• Sullivan’s - Maltings Irish Ale (Red Ale)
• Fat Orange Cat - Baby Leprechauns (Session IPA)
• Evil Twin - Even More Irish Jesus (Dry Irish Stout)
• Guinness Foreign Extra Stout
• Slane Irish Whiskey
• Whistle Pig 10, 11, and 12 (OK, not Irish, but tasty.)

TRIVIA! Order a ‘Black Bulldog’ in Malaysia and you’ll be handed a bottle of Guinness Foreign Extra Stout. This is because the first export bottlers of Guinness used to add their own symbols to the label to distinguish their bottles and exclusive territories. There were dozens of different symbols, the most famous of which were the bulldog, the wolf, the dog and a cat

Sláinte!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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**Wooden Robot co-founder dies in brewery fall

We send our sincere condolences to the family of Dan Wade and his brewery family at Wooden Robot. Dan tragically lost his life in a fall at the brewery last week. If you'd like to help support his wife and newborn son with immediate and long-term expenses you can give to the GoFundMe here**.The weather here has been crazy lately. This would be expected if it was the end of March or beginning of April, but this is (or was) February. We've had temps hit nearly 70°. The madness brought storms through here and got Brian excited to see a tornado. A sentiment only expressed by those that haven't been through a tornado, or maybe storm chasers. Brian is in Group A. I brag about my new fancy pants bath towels. Seriously, they're really nice. Y'all drop me a line if you want to come by for a shower some time.

AB InBev brewers were going strike, but they didn'tSo, this story updated right after we recorded the show. ABI brewers were close to a strike, but reached a deal to stop that happening. Just ignore this part of the show.

Fishwife partners with Keystone LightThis was a collab we didn't expect. We're not mad at it, just a bit confused. Tinned seafood purveyor Fishwife has partnered with Keystone Light to launch The Smooth Snackle Pack. The combo gets you three tins of smoked trout, and insulate snackle box, and a coupon to get you some Keystone Light from Uber Eats. We'll get one (update: we did) but Fishwife is not to be very proud of their upscale image. Kind of a surprise to see them partner with Keystone Light.

Dry February > Dry JanuaryNon-alcoholic beer continues to grow. Sales are still up through February showing some people are stretching out that Dry January. Whole Foods Market now sells more Athletic Brewing than any other brand.

Beer laws are stupid everywhereNo matter what state you live in you're likely face some type of stupid beer laws. A bill to improve laws in Georgia (SB 163) failed to get out of committee this year. Leaving the state's brewers struggling with current regulations. A bill in Tennessee propose to ban the sale of cold beer with the intention of combatting drunk driving. However, recent updates suggest that one the sponsor learned about the impact

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

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We sat down with our friends Zach and Cliff at Truck & Tap along with our new friend Tiffany Dillon of Gwen Tajz wine bar. We poked some beers, we mulled some wines (wine wine and barleywine) and we talked about serving traditionally cooler beverages warmer. Luckily, when we recorded the show it was a seasonally-appropriate cooler temperature, the only cool day in the last couple of weeks actually.

While the image of a frosty mug overflowing with cold beer might be the first thing that comes to mind, the history of enjoying warmed brews stretches back centuries. Tonight, we're venturing beyond the icebox and exploring the comforting world of hot drinks, with a special focus on the surprising (and potentially delicious) realm of hot-poked beers.

A Toasty Tradition: Hot Drinks Through the AgesFrom mulled wines enjoyed by medieval nobility to steaming cups of tea that fueled revolutions, hot beverages have long held cultural and practical significance. In colder climates, they provided warmth and comfort, while spices and herbs added flavor and potential health benefits. Even beer, that seemingly summery beverage, has a warm past. In fact, some historians believe that heated ales were the norm in ancient Europe, offering a safer alternative to potentially contaminated water.

Mulled Magic: Crafting the Perfect Winter Warmer

Mulled wine, a timeless classic, remains a popular choice for chilly evenings. The process is simple: simmer wine with spices like cinnamon, cloves, and citrus, creating an aromatic and warming concoction. But did you know you can adapt this recipe for beer lovers? Experiment with different styles and spices to find your perfect match.

Beyond the Bottle: Wine for the Beer-CuriousFor those open to exploring new territory, natural wines offer a fascinating journey. These unfiltered, unfined wines focus on minimal intervention, showcasing the unique characteristics of the grape and terroir. If you're a beer enthusiast looking to expand your palate, natural wines with their emphasis on freshness and complexity might surprise you.

Poking Fun & Flavor: The Hot-Poked Beer CrazeNow, let's delve into the slightly unconventional world of hot-poked beers. This trend involves heating a mug of beer with a red-hot poker, supposedly caramelizing the sugars and creating a unique flavor profile. While opinions vary, there's no denying the intrigue and potential for experimentation. We'll compare and contrast the experience of a hot-poked beer versus

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Disclaimer: Ride the Clydesdales at your own risk

Touchdown for Beer Commercials: The episode kicks off with a high-energy discussion about Super Bowl Sunday and its iconic beer commercials. Budweiser, Bud Light, Coors Light, and Michelob Ultra all vie for our attention, but according to the latest buzz, Michelob Ultra emerged as the top-selling brew of the big game. It's a fascinating peek into the battle for marketing supremacy in the world of sports and suds.

Busch Gardens & Sweet Memories: From the bright lights of the stadium, the conversation takes a nostalgic turn with a visit to Busch Gardens. Memories of childhood trips come flooding back, along with a mention of Eagle Brand snacks. This unexpected pairing sparks a discussion about branding strategies and the strange yet sometimes successful partnerships that emerge in the food and beverage world.

Monster Shakes Up the Craft Beer Scene: Speaking of unexpected turns, the episode dives into the surprising news of Monster Energy eliminating Cigar City Brewing's brewmaster Wayne Wambles' position. This sparks important questions about the relationship between craft and corporate brewing, and whether such collaborations ultimately compromise the spirit of craft beer.

Tax Time for Beer?: But not all discussions are lighthearted. The episode tackles the serious issue of domestic beer tax rates, comparing 2022 and 2023 numbers. This insightful segment shed light on the challenges faced by independent breweries and the potential impact of tax reform on the craft beer industry's future.

Crafty Triumphs: Despite the tax hurdles, there's good news on the horizon! The episode highlights the positive statistic that craft beer sales are actually outpacing total beer sales in early 2024. This is a major win for the craft beer community, showcasing its resilience and innovation in the face of challenges.

Global Beers & Pinball Perfection: Beyond the United States, the episode celebrates a historic moment: the United Arab Emirates opens its first-ever craft brewery after years of contract brewing in the US. This exciting development marks a significant milestone in the global expansion of the craft beer scene.

Beyond the Brews: But brewing isn't all there is to life! The episode throws in some fun segments, including "Beer Flights, The Dadverse, & Pinball." This lighthearted diversion offers a refreshing break from the industry discussions and showcases the diverse interests of the podcast hosts and listeners.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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The stovepipe is gonna take over the world.

If you follow us on Twitter, errr... X, then you've seen the posts for #LongBeerFriday. That's Brian's doing. He loves a good stovepipe and he's finding more beers in these 19.2 oz. cans. North Coast just announced their Old Rasputin RIS is coming out in a stovepipe can. Dangerous.

With the "Big Game" this weekend we explore some stats on NFL fans and their drinking habits. Any guesses on which teams have the drunkest fans? Not to leave out the places without an NFL team, we also take a look at which state has the drunkest residents. I wonder if there's any correlation.

We've another Anchor Brewing update. The Anchor Union isn't in the mix any more to buy the brewery, but they aren't totally out. We'll keep an eye on what develops here.

The closures keep on keeping on. New Belgium announced this week they were closing their San Francisco brewery and taproom. Based on the surprise from some San Fran residents on the beer forums that New Belgium even had a taproom there, it seems like that's not a shocking end.

COME SEE US NEXT WEEKEND AT TRUCK & TAP DULUTH!

We have to move our Hot Drinks for Cold Weather show and drinking event to 02/17 at 2PM. Come hang with us and have a toddy or two.

Beer of the Week

• Stillwater - Extra Dry (“Sake Style Saison Ale”)
• Sierra Nevada - Dank Little Thing IPA
• Iron Hill - Winter Warmer (winter ale w/ cinnamon, nutmeg, & star anise)
• Anderson Valley Black Light - Light Dark Ale - 95 calories, 3.8% ABV. Brewed with Chocolate Malt, Midnight Wheat, and Black Rice
• Northern Monk - Rocket Lolly IPA (from the the UK)
• 49th State - Alaska 8 Star Lager with Cranberry & Hibiscus (“Winter Lager”)

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We made it to FOUR HUNDRED episodes. Whew.

This week marks the 400th episode of Beer Guys Radio. Crazy. We've been pretty steady with the show since we launched in January 2016, and here it is 2024. Thanks for joining us for the ride.

We open up with a little WTF action as Truly launched a Hot Wing Sauce Hard Seltzer "just in time" for the Super Bowl. Maybe it would pair well with our cellared Hormel Chili Cheese Beer?

Just like everything else the average price for a case of craft beer is up, and I learned there are several categories of craft beer at retail, all the way up to Apex Craft.

Bids are in for Anchor Brewing and it's expected a winner will be announced soon. The Anchor Union is still in the mix but no word on where they stand in the race.

We share some thoughts on Dry January and hop water, now that it's all behind us, and thoughts on what breweries can do to keep people coming in during those challenging months. We definitely support giving your body a break, but we sure don't want to hurt our favorite bars and breweries. In related news, NA beer is the NA beverage of choice (next to NA wine and spirits) for Dry January.

We take a little side venture into hot sauce chat, and about if listening to a book counts as reading a book.

More closures. So many more closures. Buffalo Bayou Brewing got locked out of their building for non payment of rent. The CEO says he's trying to come back. We ponder the likelihood of that happening. You gotta have a bold strategy to pull off a Lazarus move.

AB InBev continues to close down craft breweries it acquired. But it's keeping some of the brands alive at its other breweries. Let's see what they have left when it's all said and done.

Finally, a shout out to our friends Jason and Leslie from Orpheus Brewing. They're having a going away party this weekend ahead of a move to Amsterdam where they'll start up a much smaller brewing operation, The Hollows. We wish them luck!

Beers of the Week

• Scofflaw Juice Quest (Hazy IPA)
• Three Taverns Decatur 200 (Cold Pale Ale)
• Dogfish Head / Rodenbach - Crimson Cru (Red Ale, blend of Rodenbach Grand Cru and “an off-centered red ale” infused w/sumac & sweet orange peel.)
• Bearded Iris Pep Talk (Lager)

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Live from the Atlanta Cask Ale Tasting!

ACAT has become a tradition for us. We've gone every year since we launched and always look forward to it. This year's event, the 18th, was no exception. Plenty of awesome cask beers and great people. It was actually pretty packed, which was nice to see with all the negative talk about craft beer and beer festivals.

In keeping with tradition we sat down with the event organizer, Owen Ogletree of Brewtopia Events. We chatted about cask ale and why you'll sometimes see "Ale, Beer, and Stout" mentioned together as though they are distinct things. (They are, or they were.) We talk about beer foam, lacing, and how fests like ACAT inspire homebrewers.

Georgia Craft Brewers Guild executive director Joseph Cortez sits down with us to talk beer laws and the current bill up for consideration, knows as The FOAM Act, SB163 would provide various relief for brewers in relation to self-distribution, sales limits, franchise law, and direct donations to charities. You can view the bill here and sign a petition to show your support here.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Beer Mints and Potato Chips

Miller Lite always has some interesting swag. For Dry January it's mints that are supposed to taste like Miller Lite, which I guess is a good thing. More my taste (maybe?) are potato chips that taste like a citrus IPA. Honestly, that doesn't sound great, but I would try them.

AB InBev does Paris

As a beer sponsor backs out in protest of Russian and Belarussian athletes being allowed to participate in the olympics, AB InBev steps in to be the beer sponsor. Good for them, they always do make sound business decisions.

Mikkeller goes macro and our favorite gueuze scales back

Carlsberg has acquired a minority stake in Mikkeller. They wanted to buy them outright, but Mikkeller wasn't up for that. More sadder for us, Drie Fonteinen announced team changes and the climate of craft beer means they'll be scaling back production. Hold on with all you've got, 3F.

Uber drops Drizly

After acquiring the company for over $1 Billion just a few years ago, Uber is shuttering the Drizly alcohol delivery service. Since you can still get alcohol via UberEats it may just be unloaded the name and some of the tech, but that's speculation.

New Jersey's beer bill is SIGNED!

We've followed this all year and it is done. The governor signed the bill and brought much needed relief.

Local Scene

Here in Georgia Pontoon Brewing recently reopened. They're one of the breweries caught up in the mess at Bevana which forced their closure last year. Also, visitors went to Dry County Brewing to find locked doors with no comment from the brewery as to why. We reached out to one of the owners who told us the taproom is closed temporarily and more info will be released soon.

Beer Guys on the move

If you're in the Atlanta are or ready for a trip come see us at the Atlanta Cask Ale Tasting on 01/20 and join our Hot Beer, Cold Weather show at Truck & Tap Duluth on 01/27! See you there!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We've always been supporters of Dry January. We love beer, but we know you need to take it easy sometimes and if you want to take January to purge your liver, we're all about it. But... a side effect of that is that our pubs and breweries have an even slower month in a month that's already traditionally slow.

With that in mind, Jeff Alworth at Beervana suggested we make it #PubJanuary. You can still stay dry if you choose to, but go out to your pubs (or breweries, if appropriate) and have a meal with some friends or family. Show them love, give them business, we know it's a tough time out there and they need all the support they can get. We're totally on board with that.

New Jersey beer bill heads to governor

We've updated this throughout the year and it looks like a bill was reached that made everyone, including the governor, happy. It passed nearly unanimously in both houses - some chose to abstain from voting, but everyone that did vote was in support. Now, it's headed back to the governor's desk for a signature. Good luck, NJ!

Asahi buys Octopi Brewing

Another big acquisition. Octopi is a contract brewer whose owner also owns Untitled Art, who offers up some tasty NA and not-NA beers. Asahi acquired Octopi recently. More details in the show!

Call the PPO Police!

Beer Twitter sprung into action this week when Other Half's new Chicago taproom opened with some pints costing $16. The addressed it quickly and prices were lowered, with the highest priced pint now at $9. But still, $16 to start. Madness. Related, we talk about pricing at NFL stadiums. Where is a beer a (relative) steal and who's robbing you?

Beer Guys out and about

We've got a few events coming up soon so come see us if you're in the area. We'll be at the Atlanta Cask Ale Tasting on Jan 20th and we've got a fun event coming up (Cold Weather, Hot Drinks) with our friends at Truck & Tap on Jan. 27th. More details coming soon!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Eight years of talking about beers

This week marks the 8th anniversary of Beer Guys Radio. Cheers to us. So much has changed over the last 8 years it seems like we've been at it a long longer. Cheers to the next 8!

It's Dry January

The annual holiday of people deciding they need to chill on their drinking. If you're playing along we've got some recommendations for you. It's a bit more controversial this year. Several brewers have noted that craft beer sales are down (they are) and that January is one of the tougher months for your bars and breweries. They need you now more than ever.

We share an update on the lawsuit against Treee House Brewing, some news about hops and their ability to combat Alzheimer's, talk travel for beer, and how to get more Gen Z'ers in your taproom.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Looking back on the big styles and big stories of 2023.

We've almost made it through another year. Whew. Seems like they hasn't been a ton of sunshine and puppies for craft beer since before the plague and 2023 definitely brought its share of challenges.

The Most Loved Styles

We'll start off with some non-negative news and recap the top rated beer styles per Untappd. I'm a bit surprised here, but I talk it through and see why these styles landed where they did.

Is the Bubble Bursting?

The big Bubble Burst has been predicted for several years now for craft breweries. We're not really seeing a bubble burst, but we are seeing, as Bart Watson of the Brewers Association put it, market correction. Brewery closures, sell offs, bankruptcies, and mergers were the norm this year with a few lawsuits thrown in for good measure.

Bud Light Blunder

Another story that stayed in the news for most of the year. This one made everyone mad, and AB chose not to take sides on either front and just move on. Their moves cost them dearly, with lasting effects.

A Look Ahead

Who the heck knows what 2024 holds. We make some predictions and wishes. Unfortunately, signs point to more challenges for the industry. But, we're still going to get great beer from great brewers, so I guess it will be alright.

Thanks for spending 2023 with us. We appreciate you and hope 2024 is a banger of a year for you!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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What a fun way to "work." As is tradition, it's time for our annul Holiday Blind Beer Tasting, aka The 12 Beers of Christmas, aaka The Interfaith Holiday Beer SPECTACULAR.

13 (so close to 12) beers, 7 beer drinkers, blind tasting and picking our favorites. Mixed in with some fun facts about drinking and the holidays.

The Beers

• N'Ice Chouffe
• St. Bernardus Christmas
• Ommegang Everything Nice
• Ommegang Everything Naughty
• Noda Cheerwine Holiday Ale
• Bell's Christmas Ale
• Scaldis Noel
• Barrel of Monks Father Christmas 2018
• Delirium Noel
• Prairie Christmas Bomb!
• Highland Cold Mountain
• Hardywood Christmas Morning
• Deschutes Jubelale

We're taking next week off for the holiday break but we'll be back the next wek.

Cheers, Y'all! Happy Holidays!!!!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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What's your favorite brewery?

Just before we recorded this week's show VinePair dropped an article about 30 of the best breweries in America. These "best of" lists always bring out some controversy, but we're pretty happy with the spots from Georgia that made the list. Any of your favorites get mentioned?

As the holidays approach the Costco beer advent calendar is out again. Folks seem to love grabbing this and then complaining about it. I'm always cautious about a dozen or so random beers, they always seem to be about 50% duds in my experience. On the holiday note, Miller Lite continues with some interesting swag. They recently dropped a beer nutcracker, their beernaments are back, and they've even got a neon Christmas tree that smells like a diver bar. Crazy.

In the beer drama lane, as there always seems to be plenty of that to go around, Joyride Brewing sued one of its co-founders saying he diverted over a $1M to other businesses. This comes a few weeks after the brewery announced they were filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Even more drama in Russia. We've talked about Heineken's delayed withdrawal from Russia and Carlsberg was holding out even longer. Bad move for them as Russian authorities seized the brewery and arrested some top management and accusing them of fraud.

Oh yeah, the foam story... Seems that foamy things are all the rage in craft beer these days. I kind of thought this already happened but news stories say it is happening right. now. If you say so.

WARNING! INCOMING CHRISTMAS BEER SHOW! Two weeks from now we'll drop our annual Interfaith Holiday Craft Beer Spectacular. It's gonna be great. If you can't wait then check our what we had to say last year.

Beers of the Week

• Sierra Nevada - Celebration (Yes, again. YOLO.)
• Wrecking Bar - Big Slurp Imperial IPA (Strong Beer Fest 2023 Best IPA Winner)
• Delirium Noel 2022
• Goose Island / RTJ - Golden Ale
• Trillium - Fort Point (Pale Ale)
• Bells - Hopslam (DIPA with Hon

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Lawsuits and taxes and beer laws, oh my!

2023 has been a hell of a year for craft beer. Breweries continue to close their doors or move in together. Like when you had to go back to your parents' house after college to save some money. Shit happens and you gotta do what you gotta do.

Bevana Drama and Trouble at Tree House

Craft beer is no stranger to lawsuits but there are a couple heavy hitters lately. You've heard us talk about Bevana several times. Some of our friends breweries have partnered with them. Well, things are not going well at Bevana. One brewery claims money owed to them by Bevana forced them to close and file bankruptcy and others say monies are owed and promises have not been delivered on. There's a lot to this one and it's just getting started so we'll keep our eyes open for more. Also, a minority shareholder of Tree House brewing claims majority stakeholders paid themselves excessive salaries and amassed real estate holding while no paying proceeds to others. It will be interesting to see how all of this plays out.

Taxes and Laws and Big 'ol Stouts

Britian has frozen their beer taxes until next Summer. Seems people were getting pretty upset about recent increases. News from New Jersey, Gov. Murphy vetoed a bill that would have eased restrictions on breweries. However, there's more to it as the governor vetoed the bill as he said it doesn't go far enough. More to come here.

More in the show as we talk about Blackout Wednesday, the return of Bourbon Country Brand Stout, and interesting collaborations in Colorado. Cheers!

Beers of the Week

• Sierra Nevada Celebration
• Halfway Crooks / Three averns - Tiene Pils (10th Anni Belgian pils w/100% Belgian ingredients.)
• Bell’s - HopSlam (DIPA with Honey)
• Parish / Tripping Animals - Animals in the Machine (Double NEIPA)

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Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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This new hop sounds fishy...

With our recent love of tinned seafood we were pretty stoked to hear about Anchovy hops, and even more stoked to hear they don't taste like anchovies. We'll have to find a beer with these soon.

Y'all remember a couple of years ago when someone stole two truckloads of beer from Sweetwater Brewery? Well, some folks in Memphis beat that by stealing "17 or 18 truckloads" of Twisted Tea. What in the world will you do with that much Tea? I can't wait to hear how this shakes out.

Spice up your boring beer

I'm not sure this is exactly new, but the internet says to upgrade your cheap beer to put a few dashes of hot sauce in it. Some places really go all out with that like a Loaded Tecate or the Dressed Hamm's. I decide to try it with a Three Taverns Beeps and gotta say, pretty good.

On the note of spicy beers... remember when chile pepper beers were cool? Habnero Sculpin, Stone's horrendous Crime and Punishment. We loved No Label's Don Jalapeno. Another one last to the sand of time, mostly.

More brewery closures coming at us and another big one this week with the announcement that Ecliptic Brewing would close their pub and restaurant. However, the brand's beer will still be available.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We're talking off this week to stuff our fat faces with turkey. We hope you'll do the same. Have a great holiday and we'll see you in two weeks!

Beers of the Week

• Featured! Parish's Holy Ghost 3X NE IPA - Deep dive on the show.
• Parish Ghost in the Machine
• Parish Reve Coffee Stout
• Sierra Nevada Celebration
• Allagash Gatherwell

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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If it's gonna be dark at 5:00 I'm gonna need more stouts.

Oh. My. God. I hate this time of year. Set the clocks back an hour and I'm off schedule for two weeks. I don't sleep right, day is night, up is down. What is even happening here?

Fortunately last weekend was nice so we hit some patios, drank some good beers, ate some oysters, and visited our local barcade. Good times that we'll take advantage of while we can.

The brewery closures keep coming. The Brewers Association says craft beer is now a "mature market," listen in for more on that. We saw Hippin' Hops close a location here in Atlanta, big news out of Austin as Oskar Blue's shutters, and after we went to press news came out that Ecliptic Brewing has been sold and while the brand will live on, the pub and restaurant will close. We'll see more of that, no doubt.

As it is the season and we are all for playing along, we discuss pumpkin beers this week. I even drink one. Madness. Pumpkin beers aren't my thing but NoDa was nice enough to share some of their medal-winning Gordgeous so I gave it a shot. It's pretty good, opens up at cellar temps IMO. I may not go for pumpkin beer often but we've all got opinions on what we want IF we do happen to have one.

While beer fests are down in popularity the Festival of Wood and Barrel-Aged Beer (FoBAB) in Chicago is still a hot one. We talk about the winners this year and get excited to see a Brett beer get some love again.

In other stories can sales are down, could this mean the end of the shortage? Brian, for some reason, shares a story about alcohol and sexual assault in Antarctica. Seriously, I don't even know why this was included. But here we are.

The Beer List

• Trillium - Deciduous (Hoppy Pale Rice Lager)
• Fast Fashion / HW Crooks - Catch of the Day (Fresh Hop NE IPA)
• Iron Hill - Spruce Moose IPA
• Homebrew - Tiny Trout (Pilsner)
• Green Man - ESB
• Wild Leap - Alpha Abstraction vol. 25 (DIPA)
• NoDa Gordgeous (Pumpkin Ale)
• Anchor Steam

Sources

• https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/beer-cans-maker-ball-misses-quarterly-sales-estimates-slowing-demand-2023-11-02/
• https://www.wxyz.com/news/michigan-laundromat-expands-business-t

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Would you pay $250 for 25 ounces of beer?

It's once again time for the semi-annual release of Sam Adams Utopias and with that, the slew of websites touting that it is illegal in 15 states. Technically a beer, but drinks more like a spirit, and hits a hefty 28%. Have you tried it? What did you think?

Along with Utopias we recently saw the annual release of Bruery's Black Tuesday and Founders teased the return of their CBS (that's Canadian Breakfast Stout). We talked with Founders Brewmaster Jeremy Kosmicki about these big beers back in 2019.

What's the deal with beer fests?

Beer fests are a hot topic these days, too. People are divided on whether they're still cool, if they ever were, or if it's just a huge group of nerds getting drunk. We like beer fests. Well, some beer fests.

NA beer and bacterial growth, a bit of pee in your TsingTao, Alcohol and Loose Morals

A recent report says NA beer is a "breeding ground" for bacteria. We get the point they're making, but the headlines make it sounds a bit more scarier than we think it actually is.

An employee was caught on camera urinating into some malt at a TsingTao brewery in China. The brewery said they have secured the malt. They didn't say they tossed it, just that they secured it.

A study shows "one drink" of just 7 oz of spirits can impact your moral compass and have you dancing nude on stage at concerts BUT your loyalty won't waiver. Alrighty then.

Beers of the Week

• Sierra Nevada - Celebration IPA
• Four Fathers Brewing - The Gadget Milkshake
• Voodoo Brewing - Grindin’ (Imperial Coffee Stout, 9%!)
• Halfway Crooks - Exporrrt (Belgian - Style Export Lager)
• Blackstack Brewing - 100 Year Jubilee - TDH DIPA
• Highland Cold Mountain Winter Warmer

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Oh, Spyglass has hazies alright, but there's so much more

John Wagner and Isaac Boucher from Spyglass Brewing Co. join us on this week's show. They brewery made their name with their hazy IPAs. Thanks to a recent expansion there's now a lot more on tap Isaac tells us he's been enjoying brewing some lagers and playing with all the new hops. We joke about people wanting more variety in their IPAs... as long as they're still hazy/juicy/tropical. Good times.

We chat about all the cool innovations in ingredients available to brewers now. Modified yeasts (yay GMOs!), new hops, craft malts. We're living in the future, people. So much great beer out there. Make sure to drink it all and keep these breweries open.

To take things to a whole. 'nother. level. Spyglass has a Quad IPA. We chat about the difference between a QIPA and a Barleywine, and sipping on those big boys. We chat more on raw ales, maybe we'll see one of those from Spyglass soon.

If you're near Nashua, NH make sure to stop and have a beer or two with the crew. If not, follow them on the socials to see what they're up to,

Atlanta has a Michelin guide!

Y'all, we had to talk about this. The Foodie... Oscars? finally hit Atlanta. This week we got our first Michelin guide. We haven't visited any of the spots that got a star, but several of the Michelin Recommended and Bib Gourmand spots we've raved about and, if you follow us on the socials, you've likely seen pics. Cheers to Deer and the Dove, Little Bear, and Fishmonger on their awards.

More from Georgia. Creature Comforts Brewing's union vote failed to pass with a vote of 32-21. We think that says a lot these days. More info and opinions in the show.

25th Annual Learn to Homebrew Day is 11/03

Check out the website for more info or look for an event in your area. If you've never homebrewed now is a perfect time to ask someone that does if you can join them for a brew day.

The Beer List

• Smith & Lentz - German Pils (Nashville pickup!)
• Barrique Brewing & Blending - Wet Hop Reserve (Wild Ale w/ Wet Hops)
• Other Half - 11 Pounders (DDH IPA)
• Two Tides / Halfway Crooks - Waterfall (Pilsner)
• Green Man - Porter
• Timber Ales - Pancakes by C

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We don't recommend this beer drinking challenge...Seems a guy in the UK has "challenged" himself to drink 2,000 pints of beer in 200 days. I'm fully opposed to this challenge, but it's hard to look away. Last I saw he was running behind as he didn't start off with the goal of 2,000. So, to make his goal, he'll have to drink more than 10 pints of beer a day. Ridiculous and dangerous. I hope he gives up.

Still controversial but less dangerous, VinePair shared an article discussing some of Reddit's polarizing beer takes. Nitro beers, six packs, saisons, and candy beers are in the mix. What are your thoughts on these hot takes?

Much to Brian's joy, Ukraine has a tomato beer they've submitted for approval as a BJCP beer style. As you may know, we dabbled with some sun dried tomatoes back in our homebrewing days with Johnny Saisoni. We nailed what we were going for, and most agreed, but not everyone thought that was a good thing.

Support better beer laws for Georgia's breweries

Georgia's beer laws aren't great, but we've got some folks trying to change that. The Georgia Craft Brewers Guild is presenting Senate Bill 163 - The FOAM Act to help improve laws for small breweries. Check out the bill and we'd really appreciate if you'd sign this petition.

We also share another Anchor update, info on New Zealand's Raw Ale movement, and the most expensive airport beers. Whew!

Beers of the Week

• Anchor Steam
• Round Trip Instant Krüsch | Kölsch
• Hi-Wire Brewing - Rye Whiskey Barrel-Aged Manhattan Ale | Barleywine
• Line Creek The Real Dill | Dill Pickle Sour
• Creature Comforts / Heater Allen - Heater Action | Dortmunder Lager
• Birds Fly South - Nights Like These | Dry Irish Stout
• Three Taverns Pilsen Liberation | Czech Pils

Sources

• https://vinepair.com/booze-news/reddit-polarizing-beer-takes/
• https://www.sfchronicle.com/realestate/article/s-f-anchor-brewing-on-the-market-18422512.php
• https://www.vice.com/en/article/93kzj3/jon-may-2000-pints-200-days-livestream

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We have no idea what's going on anymore.

Some of the beer (or at least alcohol) news we see is just insane. Maybe we shouldn't judge too hard, we've all had our moments, remember Brian's BORG phase?

Seems another ridiculous TikTok trend has people de-carbing their White Claws. If you're gonna do that, why not just get some crazy flavored vodka and mix with some water. I think that would actually be cheaper. Madness.

And from the "I shouldn't be surprised that I'm surprised" file, Ultra Right beer is a hit. A special edition with Trump's mug shot on it apparently sold 20,000 six packs in record time.

A little less insane, the popularity of hop water is increasing. We've dabbled. Hop Lark was on the show a few years ago and we've even made some hop water ourselves. It's not really my thing, but Brian digs it.

And we've got one last round of stats from this year's Oktoberfest. They hit record attendance in 2023, but sold less beer than previous years. Oh well, at least people were showing up.

Beers of the Week

• Reuben’s Brews / Monday Night - Surround Sound
• Xul Beer Co - Rhymes Like Dimes
• Halfway Crooks - Whole Cone Fest Marzen
• Untitled Art/ Collective Arts Brewing - Cotton Candy
• Good Word - Any Day Now
• Burnt Hickory Brewing - Big Shanty (Graham Cracker Stout)
• Hi Wire 10 Years of Hi Wire | Blend of BBA 10W-40 Imperial Stout, BBA Barleywine, and BBA Belgian-style Quad

Sources

• https://allaboutbeer.com/why-hop-water-is-great-for-breweries-and-consumers
• https://vinepair.com/articles/urine-in-corona-hoax/
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/dontse/2023/10/07/2023-oktoberfest-was-the-biggest-beer-party-ever/
• https://www.cnbc.com/2023/10/04/molson-coors-ceo-on-non-alcoholic-drinks-were-moving-beyond-beer.html
• https://vinepair.com/booze-news/iwsr-data-at-home-drinking-trend/

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Y'all, the Wagner Group owns a brewery in Africa...

Yes, that Wagner Group. The story is crazy. You'll have to stick with us til the end but we give you the rundown on this craziness.

For some reason, we start the show talking about crazy sandwiches and stupid pizza with stupid toppings that are stupid. The we get into a new take on Tank 7 that we can't wait to try, and other odd beer flavors that just work

Tilray finally complete their purchase of breweries and other things from AB InBev. The breweries seem pretty excited about it. For us here in Atlanta, home of SweetWater, that should mean a lot more brands on tap at the brewery. We'll check it out and report back.

Draft beer struggles but Voodoo Ranger is riding strong

Brian's not been shy about his love for the 19.2 oz can, and he shares them each week for #LongBeerFriday on Twitter or, X, I guess. But is the 19.2 part of the problem with draft beers decline? We may never know, but that won't stop us from talking about it. Personally, I want to see smaller cans, gimme everything in an 8 oz. and I'd be happy.

Voodoo Ranger is killing it in grocery and convenience stores. Between the standard Voodoo Ranger and Juice Force they've got the #1 and #2 spots. We're still disappointed the water park never happened.

Run the Jewels turns 10 and celebrates with some collaboration brews

We got our hands on the Run the Jewels / Monday Night Brewing collaboration RTJX Southern IPA. Full disclosure, Monday Night hooked us up with a 4-pk. We featured the brew on the show this week and tell about the brew and the cause it's supporting.

Anchor Brewing update

We're not sure what to make of this, but it sounds.... interesting. Anchor Brewing's assets have been donated to the San Francisco Historical Society and the Smithsonian Institution. What's this mean for the Union trying to buy the brewery? Guess we'll have to wait and see.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We remember falling in love with Hop Drop N Roll...Back before we started BGR, NoDa Brewing's Hop Drop N Roll was one of the beers we would mule back when we went to the Carolinas. Pickings were still a bit slim here in Georgia and it was a banger of a West Coast IPA. It still is, but there's so much more beer out there now.

You'll notice (hopefully) that I'm (Tim) absent from this episode (show). Brian noted it as "on assignment," that assignment was a health scare with my dear old (83) dad. He's stable now, but not great. Y'all keep send him some good vibes or send up prayers if you do that sort of thing, please. Thanks.

Fortunately, Nate and Brian kept the party going as they chatted with NoDa's co-founder and head brewer Chad Henderson. They start the show off with some discussion on which generation drinks the most, with Gen Z really lagging on doing their part for the alcohol beverage industry.

You look Gordgeous!Chad shares about their lovely beers, like Hop Drop N Roll, SLURP, their medal-winning Gordgeous pumpkin ale, and some upcoming Holiday goodies.

We learn about NoDa's support for Pints for Prostates, talk all about they Cheerwine collaboration ale, and some chatter on raw ales and their Nordic Raw Stout.

The Great American Beer Festival just wrapped up and announced their winners list. We talk some about NoDa's success at the fest and some overall GABF medal stats.

NoDa Brewing keeps their distro tight, you'll only find them in the Carolinas, so grab some when you or a friend visit.

Beers of the Week

• NoDa Lil Slurp | Juicy IPA
• NoDa Gordgeous | Pumpkin beer
• NoDa Cheerwine Ale | Cheerwine inspired What Ale
• NoDa Hop Drop N Roll | West Coast IPA

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Are you ready for an extra long Oktoberfest?

The official Oktoberfest celebration in Munich is 18 days long this year, an extra 2 days over the typical 16 to include German Unity Day.

If you're celebrating in America that doesn't matter because we start celebrating in September and run all the way through October, and sometimes November. Because if there's a drinking holiday we're going to stretch it out as long as we can.

To get the party started we headed to Der Biergarten in Atlanta for the firs day of Oktoberfest. The celebration included a whole roasted pig, an official "first" keg tapping, oompah music, and plenty of beer.

We talked with Austin Edwards, head brewer at STATS Brewpub (STATS and Der Biergarten are both part of the Legacy Ventures family) and Jay Toxey, the Southeast Regional Manager for Paulaner USA. We enjoyed Paulaner's Festbier and Marzen and STATS Oktoberfest during the festivities. In keeping with tradition we learn a bit about Oktoberfest - fun facts, stats, and trivia, and about the beer served at Munich's festival.

If you're in Atlanta and looking for some great German beer and food to celebrate then head to Der Biergarten, get you a liter of bier, and party on.

And if you haven't listened yet, be sure to check out our 6th Annual Oktoberfest Blind Beer Tasting!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We're so busy festin' this year that we had to do an extra episode to work in our annual Oktoberfest blind beer tasting. But, we're dedicated so we made it happen.

We (OK, Brian) grabbed 5 German and 5 American takes on the the Festbier and Marzen styles and we blind tasted them and picked our favorites. In keeping with tradition we had some big, soft pretzels (praise be to QT) and some brats, and a bit of fish dip. We enjoyed these before and after tasting so we didn't mess up our delicate palates, and had some plain crackers and coffee to clear out our taste and smell.

As always, this was a fun show to do. Hard to argue with drinking through some great Oktoberfest beers. There were some definite surprises this year, and a few that performed as expected. Prost!

The Beer List (In alphabetical order)

• Ayinger Oktober Fest-Märzen - Märzen
• Bell's Octoberfest Beer - Märzen
• Hacker-Pschorr Oktboberfest Märzen - Märzen
• Hofbräuhaus München Hofbräu Oktoberfestbier - Festbier
• Paulaner Oktboberfest Märzen - Märzen
• Sam Adams Octoberfest - Märzen
• Sierra Nevada / Kehrwieder Kreativbrauerei - Festbier
• Victory Festbier - Festbier
• Warsteiner Oktoberfest - Märzen
• Yuengling Oktoberfest - Märzen

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Our beer fest tour continues...

Last weekend we took our happy selves to Duluth, GA for the Les Bon Beer Festival hosted by our good friends at Good Word Brewing.

Good Word always puts on a great event and this highly-curated selection of brewers and oyster farmers was no exception. We enjoyed a variety of saisons, mixed fermentation brews, and oysters as we chatted with some of the events participants.

We always love to learn more about things we don't know about. Ed Mera of Mera Brothers Oysters joins us to drop some general knowledge on oysters, the impact of hurricanes on oysters, green gills, and merroir.

Averie Swanson from Keeping Together tells us about her brewery and the journey from Texas, to Chicago, to New Mexico while educating us all on mixed culture beers. We get a shot of Underberg to keep our digestion in check, and discuss the wonders of Malort.

There are a few people we know well and always have good conversations with. Orpheus Brewing's Jason Pellett is one of those people. Jason's been on the show a handful of times over the years and was one of first guests wayyy back in 2016. Jason recently closed his taproom in Atlanta and is in the process of moving to Amsterdam where he'll open a much smaller brewery, The Hollows, thanks in part to more friendly brewing laws. We talk with Jason about these changes, the "protections" of the three-tier system, and why everything is so damn expensive these days. FYI... even though the taproom is closed you can still find Orpheus beers at retail and on draft thanks to their partnership with Bevana.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson and occasional appearances from Becky Smalls.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Did you see all the madness going around last week over the rumor that the Biden administration was going to tell Americans they can only have 2 beers a week? It was crazy and, from what we read, seemed to be an off the cuff comment blown out of proportion, but it made for some good discussion.

Larry Horwitz, currently with Crooked Hammock Brewery, but with a long resume, joined us on the show this week. We learn a bit about his brewery and what they're up to, talk about the changing craft beer industry, and ponder the impact that legal weed has on craft beer. There's some lager talk, and Larry debunks his nickname of the Light Lager Whisperer, but that doesn't mean he doesn't enjoy them.

As part of the Brewers Associations draft beer committee Larry tells us about the challenges facing draft and the "state of the industry" for draft beer. We also get a great story about (the beer writer) Michael Jackson and peanut butter beer. Good times.

Annnnnnd.... we are now OFFICIALLY able to get into Oktoberfest beers! We did exactly that last weekend and there's more to come. Happy Holidays!

The Beer List

• Crooked Hammock Brewery - Wide Eyed Wit
• Ommegang - Gnommegang Belgian-Style Blonde Ale
• Other Half Triple Mylar Daydream
• Victory - Prima Pils

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Last weekend we hung out with the crew at Terrapin Brewery Atlanta for the Live at the Battery beer fest. It was an awesome time filled with BBQ, beer, and great conversation.

Joining us on the show we had Terrapin co-founder Spike Buckowski and lead brewer Chad Martin. We covered a lot of ground in our conversation.

We discuss the art of whiskey blending. It's not easy to produce a consistent product, or to put out a new one that's a winner and offers something unique.

Spike gives us the scoop on Terrapin's 25th Anniversary beer, BBA Old Snapper Barleywine. We can't wait to get our hands on some of that one.

We open a few Terrapin vintage beers from Brian's cellar and talk about the fortress of wax on Terrapin's early wax-dipped bottles. Tiramisu Hoo, Cinnamom Roll'd WnB, and a Tart CherryWnB.

We reminisce about Belgian beer and how for many of us that was our gateway to the wonderful world of craft.

Spike share's info on his travels to Canada and the malty adventures there and Chad chats about brewing with some fun ingredients, like Phantasm and thiolized yeast.

We get in some hot Cold IPA talk, more reminiscing on macro beers, lagers, and Malort. Ahhh, Malort.

Terrapin Beers of the Week

• Clara Bell Kolsch
• Just a Bit OTP
• Tripel Buzz
• Tiramisu Hoo VINTAGE!
• Cinnamom Roll'd WnB VINTAGE!
• Tart CherryWnB VINTAGE!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Apparently Germany has a raccoon problem. Drunken ones at that. The population has exploded in recent years and the furry troublemakers are breaking into homes, tearing stuff, and getting lit. They sound like they'd be cool to hangout with.

We got a new beer style, or do we? I've been using my skeptical face lately with some of these new beer styles. Apparently, West Coast Pilsner is a thing. But it sounds like the flavor isn't what you'd expect from something with "West Coast" in the name.

British Brewers battered by Brexit. In addition to the standard issues facing brewers today it sounds like Brexit is causing grief for some of Britain's brewers. Many are noting huge losses of export sales due to Brexit, and some are closing. That'll teach 'em.

Billy Busch Wants To Make Bud Light Great Again. Ol' Billy claimed on a recent interview he'd buy back the brand. Sounds like just some puffing of the chest for attention, but who even knows these days.

Vintage... fish? You know Brian and I are currently going through a tinned seafood phase. As dive into this more we are learning so many fun things. Like there are "vintage" tins of sardines. Apparently the flavors mellow with a few years age on them and soak up more of whatever they're canned in - oil, tomato sauce, peppers.. From what I've seen so far about 5 years is as you want to go. I'm curious to try some cellared fish, and a bit scared.

IT'S BEER FEST TIME Y'ALL!!! Atlanta peeps! Come join us this weekend at Terrapin Brewery Atlanta where we'll be getting our beer fest on and talking with Terrapin founder Spike Buckowski. On 09/09 catch us a Les Bon at Good Word in Duluth, GA and on 09/16 we'll be at Der Biergarten in Atlanta for some hot Oktoberfest fun. Wooooo!

The Beer List

• Bitburger Pils
• Fonta Flora / AZ Wilderness - Doom Tree Kölsch (Aged on fresh lemon zest and local elderflower)
• NoDa Brewing - Hop Drop ‘N Roll West Coast style IPA
• Monday Night - Surround Sound American Pilsner
• Dalton Brewing - Space Cow Milkshake NEIPA
• Jack’s Abby Post Shift Bavarian Pils

Sources

• https://twitter.com/Beervana/status/1692313696226427269
• https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/aug/19/craft-beer-boom-uk-firms-bust-brexit

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Maui Brewing is leading efforts for wildfire relief
Earlier this week a fire ripped through the town of Lahaina on Maui. The losses were devastating, a nearly total loss of the entire city. Maui Brewing is leading the initiative for relief efforts through direct contributions, sharing resources, and starting the Kokua Project for a collaborative brew inspired by Sierra Nevada's Resilience project. Follow the links below for more info on ways you can support these efforts.

• TS Restaurants Legacy of Aloha - which will help the affected employees and their families
• Makai Foundation - which will support rebuilding efforts
• Maui Brewing Fire Fund - which will raise funds to deal with additional needs on the ground.

And if you’re a brewery and you would like to sign up to participate in the Kokua Project, you can find out more on the Maui Brewing website.

Go to: MauiBrewingCo.com/kokua What's the price for a case of beer in your state?Beer prices across the country vary greatly. Taxes, shipping, and other silliness can all impact cost. A survey from Alcohol Delivered shares the average cost of a case of macro brews across the US.

Take a trip to Treehouse for nine holes and a hazy

Breweries are always trying to come up with new ways to attract guests. For Treehouse brewing, that's opening a location with a 9-hole golf course. The move isn't unprecedented, Strange Duck Brewing here in Georgia has a (mini) golf course on site as well. FORRRE!

Ocean aging alcohol never seems to work out
A winery in California recently had the authorities step in and put a stop to their underwater aging efforts. The FDA said the wine was adulterated and not fit for human consumption. This reminds us of a story from a few years ago when a brewery tried aging a barrel of their beer on the ocean floor. The end result? The barrel of beer was stolen. Bummer.

The Beer List

• Oyster City - Tates Helles
• Prairie Artisan - Spicy Pickle Monster
• Terrapin - Wake-n-Bake Coffee Oatmeal Imperial Stout
• Captain Lawrence - Citra Dreams
• Jester King - Queen’s Order
• Sierra Nevada Summerfest (Cause Su

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We had to wing it this week...

Unfortunately, our guest had a last minute emergency this week and we'll have to reschedule Larry for another time. It's cool, we've got this. We can always talk about beer.

Canned Fish and Beer Pairing?

One of our latest obsessions is tinned seafood. Sounds like we're kind of late to the party here but at least we made it to the party. I've always enjoyed a nice kipper or some tuna salad but there's a whole world out there I had no idea about. Fish lovers have their own forums, inside jokes, and memes just like beer nerds. Weirdos. We offer up some pairing suggestions for those that want to explore this salty world with us. Grab yourself some deens (that's what the cool kids call sardines) and grab a brew. If you've got any favorites please let us know.

Tilray Buys a Bunch of Breweries

The big news in beer this week is Tilray's purchase of 8 brands from Anheuser Busch. There's plenty of debate on whether this is a smart or dumb move for Tilray. It seems they got a great price on the package, less than AB paid for just one of the breweries when they acquired them.

The purchase of Sweetwater started Tilray (Aphria at the time) down the beer path and they acquired a few others since then. Here in Atlanta we've enjoyed Alpine and Green Flash brews on tap at the Sweetwater taproom. Maybe we'll see a cornucopia of these legacy brands there in the future.

German beer sales down, Guinness has a record year

Sounds like our German friends are easing up their drinking as sales are reported to be down 2.9% compared to last year. The country saw a bit of a boost once Covid restrictions lifted but that has gone away. In contrast to that, Guinness had it's best year ever with sales up 9% across all regions. Truly a lovely day for a pint.

The Beer List

• Deschutes / Bitburger - Dry Hop’d Zwickl
• Meier’s Creek - Dark Logger
• Decadent Ales - AC/DC PWR⚡UP Juicy IPA (6.66%)
• Bluejacket - They Both Melt (Dunkel)
• El Segundo - Greetings from El Segundo Anniversary Ale (TIPA)
• Three Taverns Beeps - Lager

Sources

• https://www.forbes.com/sites/hudsonlindenberger/2023/08/08/tilray-brands-deal-with-anheuser-busch-inbev-sets-them-firmly-on-the-national-stage/?sh=6d317f4424a8

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Black is Beautiful Vol. 2 is coming

Marcus Baskerville of Weathered Souls Brewing didn't intend to start a movement when he created his Black is Beautiful beer. Intentional or not, the movement happened, with 1,200+ breweries across all 50 states and 22 countries brewery their take on the Imperial Stout. Vol. 2 is underway, this one will be a NEIPA.

National Black Brewers Association

Less than 1% of the nearly 10,000 craft breweries in the US are black-owned, the National Black Brewers Association (NB2A) aims to change that. Through raising awareness the organization aims to the number of African Americans in brewing while raising awareness of the African American brewing history, opening more opportunity and resources for black brewers, and much more. Listen as Marcus shares about the organization and their goals.

Seasonal Creep and Pumpkin Hate

It's going to happen. I can't stop it. But we don't have to like. Hear our takes on seasonal creep of all things and our exception for a bit of Christmas in July.

You will never see a pumpkin beer from Weathered Souls. We can appreciate that. Marcus shares about his early, explosive experience with pumpkin that solidified his stance.

Learn more about Black is Beautiful and the National Black Brewers Association

There's a lot more than we could cover in an hour. Check out the links below for more info.

• https://www.nationalblackbrewersassociation.org/
• https://blackisbeautiful.beer/
• https://weatheredsouls.beer/

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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What do you think of GMO yeast in your beer?

They're definitely controversial, but there are some interesting things being done with GMO yeasts like "diacetyl-free" yeast, or yeasts like Sourivisae that produce lactic acid. Recently, thiolized yeasts have received a lot of press. American brewers are using these yeasts in beer every day, but due to stringent GMO guidelines they aren't available outside of the US yet.

And we've got some interesting hop talk this week, too. A farmer in Bavaria us growing hops under solar panels. This setup provides enough electricity for 250 households and the hops benefit from a bit of shade from rising temps, requiring less water. Reports are the hops are doing well, and may even increase yield. A scientific analysis of the project will be concluded in October.

More brewery drama this week as Leinenkugel's Wisconsin brewers have gone on strike for higher wages, which they say are lagging behind similar businesses. In one case, a brewer is only making $5.50/hr more than he was in 1990. Madness.

And don't think we forgot about Anchor Brewing. This one just keeps on developing. The Anchor Union has launched a bid to buy the brewery. However, Sapporo has said they will continue to move forward with liquidation and the beginning of August, so they don't have much time to make it happen. Good luck, Anchor!

Beers of the Week

• Brewery Bhavana Brisk (Pilsner)
• Three Taverns - Beeps
• Woven Water - Solace (English Coffee Porter)
• Newgrass Brewing - 11° (Czech Pilsner)
• The Veil - We We Ded Ded (Hazy DDH TIPA)
• River Rat Broad River Red Ale
• Liability Brewing Athleisure Hefeweizen

Sources

• https://www.wired.com/story/the-secret-ingredient-in-your-craft-beer-gene-edited-yeast/
• https://www.brewbound.com/news/beer-sales-8-3-over-july-4-but-52-week-volume-still-down-per-circana
• https://news.yahoo.com/workers-156-old-wisconsin-brewery-164317167.html
• https://apnews.com/article/climate-beer-solar-panels-hops-germany-ee3d00a1877837eb85053335e3b68a00
• https://www.probrewer.com/beverage-industry-news/news-from-the-breweries/sapporo-to-upgrade-stone-breweries-to-accommodate-brewing-sapporo-beer-for-us-market/
• https://vinepair.com/booze-news/anchor-employees-brewery-takeover-bid/

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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It's tough to find positive news when looking at beer and brewery stats right now. New permit applications are down, beer festivals are on the decline, and we've all seen the closures of some of our favorite breweries this year.

However, there's a small ray of hope for Anchor Brewing after announcing their closure last week. A few investors have stepped forward to express their interest in buying the brewery. Two have said they'll keep things small and focused to start, and one wants to make the relaunch a reality TV show. Oof.

Beer Festival Bust

Speaking of beer fests... Some of the biggest festivals in the country are on hiatus, or cancelled. Folks just don't seem to be as in to them as they used to be. With that country's largest festival, Great American Beer Fest, coming up soon all eyes are on the turnout there. We think it may not be beer fests as much of the type of fests, with a preference for smaller, specialized events. What do you think?

On the science front, Omega Yeast Labs has found the gene responsible for bringing the haze to your hazies. They're calling it HZY1. After comparing yeast strains that produce hazier beers and isolating this gene, they've got the magic formula. We'll have to wait to see what this may mean in the future.

Beer Cocktails on the rise

Survey says more people are trying beer cocktails these days, or they're expressing an interest in trying them. For now, the research is on gateway cocktails like beeritas, shandies, and radlers. But once they're through the gate who knows what may happen.

For our Midwest listeners, have you had Red Beer? Is it still a thing? My dad drank "Tomato Beers" back in the day but I just thought it was a crazy thing he did. Google says this beer cocktail is still pretty popular in the region. Pops was a trendsetter.

Beers of the Week

• Anchor Steam Beer
• Sierra Nevada Flipside (Red IPA, Fan Favorites Pack Re-release)
• Deschutes Black Butte XXXV (Imp. Porter w/ Cherries, Cocoa, & Vanilla)
• Homebrew Schwarzbier
• Drowned Valley Mexican Lager with Lime
• El Segundo Smooth Deep Blues
• Göller Lager
• RAR Saving Astoria - Gose with tangerine and blood orange
• Jack’s Abby Post Shift Pilsner

Sources

• https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/article/save-anchor-steam-18199818.php
• https:/

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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It's been a sad week for craft beer lovers. A story we couldn't skip, Anchor Brewing is closing after 127 years in business.

This one hits you right in the nostalgia as a craft beer drinker, but I'll be the first to admit I was part of the problem here. The last few years I think Christmas Ale is the only Anchor beer I've purchased. There are just so many great choices today. Whether I'm at my local brewery or bottle shop, there are tons of amazing beers to be had and some of the old faithfuls don't get the love they once did.

Close to home Atlanta Brewing Co. reported their lease was cancelled at Underground Atlanta, where they planned to re-open after closing last Summer. Although we thought this was the end of them news came out after the show that they aren't giving up yet.

We start off the show with tomato talk. Right, tomatoes. In beers, not in beers, and in the glorious BLT. Tis the season.

There's also some fun news with a new champ for the Beer Mile. Chug, run, chug, run. The chug time was a bit slow but the run time made up for. And Asia is getting a brewery on a cruise ship. We didn't know until we started digging around but apparently there's already one in North America - Carnival Vista's Red Frog Pub & Brewery.

A new (well, old) grain is making waves in brewing. Funio is a gluten-free grain that is very eco friendly and, apparently, has a closer taste to "real" beer than other gluten-free alternatives. Brooklyn Brewing has made beer with it and they're encouraging others to do the same.

We were thirsty during the show so here are our Beers of the Week

• Anchor - West Coast IPA
• Sierra Nevada - Ruthless Rye IPA
• High-Wire - Big Boy Thiolized NEIPA
• Halfway Crooks - Farina Lager
• Vitamin Sea - Greetings from Weymouth IPA
• Sweetwater - Gummies Fruit Punch IIPA

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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With rising costs for everything would you rather your favorite beer lose a bit of ABV or see the price go up a bit? According to our Twitter poll, about 75% of you would rather pay a bit more for your pint. "Drinkflation" is a hot topic in the UK as some brewers are choosing to drop the alcohol content of popular by 0.2% or so, and Brits are not happy about it.

If you want to see some hardcore Drinkflation, head out to your nearest cocktail bar. We enjoyed several Tiki cocktails this weekend and have the receipts to prove it. Drinking great is not cheap, for sure.

Back to beer we look at current trends, and I may have to eat my words for not believe that Bomb Pop beers were having a moment. I must have seen 4-5 release notices just this week. Never would have guessed, but I'm not scared to admit when I'm wrong. Red and Amber Ales are on the uptick as well, they're coming from all angles.

What's not on the rise is Sorachi Ace beers. This hop popped into our heads this week and we remember a few really nice beers that featured it. Seems lately that crop yields are very low and the lion's share of the harvest goes to Sapporo, who still features Sorachi Ace in the Asian markets.

We know this Bud Light story just keeps going on, but Anheuser-Busch continues to (somehow) keep wrecking this train. Their US CEO Brendan Whitworth appeared on the CBS Morning Show where he avoided every single direct question and instead chose to talk about their focus on unity and their employees. They've managed to make everyone upset, not matter their stance, and their sales continue to pay the price for their hubris.

To end on a positive note, New Jersey is very close to overturning some extremely restrictive beer laws that limited food, events, and everything fun at breweries. A bill is headed to the governor for signature that would reverse these laws and make things much better for the Garden State's breweries. Way to go, NJ!

Beers of the Week

• Halfway Crooks Radix - German Pilsner
• Hair of the Dog Adam Batch 89 - Adambier, ~2013
• Monday Night Juice Raptor - NE IPA
• Austin Brothers Alpena Amber - Amber Ale
• Austin Brothers Sno Drift Rally: Bonfire Alley - Brown Ale
• Terrapin Imperial Luau POG - Imperial IPA
• Eighth State Com Truise - Imperial IPA
• Shiner Prickly Pear - Fruit Beer

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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It's hot, Y'all. So hot. Summer beers are here to save the day.

Now you know we're not scared to go dark in the Summer, but we do enjoy the lighter, crispy, refreshing beers that Summer brings. Kolsch, Pilsner, Pale Ale, and a lot more. We share some of the most popular styles for the season and an unexpected trend this year with... Rocket Pop beers?

Another hot item for Summer - the backyard barbecue. Maybe you call it a cookout, or just grilling. Call it what you like as long as the end result is delicious grilled meats. We've got pairings for some of the most popular grilled/smoked meats - ribs, pulled pork, brisket, and good ol' burgers and dogs. We also talk about some of the regional barbecue styles across the country and the city that's the most BBQ obsessed, which may be a surprise to many.

What's your favorite Summer beer? What's your favorite kind of barbecue? We've got ours, but we'll be doing research this year to verify.

Summer Beers of the Week

• Dos Equis Especial Lime & Salt (Lager)
• Sierra Nevada Summerfest (Summer Lager)
• Westbrook Key Lime Pi (Sour)
• Three Taverns Beeps (American Light Lager)
• Oyster City Mangrove (Mango Pale Ale)
• Deadwords Timberline (West Coast-ish IPA)
• Oyster City Tates Helles (Helles Lager)
• Good Supply Beer Co. (Easy Lager)
• Liability Brewing Stainless Steel Magnolias (Kolsch)

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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There's a lot to love about Belgian beers.

Once upon a time, many craft drinkers in America turned to Belgian beers for their quality and complexity. Either for a break from the limited American beers or due to lack of availability in their area. Golden ales, dubbels and tripels and quads, lambic and geuze, there was a bounty of flavor coming from Belgian breweries.

On the heels of his Belgians in the Garden beer festival John Roberts of Bold Monk joins us this week along with fellow brewer Brian Purcell of Three Taverns. We five into the styles, traditions, trends, terroir, glassware, and ingredients of Belgian beer.

A few of the topics covered:

• Belgians in the Beer Garden Recap
• Belgians vs. Belgian-style
• St. Bernardus 12 vs. Westy 12
• Singels, Dubbels, Tripels, & Quads
• The Short History of the Quadrupel
• Long Lost Belgian Styles Still Lost
• What Makes a Pilsner Belgian?
• Three Taverns Steps Out - A Night On Ponce
• Saisons: The Beer of the People
• All Beers Were Once Rauchbiers
• Growing Interest in Tripels & Quads
• Tekus and Belgian Beer Glassware
• Patersbier / Belgian Singels
• Lambics, Geuzes, and Spontaneous Ales
• Flanders Red Ales and Oude Bruins

Belgian Beers of the Week

• Orval
• Three Taverns & Brick Store - Total B.S. (Brett Saison, 2017)
• Oude Geuze Boon
• Bold Monk - The Virtue of Patience (Flanders Red Ale)

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Huge thanks to our Patreon supporter Coach Rogers for the suggestion for this show. We appreciate it!

Father's Day is a little over a week away. Are you ready for it?

Dads. We all have them. Questionable fashion, cheesy jokes, mad love for our idiotic selves. Dads don't get the credit they deserve, which is probably why they need a beer.

We delve into all things dad in this episode. Discussing what a dad beer is, or maybe what it was and what it is today. We share stories of beers we had with our dads, our dads' favorite beers, offer some gift ideas for dad, and share a slew of really awful dad jokes.

Don't forget Dad next Sunday. Get him his favorite beer, take him out to his favorite dinner, and make sure to laugh at his jokes.

Beers of the Week

• Heileman’s Old Style | Lager
• Mickey’s Big Mouth | Malt Liquor
• Miller High Life | Champagne of Beers
• Atlanta Brewing Kentucky Beer Dad | English Barleywine
• Southern Pines Malty By Nature | Scottish Export
• RJ Rockers Brown Eye Squirrel | Brown Ale
• River Rat Broad River | Red Ale
• The Eighth State Daily Routine | Pilsner

Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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We made it through the holiday weekend unscathed and are almost done with this short work week. Nice.

On this week's show we recap Brian and Nate's trips to Florida and the beer they got into on their travels. Smalls and I stayed here but Smalls threw a party so we had some grilled meats and beers with friends and then I binged the rest of Ted Lasso.

I sip on a new Scofflaw brew called Hop Shatter. Here's what the brewery has to say about the beer.

Originally brewed for the 2023 Craft Brewers Conference, this potent IPA showcase CGX Cryogenic Lupulin Pellets, jam-packed with resins and oils for Flavor and Aroma and less environmental impact and production waste. Featuring Motueka CGX, Amarillo CGX, and Cashmere T-90 for notes of zesty citrus, with a touch of floral, white grape, and fresh berries.

Interesting. Very tasty beer, too.

We discuss Sima, also known as Finnish Spring Mead. It's a very low alcohol beverage brewed for May Day festival, known as Vappu in Finland. Brian tried a commercial take on the style this weekend but it's also a very easy one to brew at home.

A bill is up to allow shipping alcohol by USPS. We won't get too excited for that just yet as it's been talked about before, but we'll see. Brewers are buying their breweries back from Big Beer. Quite the turn of events, I wonder if we'll see more of it?

And the monks are really sick of people reselling their beer and they're cracking down. If you go to the Netherlands and buy a Trappist ale at a convenience store don't be surprised when a bunch of guys in robes come after you. You've been warned.

The Beers of the Week are....

• Deadwords Brewing - Timberline Pacific Northwest IPA
• Beer Zombies - Zombie Duck Hunter (WC IPA)
• J. Wakefield - UJP Porter (Smoked English-style Porter)
• The Seed: A Living Beer Project - Moments (Ordinary Bitter style Ale)
• Eighth State - Coating Consistency (Imp Stout w/ toasted coconut, almond, walnut, and 5 different vanillas)
• Scofflaw Hop Shatter Hazy IPA

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "Mo' Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Ever struggled to adapt in a constantly changing landscape?We discuss the challenges that breweries face and how they must evolve to stay afloat. We delved into the latest updates on the New Jersey Brewery Law while also sharing our recent visit to Six Bridges Brewery in Milton, Georgia. We even touched on the stigma that comes with a struggling brewery..

As we sipped on various craft beers, we explored unusual concepts like carbonated pork rinds (a guy can dream) and the ABV limit on beer. We also emphasized the importance of supporting local craft breweries and their ongoing battle to stay alive in a competitive market.

But wait, there's more! We ventured into the realm of craft beer cameos and collaborations with movies and TV series, such as the partnership between Athletic Brewing and Netflix for the Witcher series. Plus, we talked about the emerging trend of 19.2-ounce stovepipes in craft beer and why convenience stores are the perfect place to find them.

Beers of the Week
Brought you you by The Nest Kennesaw!

• Southern Pines Malty by Nature Scottish Export Ale
• Genesee - Cream Ale
• Octopi - Belgian Chocolate Toffee Vanilla Stout
• Other Half - All Green Everything (TIPA).
• Burial - This Is All Much Too Subtle To Be Translated To the Intangible. (Imperial Pastry Stout)

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Beer cocktails, Cheerwine Ale, World Beer Cup stats, and the magic of mushrooms are all on deck for this week's show.

Shout out to friend of the show Billy for hanging with us on a recent trip to Atlanta. We had a chance to hit some our favorites spots like Brick Store Pub and Three Taverns Brewery and swap some beers. He hooked us up with NoDa's Cheerwine Ale that we'll dive into. It's pure madness and we gotta try it. We also taste some delightful brews from Eighth State Brewing, Three Taverns, and Wild Heaven.

Delving into the 2023 World Beer Cup, we analyze beer style trends and the evolving palates of beer drinkers across the country. Georgia beers make their mark with some medal wins, and we highlight a thrilling collaboration between Three Taverns and Pilsner Urquell's experimental brewery Pivovar Proud. Plus, a fascinating study reveals the power of free drink samples for boosting sales and brand awareness – a strategy we can certainly get behind!

With grilling season upon us there's sure to be a lot of beer can chicken happening in backyards across the country. Thanks to Perdue Chicken and Torch & Crown Brewing Company you won't have to wonder the best beer to use. Their Beer Can Chicken beer has the flavors you need to stuff up that chicken's butt.

In Mo' Mic Nate's Cocktail Corner he shares a super-simple recipe for a beer cocktail known as Spaghett. Grab a Miller High Life and check this one out

Lastly, we explore the amazing world of mushrooms and their remarkable ability to cool down their surroundings. Can you imagine a DIY air conditioning system made of styrofoam and mushrooms?

Join us for this fun and informative episode, and as always, cheers to great beer!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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A couple weeks ago we took our fine selves down to Atlantic Station in beautiful Atlanta, GA for the Georgia Craft Brewers Fest. The event is sponsored by our friends at the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild and showcases over 60 of our state's awesome breweries.

One of the highlights of the festival is the collaboration competition. Brewers team up with each other, or maybe with a local restaurant or charity, and brew a collaboration beer to be served at the event and judged by a panel of esteemed judges.

In that spirit we focused on collaboration chat in this episode and, since one of the collabs was a malt liquor, we decided to chat a bit on that as well. In the first half of the show we sit down with John Doss and Jay Harris from Southern Brewing Co. who partnered up with Akademia Brewing for Eagle Fang malt liquor. We talk about why you collab, what you get out of it, and veer a bit into lager talk. (Spoiler: We'll be doing a deep dive lager episode in the future.)

Next up we talk with Craig Mycoskie from Round Trip Brewing and Matt Curling from Variant Brewing Co. We've known Craig for a couple of years and we've known Matt from way back in our homebrewing days. We've brewed together a handful of times and went up against each other in homebrew comps. Matt's brewery is now one of the best in the state. Grab some Variant if you get the chance.

We carry on with collab talk with Craig and Matt and get into some talk on Pilsner variations, overcoming language barriers, Rauch IPAs and Craig's brewing background.

Free Spirit Charitable Collaboration

Of all the collabs we talked about on the show, this one is the most special. The beer is brewed in memory of Britney Fox Watts as a collaboration between Small Dreams Foundation and Terrapin Beer Co. You should definitely head to the website and learn more.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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This is it, Folks! BGR 2.0 is live! We made some changes to our look and to the show and we hope you enjoy it. Let us know what you think.

In this episode we tackle everything from magically un-soured beers to arrests over beer reviews. We'll fill you in on the Zwanze Day celebration and the Georgia Craft Beer Festival, sharing some of the fantastic brews we enjoyed there. We also dive deep into the serious topic of Founders Brewing's racial discrimination lawsuit and its impact on the beer industry.

We Ask a Robot about Saccharomyces Alkalitolerans and we'll delve into the fascinating world of homebrewing and the impact of beer packaging artwork on our purchasing decisions.

Finally, we'll shed some light on the Thai craft beer review controversy and the changes ahead for Zwanze Day and its importance to the beer community, as well as discussing how the brewery scene has changed over the years.

So pull up a seat, grab your favorite brew, and join us for this jam-packed episode. Cheers!

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Celebrating the love of low ABV beers

Last year's Little Beer Fest provided unusually cold temps in Duluth, GA with a bit of "wintery mix," aka rain, snow, and sleet. Fortunately we didn't see a repeat and this year's event provided plenty of sunshine and temps in the 70s. Perfect weather for enjoying some low ABV beers. Huge shoutout to Todd DiMatteo and Good Word Brewing for hosting a great festival.

Matty Hargrove - Blackberry Farm Brewery

As we sipped our way through the festival we talked with Matty Hargrove from Blackberry Farm Brewery. He brought us Bloody Marys so w were off to a good start. Matty talked about the farm and the brewery and doing things (brewing, food, service) with intention. We reminisce about the Nuit Belge festival and how much we enjoy their Classic Saison.

John Holl - All About Beer & Steal This Beer

Fresh off his Lager Panel at Little Beer Fest beer journalist John Holl joined us to chat. When asked if we were in a lager moment John pauses to remind us that lagers have been king in America for many years, and craft lager is catching up. We also discuss the rise of hazy IPAs and how it coincides with the popularity of Instagram and other photo and video sites where image is more important than quality. On the quality note, many craft brewers are focusing on classic European and German lagers where nuance is more important than all that juice.

You can hear more from John, and Augie Carton, on the Steal This Beer podcast.

Lisa Allen - Heater Allen

Heater Allen was an early entry into craft lager with their brewery coming up on 15 years. Their taproom is currently undergoing renovations and will soon feature beers from a fun side project, Gold Dot Beer - a joint venture with Wayfinder Beer's Kevin Davey, the creator of the Cold IPA. Gold Dot will bring IPAs and English styles to the taproom. Lisa also shares the unique aspects of brewing beer in Wine Country as we ask about wine barrels and grape must in beers.

Augie Carton - Carton Brewing & Steal This Beer

Chatting with Augie Carton was a great way to wrap up the show. He now holds the record for the most swear words in a segment. We should get him a trophy. Augie shares how much he enjoyed h

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Cheers to 7 years: Turning the page to BGR 2.0This episode is the final episode we will record in the Beer Guys Radio studio and the final radio broadcast of the show. We're not going away, BGR 2.0 is around the corner, but it is a bittersweet moment as we say goodbye to the old and get excited for what's next.

We reminisce about our favorite moments from the past seven years, including meeting Beer Archaeologist Travis Rupp, talking to Dan Carey, and interviewing Alan Sprints of Hair of the Dog. We also discuss the decline in craft beer sales and ponder the reasons behind this decline. Additionally, we explore the closure of Mikkeller's final US location and Heineken cutting draft sales to five states due to supply chain issues. Join us as we celebrate the end of an era with our last studio session and radio broadcast, featuring a special appearance from our friend Fish Scales of Nappy Roots and Atlantucky Brewing. And remember, we'll be back as a podcast, so be sure to subscribe on your favorite podcasting app!

Craft Beer Sales Decline in 2022

According to the National Beer Wholesalers Association, craft beer dollar sales were down 4.8% in 2022, with case sales down 8.6%. We ponder the reasons behind this decline, such as changing tastes, health consciousness, and supply chain issues during the pandemic. The craft beer industry is facing several challenges, including increased competition from other beverages like hard seltzers and non-alcoholic beers. However, despite these challenges, the craft beer community remains strong and continues to produce innovative and delicious beers for fans to enjoy.

More news in this episode

• Mikkeller's Final US Location Closes
• Heineken Cuts Draft Sales Due to Supply Chain Issues

Celebrating Craft Beer Friendships

As we wrap up this chapter of Beer Guys Radio, we want to take a moment to celebrate the friendships and connections that we have made in the craft beer world. Through our travels, interviews, and collaborations, we have met countless amazing people who share our passion for craft beer. From celebrities like Adam Carolla and the guys from Foreigner to local brewers and fans, the craft beer community is truly a special and welcoming place.

As we embark on our next adventure as a podcast, we encourage you to continue exploring the world of craft beer and supporting your local breweries. Cheers to the future of craft beer.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Craft beer is always on fire for April Fools. I have to admit, not a fan. But Brian is, so he made a Twitter thread with as many as he could find. Ham beer, dried beer, exxxtra long cans. But then you have the ones that are supposed to be jokes, but actually exist. Pickle beer and cucumber Kolsch? Come on, Y'all gotta give it more than that.

It was a spicy week for Bud Light after their partnership with a trans rights activist. Kid Rock broke out the guns and a lot of folks dumped their Bud for Coors Light, which probably didn't work out as well as they thought.

We reminisce about last weekend and our first trip to a biergarten Kolsch service at Halfway Crooks. If you've never been to a good Kolsch service, you should change that.

Guinness is making big moves. Baltimore brewery is closing, and Chicago brewery is coming soon. Sounds expensive. But NA is doing OK. Our friends at Athletic Brewing continue to grow and are on track to be a Top 15 brewery.

Is it beer healthy? That's one of those questions that will always be debated. We talk about a couple articles with conflicting opinions. And I'm sure we'll have more opportunity to do the same in the future.

All this beer drinking and so little recycling. Turns out many beer labels make cans un-recyclable. How do we fix this one?

We'll be back in the studio next week for our final radio broadcast then it's off to Little Beer Fest for a remote broadcast before we go podcast only. It's gonna be a busy few weeks over here.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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The last time I was in Colorado was for the Great American Beer Fest back in 2016. I know how much Georgia's craft beer scene has changed since then and no doubt it's the same for Colorado. Outside of the festival we visited awesome spots like Mockery, Trve, Crooked Stave, Great Divide and a few more. I need to get another visit soon to try some of the stuff I missed last time.

Jagged Mountain's Chad Bratt and Executive Director of the Colorado Brewers Guild join us on the show this week. We learn about the challenges facing Colorado's brewers and a couple of fun events like the recent Collaboration Fest and upcoming Colorado Pint Day, and protecting good beer laws.

The Beer ListOf course we have some Colorado beers on deck with Weldwerks Juicy Bits IPA and Odyssey Beer Works I'm Not Dead Vienna lager.

We got some sad news this week that one of our favorite local spots Orpheus Brewing is closing it's taproom. We opened their The Bridge (Wild Ale with botanicals) to mourn the loss.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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New Brewmaster brings fresh take to Steady Hand's offerings

Steady Hand Beer Co. just celebrated their 4th anniversary with the first batch of brews from Andrew Wenk.

Andrew joined the team in December after 5 years at Three Taverns Brewing. We've enjoyed many of Andrew's brews during his time at 3T and didn't even know it. Now, his brewing is in the spotlight at his new home. He's revamped favorites like Lager, Cloudland Hazy IPA, and Flower Business DIPA as well as offering new beers like Nuts, Nuts, Nuts, and an Oreo Stout.

Andrew shares how he got into brewing as a hobby and as a career, we talk about the controversial Tonka bean, long boil stouts and the counterpoint of no boil beer.

Other hot topics on deck include the annual Orval Day and some stats on SWD - Shopping While Drunk.

If you haven't been to Steady Hand in a while stop in and try the new brews from Andrew soon.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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Homebrew competitions are a great place to get judgmental

The Peach State Brew Off, organized by the Covert Hops Society, is Georgia's oldest and largest homebrew competition. We've competed in the comp a few times but this is the first time we've taken the show on the road to the event.

Georgia's got some weird homebrew laws and the event has struggled to find a home in recent years. Legislation was passed that was supposed to legitimize running these events, but it added some rules and hoops to jump through that made it more difficult with required permits and forbidden locations. No matter, the event has persevered.

As the sampling goes on we talk with Scott Lathrop about homebrewing, the event, and the club then we dive in a bit deeper with Covert Hops President Nate Watkins as we sample the Best of Show winners from the meads and ciders categories.

Phil Farrell joins us for a bit of a deep dive into judging beers and why a beer may get the score it does, even if the brewer (it's me) thinks it deserves a higher score. Farrell also shares some tips on what it takes to become a BJCP beer judge and what you can do to get there.

If you're a newer brewer then entering a beer into competition can help you get some honest feedback on how to take a good beer to a great beer, even if you don't take home a medal.

Note: We intended to list the winners here, even promised it at the end of the show, but we don't have that info yet. We apologize for being dirty liars.

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to our exclusive Discord server, and more!

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It's almost time for us all to turn Irish for a day.

St. Patrick's Day. Another great holiday for Americans to kick back some beers. I'm not arguing, it's a great excuse to grab some nitro stouts and red ales.

In keeping with tradition, we share some of the legends and history of St. Patrick and St. Patrick's Day while cracking into a few brews. There's talk of breakfast beverage booze, and where the hype went for craft beer.

In our glass this week

• The classic St. Patrick's Day beer - Guinness, along with...
• Smithwicks
• Harp
• Left Hand Dry Irish Stout (Nitro)
• Sullivan’s Irish Ale (Red) and Irish Gold

Want more Beer Guys Radio? Follow on the socials or support the show!

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSVisit our website:https://beerguysradio.comFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTubeSupport the show:Patreon

Thanks for listening to Beer Guys Radio! Your hosts are Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt with producer Nate "No Mic Nate" Ellingson.

Subscribe to Beer Guys Radio on your favorite app:Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSSFollow Beer Guys Radio:Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube If you enjoy the show we'd appreciate your support on Patreon. Patrons get cool perks like early, commercial-free episodes, swag, access to and exclusive Discord server, and more!

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What's the best sandwich in the world?

Sandwiches. So hot right now. A chart circulated around Twitter claiming to list the World's best sandwiches. We disagree with some of the answers, and so did many others, so we discuss (gripe) about on the show this week.

Big news from Heineken this week and their promised exit from the Russian market. Well, they're not gone yet. Also big news that Bill Gates just snagged a huge Stake in the company.

In our Big Beer Just Can't Catch a Break series we discuss drama from Miller-Coors and some whining from AB-InBev about watery beer.

And from the world of NA beers, Athletic is launching a pre-workout brew. NA for pre-workout and all the ABVs afterward. On that note, should you drink beer every day? If so, how much. We'll tell you what happens to your body if you're a daily drinker.

President Carter is in the news as his health is declining and he's entered hospice. Beer drinkers and non-beer drinkers alike have been talking about him this week. He was instrumental in getting the beer boom started in the US by signing legislation making it legal. But, homebrewing was a side effect and we have Senator Alan Cranston to thank for adding it to the bill.

New Podcast from New Belgium

Shout out to New Belgium on the launch of their new podcast - Green Flags: How to Humanize Business and Get Rich Trying. Discussions based around better business models that put humanity at its core. Check it out on your favorite podcasting app.

We DID drink some beers this week....

• Creature Comforts - Bigger Dream Hazy IPA
• Weldwerks - Luminosa DDH Juicy Bits
• Other Half - Bagel and Schmear DDH IPA
• NoFo - Blue Bird Day (Pilsner) (Couresy of NoFo. Thanks!)

Sources

• https://www.thestreet.com/retail/people-are-boycotting-this-popular-beer-after-breaking-its-promise-to-pull-out-of-russia
• https://nypost.com/2023/02/22/bill-gates-buys-nearly-1b-heineken-stake/
• https://www.brewbound.com/news/molson-coors-appeals-national-advertising-divisions-call-to-stop-its-light-beer-shouldnt-taste-like-water-claim/
• https://www.brewbound.com/news/2023/molson-coors-to-settle-false-advertising-claims-lawsuits-against-vizzy-for-9-5-million
• https://www.brewbound.com/news/suped-up-athletic-brewing-and-super-coffee-team-up-on-pre-workout-brew
• https://www.eatingwell.com/article/8031691/is-beer-good-for-you/
• https://www.americancraftbeer.com/how-president-jimmy-carter-ignited-the-craft-beer-revolution/

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We're channeling our inner punk this week.

If there's one thing you think of when you think of Beer Guys Radio, it's punk. Then beer, but we're sure punk is first. With that, we reminisce on our punk days and talk about the punkest of punks and their latest totally punk move.

We also talk about discontinued beers we'd love to see come back. Inspired by a Tweet from the folks at Untappd. Not to spoil the show, but we really need Boulevard's Coffee Ale to return so we can try it with some king cake. Please hurry.

Terrapin's Wake-N-Bake Off is this Saturday and we've been invited to judge the competition. It's a good time and you an join as well, so hopefully you see this in time and grab your ticket right here. We wouldn't mind seeing some of the one-off WnB variants come back as well.

More brewery buy outs/mergers are going down with Drake's buying Bear Republic. Brian used to love that Racer 5 but it's been a minute since we got into that one.

Some interesting news out of the Brewers Association on hop supply and what to expect there, and in our That's Not Even Beer segment we talked about more tasty bourbon, in 5-7 years, of course.

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In this week's episode of Beer Guys Radio......

We're not sure if we manifested this with our minds or if we saw something about it subconsciously and then talked about it. Either way, NoDa has released a Cheerwine Ale, and we need some of it. We recap the beer commercials in the Super Bowl. Even without exclusivity, AB InBev still ran more than any other brewer.

With Mardi Gras upon us we talk King Cake beers and beer pairings. I've never paired a beer with a King Cake, but I gotta try that out.

More union news with the brewers at Widmer Brothers joining the Teamsters. We'll get an update on Georgia's BUG soon. But, in Georgia news, we've got a new beer bill and we run down the high points of what's in it.

We're seeing some big beer fests go away. Sad stuff. So we share some news on one in Georgia and one in Oregon, plus some drama in the Oregoin bourbon world.

Plenty happening this week and some good beers were shared.

Beer of the Week

• Deschutes Black Butte Porter
• Iron Hill Philly Phavorite IPA
• Juice Gymnastics DIPA (Collab Cellar Maker and Trillium)
• Humble Forager Enchanted Island (Hurricane Tiki Sour)

Good times.

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It's time for the Super Bowl and if there's one thing we're big fans of, it's Super Bowl parties.  Wings, pizza, plenty of beer, and chili cheese dip.  Great news, this year you can have your dip in a bowl or a glass thanks to Hormel and Modist Brewing's Chili Cheese Brew.  We tried it, and we can say it definitely delivers as promised.  For better or worse.

We've got our party plans for the weekend and we're pulling for the Eagles.  Should be a close game either way, the Chiefs are hitting hard this year, too.  We also sampled the old and the new Fat Tire side by side and share our thoughts.  Whether or not it ends up a winner, the re-launch was definitely great marketing.  A little more under the radar, Sam Adams is tweaking their Boston Lager recipe.

In the news we talk about the Brewers Union of Georgia.  It's a fiery battle right now between the much-loved brewery Creature Comforts and a group of employees who say they're playing dirty in an effort to discourage union support.

To wrap up the show we sip on Bold Monk's Virtue of Patience Flander's Red (stellar) as we look at which states drink the most.  We're tried our best but Georgia didn't even make the Top 10.  We promise to do better next year.  

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Foam Brewers Robert Grim enjoys a good lager but he admits that it's still all about the hops in Vermont.

Foam is in Burlington, VT where you can swing a hop bine and hit a handful of breweries making great IPAs. When making your choice of where to visit, you should know that Foam is a James Beard semi-finalist for Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program. How about that?

We kick things off discussing underrated beer styles. Shout out VinePair for inspiring this discussion. We learn about Bob's brewing background and how he came to co-found Foam. We celebrate the end of Dry January and find out if anyone at Foam gave it a shot and Bob tells us about the Woman of Foam's recent Amber Ale brew.

In addition to Foam, Bob's other business include a restaurant (Deep City), farm winery (Natural Hack), and mixed ferm brewery (House of Fermentology) and there's a cannabis beverage company (Taunik), too.

We've got to get up and visit Vermont soon. We're going to drink all the beers.

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Hey Folks!  We ventured out last week to the Atlanta Cask Ale Tasting and spoke to a handful of really cool people.

A bit of a change up from our usual ACAT shows where we typically have a few of Georgia's soon-to-be breweries.  Maybe a sign of the times, but this year we didn't find anyone new in attendance.

No worries, we still have some great guests.  Owen Ogletree, festival organizer and owner of Brewtopia Events joins us to talk about cask ales, the festival, and beer tours.

Mitch Steele of New Realm Brewing sits with us for a spell to chat more on cask ales, their 5th anniversary, and whether or not he's forming a brewers band in Georgia.

Charlie Meers of Magnanimous Brewing joins us.  We just met Charlie at the event but we have several mutual friends that said Charlie was cool and we needed to chat wit him.  So we did.

Wrapping up the show Joseph Cortez, Executive Director of the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild shares some of what the Guild is up to this year and Steve Hamburg, Chicago's Cask King joins to share his love for all things cask ale.

The event was awesome, the people were awesome, and the show is awesome.  So much awesome.

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Wild Leap Brew Co. launched their brewery in LaGrange, Georgia.  A town of, give or take, 5,000 people.  It wasn't a small brewery either.  Their building was an old tire shop and service station.  A big building with great, vintage architecture.  Despite the location Wild Leap took off quickly.  People were soon searching for their beers across the state.  When you make great beer people will find it.

Fast forward 5ish years and WIld Leap has recently opened a taproom in Atlanta just across a walking bridge from Mercedes Benz stadium.  They'll be a great pre-game location for Atlanta United and Falcons games.  Their expansion into spirts and canned cocktails, knows as RTD (Ready to Drink) cocktails, has helped fuel their growth.

Chris Elliot and Rob Goldstein from Wild Leap joined us in the studio this week to talk about their growth and a few other random topics, like Watermelon Hard Mt. Dew.

If you want to see what the buzz is about stop by the LaGrange or Atlanta location.  Atlanta's Grand Opening party is set for Feb. 26, 2023.  It's gonna be a great time.

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What's up, Party People?

We're back with more beery info to share. This week we sample a few brews and talk about some of the hot stories happening in craft.

On this week's episode...

• Is Beer Getting More Expensive? (USA Today)
• Rough Start to 2023 for Constellation Brands (The Drinks Business)
• The Huge Number of Small Breweries Creates a Beer Glut (WSJ - Paywall)
• BrewDog’s James Watt Pays ~$570K To Gold Can Winners (BBC)
• Beer Journalist Josh Noel Departs Chicago Tribune (Brewbound)
• Stone Ruination IPA Returns (via Press Release)
• Reclosable Beer Cans Are Here (Packaging Digest)

Beers of the Week

• Delirium Black Barrel Aged (Aged in bourbon barrels)
• Untitled Art N/A Italian Pilsner.
• Unibroue 30 Anniversaire (Belgian-Style Stout, with maple syrup, nat flavors).
• Silver Bluff Golden Isles IPA.

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We're here to help you make it through Dry January

We've made it through another year and here we are with our livers beaten senseless through the holiday celebrations. If you're giving the body a break and trying to go dry we have some good news. There are some pretty decent options available now to allow you to still have drink with your friends.

People always have questions about the Beer Guys drinking NA beers. Hey, we like beer, but we know that too much of it is not a good thing. We also like the taste of beer so having an occasional day, week, month where we ease up on the alcohol can be a good thing. Speaking of just doing a day or so... we heard of Damp January this year. That's kind of the principle we've been going by. It can still be beneficial to take a break even if you don't go totally dry.

With that in mind... here are a few of our favs.

NA Beers

• Athletic Brewing - Most of what we've tried from Athletic is solid. They are our favorite all around NA brewer
• Partake - Another one that is mostly solid.
• Bravus - Their Peanut Butter Dark is our single fav NA beer, and the one that would be most difficult for us to tell from an alcoholic version of the same style
• Ceria - Only a couple offerings right now but they are tasty. If you're in CA or CO, they offer NA brews infused with THC and CBD. (Ceria was founded by Dr. Keith Villa, the creator of Blue Moon.)
• One to pass on.... Hairless Dog. We tried several of their offerings and did not find any we thought were palatable.

NA Spirits

NA spirits have some catching up to do with NA beer. The quality is just not there and they are VERY far off from tasting anything like what they are trying to replace.

Most brands do say they are meant to be mixers rather than drinking them straight. We highly suggest you follow this guideline. The "bite" and mouthfeel is the hard part here. Some brands add pepper and capsaicin to try and mimic the heat, but it's still a long shot

We recently tried Drink Monday gin and whiskey. They are some of the better ones we've tried, but still not sippers. Nate made an NA Old Fashioned with them and it was a decent cocktail, but not really passable as an Old Fashioned.

BIG WINNER - Lyre's Italian Spritz is pretty tasty. Even on it's on. A cocktail of 1 part Lyre's, 1 part Drink Monday gin, over ice and topped with Fever Tree tonic made a very enjoyable cocktail that would pass for a gin and tonic.

If you're shooting for Dry January we're rooting for you. We know you can do it.

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You've (almost) made it through another year. Congrats. There was a lot going on in 2022 and you may have missed some of the beer stories with all this going on.

PBR started off the year with some interesting Tweets. We saw some big acquisitions and mergers, a few major closures, and we lost a legend. NA beer continued to grow, and it continues to be highly-debated whether or not the sectors growth is meaningful.

West Coast IPA came back around for a visit, and we're guessing we'll see more of it. Brian's betting on more rauchbiers, but I'm not so sure about that one.

Our biggest concern is that breweries are out of Covid money and some that may have been ready to call it quits in 2020 are facing that now, along with others. I'm afraid we'll see a lot of closures in the new year.

Well. Whatever happens. We'll be at the studio having a nice, cold pint and waiting for it all to blow over.

Cheers and Happy New Year!

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It's the most wonderful time to drink beer...

Winter beers are the best beers. I know it, you know it, we all know it.

Our holiday beer blind tasting has become a tradition. Last year our friends from Rainy Day Brewing joined us for the tasting. They commented that you know it's getting bad when they have to "Call in the Jews" for a Christmas beer tasting. We liked their style so we rolled with that this year for the 2nd Annual Interfaith Holiday Craft Beer Spectacular, cause we're inclusive like that.

Rules are the same as always. Blind taste the beer and pick your favorite. Simple. At the end of the show we tally everyone's favorites for an overall Top 3.

This year's holiday beers included...

• Abita Christmas Ale
• St. Bernardus Christmas Ale
• Highland Cold Mountain
• Bold Monk Leon
• Anchor Christmas Ale
• Shiner Cheer
• Rogue Santa's Private Reserve
• Delirium Noel
• N'ice Chouffe
• Bell's Christmas Ale
• Southern Tier 2XMAS
• Samuel Smith's Winter Welcome
• Sierra Nevada Celebration
• 21st Amendment Fireside Chat

I'm gonna be straight with you here. Overall, this year's offerings didn't seem to meet the mark we expect of many of these beers. We've had many of these before and had high expectations. However, there are a few standouts and you'll no doubt have some good selections to enjoy through the holidays.

Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, and we hope you enjoy any other holiday you celebrate.

Cheers!

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When I first experienced beer cocktails I don't think that was even a term at the time. As a kid my parents used to enjoy what they called "Tomato Beers." It their simplest form it was simply tomato juice and a macro lager over ice with some salt and pepper. To fancy it up they may use V8 juice or shove a celery stalk in the glass. Sort of a podunk Michelada. I stole sips at the time and I guess I enjoyed it; I sure do enjoy a Michelada now.

It's likely you've dabbled with beer cocktails as well. A simple Boilermaker or Black & Tan are technically beer cocktails. Now we've got a whole variety to check out liked the Dublin Iced Coffee, Hazy Day Afternoon, or maybe an El Chapo.

Beer cocktails can be pretty simple or overly complex. But they're a fun way to mix things up with your beers. If you've got a favorite let us know!

And here's one to get you started...

Hazy Day Afternoon

Ingredients

• 1.5oz light rum
• 0.5oz guava nectar
• 0.5oz pineapple juice
• 0.5oz orange juice
• 0.25oz lime juice
• 0.5oz simple syrup
• Hazy IPA

Preparation

• Combine all ingredients except IPA in a shaker and shake. Strain into Collins glass with fresh ice and top with IPA.

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We survived Thanksgiving and are back in the studio this week with our friends from Printer's Ale Manufacturing Co.

Printer's is located in Carrollton, GA, about 50 miles west of Atlanta. Not a bad trip for ATLiens on a weekend but far enough they don't get as much hype as some of the in town breweries. That's too bad, because they are making some great beers and doing a lot of other cool things in Carrollton.

On this visit we introduced their Woodcut Wild series of beers in Kriek, Framboise, and Peche. After brewing, the mash for these heads to Printer's coolship but does get a little punch up with some commercial strains when going into barrels. Oh yeah, they also brew with aged hops grown right at the brewery, and future beers will use fruit from their orchard. Neat.

We chat with Specialty Brewer Josh Watterson and owner Greg Smith about the importance of terroir in brewing, something that was previously (mostly) ignored by American brewers. We discuss the Qatar/FIFA World Cup kerfuffle with Budweiser, mall Santas, what's in the pipeline at Printer's, and the size of Batman's mouth.

Hope you enjoying this episode! Coming up we'll be talking beer cocktails and the Beer Guys Radio Interfaith Holiday Craft Beer Extravaganza with our Jewish friends from Rainy Day Brewery drops on Dec. 17th. Woot.

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I promise we didn't mean to talk about knives so much...

OK, just listen to the show and you'll see why knives get such a prominent spot this week.  I met Sam Riggins of Cosmic Eye Brewing on a knife forum.  (Shout out to to the Spyderco Millie, PM2, Para3 Club!) We had to at least mention our love of knives, but it ended becoming a whole segment.  If you're just here for beer talk, pop on over to the 2nd segment.  But there is some hot knife chatter to start things off.

Plenty of beer talk, too.  We discuss a Twitter initiative to rebrand the Amber Ale, Thanksgiving beers, and learn about the beer scene in Nebraska.  Sam shares about his artwork and rebranding, and we learn about Dampfbier.

Oh yeah, and Smalls joins us to talk about her Alaska adventure and share some BIG news.

Hope you have a great Thanksgiving!

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What's up, Y'all? How's your week gone? Drink anything good?

This is gonna shock you, but we did drink some good things. And we talked to some good people. Jason Pellet from Orpheus Brewing and Nathan Schieber from Cherry Street hung out in the studio with us. We cracked some new brews and some vintage brews and covered some hot craft beer topics.

On the show this week...

• Pumpkin beers, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, and pumpkin spice
• Is everything we know about lambic wrong?
• Pandemic impacts and the Chicken Wing Index
• Slowing your roll on beer releases
• Expansion, right sizing, and "growing down"
• Learn to Homebrew Day
• What's coming from Orpheus and Cherry Street

The Beer List

• Rothaus Pils / Tannen Zäpfle
• Cherry Street - Peach Damebier (Aged in Peach Brandy Cask).
• Drie Fonteinen Oude Geuze
• Lost Abbey Track #10 (BBA with Coffee and Cacao Nibs)
• Orpheus - Like A White Curtain Blowing In the Draft From A Half Opened Window Beside A Chair On Which Nobody Sits (Wild Ale aged in Wine Barrels)

We popped a few more that I forget now. So many good beers. Cheers!

News Sources / Credits

• https://zythophile.co.uk/2022/10/31/is-everything-you-have-ever-read-about-the-history-of-lambic-and-gueuze-totally-wrong-raf-meert-thinks-so/
• https://www.probrewer.com/beverage-industry-news/a-new-tend-in-craft-brewing-lost-abby-announces-bold-move-to-grow-down/
• https://www.craftbrewingbusiness.com/packaging-distribution/green-flash-unveils-refreshed-branding-lets-take-a-look/
• https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/aha-events/learn-to-homebrew-day/

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Coffee. Beer. Food.

Good Measure Pub & Brewery makes it easy to know what you're getting when you visit. Coffee. Beer. Food. emblazoned across the front of the building. The Brewery recently added food to their offerings and they share ownership, and a building, with Carrier Roasting Company. Sounds like my kind of place.

Andrew Leichthammer is the owner and head brewer at Good Measure. He digs a table beer and offers several at his pub and we talk about what exactly a table beer is.

We also talk cask ales. We're seeing more mentions of these lately so we discuss if this old style is the next big thing in American craft beer. Andrew's on board with it and has a beer engine on the way.

Pastry peanut butter, coffee beers, and vintage ales round things out. It's a good one. Enjoy!

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Modist Brewing has you covered for your THC and ABV fix

Did you hear that Minnesota "accidentally" legalized weed? The story circulated earlier this year and it's somewhat true. They did unintentionally legalize hemp-derived THC edibles, like infused snacks, and drinks. Way to go, Minnesota.

Modist co-owner and head of marketing Daniel Paul Wellendorf chuckles when telling the story that opens our discussion on their Tint THC seltzers. They keep the dosage pretty low at 3-5mg per can. This is a chill kind of drink, not a baked out kind of drink. They also have Pastry Lagers, (Thank you Lord for answering our prayers) along with "normal" beers like your NE IPA, West Coast IPA, some tasty fruited sours.

Wellendorf shares about their unique brewhouse that helps them brew with much less water than a normal brewhouse. Being eco-friendly is a nice side effect but the main reason they have the brewhouse is to get as much out of their beers as they can.

We wander across other random topics this week as well. Talk about our new Beer Caramelizer we can't wait to try, offer up beers for Spooky Season, and more talk of packaging sizes cause were kind of obsessed with that right now.

Modist's beer is available in good chunk of Minnesota and select areas of Wisconsin, Ohio, Chicagoland, and... Arizona? Yep. Arizona.

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Beer and Biscuits with Brahmari Brewing

Brahmari Brewing doesn't currently have any bees but their name is from the Sanskrit term for "like a bee." Brahmari specifically refers to a black Indian bee and is the Hindu goddess of bees. Neat.

Despite their lack of an apiary, Beekeeper Arthur Jefferson shared the brewery does have a way of attracting bees. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing. Arthur and Head Brewer Brian Quade joined us on the show this week to talk about their awesome Asheville brewery.

Brahmari brews batch of beer with a bunch of Bo Berry Biscuits, gets busted by Bojangles

Yep, you read that right. Probably. We get the full scoop on Brahmari's It's Biscuit Time blueberry sour. If you've had it once you're lucky, this one won't be back, at least not under the same name.

As we sip some tasty Brahmari brews we chat about the great beer scene in Asheville, NC and get Arthur and Brian's picks on where to go after we visit Brahmari. We talk beer fests and music and bringing the two together, a quick mention of Brahmari's new location in Charlotte, candles, and leichtbiers.

The Beer List

Thanks to Brahmari for the awesome sampling of their brews.

• Murder on the Mountain (Black Kolsch)
• Fast Cars, Danger, Fire and Knives (Kolsch)
• Cubism Dream (BBA German Pilsner)
• Special. Magical. Shirtless. Power (IPA)
• Polyphasic Echo (IPA)
• Out Loud (DIPA)

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Did you miss us?

It's been an... adventurous... couple of weeks.

While driving down the interstate another car decided to see how fast they could go and I got in his way. After ping-ponging me off a couple of other cars, I walked away, but my trusty Ford Explorer did not. RIP. Brian was going to carry on, but then he got the flu and spent a week locked away from everyone. BUT, we're back and (mostly) good as new.

Fireside Beer Chat Vol. 2

Smalls joined us in the studio this week along with our friend Earnest Hansley so we opened some beers and ran on about the hot topics in beer right now. I'm calling these episodes our Fireside Beer Chat. We have no fire, but it's there in spirit.GABF is underway in Denver and expects 40,000 attendees this year. It's a great event that every beer lover should attend at least once. Denver pulls out all the stops for the week and it's a great time all around. We talk seasonal creep that leads to Spooky Season, Thanksgiving sides, and Holiday beers and talk about how big we like our cans. And we argue about Rauchbier and American vs. English Barleywines.

We had a good time and cover some burning topics. Enjoy.

Beers of the Week

• North Coast Old Stock Ale 2013 (Bourbon Barrel)
• Brooklyn Brewing Black Chocolate Stout
• Goose Island BBA Oatmeal Stout with Coffee and Maple Syrup
• Bold Monk Festbier

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Come and share a brew with Our Mutual Friend

I once heard a story that when a mobster introduces someone to another mobster they're introduced as "a friend of ours" if that person is also in the mob. I was excited to think that Our Mutual Friend Brewery had some mob ties but, unfortunately, the name simply refers to beer being something everyone can enjoy, a mutual friend.

Despite my extreme disappointment we still had an amazing conversation with Head Brewer Jan Chodkowski. He's pretty laid back and he likes beer. I can appreciate that. Jan was even a good sport as we bantered about Cold IPA and my argument that it's not a real thing. He defended talking something about the brewing methods and all that making it unique. I'll admit he had a strong case, and he's a fan of the style.

With the Great American Beer Festival coming to Denver soon Our Mutual Friend has a little party of their own planned. Gratitude 9 is a thank you to the community and a special beer release. Sounds like a great way to pre-game for the madness of GABF.

Jan is also a fan of saisons and mixed fermentations and Brett and foeders. He's quickly becoming our favorite person. OMF (we can call them that now 'cause we're tight like that) used to do some spontaneous brewing but they like the results they get better with a bit more control.

If you find yourself in Denver stop on by and see Our Mutual Friend. Tell 'em we sent ya.

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Mike Potter and Ale Sharpton are on a mission to bring craft beer to minority communities, and to bring those communities to craft beer

Most of the 9,000+ craft breweries across the US are white-owned businesses with predominantly white clientele. There's nothing inherently wrong with that, and that doesn't automatically mean anyone is excluded. But, having representation of your community in anything can make you feel much more included. And that's where Ale and Mike come in.

Mike Potter was one of the founders of Fresh Fest, America's first black craft beer festival. Since then he's founded Black Brew Culture to focus on the beer, culture, food, and lifestyle of craft beer. This month he'll kick off Blacktoberfest, a multi-city celebration of beer, food, art and entertainment.

Ale Sharpton has been a Friend of the Show since we launched. He's joined us to talk about his adventures and articles as well as introducing us to Leaders of the Brew School. You may have seen Ale's writings for Thrillist, Craft Beer & Brewing, Forbes, and many others.

His collaboration stout brewed with New Belgium, Piano Keys, is coming back soon for another release as well as some exciting events at the Great American Beer Festival. Proceeds from the brew benefit his non-profit, BrewGether.

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Break out the Festbiers and Marzens

We made it another year to one of our favorite shows, it's time to taste Oktoberfests! 12 beers, 6 guys, pretzels and brats and kraut. Good times.

Nothing fancy here, we're not BJCP judges or Sissyrones, we just know what we like. We sample the beers and pick our Top 3 based solely on how much we enjoy them.

We also share some stats and fun facts about Oktoberfest in Munich. Origins, changes in the beer, and the rules for serving your beer at Oktoberfest.

The Beer List

Here are the beers in this year's tasting. NOT in tasting order. We reveal that at the end of the show.

• Athletic Oktoberfest | N/A Festbier? | 0.5%
• Ayinger Oktober Fest | Märzen | 5.8%
• Brooklyn Brewing Oktoberfest | Märzen | 5.5%
• Hacker Pschorr Oktoberfest Märzen | Märzen | 5.8%
• Hofbräu Oktoberfestbier | Festbier | 6.3%
• Ironmonger Oktoberfest | Märzen | 5.5%
• Paulaner Oktoberfest Märzen | Märzen | 5.8%
• Samuel Adams Festbier | Festbier | 5.8%
• Samuel Adams OctoberFest | Märzen | 5.3%
• Spaten Oktoberfest | Märzen | 5.9%
• Weihenstephaner Festbier | Festbier | 5.8%
• Yuengling Oktoberfest | Märzen | 5.4%

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Why homebrew with all the great beer that's already available?

With all the great beer available at every corner today it's easy to say there's no reason to homebrew.  When we started brewing there was good beer available, but not like it is today.  Big stouts, funky saisons, and NEIPAs weren't that easy to come by.  Brewing it ourself was a way to get beers we couldn't get otherwise.  Plus, homebrewing is fun.  Creative.  Scientific. Social.  There are plenty of reasons to homebrew other than simply making beer.

Bill Boyer joins us again (as promised) along with Friend of the Show Michael Syrop to talk about why to brew, how to get started, entering competitions, and a few resources to help on your journey.  We cover beer, mead, and cider in this episode, but mostly just general homebrewing banter.

The hobby can be simple and cheap to start or you can pour $1,000s into an all electric home setup that rivals pro breweries. If you're thinking about starting, do it.  Let us know if you have any questions.  Cheers!

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Kelly Meyer isn't saying not to start a brewery, just maybe you shouldn't. If you do, he's got a few life lessons to share with you.

Like many others Meyer got caught up in the allure of owning a brewery. He and his wife had ran and sold a successful business so the brewery was his fun project. Make beer, make friends, make money. It's that last part that ultimately made his dreams go flat.

After nearly a decade in the business Meyer sold New Braunfels Brewing Co., the brewery he founded. He wrote a book about his experience, sharing mistakes he made along the way in the hopes of helping others avoid them. He's also started a podcast to talk with others that have similar stories.

When invited on the show some people are eager to share. Perhaps it's somewhat therapeutic. Others, not so much. Sometimes crushed dreams are just too hard to bring into the light.

Meyer admits his a bit less bitter now than when everything was fresh. The tone of his podcast is a bit lighter than his book. But the lessons in the book still ring true.

If you're determined to start a brewery maybe you should check out the book or the podcast and find out the exact way not to do it. Good luck.

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Skateboarding is not a crime

This week we sat down with Joey Charpentier, head brewer at Gnarly Barley Brewing Co. in Hammond, LA.

The brewery opened in 2014 and within a few short years were named one of the Top 50 fastest growing breweries in America. Gnarly Barley continues to grow and are in the process of opening a restaurant next to the brewery.

Charpentier was there from the beginning but started off with slightest less glorious jobs. He shares how the brewery got started and the popularity of their Jucifer IPA, their support of the skateboarding community, and working with fun, new ingredients, and we look ahead to the beers of Fall.

Laissez les bon temps rouler!

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Fertile Ground Beer Co. brings Brewery 2.0 to Jackson, MS

Mississippi moves at its own pace. A bit slower, more relaxed. Most folks don't get caught up in trends and hype. Of course, this can be an issue for craft beer since it loves both of those things.

Despite the boom in most areas Jackson hasn't had a single production brewery open since 2019, when the lone brewery (Lucky Town) closed. A few months ago Fertile Ground Beer Co. brought brewing back to The City with Soul.

Introducing Brewery 2.0

Connor Reeves and Matthew Mclaughlin know a thing or two about the legal side of craft beer. Their law firm has helped many breweries navigate opening. When their hometown was without a brewery they decided they'd be the ones to change that.

Putting their plans together they noticed the taproom trend was dark wood, brushed nickel, and iron. They didn't want to follow that trend (told ya) so they opted for a light and bright taproom with a splash of color, Brewery 2.0, as they call it.

Mississippi Loves Saison

Jackson may not be ready yet for a bunch of American Wild Ales, but they do enjoy good beer. Fertile Ground offers brews like Pilsner and other Lagers but their Small Batch Sundays bring in Hazy IPAs, Kettle Sours, and Saisons. The locals have really taken to Saisons and I'm all about that. Be our savior, Mississippi, help us make Saisons cool again.

Fertile Ground is a young brewery but things are going well. In any good-sized city people love great beer. Being the lone brewery in town, for now, they can do a lot of good to get their customers ready to chase them whales.

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That's Pair-uh-dole-ee-uh

Pareidolia - The tendency for perception to impose a meaningful interpretation on a nebulous stimulus, usually visual, so that one sees an object, pattern, or meaning where there is none. Faces in clouds? Jesus on toast? Pareidolia.

Pareidolia Brewing Co. is also a brewery in Sebastian, FL, on the Treasure Coast. Owner Pete Anderson joined us and we yammer on about beer and cheese. We love good cheese and just had a fancy new shop open in Atlanta. Maybe we'll do another cheese show? Pete likes cheese, and his wife is a proud cheesehead.

Pete also moved to the Eastern coast of Florida from Oregon and was saddened at the beer selection, so he started a brewery. He also started the Treasure Coast Wine & Ale trail, and he's a member of the Florida Brewers Guild.

We had to talk beer laws with Pete. Self distro, franchise reform, the usual pain points for small brewers. Pete's working to change that in Florida.

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What's up, party people?

Dry County Brewing Co. is about the celebrate their 6th anniversary. We've known founder Trey Sinclair since the brewery was just a dream. Well, mostly. We met Trey when he was contract brewing a couple beers and spreading the word about them around his hometown. When the brewery was just being built we stopped by for a preview. Check it out right here.... https://youtu.be/_VeAUJv2th4

Since our preview way back in 2016 DCBC has expanded to offer spirits and cider along with their brews and they're about to move to a fancy new location. On the spirit side they've got frozen cocktails in the taproom and a line of RTDs (that's "ready to drink" canned cocktails) that are extremely popular.

Trey joined us and brought along Director of Hoperations Winn Chastain and Head Brewer Ryan Polk. They shared some of their beers and cocktails as we bitched more about seasonal creep, pondered pairings for their Lechuza line of Mexican lagers, discussed the growing trend back towards more West Coast(ish) IPAs and discussed the agave shortage.

There's some tasty stuff coming out of Dry County Brewing. Check 'em out.

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Great Lakes Brewing Co. is going strong 34 years on

We all know cans are cool. Right? All the hype beers come in cans. Great Lakes Brewing Co. has been around since before cans were cool for craft. Good, craft beer came in bottles, and the macro stuff was shoved into cans. When you're 30+ years old in American craft beer you're going to have some fans that still think a craft beer needs to come in a bottle. That's exactly why classic like Edmund Fitzgerald Porter (aka Eddie Fitz, aka Fitz) and Eliot Ness Amber Lager stay in bottles. When they tried to make the switch to cans their OG fans weren't having it, so back to bottles they go.

But Great Lakes Brewing Co. isn't just about their classic beers. They've got new hotness like their Crushworthy Lo-Cal Citrus Wheat and TropiCoastal Tropical IPA (fun fact for the Georgia folks, TropiCoastal was inspired by Creature Comforts Tropicalia) goes into cans. A little something for everyone at GLBC.

Brand Coordinator and Beer Educator Michael Williams joined us this week to talk about the old and new, employee ownership, and hot dog pairings and toppings. We also discuss moves and mergers and sellouts and acquisitions. Great Lakes Brewing recently hired Steven Pauwels to join the team, the legendary brewer previously at Boulevard. You can check out our 2019 show with Pauwels on Ep. 180.

There's a lot going on here, folks. Crank up some Gordon Lightfoot and give it a listen.

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Devil's Club is not weed. Sorry.

What's up, Y'all? How's your week gone? I'd say this week was busy but that just seems to be the way life goes anymore. It's hot here in Georgia again, we got some cool temps in the 80s this week. As a huge contrast to that we talked to Evan Wood and Jake Ridle from Devil's Club Brewing Co. in Juneau, Alaska. When we mentioned our upper 90s heat wave i think they both were ready to pass out.

I've never been to Alaska. Maybe I'll jump on one of the cruise ships that Evan tells us raises the population of the town each Summer. Juneau's the 3rd largest city in Alaska at about 30,000 year-round residents. They've got mixed feelings on those tourists. On one hand, it's great for business. Devil's Club says beers that months to empty during the slower season move in about 1 1/2 weeks. This allows them to try out more, new recipes. On the other hand, it's a bunch of tourists wandering around your town.

Beer laws be crazy.

Brewing isn't an easy game in Juneau. The laws are surprisingly strict considering they are all about their legal weed. Taprooms have to close at 8:00 PM but a new law that passed will allow them to stay open until 9:00 PM... starting in two years.

Besides the tough laws, it's crazy expensive to get ingredients shipped in. They do have some cool local ingredients to brew with, lots of berries, and it's nearly a requirement for an Alaska brewery to do a spruce tip beer.

Jake was sipping a Disc Dog Pilsner as we chatted but noted the locals aren't really on board with craft Pilsners yet. They do love their signature IPA, Signature IPA, though. And the Silt Milk Stout is a favorite as well.

We get the scoop on the next big thing for Devil's Club, hard seltzers. They're working their magic on them now and they'll launch very soon.

Devil's Club is a medicinal plant.

In case you're wondering, Devil's Club is a plant and the brewery's logo is the plant's leaf. They get asked a lot if it's a pot leaf. Probably from people that are high since it looks nothing like one. It does have medicinal properties used by the native people. Have they brewed a beer with it? Nope. The native population requested they don't use it in alcohol and they are honoring that request.

If you're planning a trip to Alaska then put Devil's Club on your to-do list. Just remember to watch out for the grizzlies and drink your fill before 8 o'clock.

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Talking today's hot news with some cool people

UPDATE: Things move quickly in the world of craft beer. In this episode we discuss Brewery X's purchase of Modern Times. Only Brewery X ended up backing out of the deal and now Maui Brewing purchased them. Our details are out of date, but the general discussion still holds up.

Rather than featuring a specific beer or brewery on this week's show we decided to invite some friends in to share a few beers and talk about some of the happenings in the beer world today. The burning issues. Like PBR's 1,844 can pack. Important stuff, ya know.

Jason Pellett, founder and brewmaster at Atlanta's Orpheus Brewing joined us. We've enjoyed Jason's beer's since before the brewery opened. Sitting on the patio sipping geuze and talking all things wild. Or maybe at a secret tapping at somewhere it shouldn't have been tapped, but I'm not gonna tell if you don't.

The one and only Bill Boyer came along as well. Bill's an old homebrewing friend and he is on fire in the homebrew circuit. His brews have earned him over 200 medals in competitions, with 100+ just this year. His homebrewer is called Beer and Fire and encompasses beer, cider, mead, and hot sauce. He also grows his own peppers. Bill is a regular Renaissance man.

Hot topics this week

In addition to huge packages we also talk about the sale of Stone Brewing and Modern Times, and Melvin pondering a "strategic partner." We discuss the horrible news out of New Jersey and the new constraints on brewers there. Bill shares a bit about mead and cider and homebrew competitions before we run out of time. We'll have him back in the future to talk more on these subjects.

The Beer List

• Deschutes / Bitburger collab - Dry Hopped Zwickl
• Take 16 Nostalgia (BA Sour Red).
• Barrrique - Lagerbier.
• Orpheus - 12th Labor
• Orpheus - Fragmentation of Silence
• A few goodies from Beer and Fire

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It's good to be back. Did you miss us? Brian's feeling all better and it was great to get back in the studio.

We're joined this week but the crazy crew from Bircus Brewing in Ludlow, KY. FYI, it's pronounced "beer-cus." Brand Acrobat Jilliam Francois, Sales Manager (fancy title pending) Matt Cremeans, and Brewmaster JD fill us in on the origins and future of their brewery.

Bircus is what you get when a Ringling Bros. clown opens a theater/circus and realizes all the money is made on concessions. That's the short story of why Paul Miller opened his brewery.

If you visit the taproom for a brew, like maybe a Juggaloats IPA, you may see jugglers, stilt walkers, fire breathers, some good old fashioned wrestling... and brick oven pizzas. It's always 3 rings of fun at Bircus.

3rd of July at The Nest

If you're in the Atlanta area come on out and join us for the 3rd of July celebration at The Nest Kennesaw. BBQ and beer with special features... whole hog and whole smoked GATOR.

The Beer List

• Good Word No Wooden Shoes (Donnerbier-style lager)
• Three Taverns Pilsen Liberation
• Three Taverns Martry’s Breath (Barrel-Aged Stout with Tonka and Vanilla beans)
• Highland Hazy Heights Hazy IPA

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From brewer to beertender, how satisfied are brewery employees with their jobs?

"I want to be a brewer." Every homebrewer has had the thought cross their mind. But, once you land that dream job at a brewery, will you be happy? Like any job, there are many factors to consider. Pay, benefits, management, training, etc. It may be a "cool" job but working in a brewery is still a job.

Andrew Coplon from Craft Beer Professionals and Michael Varda from Craft Beer Advisory Services surveyed employees at 217 breweries across front of house, operations (brewers!), business, and ownership to see what people had to say. Every job and company is different and the survey presented some interesting results.

Coplon and Varda share the methodology and findings from the report as we discuss some interesting information and some of the factors that may contribute to these findings. Click the link to request a copy of the full 2022 Employee Satisfaction Report.

About Craft Beer Professionals and Craft Beer Advisory Services

Craft Beer Professionals launched in 2017 simply as a Facebook group bringing together those working in the industry throughout the United States. Though craft beer is a highly collaborative industry, few opportunities existed for peer sharing and learning. In the three years that followed, CBP grew from a community forum into a rich educational resource serving the entirety of the craft beer community including the myriad of positions within a brewery and the support industries such as ingredient suppliers, equipment manufacturers and professional services. With an engaged online audience, CBP evolved to develop original and critical content to help the industry grow. Through virtual conferences, podcasts, videos and more, CBP has positioned itself as an industry leader while keeping resources 100% accessible to all at no cost. In 2021, CBP further expanded its offering to in-person opportunities for sharing and learning through CBP Connects, a unique series of intimate workshops. CBP Connects is designed for the industry decision maker and provides an experience focused on both personal and professional growth.

Craft Beer Advisory Services is a full-service market research firm exclusively dedicated to the craft beer industry. They provide custom insight on beer drinker behavior and tell you why customers come and what makes them stay, or what makes them go somewhere else. Their research is customizable to dial in to the specific challenges your brewery is facing.

The Beer List

• MOUNTAIN DEW HARD SELTZER, BABY!
• Ferrous Falcon / Parish Collab Ghost Hawk (DDH IPA)
• Wild Barrel Vice Watermelon Apricot (Berliner Weisse)
• Cherry Street Dark Side of the Strawberry Moon (Berliner Weisse)

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Summer is coming and it's time for some Mexican Lagers

Mexican Lagers are so hot right now. The CEO of Constellation brands even goes as far as saying he believes Modelo is about to become America's favorite beer. The data kind of supports that claim, with Consellation's brands (including Modelo, Pacifico, and Corona) seeing 14% growth in the most recent quarter. Craft breweries are cranking out more Mexican Lagers as well. Most are simple drinkin' beers akin to a Pale Lager / Clara. But some are going deeper into the genre with Vienna Lagers and others.

To make matters even more confusing, if you look at Modelo Especial on Untappd it calls itself an American Lager, then description says it's a Pilsner. This thing has quite the identity crisis going on. Either way, Brian enjoyed this one but I thought it was a bit too sweet, especially if they are claiming it's a Pilsner. Corona brought by memories of drinking in my younger days and I'd still crush several of these by the pool or on the beach if that's what's available. For some craft representation we sampled Tactical Brewing's collaboration with Cholo Dogs - El Campéon. This elote-inspired lager is brewed with smoked malt, flaked corn, tajin, and limes and was much more enjoyable than I expected.

As the temps heat up many of these beers are perfect for cooling down. No matter if they are America's favorite or not they're nice to pack in the cooler.

Correction: We mention in this episode that Modelo is poised to take the top spot in American beer sales Although this claim was made by Constellation's CEO, the data reflects sales for all Constellation brands and not just Modelo. We apologize for lying to you like that and we'll do better in the future.

The Beer List

• Macro
  • Modelo Especial
  • Modelo Negra (formerly Negra Modelo)
  • Corona Extra
  • Corona Premier
  • Tecate
• Craft
  • Tactical Brewing El Campéon
  • Chihuahua (Blue) “Mexican American Lager”
  • Arches Mexican Empire
  • Stone Buenaveza
  • Terrapin Los Bravos
  • Iron Hill Lemon Cerveza

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Craft Collaborations inspire Nappy Roots to open Atlantucky Brewing

If you're a regular listener of the show then you've heard us talking with the Nappy Roots crew a few times before. We met the guys back in 2017 as they brewed a collaboration with Monday Night Brewing, Front Porch Pale Ale, to go along with the album of the same name. We were a young show at the time and thrilled to land an interview with the Grammy-nominated quartet. Fish Scales, admittedly the most passionate craft drinker of the group, had a thirst for more beer knowledge. We started chatted regularly about beer, attending festivals, and brewing in Scales' garage. We may not be the typical friends for a couple of rappers, but never underestimate the power of beer.

Originally, the plan was to brew collaboration beers to help promote the group. Find a brewery near one of their upcoming shows and brew a beer with them. Through these collaborations they discovered they really loved to brew beer and found many similarities with the music industry in pursuing your creative side. The idea shifted from promotion to a business plan for Atlantucky Brewing. Just like any brewer, the guys learned a lot through process and Skinny shares some tips and pitfalls for those that are looking to start a brewery. Daily operations are handled by Skinny and Scales as they're in Atlanta, but B. Stille and Ron Clutch are behind the project as well, just from their old Kentucky home. You'll see them at the brewery for special events and occasional concerts.

Nappy Roots hasn't left the rap game to pursue brewing. They balance a full schedule with studio time early in the week and they're back in the brewhouse later in the week. They have had to cut back on their shows some, performing about two a month compared to 6ish prior to opening the brewery. If you're only familiar with their old stuff, make sure to check out some of their newer music as well.

The Atlantucky Brewing Taproom

For the most part, taprooms are generally the same. Atlantucky brings a special twist to their space adding an art gallery, event space and, of course, concert venue. They're located just a stone's throw from Mercedes Benz stadium so if you're in town for a game or concert you've got a great spot to pre-game. The location also attracts other artists to work at the brewery. As Skinny says, the space allows them to be around other creatives and continue their passions while having a job.

Atlantucky Brewing
170 Northside Dr SW
Suite 96
Atlanta, GA 30313
https://atlantucky.com/

The Beer List

• Atlantucky / Pontoon Maple Barrel-Aged Blondie Brownie
• Atlantucky / Monday Night The Humdinger 2018
• Wren House Valley House (American Lager)
• Good Word / Green Bench No Direction Home (French-Style Pilsner)

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Snafu Brewing Company is your new favorite dive bar

If you love a taplist full of classic beer styles then this episode is not for you. However, if you're intrigued by the R&D department of a brewery including a NutriBullet, beer, fruit, and cereal you're in the right place.

Snafu Brewing Company has been called a "dive brewery." Koon that's fair, and accurate. Snafu likes to have with their beers and wants everyone to feel welcome. When a guest asked if they could bring their goat to the taproom he said, "Sure thing."

Koon is a career brewer. He says he knew in middle school he wanted to brew for a living and started homebrewing when he was in high school. Before opening Snafu he learned the trade at a few other breweries, including a position as head brewer for Westbrook.

Snafu does offer a few more traditional styles - a golden ale, some IPAs and stouts. But if you pass on the fruit and cereal sours you're missing out on the magic.

A very scientific test of Bodega Glasses

Brian stays hard at work on Twitter wasti... researching the latest in craft beer. His most recent "discovery" is the Bodega Glass. These are new to us but apparently popular in some places, like Mikkeller bars.

The Bodega Glass is sort of a short and thicc pint glass. Some people love them but the official review by the team gave them two mehs and one thumbs up. Brian is a fan and says he feels they improve aroma on hoppy beers. But Brian also thinks Cold IPA is a unique beer style. No Mic Nate and I aren't convinced. We both found the glass to be fine, but they didn't really offer any improvement to our overall drinking experience.

If you want to check out the Bodega glass for yourself we're told this is the one that Mikkeller uses, or you cant try the ones we have from Crate & Barrel.

The Beer List

• Snafu Brewing Company
  • Watermelon Jolly Rancher Sour
  • Stoned Age (Fruity Pebbles cereal sour)
  • Strawberry^2 Nesquik Sour
  • Primo Golden Ale

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Kros Strain Brewing Co. shows us what's happening in Nebraska beer

We met the crew from Kros Strain Brewing Co. when they visited Atlanta for The Juice Strikes Back festival in 2019. This invitational beer fest brought some amazing beers to Georgia and introduce a lot of new breweries to the Peach State. We chatted at the time about getting together for a show and it's only taken us three years to make it happen. Better late than never.

Co-founder Bobby Kros and Head Beer Pusher Jeff Hardy sat down with us this week to share a few beers and tell us about their brewery. As we sip their Fairy Nectar (the #1 IPA in Nebraska) I get chastised for mentioning loose meat sandwiches. Hardy tells me that's an Iowa thing and I better recognize the Runza. Where I grew up in the little town of Norfolk, NE we had the loose meat sandwich. Perhaps we were infiltrated, indoctrinated by those dirty Iowans. My life is a lie, my lesson was learned, it won't happen again.

Kros Strain joins us this week hot off a World Beer Cup medal win for Saison 635 in the Brett Beer cateogry. We learn about the beer, talk about Brett, bringing back saison, and the "big barrels" that are foeders and what happens with the ones at Kros Strain. We talk about beer in green bottles and the joys of intentionally skunking your funky saisons, micheladas and more lager talk. Why they're popular and what American brewers might do with these classic styles over time.

Wrapping up we sample the to-be-released "Barrelywine", a Barleywine from a forgotten barrel and talk all things "wine" beers - Wheatwine, Barleywine, Munichwine, and even Hopwine.

The Beer List

• Kros Strain Brewing Co.
  • Krossteiner (Czech-style Pilsner)
  • Fairy Nectar (Hazy IPA)
  • Web of Lies (Hazy DIPA)
  • Barrel Concepts Mixed Fermentation Sour
  • Barrel Concepts Foeder-Aged Golden Sour
  • And a few more...

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The Original 40 Brewing Company is a new OG

We caught Cosimo Sorrentino just in time to talk about San Diego's The Original 40 Brewing Co. before he heads for Lazarus Brewing in Austin, TX. Cosmo's a San Diego native and spent time brewing in Europe before returning home. When asked about the departure he shares that he likes where the beer scene is in Austin and wants to be a part of that, also the overall culture of the city. And, of course, BBQ.

As we chat with Sorrentino about brewing in San Diego and Europe, Maibock, Cashmere hops, and the insanity of moving to Austin in the Summer we drink through some of their lineup. Contrary #beertwitter rumble lats week about there being nothing but IPAs at breweries, Original 40 runs the gamut with Pilsners, Rice Lagers, Smoked Brown Ales, super-thicc stouts, and yes, some NE and West Coast IPAs. And they're all damn tasty.

If you're in San Diego you should take a trip to the taproom. This Saturday (05/07/22) would be a good day, they're releasing Rafiki's Ritual, a glass-paintingly thick bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout. Grab a bite, get a beer, enjoy that San Diego weather and bid farewell and good luck to Cosimo on his next adventure.

The Beer List

• The Original 40 Brewing Co.
  • Ashes From The Grave (Smoked Brown Ale)
  • Check To Czech (Bohemian Pilsner)
  • Cloud Noises (DDH Hazy IPA)
  • Snap! Crackle! Hop! (West Coast IPA with Rice)
  • Rafiki’s Ritual (Imperial Stout) - Releasing at the taproom 05/07/22
  • Tachi (Japanese Lager)

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Hanging out with Cherry Street Brewing and The Real DJ Jelly

Cherry Street Brewing's original location in Cumming, GA isn't far from Atlanta. But city folk aren't big on leaving their circle so Cherry Street was somewhat of a hidden treasure in Georgia beer for a while. Us folks out here in the 'burbs can be scary, ya know. The opening of a 2nd location in Alpharetta put them closer to the masses, and within a distance more people weren't too scared to visit. Their beer is worthy of the trip and every bit as good as some of the best in Atlanta proper. Plus, you can get some killer chicken tenders at their Cumming location or the best fish and chips I've had in the Metro at their Halcyon location. Take the trip, order the fish, try several beers. It'll be worth it.

Director of Sales and long time friend of the show Ramsay Florence joined us this week to fill us in on the latest happenings. They've recently opened a location in Chattanooga, TN and the beer laws there allow them to do some self distribution. Beer laws, what fun. We've talked about them enough in the past we'll move on this time. Ramsay talks about some of their core beers, some fun wild ales in the works, and future plans for the brewery. I misunderstood some of the notes when chatting before the show and told a dirty lie regarding news on their 4th location. Sorry about that, it's totally Ramsay's fault, though.

Atlanta hip-hop icon DJ Jelly joined us in the studio as well. We met him recently at Atlantucky Brewing where he was spinning some records for the Nappy Hour. We shared a few beers and learned about his history in the Atlanta music scene. Working with LL Cool J, Goodie Mob, Bubba Sparxxx, Doug E. Fresh, and premiering some of the best acts of 90s on Atlanta radio. He even produced the classic Flo Rida's Get Low.

Pairing exotic Kit Kats and Cherry Street beers

We've all seen the beer and Girl Scout cookie pairings. Well we're kicking that up a notch. Brian took a trip to the local Asian market and grabbed some of their unique Kit Kat bars. Melon, Strawberry Chocolate, and Matcha. Madness. Ramsay samples each and tells us what Cherry Street beers we should pair up with them.

The Beer List

• Cherry Street Brewing
  • Sa’bro DDH DIPA
  • Lake Beer Lager
  • Strawberry Side of the Moon (Berliner with Strawberries and Blackberries)
  • Irie Hop (DDH DIPA)
• Monday Night Brewing / Atlantucky Humdinger

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Teamwork makes the dream work at Bevana

It's not easy to build and grow a brewery. Starting small can make expansion hard, and costly. Distribution adds it's own challenges and even just getting your name out there is a struggle amidst 9,000+ breweries. That's where Bevana comes in.

Originally founded as Community Brewing Ventures, the company rebranded this year as Bevana to represent their growth in non-beer beverages. Sr. Director of Business Development Aaron Gore joined us this week to share what Bevana does for brewers and where they're headed in the future. It's all about joining forces - for brewing, distribution, and marketing. Bevana helps smaller brewers grow while minimizing the cost and effort to do so.

If you're a small brewer looking to grow, maybe finding Bevana is just what you need.

The Beer List

• Halfway Crooks Farina
• SweetWater 420 (Tis' the season!)
• Sixpoint Pineapple Resin
• Southern Prohibition Spoils of War (Milk Stout with Maple)
• Weldwerks Coffee Coconut Stout (Imperial Milk Stout)

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All the cool kids are drinking Little Beers

Braving the snowy (yes, snowy) April weather in Georgia, 100s of beer lovers gathered in Duluth, GA recently to celebrated their love of low ABV beers. Little Beer Fest II brought brewers together from across the country for this invitation-only event. Brewers shared their best beers under (or close to it) 4.0%. Lots of lagers, some sessionable IPAs and other hoppy ales, some mixed fermentation brews, and even some small stouts and porters were poured at the event.

Wrapped in our hoodies and holding down our tent we managed to chat with of the brewers in attendance, plus some of the crew from The Atlanta Podcast featuring Myron Green and Christian Andrews. TAP covers events in and around Atlanta while enjoy local beer. Give 'em a listen. Next up is Nashville's Barrique Brewing and Blending where we talk with Spencer Longhurst about mixed fermentation beers and 2nd use hops. Chris Tropeano and Jon Eberhart from Charlotte's Resident Culture Brewing join to talk about experimental hops, the Charlotte beer scene, and the great Cold IPA debate. Rounding out the show we talk with Wren House Brewing Co. out of Phoenix, AZ with Mason and Kyle about lager production, Phoenix breweries, and crisp vs. crispy beers.

Cheers to Good Word Brewing and Public House and the City of Duluth

Huge thanks to the crew from Good Word Brewing and the City of Duluth. As you'll hear in the show, everyone that's been to Good Word has nothing but praise for the food, beer, and people. If you get the chance to visit you don't want to miss it. Cities are getting better about embracing beer, and the city of Duluth is fully on board. Cheers to them for their support of this event.

If you missed the first fests, go ahead and mark your calendars for Little Beer III. Good Word has already announced April 15, 2023 for the next party.

The Beer List

• Bold Monk Brewing Chant Lager
• Barrique Brewing and Blending Petite Afternoon Saison
• Resident Culture Aren't We All Pilsner
• Wren House Můstek Czech Pilsner

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Toppling Goliath Brewing Co. makes big beer in small batches

What do you talk about when you get one of America's most legendary breweries on your show. Mushroom hunting, of course. As we chatted with Toppling Goliath Brewing Co.'s founder Clark Lewey and brewmaster Mike Saboe before the show we discovered we shared a love of mushrooms. We want to hunt morels, and they're experienced morel hunters. They love them so much they even brewed a beer in honor of morels, Scorpius Morchella. We promise the whole show isn't mushroom talk, but for a beer show there is a hell of a lot. Hang in there with us, we'll get to the beer soon enough.

Toppling Goliath has some pretty major accolades. They're the 2021 US Beer Open Grand National Champions and Beer Advocate ranked them the #2 brewery in the world. Their Kentucky Brunch Brand Stout has held the #1 highest rated beer spot on Untappd since 2015. Clark and Mike say the high praise keeps them on their toes and they always strive to keep up their high standards.

We sampled a couple of their brews, including Strawberry Shortcake Fandango, which is stellar. This leads us into lactose talk (there's no lactose in the Fandango) and ponder if it's the MSG of beer, as well as discussing another MSG-like contender, Phantasm powder.

Stouts and Stouts and Stouts

With beastly stouts like Assassin, Mornin' Delight, and the sought after Kentucky Brunch Brand Stout we talk... stouts. What goes into making a beer like this? Brewing, aging, blending. We talk secondary beer market, where a 2014 bottle of KBBS can cost up to $1,300. If you want the more affordable version get your name in the hat for a ticket to the release, where a single 12 oz. bottle will cost you $100. Not all Toppling Goliath stouts will cost you a C-note. Their Rover Truck is an easy-drinking Oatmeal Stout that you can grab for around $10 for a 16 oz. 4-pack. Now that's a deal.

We haven't tried the KBBS yet, but we've got plans to get back on with the TG Brews crew for an online tasting. Until then, I'll keep trying to invite myself to bottle shares for a taste.

Craft Beer News

• Modern Times faces court-ordered receivership sale
• Brewers Association Has Released Their Annual Industry Report for 2021
• Due To Onerous Financial Obligations, Stone Has Considered Selling

The Beer List

• Toppling Goliath Dorothy’s New World Lager.
• Toppling Goliath Strawberry Shortcake Fandango. (Kettle Sour)
• Iron Hill Resist Ukrainian Anti-Imperial Stout.
• Tactical Brewing Co Zombie Curbstomp (Sour)

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FlyteCo Brewing is cleared for takeoff

Denver's FlyteCo Brewing opened their first location in 2019. Although Colorado has no shortage of breweries, owners Morgan O'Sullivan and Jason Slingsby knows there's always room for more great places to grab a beer. Their second location will open soon, in a decommissioned air control tower. O'Sullivan and Slingsby want visitors to see FlyteCo as their own Cheers. Where the bartenders know your name and have a beer ready for you when you walk in. Norrrrm! If getting to know people isn't your thing then maybe your and your beer can spend some quality time at the on-site mini golf or bowling.

If the air traffic control tower didn't give it away, the brewery has an aviation theme. Two of the three owners are pilots. In addition to drop-in fishing trips (I'm so jealous) they've even flown to Western Colorado to pick up hops fresh from the farm and back to the brewery to get them in a beer in a little over an hour. How's that for freshness?

The guys knew the way to our hearts and sent us a sample of their Tipsy Nipper, a stellar Belgian Saison. We sample Heading 270 West Coast IPA and Ski Plane Stout as well. We reminisced on the old days of 2014 when saisons were cool and praise the versatility of the style while pondering if getting crazy with them might make them cool again. We even come up with a collab, look for Milky Disco DDH LactoGlitter Saison coming soon.

Craft Beer News

• Heineken Has Announced Plans to Permanently Exit Russia
• Carlsberg Also Announces Its Exit From Russia
• Molson Coors Should Have Put The ‘Key’ Back in Keystone

The Beer List

• FlyteCo Brewing
  • Tipsy Nipper - Belgian Saison
  • Heading 270 - West Coast IPA
  • Ski Plane Stout - American Stout

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Enjoy the classics at Ironshield Brewing

We're bringing you one from our backyard this week! If you're a Georgia beer nerd you may know the name Glen Sprouse. If you don't know his name then you probably know some of his breweries. The old timers may recall Phoenix Brewing which opened in Atlanta at The Prado in 1996, slightly less older timers likely know 5 Seasons that took over the space in 2001. Sprouse was part of both of those ventures.

He stepped away from brewing for a while before opening up Ironshield Brewing in Lawrenceville, GA. The brewery features classic European styles including Seven Sisters Munchner Lager, which was a staple on the taps at 5 Seasons. With the addition of Jason Carroll to the team some true Irish beers have hit the taps. Carroll came to America from Ireland where he brewed at Guinness's Open Gate Brewery, among others. In addition to their Ironshield brand the brewery also contract brews under Big Kettle Brewing and expects to brew 30,0000 barrels for their customers in 2022.

Welcome back Lorelei Hefeweizen

Ironshield offers several returning seasonals, like Lorelei Hefeweizen which returns this weekend. (Release party March 26th, 2022) We got a sneak preview of this one and it's one fine Hef. Next up is Warhammer Maibock in late May. We're all in for that one on the name alone.

Although contract brewing is the largest part of the brewery's business right now they are working diligently to grow the Ironshield brand. If you're a fan of classic ales and lagers do yourself a favor and check them out.

The Beer List

• Ironshield Brewing
  • Lorelei Hefeweizen
  • Seven Sisters Munchner Lager
  • Irish Stout

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Prison Pals Brewing makes a break for it in Miami

In 2018 Argentinian businessman and race car driver Juan Pipkin was dreaming of starting a business in America. He'd grown tired of the challenges in his home country and feeling like a prisoner in his own land. After some consideration he decided craft beer was the goal. Pipkin admits he had zero background in beer before the idea for Prison Pals Brewing started, but he saw a great opportunity and he knew how to put a powerhouse team together.

Pipkin reached out to Diego Setti and Bruno Laperchuck to join him on the adventure and the duo joined as Brewmaster and Head Brewer/Lab Manager to open their brewery in Miami. Originally, the plan was to operate much like breweries in Argentina - skipping the taproom and brewing beer to send out to bars and restaurants in distribution. Prison Pals started under that model but quickly realized a taproom was the key to success for American craft beer. Now they have two, with more on the way.

Setti brings an impressive list of credentials to the team. He's a BJCP Beer Judge and has served as the Latin America Regional Representative and Associate Director since 2019, a Certified Cicerone, Doemens Akademie Biersommelier, and started Zeta Atelier de Cervezas (a beer education institute) and Mental Brewing Co., a gypsy brewery only brewing historical beer styles. Deep breath... And, he's participated in major competitions such was the World Beer Cup, Great American Beer Festival, and Brussels Beer Challenge. Whew.

Don't fight the Smoothie hype

Given his choice, Setti would stick to brewing classic beer styles and exploring his love of lagers. When he was first asked him to brew a Smoothie beer he responded with an emphatic, "No." Prison Pals now has a line of Smoothie beers with plenty of hazy IPAs and heavily fruited sours in the lineup. You gotta give the people what they want, Diego.

We also learn a bit about the craft beer scene in Argentina. The most popular style is Honey Beer, typically a Blonde Ale with honey, it's the beer that pays the bills for most breweries. Argentinian brewers struggle to get imported ingredients and have to rely on limited availability of malts and yeast. Of course, as it goes with craft brewers, this brings in a lot of creativity to get the styles they want. Setti tells us the quality is still top notch and they are starting to see some growth in domestically available ingredients.

Due to time, we had to cut some info on what's next for the brewery. Pipkin tells us they'll open more taprooms offering their beers and some tasty eats, brew more beer, and expand distribution. Things are just getting started for Prison Pals.

The Beer List

• Resident Culture Radical Empathy Pilsner
• WhistlePig Piggy Back canned cocktail Blackberry Lemon Fizz (Damn tasty, highly recommended.)
• Monday Night Blind Pirate blood orange IPA
• Great Notion Pink Sabbath Black IPA

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We're all Irish on St. Patrick's Day

Are there any better holiday than drinking holidays? Oktoberfest, Cinco de Mayo, and St. Patrick's Day are all pretty much excuses (at least in America) to drink like we'll never drink again. In our constant quest for knowledge, and beer, we dug into the history of St. Patrick's Day as we sample some Irish beers. What is this holiday even about? Something about snakes? Potatoes? It really doesn't matter to most people. Put on something green and grab a pint of green beer or a Dry Irish Stout and you're officially celebrating. Sláinte!

Who was St. Patrick and what did he really do?

First off, St. Patrick wasn't Irish. Crazy, right? He was likely Italian or of indigenous Celtic decent, born around 390 AD. He ended up in Ireland after being kidnapped as a teenager and forced into slavery. He escaped and GTFOd, but he eventually returned to Ireland. He didn't drive the snakes out of Ireland, but he is credited with brining Christianity to the country by using an Irish clover to explain the Holy Trinity. It's believe he died on March 17, 461 and so we celebrate St. Patrick's Day every March 17th.

St. Patrick's Day beers

If you're in the US and you like a good craft beer then your best bet is going to be heading to your local brewery to enjoy the Dry Irish Stout or Irish Red Ale they've likely brewed up for the holiday. Bottle shops are mostly stocked with macros - Guinness, Murphy's, Harp, etc. You'll also find no shortage of green beer at your local bars. Usually a super cheap lager with some food coloring. We ran an Instagram poll on the debated topic of green beers. Check out the show to hear the results!

After a few beers we do get a little sidetracked but we dive deep into the invention of the Bacon Bacon Bacon sandwich and analyze the Chicken Wing Index.

Irish or not, go have some fun and enjoy a nice nitro pint of Guinness and some corned beef. It may not be traditional, but it'll be pretty damn good.

The Beer List

• Guinness Dry Irish Stout
• Murphy's Dry Irish Stout
• Smithwick's Irish Red Ale
• Harp Lager
• Manger's Cider
• Biggerstaff Daddy Jack Dry Stout
• Southern Tier Irish Cream Stout
• Bushmill's Black Bush (not beer)

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There's a lotta beer in Michigan

Author Patti Smith joins us this week to talk about her book, Michigan Beer: A Heady History. If you've been with for a while, you may remember our episode with Ron Smith and Mary O. Boyle discussing their book, Atlanta Beer: A Heady History of Brewing in the Hub of the South. This is like that, but with much more Michigan.

We start with the early days of brewing where, like most of the US, Bavarian immigrants had heavy influence. Except in the Upper Peninsula where French-Canadians helped make spruce beer a hot item.

There were a few powerhouse brewers in the 19th century across the state, many wiped out by Prohibition. Michigan was an early-adopter of state prohibition - but also the first to ratify the 21st Amendment to end it. I hope they learned their lesson.

Modern brewing in Michigan saw the state peak at over 400 breweries, they've taken a bit of a hit with the pandemic, but their still going strong.

We just brush the surface in the show so make sure to pick up the book if you want to know the full story of Michigan beer. (The link goes to the publisher's website, 'cause they get more money that way, but it's also available on Amazon.)

The Michigan Beer List

• Bells Tequila Barrel Aged Flamingo Fruit Fight
  Founders KBS Hazelnut
  Old Nation B43
  Jolly Pumpkin Bam Noir

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TRU Colors Brewing is on a mission to end gang violence

When a shooting took the life of a young man in Wilmington, NC local businessman George Taylor wanted to do something about it. You likely know some of Taylor's other businesses, like Untappd or National Speed. Rather than just talking about making a change, Taylor contacted the local gang task force and spent two years getting to know gang members and the challenges they faced. After careful consideration and identifying some of the roots causes of gang violence he founded TRU Colors Brewing.

TRU Colors has a mission to end gang violence. Not only by providing jobs but by offering support and education on how to know your self worth. Fitness and nutrition classes, yoga, counseling, and discounted meals are some of offerings at the brewery. 80% of the breweries employee's are rival gang members.

Spree is the Assistant Director of Marketing at TRU Colors, and an active gang member. He was serving time in federal prison when he first heard about the brewery and their mission. With some skepticism, he contacted them to see what they were about. Spree shares how TRU Colors has made a difference in his life, the challenges faced living in "the hood," the appeal of joining a gang, and how he's taking what he's learned back to his community.

Kevin was working at a local brewery when he heard about the mission of TRU Colors. He was impressed with their goal and reached out to them to join the brewing team. Kevin shares with us why he joined TRU Colors, some info on TRU Light (their flagship beer), and what's coming in the future from the brewery.

TRU Light is an approachable beer to bring people together

Deciding on what style to launch with wasn't a tough call. The humble light lager is an easily approachable beer. Us beer nerds may think our numbers are strong but there's no question the light lager captures way more people than any IPA or pastry stout. Kevin tells us the brewery isn't even really about the beer, it's just a vehicle to fund the mission. That said, they do have some fun collaborations in planning and we're told some hops will come into the mix.

The Beer List

• Boulevard Chocolate Ale
• Good Word Divine Intervention Rice Lager
• Equilibrium Experiment and Enlightenment DIPA
• Rupee Premium Lager Beer

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Our first Arkansas brewery on the show!

The crew from Fossil Cove Brewing Co. joined us this week to shed some light on what's happening in Arkansas craft beer. If they're a good example, AR is doing OK.

Tyler, Ben, and Andrew tell us about the growing beer scene in their state where a lot of folks still enjoy their light lagers. No matter, there are still plenty of IPAs and Stouts for those that want to branch out a bit. But they tell us they don't think there's anyone doing a Milkshake IPA. Can you even imagine?

We talk beer laws (AR has very friendly brewery laws), dinosaurs, brown ales, beer fest, and toe suckers. (What?)

They've got a Solid Session IPA, a pretty-darn-good Brown Ale, and solid DIPA. These guys were a blast to talk with and got me wanting to go back to old Arkansas and see what's up.

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The crew from Atlanta’s Fire Maker Brewing Co. joins us in the studio this week to talk sweet tea, dragons, winning awards, and beer laws,

Brewery founder Elliott Hall has worked across all three tiers of beer - wholesale, retail, and now as a brewery owner. This experience gives him unique insight into what it takes to be successful in today’s competitive craft beer landscape. As Vice President of the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild Elliott is working to improve the laws for Georgia’s craft brewers and bring the brewing community closer together.

Marketing Director Rachel Bramer makes sure the brewery has a solid identity that people can connect with and shares the latest on Fire Maker via interesting videos and social media. The team’s efforts won them a Craft Beer Marketing Awards, known as a “Crushie”, in 2021 for their can artwork of their core beers.

Head Brewer Kevin Wright brings experience from a large corporate brewery as well as well-known breweries in Chicago and some island brewing in Hawaii. He keeps a careful eye on beer trends and makes sure Fire Maker’s fans enjoy every drop that they brew.

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Cheers to American Beer

Around the world there are still plenty of people that see American beer as watery lagers with no real character. We may have taken a while to catch up, but today American beer offers a huge variety of top notch styles in every state. Jason Murphy, staff writer for PorchDrinking.com, wanted to explore the map of American beer so he set out on a mission to try a brew from all 50 states and write about his adventure. It was a huge undertaking but he came out victorious. You can read his full article right here - Craft Beer Across America | 50 Beers From 50 States.

Jason is local to the Atlanta area and we've chatted on Instagram about the beers and breweries we enjoy. He's even suggested breweries for the show that he was impressed with, like South Dakota's Covert Artisan Ales who joined us on the show a few month's ago. We thought what Jason was doing was pretty darn cool and we'd discussed getting together for a beer so we said, why not turn it into a show. So, here we are.

In the lead up to this episode I gave the heads up to some of our friends and radio affiliates that we'd be featuring breweries in their states and which ones we we talk about. When I reached out I may have said these were smaller, lesser known breweries. People took offense to that. My bad. What I should have said is that these are some breweries that may not get as much hype or press as some others, but they are still stellar breweries that people need to know about. That's what I should have said. It's likely you'll recognize a lot of these names, but you're sure to find a few new ones as well.

We sampled a few of the beers on his list as we talked about how this came to be and what trends he saw as he gathered his breweries. We didn't have time to mention all 50 breweries, but definitely hit the link up there to see the full list. Jason tells us some of the stand outs for him and we grieve on Untappd a bit.

Give this episode a listen, read Jason's article, and go out and find a new favorite brewery.

The Beer List

• Epic Big Bad Baptist In The Rye
• Dogfish Head Utopias Barrel-aged World Wide Stout (not in the article, but we wanted to drink it.)
• Zony Mash King of Carrot Flowers (Carrot, Tangerine, Mango, Lactose)
• Icarus Brewing - Build Me Up Butternut (Butternut squash, Guajillo & Chipotle Peppers)
• Finch - Songbird Pilsner

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Silver Bluff Brewing is passionate about Mexican Lager

Jeff Coyle loves Mexican lagers. So much so that he wrote a detailed article to help others understand the style. If you think Corona when you think of Mexican beers, you should definitely read the article. But first, make sure to listen to our interview with Jeff and his brother Kevin Coyle. The duo are part of the team behind Silver Bluff Brewing Co.

Their Mexican lager is a hybrid of sorts. Riding the line between the Clara (Corona) and another traditional Mexican style, the Vienna Lager. Right, Vienna Lager, traditional Mexican beer. Seriously. Locals went crazy for their take on this refreshing brew and it's their top selling beer now. If you're looking for something else they've got plenty of other beers on tap. As we talked they had just brewed a Dry Irish Stout to get ready for St. Patrick's Day, making us realize the holiday is closer than we realized.

The Brothers Coyle love their community almost as much as they love beer and making a place where people could gather over a well-made, approachable pint is something their most excited about at Silver Bluff. If the beer and beer garden don't reel you in maybe the coastal scenery of Georgia's Golden Isles will. Maybe both?

For now, their beer is distributed in a fairly small area but they are making more beer and hope to expand even further soon.

Silver Bluff Brewing Co. 1325 Newcastle Street Brunswick, GA 31520

The Beer List

• Silver Bluff Brewing Piercing Point Juicy Pale Ale
• Silver Bluff Brewing Holiday IPA with juniper berries
• Highland Brewing Cold Mountain Super Spice
• Iron Hill Brewery Dystopias | Imperial Stout aged in Sam Adams Utopias barrels

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Who's ready for some hot, flat beer?

For most breweries a review saying a beer was "hot and flat" would be an insult. Not so much for Primitive Beer. If you attended their recent Hot Bierfest in Colorado then you had a choice of a few beers to try, with one being flat ("still" sounds better, let's go with that) and... hot. Glühbier, literally "mulled beer", is served like a mulled wine or cider. Warmed with cinnamon, honey, and spices If you're not feeling spicy then maybe go for a mug of beer you take out by the fire and have a red hot poker plunged in it. You want unique beer? You got it.

Brandon and Lisa Boldt aren't all about hot beer. Their "beer blendery" offers a great variety of spontaneously fermented brews. Some aged in spirit barrels or blended with fruit, and even some served still in a bag-in-box container. Even if some of their methods aren't trendy with the masses they know a thing or two about great beer. We're big fans after sampling their Circular Logic, Willfully Obtuse (still/uncarbonated), and Back in Vogue.

Primitive Beer practices spontaneous fermentation for all of their beers. The results are somewhat unpredictable, although you can increase the chance of success with a bit of knowledge and practice. The real magic comes in the blending where they can create the exact profiles they are looking for. You won't find a hazy IPA or pastry stout from Primitive Beer, but if you're looking for some unique and complex beers they've got you covered.

Primitive Beer 2025 Ionosphere St. Longmont, CO 80504 primitive.beer

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American craft sake is creeping on a come up

This isn't the first time we've talked about sake on the show, but it is the first time we've talked to a sake brewer. Josh Hembree of Setting Sun Sake Brewing Co. is one of a small handful of American craft sake brewers. A few short years ago there were only 5ish in the states but that number has grown to over 20.

Although sake is usually referred to as a rice wine the brewing process is more closely related to beer. Hembree tells us about the different types of sake, the differences in brewing beer and sake, what Americans get wrong about sake, and how American brewers put their own, beautiful spin on the process. We also talk about good pairing and get some tips on how to pair outside of the typical sushi and other Asian cuisine.

Kanpai! Sampling sake

The traditional Japanese toast is Kanpai! Which, literally translated is "dry sake cup." More than likely the translation would be approximately "drink your cup dry." OK, if you insist. We sample a few sakes (including one American brewed version) and give our 100% uneducated opinions on each one.

The Sake List

• Kiku-Masamune Junmai Taru Sake
• We Sake (Junmai Ginjo)
• Sake One Joy (Junmai Ginjo Genshu)
• Choya Umeshu (Japanese plum wine, which we thought was sake when we bought it.)

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Sam Calagione talks 26 years of of Dogfish Head

Many people consider Dogfish Head's Sam Calagione to be one of the pioneers of modern American craft beer. Sam is quick to clarify he's part of the 2nd wave of craft and others, like Sierra Nevada's Ken Grossman, paved the way for his off-centered ales.

Calagione's method of continuously hopping his beers throughout the boil allowed him to pack in immense hop flavor without making the brews overly bitter. The contraption he used to add the hops in his early batches of 60 Minute and 90 Minute IPA was fashioned from a vibrating football game and now sits in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Museum. The brewery also offers 120 Minute version of their IPA at a whopping 15-20% ABV and revivals of beers from the past in their Ancient Ales series as well as big stouts, pilsners, light sours like Sea Quench and soon, Crush-inspired canned cocktails. Although his beer may have been 2nd wave, Dogfish Head was one of the first brewery's to add distilling to their portfolio.

If it wasn't enough to found such an iconic brewery, Calagione is also an accomplished author and TV personality. His latest book, The Dogfish Head Book: 26 Years of Off-Centered Adventures, takes a look back at the brewery's history and the life and business lessons he's learned along the way.

The Beer List

• Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
  • Slightly Mighty Lo-Cal IPA
  • 60 Minute IPA
  • Bitches Brew (2013)

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Why are Shiner bottles twist-off?

So you can get the beer out!

We had a blast talking with Brewmaster Jimmy Mauric and Brand Manager Nick Weiland about the long history of Shiner Beer. We don't talk with many 100+ year old breweries, so we had plenty to talk about. Jimmy's been with the brewery for 44 years so he knows a thing or two about the history. He tells us how the brewery survived Prohibition by selling ice and non-alcoholic (wink wink) Near Beer, and how their Bock dates all the way back to 1913.

Jimmy admits that the shift into these crazier brews was a bit tough for him at first, but he's all on board now. Berries and Cream beers, trail mix ales (that absolutely nails the flavor) and even cocktail-inspired seltzers.

The Beer List

• Shiner 1909 Heritage Lager
• Shiner Holiday Cheer
• Shiner S'more
• Shiner Trail Ale
• Shiner Toasted Amber
• Shiner Tall 'Tails Mexican Martini (Hard Seltzer)

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Harpoon Brewery is an East Coast IPA OG

In 1986 Harpoon Brewery received brewery permit #001 in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.  The first brewery in the state since Prohibition, only 35 years ago.

IPAs were more of a West Coast thing at the time and the launch of Harpoon IPA in 1993 was a bold move for an East Coast brewery.  Fans to took these crazy, hoppy beers and the rest is history.

Chief Brewing Office Al Marzi, Senior Brewery Mike Kelly, and Director of Digital Strategy Megan Baker cracked a few cold ones with us as they shared their knowledge with us.  We chat about the evolution of the IPA, emerging ingredients in craft beer, what it means to be an employed-owned company, and smattering of other topics.

It's hard to believe the craft beer scene in the Northeast is a mere 35 years old.  Harpoon was there to see (and make) it happen, and there's more to come.

Oh yeah, how could I forget... this is EPISODE 300 of Beer Guys Radio.  Woot!

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Best Christmas Beers of 2021

Christmas, the most wonderful time to drink beer

Ahhh, who am I kidding? It's ALWAYS the most wonderful time to drink beer. But, Christmas is a great time for beer. Beautiful Belgian ales, spiced Winter Warmers, maybe some glühkriek?

Christmas beers are some of our favorites and we look forward to this show each year. With a sampling of Christmas brews from around the world we blind taste them with our friends and pick our favorites. This year, Ron and Michael from Rainy Day Brewery joined us on the show. We didn't even think about the fact they are Jewish when we invited them over for Christmas, but they were happy to join us and the show became a nice, interfaith celebration. L'chaim!

There are no set rules for our "competition." We simply taste the beers and decide if we like them. Make some notes, share our favorites, and then tally the scores for a top three.

To keep things festive we share some fun trivia and facts about Christmas and drinking traditions. Wassailing and such. It's a good time all around.

The Beer List

• Anchor Christmas 2021
• Brasserie d'Achouffe N’ice Chouffe
• Delirium Noel
• Deschutes Jubelale
• Highland Brewing Cold Mountain
• St. Bernardus Christmas
• Samuel Adams Winter Lager
• Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Ale
• Sierra Nevada Celebration
• Southern Tier 2XMas
• Sweetwater Festive Ale

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When Dokkaebier founder Youngwon Lee attended craft beer festivals he noticed he was one of the few (or only) Asian people at the events. He said everyone was friendly and welcoming, he just wanted to find a way to attract more diversity to craft. Bring on the Dokkaebier. Many of their beers are both familiar and unique. A Pilsner with bamboo tea, a Kimchi kettle sour made with lactobacillus cultured from actual kimchi.

What started as a pop-up served with Korean tapas blossomed into a full brewing venture. Working with local brewers to gypsy brew his offerings, Dokkaebier is now available in stores and shipping across California, with more expansion planned in the future.

THE BEER LIST

Dokkaebier - Bamboo Pilsner - Classic Pilsner with bamboo tea - DIPA - Lemon Ginger Kettle Sour - Milk Stout - With green peppercorns and cardamom - Yuza Blonde

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If you brew it, will they drink?

Textile Brewing is just a few miles from the Field of Dreams.  My clever mind thought of the "if you brew it" line as soon as I heard this fact.  Of course, it's the same line that everyone thinks of.  Great minds, right?

I managed to hold off for most of the show on making the "joke," but it is a fun fact about the brewery.  Another fun fact, founder Tom Olberding had no brewing experience when he decided he was going to open a brewery.  To compliment his skills he hired Nick Ashton as his assistant brewer, who also had no brewing experience.

Lack of experience aside, Textile is offering up some really tasty beers.  We sampled a Blonde Ale, Vienna Lager, IPA, and a coffee-pumpkin ale and all were damn good.  Cheers to the new guys.

If you find yourself in Dyersville, IA stop in and find out for yourself.  We hear their beer pairs great with a Canadian bacon and sauerkraut pizza.

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There's a lot more to lager than just Pilsner

We all have a friend that has made a statement like, "I don't like lagers," or, "I don't like dark beer."

It's likely the lager-hater is thinking of something like a Pilsner when they think lager, and the dark beer-averse has a thick and boozy stout on their mind. Dark Lagers are here to change those opinions.

There's a huge variety of flavor in the dark lager world. On the lighter end, something like a Czech Dark Lager will deliver a touch of toffee, dates, and chocolate. On the bolder end an Eisbock can be sweet and boozy, with big malt presence of toasty caramel. If you like Imperial Stouts and Quads, give an Eisbock a try.

German Beer Terms

The Germans make it pretty easy to know what you're getting in your beer. Learn these terms and you'll be ready to do some shopping.

• Doppel = Double
• Dunkel = Dark
• Hefe = Yeast
• Schwarz = black
• Weiss = White
• Weizen = Wheat
• Bock = Male goat / Buck (Listen to the show to see how this became associated with beer.)

Now you know that Dunkelweizen is a darky, wheat beer. Boom.

Drink Local, Give Local

Our friend (and show sponsor) Adam Silverberg from The Nest Kennesaw joined us this week. We sample some brews and he tells us about his annual event to help those in need at the holidays.

Through his Drink Local, Give Local event and The Nest you can enjoy some great brews and get on on the raffles for some awesome beer gifts. Bring a toy for MUST Ministries to add to their holiday store to make sure everyone can have something under the tree for Christmas.

If you're not in the metro Atlanta area there's sure to be a similar organization near you.

The Beer List

• Aventinus Eisbock (Germany)
• Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock (Germany)
• Duck-Rabbit Schwarzbier (US)
• Samichlaus Doppelbock (Austria)
• Einstock Icelandic DoppelBock (Iceland)
• Arches Mystic Bock (US)
• Ayinger Altbairisch Dunkel (Germany)

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This week we have RockSolid Brewing head brewer Bryan Crass joining us in the studio!

Plenty of places offer up craft beer pairing suggestions for your favorite Halloween candy,  Reese's Cups, Skittles, Snickers.  We've got some pairings as well, but our suggestions are for that bottom-of-the-bag candy as we pick the Top 5 most hated candies to pair up.  Necco Wafers?  Got it.  Circus Peanuts?  Check.  You know you'll be eating the leftovers your kids don't want so you might as well have a nice beer to go with it.

Bryan shares some info about his time brewing in California and making his way to Georgia,  collabs with other breweries and even one with a haunted house.  We make some recipe plans to go full circle with his blueberry cheesecake beer, and sample his BBA Barleywine as he tells us about their 1st anniversary plans.

Happy Halloween, Y'all!  Go Braves!

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About a month ago Jason Murphy from porchdrinking.com hit me up on Instagram and said, "You gotta check out Covert Artisan Ales."  So I did. 

Covert founders Dan and Stacey Berry joined us this week to talk about their Sioux Falls, South Dakota brewery.  SD was a holdout on jumping on the BGR train.  Back in 2018 we even did a Sucking up to South Dakota segment in one of our episodes with Stan Hieronymus.  I'm happy to say that SD is now one our Top 50 states for listeners.

As we talk about controversial beer opinions and pleated pants we sampled some of Covert's brews.  Gin and Rye barrel-aged BANG! BANG! mixed fermentation ales, Dana wild ale dry hopped with Nelson Sauvin, and my favorite, Basis sour quad fermented on blueberries then aged in bourbon barrels.  Dan shares some of the meaning behind the shapes and colors of Covert, and everyone gets an invite to visit South Dakota to enjoy the beer, the parks, and the food.  Let's do it.

The Beer List

• Covert Artisan Ales
  • DANA | American wild ale dry hopped with Nelson Sauvin
  • Basis | Sour quad with blueberries conditioned in a select bourbon barrel.
  • Gin Barrel-Aged Bang! Bang! | Mixed fermentation ale aged in gin barrels
  • Rye Barrel-Aged Bang! Bang! | Mixed fermentation ale aged in rye barrels
  • Primtemps - Wild ale fermented in red wine barrels, dry hopped with Nelson Sauvin

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Partake Brewing takes their non-alcoholic brews from the Dragon's Den to distribution

Partake Brewing founder Ted Fleming was (is) a huge craft beer fan. He loves hanging out with friends and sharing a brew. Unfortunately, after a visit to the doctor diagnosed him with Crohn's Disease he had to ease off the alcohol, and eventually give it up all together.

But Fleming wasn't ready to give up sharing a drink with friends. He did some research on the non-alcoholic beer market and discovered there weren't a lot of great offerings to be had at home in Canada, or in North America in general. This led him to building a website to offer what he did find, many from Europe. His website turned into a passionate community and when he finally decided to launch Partake he had a lot of support, even though it meant he would have to give up his website.

Partake even visited the Dragon's Den, Canada's version of America's Shark Tank. Fleming got a deal on the show but says they were ultimately not able to finalize it. He did have a strong backing on a Kickstarter with an IPA and got the ball rolling.

Now offering a full lineup of core beers as well as seasonal offerings like Lime (an easy-drinking lager'ish brew with a lime hint) and a Peach Gose.

The NA beer market continues to grow, and we are all here for it. You know we love a good, boozy brew but it's nice for those that can't or don't want to have alcohol to still be able to enjoy a craft brew. They're popular with health-conscious folks and some of the brews have only 10 calories in a 12-oz can. Madness.

With the Cheers to Adulting campaign Partake Brewing is encouraging everyone to consider Sober October. With the extravagance of the holidays just around the corner that may not be a bad idea. Maybe next year.

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Big Draft Brewing is helping to bring small town West Virginia back to life

Big Draft Brewing is located in the tiny town of White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. Population 3,000, give or take.

The town, and the larger Greenbrier Valley community, has faced some hard times in recent years. The opioid epidemic chipped away at the community and the "1,000 year flood" of 2016 caused widespread destruction and loss of life.

Our show this week is as much about the tenacity of the residents of White Sulphur Springs as it is about beer. You'll have to humor me, this one is kind of personal. My family is from White Sulphur Springs and I spent some of my childhood Summers there. It's a close community with strong family ties. Turns out, by complete chance, my family ties run right to Big Draft Brewing. It's quite a story so make sure to listen in to hear the full scoop.

Founders David Bostic, Clay Elkins, and JW Groseclose join us on the show this week to talk about their brewery and the overall revitalization of their town. They've built up a city block with Big Draft Brewing, a BBQ spot, a cafe and coffee house, and a concert hall and events venue. They intend to grow it as as destination that reaches far beyond the city line.

But we do talk about beer plenty as well. JW is the brewmaster and his goal is to make classic and approachable beers that everyone can enjoy. We sampled the Foreman American Lager, Sudsy's Pale Ale, Bo Red Bohemian Red, and the seasonal Festbier and can vouch for all of them. There are barrel-aged beers in the works, a saison in the fermenters, and some mad scientist brew utilizing ramps (the wild vegetable) in the works.

In addition to tasty beer and BBQ the crew tells us about the fishing, hunting, hiking, and off-roading adventures in the area. Sounds like a great time all around. I better get on those country roads now.

Side note.... you may not know White Sulphur Springs by name but you may have heard of The Greenbrier Resort. It's got quite a story, you should check it out. If you're a gamer and a fan of Fallout 76, you might recognize the Greenbrier as The Whitespring Resort.

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Dead Low Brewing co-founder Kyle Havens and investor and member of the board Yvan Demosthenes join us this week to talk shop!

We discuss the many faces of dark lager and how a lot of people have misconceptions about lager beers PLUS the wonders of a Country Lager. We learn what Dead Low means and how that ties in with the brewery, rocking concerts near by, and give some love to Ohio for their support of the show.

For our Beers of the Week, we go with a Tiki theme, including:

• Left Hand Getting Tiki With It (Pina Colada wheat)
• Creature Comforts Athena Paradiso (Pineapple, Lemon, Coriander)
• Great Divide Margarita Gose
• Destihl Hawaii Five Ale (Blond ale with pineapple, coconut, mango, peach, & guava)

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It's Oktoberfest, time for some blind beer tasting For the second year in a row, the famed Oktoberfest in Munich has been cancelled. Sad. But, the beers are still flowing and there are pretty of great offerings available across the States. We gathered up with a couple friends and fellow beer lovers recently for our annual Oktoberfest Blind Beer Tasting. Anthony Storey of Storey Time Construction joined us along with repeat Oktoberfest taster, Nate Scheiber of Cherry Street Brewing.

Our rules are pretty simple. Taste the beer and make some notes on whether or not you like it. Easy stuff. We've got Marzen and Festbier in the mix together, it's just all about the season. We sampled 10 beers for the competition and sampled Bold Monk's Festbier after the tasting courtesy of owner John "JR" Roberts.

Listen to the show now to hear our picks. We'll post our Top 3 list at beerguysradio.com on Monday, September 20th. Prost!

The Beer List (In alphabetical order, not tasting order.) * Bells Oktoberfest | Marzen | 5.5% * Hacker-Pschorr | Oktoberfest Marzen | 5.8% * Hi Wire Zirkusfest | Marzen, 6% * Hofbrau Munchen | Oktoberfestbier | 6.3% * Ironmonger Oktoberfest | Marzen, 5.5% * Paulaner | Oktoberfest Marzen | 5.8% * Sam Adams Oktoberfest | Marzen style, 5.3%. Generally one of our favs, but has had off years * Sam Adams Festbier | 5.8% * Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest | Marzen, 5.5%, not a collab this year * Yuengling Oktoberfest | Marzen-style * And the after party palate-pleaser, Festbier from Bold Monk.

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A few years ago the Braves made a controversial move to Cobb County, GA... but that's a story for another time. Attached to the ballpark is The Battery. A live-work-play complex with restaurants and shops and condos, and the Terrapin Atlanta Taproom.

Terrapin's Taproom sits just beside the main gate to the Brave's stadium. You can even get a beer from the taproom from inside the park. (Pro tip, they're cheaper than the ballpark beers.) Along with the beers they also serve up Fox Bros BBQ, some of the best in Atlanta.

Commercial Operations Manager Mark Crouch hosted us at the taproom. He fed us all kinds of great BBQ and let us sample all the new beers, then we recorded a show. I think we should have done that the other way around.

Mark is one of my favorite people in the beer industry. Always smiling and friendly, just one of those people that makes feel happy to be seen. He's a corporate man from Miller, and then their craft division Tenth & Blake, but we don't hold that against him. He's got passion for the community and for making great, small batch beers, and that's really what it's all about.

The Terrapin Taproom is also known as the ATL Brew Lab. The testing grounds for rookie beers before they get called up to The Show at Terrapin's production brewery in Athens. When you visit the taproom you'll always find a great selection of lagers plus IPA, stout, some sours, and everything else. When we visited they'd just put on a fantastic Kellerpils, and tapped their Festbier just as we arrived.

You might even catch a beer from some Braves players. Terrapin collaborated with Chipper Jones for CJ10 Kolsch and Jeff Francouer for Frenchy's Blues, a blueberry Berliner-Weisse made with blueberries from Francouer's farm. Neat.

If you're taking a trip to a Braves game make sure to put the Terrapin Taproom on your list. Even if you aren't going to a Braves game put them on your list, the taproom is open year round serving up great beer and tasty BBQ.

The Beer List * Terrapin Atlanta Taproom + Kellerpils + Festbier + One Hopper Mosaic

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Cask Ales and camaraderie in Athens, GA A lot has changed in craft beer in the last 25 years, and Classic City Brew Fest has been there through it all.  Organizer Owen Ogletree tells us about the changes over the years and the great cause the fest supports.

We've been attending this event for several years now.  We always grab a few of the brewers and chat a bit about what's happening with their brewery.  This year we sat down with Carey Charles from Arches Brewing for some hot lager talk.  Arches is one of the first breweries in Georgia to take the bold step of being lager-focused, and they're doing a damn fine job of it.

Nick Tanner and Ramsay Florence from Cherry Street Brewing join to talk about Nick's two brewpubs, crazy beer laws, and why that helped them make the choice to open a production brewery across state lines in Chattanooga, TN.  Note:  Chery Street's Halcyon location has some of the best fish and chips I've tried.  I want some more right now.

Speaking of crazy beer laws... Joseph Cortes, Executive Director of the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild, joins us as well.  He was new to craft beer when he took on his role, but not new to politics.  Cortes shares that the political side of beer is a crazy place to be.  We learn about some of the challenges facing brewers and what's on the agenda for the Guild.

The Beer List * Arches Brewing Bob's Your Uncle ESB * Cherry Street Brewing Grease Monkey BBA English Barleywine * MAZURT The Time of Returning Nordic Quad * And a whole lot more...

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Neutral Ground Brewing Co. lets you have your cake and drink it, too Ft. Worth... Funkytown, a great place for a brewery. Friends Stan Hudson and Sean Doublet definitely think so. When they originally met Sean wasn't even into craft beer. He noted that Stan came around with growlers pouring 4 oz samples for everyone. We know this to be likely as we've known Stan for many years and have experienced his proclivity to share his brews. Interestingly, beer isn't what originally introduced us to Stan, we have cigars to thank for that. However, we quickly find we shared a common love for craft beer as well. We've enjoyed beers with Stan around the country. This was well before Neutral Ground was a thing, but he was a passionate homebrewer. He's visited us here in Atlanta, I've visited him in Texas, and we've met at cigar meetups in Tennessee, where Stan shipped kegs of his beer up from Texas to share.

Sean really didn't have much a choice about being a beer fan around Stan and over the years he developed the same passion. At the time, he still lived in Louisiana when the two decided to start their brewery. The name comes from a strip of disputed border between Texas and Louisiana. We're told sometimes they still stand on opposite ends of the brewery and shake their fists at each other.

We chat with Sean and Stan about our history with Stan, and even throw some true/false questions at Sean about some of Stan's adventures. We chat homebrewing, Louisiana, cajun food, and learn all about their brews.

King Cake beer? It's a bold move to go with a pastry-inspired beer as your flagship, but the King Cake brew is working out pretty well for NGBC. The fairly light and very drinkable brew delivers on the flavors, and if you visit the taproom in the trendy River East area of Ft. Worth you can even get it in a sugar rimmed glass. Laissez le bon temps rouler!

For the full scoop on Neutral Ground Brewing Co. follow them on Facebook or head to ngbc.beer.

The Beer List * Neutral Ground Brewing Co. + King Cake + Force Majeur Hazy IPA + Renaissance English Mild + Juices & Berries IPA + Synesthesia Saison (Yep, that Synesthesia Saison!)

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Bespoken Spirits says they can make a delicious whiskey in days instead of years, while using a fraction of the wood and water of traditional methods. Sounds like voodoo to me, but founders Stu Aaron and Martin Janousek claim their spirits are voodoo-free.

They've taken the art of distilling and aging spirits and added some science to it. Instead of using barrels, they use "micro-staves" plus some heat and pressure to produce the desired result. They offer your traditional bourbon, rye, and rum but they can get a bit more creative from there. When the pandemic had breweries sitting on stocks of unsold beer, Bespoken worked with brewers to turn that beer into spirits. They distilled the brew then worked with their customers to craft the exact aroma, color, and taste they were going for.

We sampled a couple of these beer-its while we talked with Martin and Janousek. They offered pleasant aromas of caramel, tropical fruit, butter, floral notes and delivered these flavors as well. We did feel the woody notes in each offering were a bit sharp. Unfortunately, we didn't sample the bourbon or rye to make a comparison against ones made in the traditional method. One note, although they do process their bourbon the same as all of their other spirits, it does spend 3 months in barrels prior to that so it is actually bourbon.

Bespoken has stacked up several medals for their spirits, so their method must be working. We'll have to keep an eye out for the bourbon and rye so we can really test them out.

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In beautiful Jackson Hole, WY sits Roadhouse Brewing. They're one of several breweries in a town of about 10,000. Although the full-time population may be small, the city welcomes as many as 55,000 visitors every day. Vacationers enjoying Jackson Hole or on their way to one of the West's amazing National Parks. And when you're on vacation, you're going to need some beer.

Roadhouse Brewing wants you to Live Deep. We got to running out mouths and forget to find out exactly what that means. However, we trust Brewmaster Max Shafer gives it to us straight, so we're going to try our best to follow his advice. We chat with Shafer about the Mountain IPA. What it is, how it differs from it's NE and West Coast siblings, and what commonalities they share. We sip on Wilson, their take on the style with a great story on the can, and we're sold.

Roadhouse Brewing is a certified B-Corp. This means they're dedicated to purpose and profit, and they're "legally required to consider the impact of their decisions on their workers, customers, suppliers, community, and the environment." From our conversation Roadhouse is very serious about their impact on the world, and they've gone to great lengths to embody that. Shafer shares a few of the things the brewery has done to reduce their impact on the environment.

We've never been to Jackson Hole, but if there are more breweries like Roadhouse and more people like Max Shafer then we need to get a trip set real soon.

THE BEER LIST

• Roadhouse Brewing
  • Breath & Bramble Sour Ale with Raspberries and Lemon
  • Highway Pilsner
  • Wilson Mountain Style IPA

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Exhibit 'A' Brewing with Kelsey Roth

Exhibit 'A' Brewing was voted the most underrated brewery in Massachusetts by Thrillist.  When we asked General Manager Kelsey Roth if agreed with the distinction we got a hesitant shrug.  Their Goody Two Shoes Kölsch earned a 96 from Wine Enthusiast and landed in their top spot.  Do these two "awards" go hand-in-hand, or contradict each other?  The world may never know.

Roth doesn't seem too wrapped up in either.  He just wants to offer good beer and a great place for people to hang out.  And they want everyone to feel welcomed and comfortable as evidenced by their Autism Welcoming hours that present the brewery in a more sensory-sensitive environment.

We chat with Roth about his brewery, crazy-expensive beers, and how to pour a good pint.  If you find yourself in Massachusetts, or you happen to be in one of the states they can deliver beer to your directly, make sure to check them out.

The Beer List

• Ironmonger Naughty Soda Lemon Cucumber Hard Seltzer
• Switchback Bisounnay Smoked Saison
• Genesee Red Lager
• Six Bridges Love Tractor Peach Milkshake IPA
• Mortalis Hydra Fruited Sour

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Did you know you can turn your shed into a brewery in Massachusetts?

Wandering Soul Beer Co. founder Matt Smith is a gypsy brewer. Well, he has his own brewery, a small setup in the shed behind his house. Local laws allow Matt to sell beer from his shed brewery... brewery shed? He recently held a bottle release and had folks lining up in his neighborhood to grab some of that sweet nectar. I hope he has cool neighbors.

The shed won't meet the demand for Wandering Soul Beer so large batches are gypsy-brewed at a few local breweries. The original plan for Wandering Soul was to be a one-and-done brewery. When Matt and his wife suffered a tragic loss, he found peace in brewing. Eventually, he came up with a recipe he wanted to brew and share with the public, Melody Maker. The intent was to brew it one time only, but the popularity of the release took him back for another batch. Now Wandering Soul brews one batch a month and once it's gone, it's gone.

We talk with Matt about what led him to brewing, ska bands, love/hate for El Dorado hops, and plans for Wandering Soul in the future.

The Beer List

• Wandering Soul Beer Co. Melody Maker IPA
• Wandering Soul Beer Co. Things We Don't Say IPA
• Wandering Soul Beer Co. Young Mouse Belgian Ale with Mango
• Wandering Sour Beer Co. From Wreckage Imperial Stout

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NA beer is here to stay, and Athletic Brewing Co. is leading the way We last talked with Athletic Brewing Co. in 2019. They were just getting their roots set and spreading the word of their non-alcoholic craft beer. The last two years of seen explosive growth for them, and the NA beer sector, so we decided to catch up with them for an update.

Bill Shufelt and John Walker are the co-founders of Athletic. Bill man's the fort at their production brewery in San Diego while John watches over their original Connecticut Brewery and taproom. Both breweries are in the process of expansion.

Even though the segment has grown there's still a stigma with many people about non-alcoholic beers. Some recall the weird taste of previous NA offerings, and some just don't get the point of a beer with alcohol. Athletic wants to see NA become a choice just because you like it, rather than a "penalty box" decision for designated drivers, pregnant women, and recovering alcoholics.

Bill and John share info on their collaborations and charity work, and their involvement in the recent awards of brewing diversity scholarships with Sacred Heart University. They also talk about their expanded distribution (including Georgia!) and where they are headed next.

Bottleshare is helping the good people of craft Christopher Glenn of Bottleshare joins us again as well. Spreading the word on his non-profit that helps those in the craft beverage industry that fall on hard times, and about the upcoming Nestober Fest on Oct. 2nd to raise funds for Bottleshare. Chris's organization started as a local project to help craft employees in Georgia but as word spread he stretched beyond the state and Bottleshare is now a nationwide effort. Look for Bottleshare collaborations from some of your favorite breweries for an easy way to help the cause.

The Beer List * Athletic Brewing Co. Run Wild NA IPA * Athletic Brewing Co. All Out Extra Dark NA (It's like a stout but they can't call it a stout.) * Ceria Brewing Grainwave NA Belgian White * Ceria Brewing Indiewave NA IPA

Craft Beer News * Denver Beer Co. Has Sold a “Beer for Life” NFT * Taxes on Beer in Connecticut are Dropping 16.7% * AC/DC is Getting a Line of Craft Beers

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Cannabis in a can with CERIA Brewing's Dr. Keith Villa As state's legalize the casual consumption of marijuana I think we knew a time would come when it found it's way into a beer.  No doubt that homebrewers have tried this combination out a time or two, but for CERIA Brewing THC and CBD is the focus of their brews.

Dr. Keith Villa is best known as the inventor of the iconic Blue Moon Belgian White.  Whether you're a fan or not, it's hard to argue the impact this beer has had on craft beer, and the beer world in general.  We promised Villa we wouldn't dominate the show with Blue Moon questions.  We lied.  We get a good segment in on the history of the brew and the small change that launched it to stardom.  It's a pretty great story.

But cannabis beers are the them of the day and we talk plenty about them.  They're are multiple levels of illegality in putting cannabis and alcohol together, so all of CERIA's brews are non-alcoholic, and 0.0% at that.  The brewery didn't want to run afoul of any regulations with the

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Collaboration makes the (craft beer) world go 'round The pandemic may have made beer collaborations more difficult, but it didn't stop great brewers from coming together to make tasty beers.  Like most things in our lives these days, collaborations have gone virtual with Zoom meetings and emails and text messages getting the job done.  We're thankful for these virtual collabs because it brings us amazing things like Alesmith Brewing and Alvarado Street Brewing's Oso Under.  A West Coast IPA loaded up with Australia and New Zealand hops.

Alesmith's Ryan Crisp and (with the last minute tag in) Alvarado Street's Dave Ilderton, aka Party Wave Dave, join us this week to talk collaboration, brewing mishaps, love for those West Coast IPAs, and the trends that have come and gone.  Crack open something packing a few IBUs and join us.

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July 4, 1776.  America is born.  There are high fives all around.  Samuel Adams breaks out his homebrew to celebrate.  Life is good.

This week we take a look at some classic American craft beers.  American craft is fairly young in the grand scheme of things.  Where many European countries have hundreds of years of tradition, we've got 40ish years - with maybe a couple of exceptions.  A little thing called Prohibition threw us off for a while but when we got back in the game, we went all out.  Anchor Steam hit the scene in 1971, Sierra Nevada in 1980, Sam Adams in 1984.  The 90s gave us bold beers from Dogfish Head and saw the brewpub boom where you could always find a Blonde Ale, a Pale Ale a Porter, and in Irish Red.  There were 90 craft breweries in American in 1978 and today there are over 8,800.

Our crafty pioneers brought hoppy beers that not everyone took a shine to.  Many people that were used to their American lagers thought the beers were flawed.  But the brewers pushed on and the people developed a taste for hops and bitterness in their beers.  This led to the IBU Wars with 1,000 IBU beers, the soft NEIPAs, and the fruited glitter milkshake DDH I-can't-even-taste-beer beers we have today.  What a ride.

To celebrate this journey we sat down with our friend (and show sponsor!) Adam Silverberg from The Nest Kennesaw.  We talk some about the beers that introduced us to craft, dive into the history of these classic brews, and discuss some of the trendy phases we've seen.

Whatever you choose to pack your cooler with this 4th of July there's no shortage of amazing American beer to celebrate with.  I'll drink to that.

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How many Peets does it take to run a brewery? Kettlerock Brewing in Peachtree Corners, GA is a family affair. When patriarch Stephen Peet retired in 2019 he figured the easiest way to relax was to build a brewery, and bring the whole crew with him. Stephen and Sterling Peet joined us on the show this week with Diana, Christa, Taylor, and Devon Peet holding down the fort. That's a lotta Peets.

Stephen tells us the focus of the brewery is community, nature, and the environment. He recalls a slow time and the brewery a a handful of guests sat apart in pairs but soon started chatting with each other, and that's exactly what he hopes Kettlerock fosters.

When Sterling isn't brewing, he's a rocket scientist at Georgia Tech's Space Systems Design Laboratory. He shares some of the projects they've worked on and tells us about CubeSats. We asked if he's launched any yeast or grain into space and we're disappointed that he hasn't.

The Peets were also founding members of the PC Mashers homebrew club. If you've been following the show for a while you may recall Jay as the winner of our Homebrewer of the Year in 2018. Even though they've gone pro they still stay involved with the club.

As we chat we get the story behind the Kettlerock name and each beer. We talk about working with the whole family, and the cozy vibe at the taproom. Those that think every new beer today is an IPA will be pleased that the taplist is pretty diverse with a Blonde Ale, Belgian Tripel, Kettle Sour, Seltzer, Wee Heavy, Milk Stout, and a couple of IPAs, of course.

When you visit the brewery and order the Kettle Sour or Seltzer you'll get a basic, unflavored brew that you can add a flavored syrup to. As we sampled the sour we realized how long it's been since we've seen one that didn't have fruit in it.

Although their beer is only available at the taproom right now they've recently purchased a canning line and will have some available in the market soon. Maybe we can talk Sterling into turning one of those cans into a CubeSat.

The Beer List * Kettlerock Brewing + Bear Tracks Wee Heavy + High Humidity Hazy IPA + Mountain House Milk Stout + Trailhead Blonde Ale + Tripping Hazard Belgian Tripel + Variable Conditions Kettle Sour

Craft Beer News * Denver’s Iconic Falling Rock Taphouse Has Announced It’s Shutting Down * An Update on The Black is Beautiful Beer Project * Founder Lynne Weaver is Buying Three Weavers Back From CANarchy

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Beers don't have to be big to be beautiful Last weekend we headed over to Duluth, GA to party with our friends from Good Word Brewing as they celebrated the beauty of small beers.

The festival had brewers from all over the country offering up beers under 5% ABV.  There were plenty of lagers as well as some saisons and grisettes, sours, and even some porters and stouts.  In the day of TIPAs and double-digit pastry stouts it's nice to celebrate the drinkin' beers.  We've been preaching Pilsners for year; we knew others would eventually come around.

Fighting our best against the DJ that I swear aimed a speaker right at us, we sat down to chat with a few of the brewers at the event.  We talk with Ryan and Todd from Good Word about how the fest came to be and why they wanted a festival of all low ABV beers.  Joran and Shawn from Halfway Crooks Beer chat about their love for lagers and the cult following their LAGER LAGER LAGER LAGER merchandise has.

We ran into Crooked Run's Jake Endress who joined us early this year and talked with him about small beer and small wine and Andrew from Thin Man sits down to talk macro lagers and the interesting bowel movements of the wombat.  Enjoy

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How much beer do you need to brew to serve 200 restaurants? Alex Puchner has been with BJ's Restaurant and Brewhouse since they started brewing 25 years ago.  It's a unique setup they have there at BJ's, with a group of breweries across the country supplying beer to the 200+ restaurants in their chain.  A lot of beer.

Alex joined us this week to talk about his early days of brewing with the legendary Maltose Falcons homebrew club and his adventure with BJ's.  We learned about their core beers, their new brew club, and some of the brews coming out of their R&D brewery.

We sampled a few of their beers including a fantastic Coffee Blonde and their Cookies and Cream Pizookie Porter.  A mild take on a pastry brew, which Alex says is about as wild as he's going to get.

The Beer List

• BJ's Brewhouse
  • 25th Silver Bock
  • Brewhouse Blonde (Kolsch)
  • Coffee Cult Blonde
  • Committed DIPA
  • Cookies and Cream Pizookie Porter
  • Jeremiah Red

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Philly Beer Week... It's Essential Living in Atlanta I can tell you it's not an easy task to host a great beer week, but Philly Beer Week has it down pretty good.

A lot of this is thanks to Philly Loves Beer and the efforts of Executive Director Christina Dowd. She works with local brewers and bars to promote beer across Philadelphia and much of her time is spent coordinating the events of Philly Beer Week. Dowd and Varga Bar owner Rich Colli joined us on the show to talk about what it takes to make a great beer week and share some of the fun things they've got planned for this year.

The theme this year is "It's Essential" and after being locked up for over a year some good beers with good friends has got to be one of the most essential things good, food and shelter can step aside. Events will be a mix of in-person and virtual for 2021 so you can enjoy some of the festivities no matter where you are. Check out the calendar for a full list of what's happening.

Cheers to you if you're already in Philly, if not then maybe you're ready for a beercation. Philly Beer Week 2021 is June 4th - 13th. (I'm no mathologist but that sounds like it's more than a week.)

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R&D makes the world go 'round at Oskar Blues Oskar Blues Head Brewer Juice Drapeau loves to brew experimental beers. These R&D batches give them the chance to try out new hops, malt, and yeasts, and ultimately impacts the beers we see brewed in huge quantities to be distributed across the country. Their Guava Rodeo uses a very cool yeast known as Sourvisiae that makes a beer lightly tart without the need for lactobacillus or lactic acid. Pretty cool stuff.

Drapeau and Sr. Marketing Manager Aaron Baker joined us on the show this week to chat about the fun of R&D brewing and a host of other topics. We learn about what it means to be part of the CANarchy Collective and the benefits it affords the member breweries. On the heels of their Mustard Beer collaboration with French's we talk about any other possible condiment beers, and offer some terrible ideas of our own. We also talk about their "Death by" series with the ever-popular Death by Coconut and the upcoming Death by Flapjacks.

SMaSH for Stache to support brain cancer research Another recent collaboration for Oskar Blues was with StacheStrong, a charity that supports brain cancer research. This Single Malt and Single Hop (SMaSH) IPA is brewed with Sabro hops and Pale Genie, an award-winning Colorado malt. Drapeau tells us the malt offers a wonderful taste of the local terroir. I couldn't taste the Colorado myself, but can verify it is a tasty beer for a great cause.

And a special shout out to Bryan Crass of RockSolid Brewing who stopped by the studio to say hello and share some of his tasty beers!

The Beer List * Oskar Blues Brewery + Guava Rodeo Sour with tangerines + Oskar's Lager + SMaSH for Stache IPA + Thick Haze NEIPA * RockSolid Brewing + Coconut Cojones Imperial Pastry Stout + No Limes Required Mexican Lager + Weekend Juice West Coast DIPA

Craft Beer News * A Tidal Wave of Sexual Harassment Allegations Have Hit the Brewing Industry * After a 2 Year Hiatus Het Anker is Returning to the U.S. * A Man in Ohio Attempted to Steal a 14 Cases Of Beer

More Colorado Beer * WeldWerks Brewing is Always Innovating | Ep. 250 * Ancient Ales and Historical Brewing with Beer Archaeologist Travis Rupp | Ep. 191 * Gluten-free craft beer with Holidaily Brewing Co. | Ep. 167

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Hoplark with Hot Talk on Hop Tea and Hop Water

You know we love our beer, but we do dabble in alternative beverages. This week we're getting all fancy and sipping tea... with plenty of hops.

Hoplark co-founder Dean Eberhardt joins us on the show this week to talk about his Hop Tea and Hop Water. We learn what got the ball rolling on Hoplark, and we get educated on the many varieties of teas.

We ask Dean for some pairing suggestions for his hop teas, but he tries to get us to exercise and tells us the pair great with a long bike ride. That may be, but I'm gonna try mine with some wings, Dean.

Seriously, though. These teas and waters are pretty tasty and give you another choice if you want something crafty and hoppy but can't (or don't want to) have alcohol. Take one into the next meeting with your boss and sip it while he goes over those quarterly reports. It will make it so much better.

Since there's no alcohol you can get Hoplark direct from their website at www.hoplark.com. They're also available in whole foods, with future plans to get distribution at bottle shops. Check 'em out.

Their core varieties are:

• The Citra Bomb | White Tea double dry-hopped with Citra
• The Really Hoppy One | Black Tea with Simcoe and Citra (this is the one for IPA fans)
• The Green Tea One | Green tea and Mosaic
• The White Tea One | White Tea with Lemondrop and Simcoe (lighter, Tim dug this one)
• We also tried the Sabro and Mosaic Hop Waters and those are pretty dope.

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Victory founder Bill Covaleski and Ron Barchet talk 25 years of Victory Beers

After 25 years, Victory Brewing isn't slowing down. They're goal to Brew Forward means they're doubling down on quality, commitment, and community.

As we talk with founder Bill Covaleski and Ron Barchet we discovered what it means to be a successful brewer. Barchet is once again able to homebrew. That's success, growing to a point where you don't have to be on the brew deck all the time and can finally enjoy a homebrew. He's done it up right, too. His barn is designed for brewing, with the drains and all, plus a 1 Hectoliter (around 25 gallons) brewhouse. That's how you do it.

Victory's Brother Love IPA is a tasty brew and we learn more about that beer and its mission.  We talk about what it was like 25 years ago, what they think of today's brewing scene, and what they see in their crystal ball for the next 25 years.

We sip some of that Brotherly Love and some Sour Monkey.  And Brian brings the heat with a vintage bottle of 2015 Sour Monkey.  Good times. #drinkyourcellar

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Jackie O's Brewery doesn't seem to be interested in bringing back malt liquor

We started out our talk with Jackie O's Pub & Brewery founder Art Oestrike by talking on a topic we're passionate about - 40s of malt liquor.  The brewery has brewed malt liquor in the past and we asked Art if it was time to do another one, and make it available in 40-oz bottles.  "Who wants that?" he replied.  We do, Art.  We do.

After gathering ourselves, we carried on with co-Directors of Brewing Operations Seth Morton and Alan Gordon.  We learned about the origins of Jackie O's brewery and how Art's mother inspired the name,  Oestrike shared his passion for sustainability in his business, they brew with 40% solar power and return what they don't use to the grid.  They also have a farm where they grow some of the ingredients for their beer and food, and a bake shop to supply pastries and breads.

Morton and Gordon tell us about a few of their new beers and we get into a discussion on CO2 recapture and the costs and benefits to a brewery.  Finally, we learn about their upcoming Columbus, OH expansion.  Our friend in the area tells us they've got a huge patio coming up.  Good times all around.

The Beer List Jackie O's Brewery Dark Apparition BBA Imperial Stout Hank's Premium Pilsner Thread Count BBA Imperial Stout brewed with honey and lactose and conditioned on cacao nibs, vanilla beans, and orange zest  Under a Cloud NEIPA Craft Beer News St. Bernardus is Turning 75, and They’re Doing Some Fun Stuff To Celebrate Brits Are Drinking More Beer Than Brewers Can Make States Are Beginning to Roll Back Meal Requirements with Drinks Service

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An unfortunate situation at Red Top Brewhouse gave them time to shine Red Top Brewhouse is located in the fairly quiet town of Acworth, GA. Most everyone is pretty chill, but people can get out of line anywhere. Brewer Dave Sheets and Marketing Director Chris Henderson joined us this week to talk about a recent incident at their brewery, barrel-aged beers, cocktails, and soleras.

Recently, a female guest used a "code word" with the bartender to let him know she was uncomfortable with the advances of a male guest. The bartender took immediate action and removed the guest from the premises without further issue. In each restroom at Red Top there is a sign letting guests know the code word to use if they feel unsafe. One word if they just want to be separated from the person and another if they want them removed and the police called. Previously, these code words were only listed in the women's restrooms, but at the urging of guests they are now in the men's room as well as their gender-neutral restroom. Henderson notes that everyone should feel safe when they visit Red Top Brewhouse.

We also talked about the brewery's new beers, self-serve tap wall, their barrel-aging program and sour beers and soleras. Sheets is a fan of lambic-style beers and plans to have American versions of these styles on at the brewery as well as a great selection of beers from other breweries.

As a full-service brewpub, they are also working on a new cocktail menu, Sheets came to the studio with a full cocktail bar and whipped up some Old Fashioneds to get things started, what a way to start.

The Beer List * Red Top Brewhouse + Honey Honey Saison + Mercy Risin' DIPA * Monday Night Brewing Taco Time Mexican-style Lager

Craft Beer News * The States With the Most Craft Breweries in 2020 * New Belgium Has Released an Intentionally Awful Ale * Beer Consumption Was Down Big in the Czech Republic. Really Big.

More Georgia Beer * Iron Hill Brewery celebrates 25 years | Ep. 269 * Getting Wild with Monday Night Brewing | Ep. 259 * Like Father, Like Son at Six Bridges Brewing | Ep. 251

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While other 90s brewpubs have disappeared, Iron Hill Brewery only gets stronger Do you remember the brewpub boom of the 1990s? It seemed like there was one on every corner. John Harvard's and Hops were a couple favorites in Atlanta, and Sundays on the patio of Atlanta Beer Garten listening to 99x's Resurrection Sunday still conjures very fond memories. All of those brewpubs are long gone, along with many others founded during the 90s boom. Beating the odds, Mark Edelson's Iron Hill Brewery is still going strong, and getting stronger.

Edelson joined us on the show this week to talk about what gave his brewpub staying power over the years and what's in store for the future. We talk about his days as a member of the board at the Brewers Association alongside the likes of Mitch Steele, Ken Grossman, Peter Bouckaert, and Mr. Charlie Papazian. He tells us about the challenges of defining a "craft brewery" and shares his thoughts on the biggest challenges today's brewers face.

Iron Hill has the impressive distinction of winning medals at the Great American Beer Festival for 20+ consecutive years included being named Best Brewpub. As the brewery approaches their 25th anniversary this November Edelson has plans for some big beers, he reveals the "big one" on the show this week. We chat about their new production brewery in Exton, PA and their entry into the distribution market, as well as recent events at their newest pub right here in Atlanta. Oh, and some chatter about cave-aged beers and cheeses.

The Beer List * Iron Hill Brewery + Homestead Farmhouse Ale + Dankonia NEIPA * Partake Blonde (Another dive into our #DoctorsOrders NA beer series)

Craft Beer News * Sam Adams is Buying A Beer For People Who Post Vaccination Proof on Social Media * Busch Wants to Put Your Pup To Work as Its Official Dog Brew Taster * 100% Cave-Aged, Spontaneously-Fermented Beer Collaboration Being Released

More Great Brewpubs * The Cannon Brewpub with Brewmaster Charles McLendon | Ep. 220 * Wrecking Bar Brewpub | Ep. 123

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Sometimes Roadmap Brewing Co.'s Dustin Baker misses the classroom Before opening Roadmap Brewing Co. founder and brewer Dustin Baker was a middle school teacher. He admits that sometimes he still misses the classroom. When we spoke Sant Antonio had hit 100° that day, I think a cool and comfortable classroom would sound pretty good to me, too. Baker got started brewing after he received a homebrew kit as a wedding gift and with lots of help from his wife and parents, Roadmap Brewing came to life in 2018.

Although Dallas / Fort Worth and Houston have thriving beer scenes, Baker admits San Antonio is just starting to catch up. He's doing his part by offer awesome brews like Italian Pilsners, English Pub Ales, and of course plenty of IPAs and Sours. We talk some on the Italian Pilsner and even dive into Gruit, a beer-like brew made without hops - although they cheated a bit and added a few to theirs... We even discuss the greatness of the minivan, as Baker is a proud Mini Van Dad.

If you take a trip to San Antonio make sure to stop by for a pint or two. The brewery is a short walk from the Alamo, which we're told is actually kind of underwhelming. Oh well, that will leave plenty of time for enjoying tasty beers.

The Beer List * Roadmap Brewing + Craven Cottage ESB + Electric Skateboard Session IPA + Lil Rhody NE IPA + Mini Van Dad DIPA + Minor in Italian (Italian Pilsner) + Professor Plum’s Alibi (Fruited Kettle Sour) + Samoa Cookie Stout

Craft Beer News * Brewers Association Has Released Their Industry Production Report for 2020 * Bart Watson Says Craft Beer Will Likely Return to Growth in 2021 * Beer Brewing Simulator Game is Coming to PlayStation in 2022

More Great Texas Breweries * Pat Korn heads to Texas as Brewmaster at Vista Brewing | Ep. 175 * Sipping Sasquatch with 903 Brewers | Ep. 173

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Back Paddle Brewing brings craft beer to tiny Lincolnton, Georgia Back Paddle Brewing is a newer brewery in the small town of Lincolnton, GA. They are the first, and only, brewery in town and in an area that isn't exactly craft-focused. Owner Kyle McCloud and Head Brewer Jason Slater spend time with their new customers educating them on craft beer but they still get plenty of people looking for something that "tastes like Bud Light."

McCloud opened his brewery on a tight budget and built much of the space himself, including his brewhouse. Without the budget for expensive, jacketed fermenters that would allowing cooling his beer to proper fermentation temperatures for most yeast he decided to brew with all kveik and Norwegian Farmhouse yeasts instead. These unique yeasts are able to do their work at higher temperatures than most others. Back Paddle offers many styles that you don't typically see using kveik, like an Imperial Stout and Scottish Ale. We also discuss the brewery's mission to support his community through his #beer4good program and donate to veterans' organizations.

[caption id="attachment_47626" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Back Paddle Owner Kyle McCloud presents a check to The Fallen Outdoors Georgia Chapter as part of his #beer4good program. (Photo: Back Paddle Brewing)[/caption]

Never Alone IPA seeks to raise mental health awareness and suicide prevention We also speak with DJ Brian Orlando about his collaboration with Long Island's 1940s Brewing Company. Never Alone is a DDH NEIPA that supports mental health awareness and suicide prevention by donating a portion of their proceeds. Orlando lost a friend to her battle with depression and he supports these causes any way he can.

Two years ago he brought members of Candlebox, Wheatus, and Sponge together to shoot a video for Choose Song at the brewery for the same cause. You can view the video by scanning a QR code on a can of Never Alone, or right here.

Mental health awareness and suicide prevention resources * National Institute of Mental Health - Awareness and Education * National Suicide Prevention Lifeline + Call: 800-273-8255 + Chat: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/chat/ + Official Website

The Beer List * Back Paddle Brewing + Battle of Dunvegan Scottish Ale + Cat Lying in the Sun Tripel + Couldn’t See the Ground Imperial Stout + Old Fashioned Superstition Lager + Sheets of Empty Canvas Back IPA + W.A.P. IPA

Craft Beer News * The Brewers Association’s List of the Top 50 Breweries for 2020 * An Illegally Bulldozed London Pub Was Reconstructed Brick By Brick * A Virginia Brewery Is Seeking Recognition For The World’s Hottest Beer

More Great Breweries * Going Strapless with Bootstrap Brewing | Ep. 252 * Sixpoint Brewery talks Lager Love and Beer Education | Ep. 247 * Non-alcoholic craft beer with Bravus Brewing Co. | Ep. 244

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Switchback Brewing is going to smoke all the beers Switchback Brewing founder Bill Cherry has a passion for smoked beers. He approaches smoke from a culinary standpoint, not to overwhelm the beer with smoky notes but to add depth and character to the beer while showing smoke as a legitimate flavor component.

Through their Flynn of Fire Smoked Beer Initiative Switchback shows off the world of smoked malts. Their "Smoke-ometer" shows you what percentage of smoked malt is in each beer and you may be surprised at the subtleties of a beer with 25% of the malt bill smoked. However, Switchback's top-selling beer is smoke-free. Switchback Ale is not only the brewery's top seller but also the #1 selling beer in Vermont. The beer was developed as a "flavor concept" and doesn't necessarily adhere to any specific style. It's a drinkable amber-ish beer that blurs the lines between complexity and simplicity.

We also discuss Switchback's upcoming 20th anniversary and the decision to make the brewery 100% employee owned.

Although I went into the show a smoke hater I left with a greater appreciation for smoky beers and what can be down with smoked malt. I'm still not on board for in in-your-face Rauchbier, but I'm down with what Switchback is doing.

The Beer List * Switchback Ale (American Amber) * Barrel-Aged Blackstrap Ale (Flynn on Fire Series) * Bisounnay Chardonnay Barrel-Aged Saison (Flynn on Fire Series) * Unkel Dunkel (Flynn on Fire Series)

Craft Beer News * Stone Has Agreed to Pay In Excess of $1.8 Million To the TTB * Sierra Nevada Set a Guinness Record With a Keg and a Trebuchet * A Hack Forced Molson Coors To Stop Making Beer

More from Vermont breweries * 14th Star Brewing with co-founder Steve Gagner | Ep. 193 * Lawson’s Finest Liquids with Sean Lawson | Ep. 190 * von Trapp Brewing | Ep. 127

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We want to Make Saisons Cool Again It wasn't that long ago that saisons were one of the popular styles. Several breweries offered up some variation or another and a lot of great collaborations came about. The saisons are still there, they just don't have the hype they used to. We'd love to see them come back around.

The saison style started in 1700s in Wallonia, the French-speaking part of Belgium. Each farm brewed their own take on these Farmhouse Ales in the cold months for seasonal farm workers (Saisonnièrs) to drink during the warm months. This gave farm workers something to do in the cold months, used up any excess grain, and provided a clean and safe source of hydration for farm workers. Each worker may drink up to 5 Liters per day of these low ABV (3.0-3.5%) beers as they toiled away. As each farm used the resources they had available it was difficult to nail down an exact saison style at the time. Today, the style has some definition but still offers up a lot of variation. The alcohol content has creeped up a bit and the ones that fall into the range of the originals are known as a Table Beer.

Saison lovers Britt Teusink of brewery in planning Frameshift Fermentation and Brandon King of Stout Brothers Beer Markets joined us on the show this week to dive into the style. Teusink plans to brew a variety of saisons at Frameshift and has his own blended culture to provide a unique character to each of his brews.

Saison Lovers Unite! (L-R) Brian Hewitt, Britt Teusink of Frameshift Fermentation, Brandon King of The Stout Bros., and Tim Dennis.

The Award-winning Synesthesia Saison Recipe Saison is a great style for new homebrewers to try out as the yeast is very open to higher temperatures that don't require temperature control. Pitch your yeast at room temperature and let it go and you should end up with a great saison. For the malt bill you can use all Pilsner malt, or toss in some spelt or wheat to your liking. Experienced homebrewers can expand on the style with the huge variety of yeasts available or culture their own.

Here's our recipe for Synesthesia Saison. We've consumed gallons of this beer and it's won a handful of medals in homebrew competitions. If you try it out let us know what you think.

Synesthesia Saison Type: All-grain Batch size: 5.5 gallons OG: 1.053 FG: 1.006 Efficiency: 70% ABV: 6.2% IBU: 23

Ingredients

• 8 lbs 8 oz Pilsner Malt
• 1 lb 8 oz White Wheat
• 1/2 oz Hallertauer @ FWH
• 1/2 oz Saaz @ 60 minutes
• 1 lb Belgian Simplicity Candi Syrup @ 10 minutes
• 1.0 oz Mosaic @ flame-out for 10 minutes
• WLP566 Belgian Saison II Yeast

Process

Mash for 75 minutes at 148°F and sparge to target volume. Boil 120 minutes following addition schedule above. Chill to 67°F and pitch healthy yeast into well oxygenated wort. Start fermentation at 67° and ramp 5° every 24 hours to 90°, allow to ferment for a total of 14 days, verifying FG is reached. Bottle condition to 3.0 vols for at least a month (you can drink it earlier but it’s much better after a month+), beer develops champagne-like characteristics with age.

The Beer List * Allagash Saison Violette * Boulevard Saison Brett * Creature Comforts Common Things * Dupont / Allagash Brewer's Bridge * Jester King / Buddha's Brew Collab (saison and kombucha hybrid) * Saison Dupont * Variant Dream Balloon

Craft Beer News * An Overwhelming Majority of Beer Drinkers Want Direct-To-Consumer Shipping * An Online Writing Platform is Looking for Beer Hangover Testers * Goldman Sachs Says No- and Low-Alcohol Beers Could Reach $3 Billion by 2025

Check out these farm-fresh episodes * Saison Season with Logsdon Farmhouse Ales | Ep. 235 * Boulevard Brewing’s Steven Pauwels | Ep. 180 * Farmhouse Funk with Fonta Flora’s Todd Boera | Episode 152

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Social Fox Brewing powers through the pandemic to celebrate 1st Anniversary It wasn't by choice that Social Fox Brewing opened at the start of the pandemic. However, they've made the best of it and soon they'll be celebrating their first anniversary. The Social Fox crew joined us in the studio this week to share some beers and chat. Head Brewer Craig Smith along with co-owners Mike Greene, Mark Klafter, and Scott Norwood all came along for the ride.

Social Fox recently released their first beers in cans and has more in the pipeline. They recently released Straight Outta Norcross, a West Coast IPA, to give visitors a break from all the haze out there. Gold Belt Golden Ale also offers a drinking beer when you just want to take it easy and not overthink what's in your glass. On the opposite side of that coin they've also released some Oenobeers, a beer-wine hybrid, and plan to brew more of those as well.

As the weather warms up (at least here in the South) we talk about seasonal drinking and how much that impacts our beer choices. You know we're not scared of a stout in Summer, but it is nice to look forward to those fair weather beers.

Look for Social Fox cans around Georgia or visit their taproom in downtown Norcross.

Social Fox Brewing 20 Skin Alley Norcross, GA 30071 470-359-4109 https://www.socialfoxbrewing.com/

The Beer List * Social Fox Gold Belt Golden Ale * Social Fox Straight Outta Norcross West Coast IPA * Social Fox Tumblefield IPA * Alesmith Kickbackrelax Crushable IPA * Highland Brewing High Pines IPA

Craft Beer (and Coffee) News * Platform Beer Company Has Closed Their Columbus, OH Tap Room * Researchers Have Made Big Strides in Expanding Our Understanding of the Hop Genome * Aging Beer Was Stolen From A Sunken Ship of the Coast of Argentina

Check out these other great episodes * Tomme Arthur of The Lost Abbey and Port Brewing | Ep. 242 * Ninjas and Unicorns and Pipeworks Brewing | Ep. 238 * Stouts are for Summer with Orpheus Brewing’s Jason Pellett | Ep. 179

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Bringing coffee and beer together makes for one great beverage Adding coffee to beer in modern brewing only goes back a few decades but individually both have been enjoyed for centuries. For coffee, the story traces back to an Ethiopian goatherder who noticed his flock full of energy and "dancing" after eating a small red fruit off of some shrubs. The goatherder figured he'd give it a shot as well and soon joined his energetic goats. The origins of beer, as we've discussed before, isn't crystal clear, but suffice it to say beer has been a part of our lives for a long time.

We sat down this week with Apotheos Roastery's Adam Silverberg, Dale Hughes, and Jason White to learn more about that coffee origin story and how it spread across the world. White also shares some info with us on the roasting process and the flavors in coffee that compliment our beloved beers. We sample a few brews as we chat and we all left dancing like a bunch of goats.

Visit Apotheos Roastery in Kennesaw, GA or order online. Apotheos also has a subscription service to try their newest blends every month.

Apotheos Roastery 2871 Cherokee Street Kennesaw, GA 30144 404-665-5350 Hours | Mon-Fri 10-6, closed on Saturday and Sunday Shop and Subscribe | https://www.apotheosroastery.com/

The Beer List * Allagash Barrel and Bean * Carton Regular Coffee * Founders KBS 2017 * Founders KBS 2020 * Monday Night Brewing Loving Cup

Craft Beer (and Coffee) News * A High Percentage of Hawaiian Competition-Winning Coffee Lots Using Controlled Fermentation * Del Hall is Going on a Beer-Only Diet For Lent Again This Year * Heineken is Cutting 8,000 Jobs As Part of Their Plan To “Move Beyond Beer”

Check out some of our other episodes * Bourbon: Origins, tasting, and recommendations | Ep. 261 * Diversity in Craft Beer with Atlantucky and Leaders of the Brew School | Ep. 248 * Ancient Ales and Historical Brewing with Beer Archaeologist Travis Rupp | Ep. 191

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Mikerphone Brewing's Mike Pallen is inspired by music Mikerphone Brewing founder and owner Mike Pallen didn't set out to be a brewer. Although his dad worked at Miller, he didn't want his son to follow in his footsteps and urged him to go to college. So Pallen did just that. After getting his degree he began a career in the music industry with the ultimate goal to work at Capitol Records in Los Angeles. That didn't happen. However, along the way he found his love for brewing and after working at a couple of Chicago breweries he decided to start his own.

Music was still very much in his blood and that inspires every beer made at Mikerphone. Each beer is named after a song our group. The artwork reflects the names with some familiar nods as well as some that take a bit of thought. The artists portrayed on the beers have been mostly supportive. When Pallen received an email from Eminem's management over his Slim Hazy beer he expected a request to cease and desist. Instead, they loved the name and even met with Pallen in New York.

Mikerphone Brewing's Mike Pallen having fun with some barrels. (Photo: Mikerphone Brewing)

The allure of Smells Like Bean Spirit If you have limited knowledge of Mikerphone's beers you probably know of Smells Like Bean Spirit stout. The label reflects Nirvana's Nevermind album, very accurately. "Bean Spirit" has seen many variations with different coffees and adjuncts. Pallen put a lot of work into the best method to use to get the coffee into Bean Spirit to get the best flavor and minimize the possibly of bringing the green pepper taste that can happen. It worked. We sampled the Barrel Aged Super Imperial Smells Like Bean Spirit as we talked. It's thick and luscious and paints the inside of your glass while delivering huge dark chocolate, coffee, and maple. Mikerphone has plenty more to come in this series.

Mikerphone Brewing Malört Crush Crush Crush is coming for your enjoyment. (Photo: Mikerphone Brewing)

Beer aged in Malört barrels? If you know Malört you'd think it would be the the last barrel a brewer would reach for to age their beer. But when the distiller reached out to Pallen to see if he wanted first crack at some to age beer he didn't hesitant to jump at the opportunity. The brewery received excellent feedback on the first beer they did in the barrels, a Pilsner. Coming up are a milkshake IPA and solera saison, and Smells Like Bean Spirit will get the Malört treatment as well. Pallen said he can't wait to showcase, and for others to see, what the barrels impart to their base beers.

The pandemic may prevent a huge party but Mikerphone is going to celebrate their 6th anniversary the best they can. They're brewing up six beers for the occasion that will be available at the brewery. Pallen is also starting to think of a second location for the brewery in Wisconsin and he reveals the name he has in mind as well as the awesome concept.

The Beer List * Crush Crush Crush | Vanilla Orange Milkshake IPA * Do You Remember the Time | Brett Farmhouse 2 year Solera * Flagpole Citra | DDH IPA * In a Blender Smoothie | Berliner with strawberry peach and banana * Imperial Smells Like Bean Spirit Double Canadian Maple * Barrel Aged Super Imperial Smells Like Bean Spirit * Thursty DIPA

Craft Beer News * The World’s Oldest Mass Production Brewery Has Been Discovered in Egypt * Los Angeles Health Inspector is Caught on Camera Dancing in a Brewery * Heineken is Cutting 8,000 Jobs As Part of Their Plan To “Move Beyond Beer”

More Chicagoland Beer * Off Color Brewing with co-founder John Laffler | Ep. 223 * Revolution Brewing with John “Jumpy” Palos | Ep. 202 * The Chicago Brewseum | Ep. 198

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Whiskey comes in many forms, but bourbon is America's spirit The origins of bourbon are both known and debated. We know early settlers in Virginia and Kentucky made use of the abundance of corn to distill their whiskey, but there are a variety of stories on who was first to put it in a new, charred oak barrel and to actually call it bourbon. No matter the exact origins of bourbon we now have a spirit that is all American to enjoy. Congress declared so in 1964 stating that bourbon is a "distinctive product of the United States." Score one for America.

We're joined this week by Bruce Tierney, all around aficionado and spirit consultant to Dekalb Bottle House. Tierney shares with us the history of bourbon, let's us know what it takes to call a whiskey bourbon, and offers some suggestions on affordable options to test the waters as well as some of the rarer bourbons to seek out. We also discuss what flavors to look for when tasting as well as common off flavors, and a quick course on how to taste your bourbon.

There's much more information on bourbon than we could cover in this show so we've included additional information and resources here. Side note, if you're used to sampling beer in 4 oz pours know that 4-5 1 oz pours of bourbon kick harder than you think. Proceed with caution.

Copper pot stills at ASW Distillery in Atlanta, GA (Photo: Thechadwix, CC BY-SA 4.0)

What makes a whiskey bourbon? * Must be produced in the United States + Many people mistakenly believe bourbon must be made in Kentucky but it can be made anywhere in the US. Several other countries support the American origin, but some do not. Be careful when purchasing overseas. * Must be made from at least 51% corn * Has to be aged in new, charred oak barrels * Can be distilled to no more than 160 proof. Higher proof distillation begins to strip flavors. * Has to be entered into the barrel for aging at no more than 125 proof * Must be bottled at 80 proof or more * There is no minimum age requirement for bourbon as long as it meets the above guidelines

Outside of these requirements there are several variations allowed such as wheated and "high rye" bourbons, bottled-in-bond, straight bourbon and blended bourbons.

How to begin your bourbon experience Tierney has offered up his very detailed advice on how to get started with bourbon including notes for selecting a bourbon, glassware and tasting.

1. My first recommendation for someone new to bourbon is to start your experience by tasting standard bourbons from the major producers first before deciding if you want to branch out and try other brands. I recommend brands that tend to be between 90-100 proof. Yes, that may seem a bit hotter at first but they also tend to be more flavorful. The minimum permitted proof is 80 proof and at that point you are drinking a good bit more water than bourbon anyway!
2. If it seems intimidating to shell out the money to buy a bunch of different bourbons you are right! Although all of the major bourbon producers have a brand that costs in the $20-35 range it can still be a lot of money. Pick a couple that are of interest or are readily available in your area and start with those first. Don't try too many different brands to start with. Or if you are fortunate enough to live near a bar with a good bourbon selection start by tasting different bourbons a glass at a time if you don't want to commit to buying a full bottle. Any bourbon bar worth its name will have many if not all of the standard brands from the major distilleries. If they don't then you are in the wrong place!
3. Try to learn a bit about the different bourbons you have selected. The internet can be your friend here. I can personally recommend straightbourbon.com as a good source for information about bourbon and many other types of spirits. Remember all bourbon is made from at least 51% corn but what is the rest of recipe of grains, known as the mashbill, that makes up the bourbon? Most bourbon use either rye or wheat as the "flavoring grain" in addition to the corn and a little bit of malted barley when you are buying brands from the major distilleries. Many people think of rye as making bourbon a bit spicier although to meet it seems a bit earthier than spicier. Is it mostly corn with a little bit of rye? Buffalo Trace falls into this category. Or does it have a lot of rye? Four Roses Single Barrel is one of the higher rye content bourbons. Maybe make those two your first choices and see which you like better! Most other brands tend to fall somewhere in between. Or is it a bourbon with wheat as the flavoring grain? This type is a bit less common but still readily available. Basic options include Maker's Mark, Larceny and Weller. Perhaps start your journey with a rye bourbon and a wheated bourbon. After you have tried your choices several times you can decide which one you prefer and then try something more similar to see what appeals to you.
4. Try tasting the bourbon without adding anything at first. That means no ice, no water. Once you find a few you like you can then drink them however you like. But learning how to taste Bourbon is different from drinking Bourbon.
5. Try to acquire a glass made for tasting bourbon and other spirits. A typical rocks glass works fine for drinking but to appreciate the aroma as well as the flavor a glass like a Glencairn that narrows a bit at the top helps hold in the aroma. A small tapered white wine glass can also work well but just be careful how much you pour! What looks like a small pour in a wine glass can be quite large.
6. Have some water available. Water is useful to cleanse your palate between tastes in addition to keeping you well hydrated! It is also useful if you want to add a drop or two to your bourbon but only after first trying it without any water. An eye dropper is useful for adding water a drop or two at a time rather than just trying to pour a small amount in. You can always add more drops but you can't take water back out if you pour too much in.
7. Try to think about what you taste and smell as you drink the bourbon. It is very useful when first starting out to take notes about each bourbon you try. Consider getting a small notebook to take those notes and be able to look at the notes from bourbons you may have tried earlier.
8. Bourbon drinkers tend to refer to the flavors they appreciate when tasting by a variety of names. Does it have caramel or vanilla flavors? Fruity or herbal flavors? Woody or buttery flavors? If you are struggle to come up with descriptions don't panic! Instead, perhaps try looking up a Bourbon Flavor Wheel on line to help you try to determine what you are tasting.

9. Four broad categories to think about when trying a bourbon include Appearance, Aroma, Taste, and Finish. Try not to look at reviews by somebody else before you taste. That will tend to put certain flavors and characteristics in your head. Instead do your own review first and then see what others said afterwards. Also, everyone's palate is different and your own palate can change over time depending on what you have eaten or been doing recently so what somebody else describes may not be what you taste. You may also want to taste the same bourbon several times over a period of days before making a decision on whether you like it or not.

10. Note the color of the bourbon by holding it up to a light or placing a clean white sheet of paper behind the glass. Is it light and amber or dark brown? Is there a reddish hint to the color? Swirl it gently and see how quickly it and slides back down in the glass. The streaks or “legs” that appear may quickly drip down or it may happen a bit slower suggesting a more thick or viscous whiskey.

11. Check the smell or "nose" of the bourbon. Open your mouth slightly and give it a gentle sniff by putting your nose practically in the opening of the glass. Do so gently because initially you make pick up strong scent of alcohol before you get the aroma of the bourbon itself.
12. Don't gulp the bourbon down in a single quick swallow! Instead take a moderate sip and then let the liquid move across your mouth and tongue. Yes, it may burn a bit initially but you will eventually adapt to that. You will pick up different flavors on different parts of your tongue and mouth that you will otherwise miss out on. You can even “chew” on the bourbon gently to let it coat your mouth. Take your time before you swallow!
13. Finally swallow the bourbon and try to appreciate the finish of the bourbon before reaching for the water! Does the taste linger awhile or disappear quickly? Did the flavor change by getting more sweet or bitter or fruity in nature?

Pulling barrel samples at the Buffalo Trace Distillery (Photo: Buffalo Trace Distillery)

The ten major bourbon distilleries Barton 1792 Distillery Sazerac owned Barton's primary brand is known these days simply as 1792. In the past they made an excellent budget bourbon called Very Old Barton 100 proof, a six-year-old bourbon that delivered great flavor for less than $20. But it was not not widely available and the six-year age statement was eliminated a few years ago. Barton doesn't really have a special limited release but has recently moved to expand their line of whiskeys with several new brands. But for someone new to bourbon the 1792 brand is the place to start.

Brown Forman This distillery is primarily known for the brand Old Forester although the also make a brand called Early Times. Old Forrester 100 proof is readily available at a decent price and the recent release of Early Times Bottled in Bond is also well priced if sometimes less readily available. Brown-Forman has an ongoing release of other specialty bourbons and one annual allocated release known as Birthday Bourbon that celebrates the birthday of the founder, George Garvin Brown. It used to be more readily available and decently priced but has more than tripled in price over the last 8 or so years and is as hard to get as any of the special releases. The best place for the new bourbon drinker start is the standard Old Forester 100 proof.

Buffalo Trace Buffalo Trace is a distillery with many brands that is owned by the Sazerac company. It has of course become the darling of the bourbon world primarily because of one name and that name, of course, is Pappy Van Winkle. But Pappy is the brand of another company run by the descendants of Pappy Van Winkle. They currently source all of their bourbon from Buffalo Trace using the same mashbill as the Weller line of what is known as “wheated bourbon”. It is different from bourbon made under the various Buffalo Trace brand names because the Van Winkle family chooses bourbon that fits a particular flavor profile that they feel best represents their products. Among the different Buffalo Trace brands that you may be familiar with are Buffalo Trace, Eagle Rare, EH Taylor and the Weller line of bourbons. Also from Buffalo Trace are several sought after but currently hard to find brands like Blanton's and Elmer T. Lee. The big annual special release from Buffalo Trace is known as the Antique Collection which includes George T Stagg, William Larue Weller and Eagle Rare 17 year-old bourbons along with Thomas H. Handy and Sazerac 18 year-old rye. These have become extremely difficult to find and are usually marked up well above the suggested retail price much like Pappy Van Winkle bourbons.

Four Roses There are four standard bottlings - Yellow Label (Which now has a beige label but is still often referred to as yellow label), Small Batch, Small Batch Select and Single Barrel. Yellow label is the lowest proof and least expensive but both small batch and single barrel are excellent bourbons well worth considering when starting your bourbon journey.

Heaven Hill This distillery produces several bourbon brands that you may not even know are from Heaven Hill. They include Evan Williams, Elijah Craig, Henry McKenna, Fighting Cock and Larceny. Old Fitzgerald and Parker's Heritage Collection are currently two of the primary annual special and allocated releases and periodically they release Elijah Craig 12 and Elijah Craig 18 barrel proof bottlings.

Jim Beam Jim Beam is a well know and long-standing bourbon producer of many different brand names. The classic Jim Beam "White label" can be found almost anywhere in the country. Other brands from Beam include, Bookers, Bakers and Knob Creek which tend to be a bit more expensive although Knob Creek can still be a decent value. In addition, Beam makes a second mashbill or style of bourbon that include Basil Hayden's and Old Grandad which has long been regarded as an excellent budget bourbon. It comes in several proofs at 80, 100 and 114. The 114 may be a little strong for the novice bourbon fan but consider the 100-proof version or a Knob Creek 100 proof as examples of Beam bourbon.

Maker's Mark Once an independent distillery making a wheated style of bourbon exclusively. It is now part of the Beam family (officially known as Beam-Suntory after they were purchased by the Suntory company of Japan). Maker's Mark used to make only one bourbon for domestic consumption now they have three, having expanded first with Maker's 46, which many think is a bit better than the standard, and the cask strength Maker's Mark bourbon. They don't really do a particular special release each year but have been doing variations on Maker's 46 lately.

Midwest Grain Products / MGP MGP is unique in that it was the only major whiskey distillery not located in Kentucky. Instead, it is located just across the Ohio river in Indiana. They are also unusual in that they don't sell their own whiskey save for a few very limited exceptions. They do now have their own brand called Rossville Union which is a rye whiskey but to my knowledge they don't routinely sell their own Bourbon. Instead, they distill and age whiskey for other companies to buy and sell under their own label. As a result, there is tons of it on the market. The best way to tell if you have an MGP whiskey is to look at the label and see if it says "Distilled in Indiana". This most likely means the company either doesn't distill bourbon themselves or have only recently started distilling and need time for their own Bourbon to mature. And while bourbon enthusiasts sometimes make fun of the fakers and schemers who carelessly bottle MGP as if it were their own whiskey, it is important not to forget the great MGP bourbon and rye that has gone into various bottlings of excellent whiskey from places like High West, Smooth Ambler, Willett and others.

Wild Turkey Wild Turkey has long had a large and loyal following and is often a spirit that bourbon enthusiasts look for old and rare bottlings from. Brands include the basic Wild Turkey bourbon at both 80 proof and 101 proof along with Russel's Reserve, Rare Breed and Kentucky spirit. They have also started a premium line called Master's Keep which is a unique and different style of whiskey every year. This is a case where I would suggest the Wild Turkey 101 bourbon over the standard 80 proof version as the best place to start.

Woodford Reserve Woodford is owned by Brown Forman but made it its own separate distillery. Well sort of! It is unique for being made by using pot stills rather than the more common column style still other major distilleries use. Some people, find the Woodford has a bit of a coppery or metallic component to the taste. In any case, typical Woodford whiskey is reportedly blended with whiskey from Old Forester to create a more balanced flavor. The basic Woodford Reserve is my recommendation to try if you want to compare it to other brands. (Tierney notes this is not one of his favorites.)

Newer Distilleries Here are a few new up and coming Kentucky distilleries to look for after you have had time to develop your bourbon preferences: New Riff, Wilderness Trail, Bardstown Bourbon Company, Luxrow Distillery (recently purchased by MGP), Angel's Envy (Port finished Bourbon)

Drink Local!In addition to these well-known distilleries many areas have local options for Bourbon. Check and see what's available near you.

Still want to learn more? If you've got Hulu check out Neat: The Story of Bourbon, a great documentary featuring many of the master distillers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJHBLEaNZ3c

The Beer Bourbon List * Elijah Craig * Elijah Craig Barrel Proof * Four Roses Small Batch * Georgia T. Stagg (Buffalo Trace Antique Collection) * Old Forester 1910 * Old Forester 1920 * William Larue Weller (Buffalo Trace Antique Collection)

Craft Beer News * Hop Growers of American Have Released Their Annual Report For 2020 * ABInBev Is Moving Production of Stella Artois To The US By The End of The Year * Draft Sales Were Down 46% Nation-Wid During the Super Bowl

Check out these other episodes... * Beer & Bourbon & BBQ at The Nest | Ep. 254 * Kombucha and Fermentation Fun with Cultured South | Ep. 236 * Sake Primer with the Taps @ Ph’East | Ep. 214

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Crooked Run Brewing is more than just beer When Crooked Run Brewing opened co-founders Jake Endres and Lee Rogan were just 25, making them the youngest brewery owners in Virginia. They've had great growth in the last seven years. The duo has opened a second location, started making wine, and launched their Native Culture sub-brand offering wild and spontaneous ales using Virginia ingredients.

Endres joined us on the show this week to talk about the journey. We've got more hot coolship talk this week, a staple of their Native Culture series. They released their first Lambic-style beers in late 2020 and will release a Geuze-style later this year.

Coolships, wine, and fruity seltzers In addition to beer they've also began making "low-intervention wine", also called natural wines, that use less or no additives in the process. Crooked Run has also got into the seltzer game, making massively overfruited versions. (How did we get here? Wasn't seltzer supposed to be a lighter, lower calorie alternative to beer??? Now we're overfruiting them and even making smoothie versions? Sheesh.)

Like many breweries, Crooked Run has taken a hit from the pandemic. But shifting into more packaged product to go has helped them weather through. Enders is excited for what they've got planned this year, with big releases from the Native Culture series, more wine, and yes... even more of those fruit-filled seltzers.

The Beer List * 3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze * Ommegang Three Philosophers * Southern Grist Batida with Passion Fruit * WeldWerks French Toast Stout

Craft Beer News * Uber Is Acquiring the Drizly Alcohol Delivery Service * Achel Has Lost Their Official Trappist Designation * Just the Taste of Beer Can Trigger a Rush of Chemical Pleasure

More Sour and Wild Beer * Getting Wild with Monday Night Brewing | Ep. 259 * New Glarus Brewing’s Daniel Carey | Ep. 163 * Sour Beer: Lambic, Geuze, Gose, and Berliner with Orpheus Brewing and The Woodlands | Episode 147

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Monday Night Brewing's Peter Kiley talks about taking "safe" beers to the next level

Monday Night Brewing started as a Bible study group with founders Jonathan Baker, Jeff Heck, and Joel Iverson. In addition to learning the word the group brewed beer together, on Monday nights. When popularity among their friends continued to grow they realized they may on to something. Monday Night Brewing opened their original taproom in Atlanta in 2013.

Brewmaster Peter Kiley tells how they brewed "safe" beers in the early days. Golden ales, a "pseudo Pilsner", a simple IPA. The beers weren't bad, they just weren't necessarily exciting, and the craft crazies demand excitement. Kiley and I had a conversation many years ago about ideas he had for beers that would be expensive to make, and he wasn't sure that craft consumers would be on board with that. In time, consumers demanded bigger, bolder, better beers, and they were willing to pay for them. One of the early breakout beers was Bourbon Barrel Drafty Kilt, a barrel-aged version of their Scotch Ale.

Fast forward to 2021 and Monday Night now has three locations making amazing beers. Their original brewery and taproom on Trabert Avenue in Atlanta, The Garage on Atlanta's West End focusing on wild and barrel-aged beers, and a brewpub in Birmingham, AL. In addition to The Garage they also have the Hop Hut at their original location that focuses on bold, small batch IPAs.

We also dive into the wild world with Kiley. He tells us about their coolship (dubbed The Crunkship) and what makes it special, the details of spontaneous and mixed fermentation beers, and why blending is important.

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Welcome to the Beer Guys Radio Craft Beer Podcast! We love craft beer and we love sharing with others. Join hosts Tim Dennis and Brian Hewitt every week as we talk with the amazing people of craft beer.

We talk new beers and new breweries, brewing science, beer history, homebrewing, beer culture, and much more. Grab a pint, have a seat, and tune in!

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Six Bridges Brewing celebrates 2nd anniversary as they eye expansion Just ahead of the kickoff for the 2nd Anniversary month Six Bridges Brewing's Clay Gridley joined us the studio for this week's show.

Clay is one half of the father and son team behind Six Bridges, dad Charles Gridley makes up the other half. A Georgia Tech grad, Charles enjoyed homebrewing in his spare time as a chemical engineer and notes his engineer background brings valuable experience to the team. Clay took some time off to be a professional ski bum in Colorado before becoming a firefighter. He enjoyed his homebrewing as well and the pair often talked about opening a brewery one day.

In 2018 they made it happen with their opening in Johns Creek, GA. The initial plan was to never brew the same beer twice but after the overwhelming popularity of some of their inaugural beers they decided it's OK to have a few staples. Medlock IPA and their Pink Guava Sour Continuum are always favorites.

We talk with Clay about how things are going working with his dad, the pros and cons, and whether they compliment or contrast each other. (Hint, it's both.) We also discuss growth at their current location as well as plans for additional taprooms in the future, and we get the rundown on the special brews planned for their anniversary month.

Visit Six Bridges Brewing * 11455 Lakefield Drive Suite 300 Johns Creek, GA 30097 470-545-4199 https://www.sixbridgesbrewing.com

Craft Beer NewsI * Charles Hamaker, Creator of Many Well-Known Abita Beers Has Died * Rudy Giuliani and Notorious Four Seasons Press Conference Lampooned By New Beer * Beer Sales are Strong Again in U.S. Retail Stores

Beers of the Week * Six Bridges Brewing + Bears on Unicycles Whiskey barrel-aged stout with cherries, chocolate, cinnamon, and vanilla + Medlock IPA + Shelby American Golden Ale + Silent Accord Coconut Milk Stout + Sour Continuum with Key Lime + Space Hawk TIPA (Collaboration with NoFo Brewing)

More Georgia Beer * Diversity in Craft Beer with Atlantucky and Leaders of the Brew School | Ep. 248WeldWerks Brewing with Neil Fisher and Jake Goodman | Ep. 160 * Bees and Brews with Steady Hand Beer Co. | Ep. 246 * La Fria cerveza con Second Self Beer Co. | Ep. 240

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WeldWerks Brewing has way too many barrels We last talked with WeldWerks Brewing in early 2019 as Jake Goodman and Neil Fisher joined us on the show. This week, we catch up with them again as CEO Colin Jones and Innovation and Wood Cellar Lead Skip Schwartz join us.

We're big fans of WeldWerks and I don't think I've had a beer from them I didn't enjoy. They're most known for their Juicy Bits IPA but they brew amazing sours and stouts as well. Just like us, they're fans of that long boil, with some stouts boiling for a day and a half or more. The flavor and viscosity of these beers is hard to match with weak little 1-2 hour boils.

The brewery has kept up its aggressive release schedule, with five new beers debuting this week. Schwartz helps keep things fresh and exciting with new brews, but also looks at the processes to continuously improve there as well. The barrel program has grown well beyond their initial intentions and they currently have some pretty amazing barrels (Birthday Bourbon, anyone?) with beer soaking up all the goodness.

Jones talks to us some about his approach as CEO and focusing on the "us" much more than the "me." He strives to build a strong team and let them do what they are good at. For his efforts he was recognized with the Titan 100 award this year, recognizing influential CEOs in Colorado.

Whatever he's doing, it seems to be working.

Visit WeldWerks Brewing * 508 8th Avenue, Greeley, CO 80631 * 3043 W. Pikes Peak Ave. Colorado Springs, CO 80904 (Coming soon)

Craft Beer News * Influential Beer Importer Shelton Brothers is Calling It Quits * Jason Buehler, Header Brewer for Denver Beer Co. Has Died in a Climbing Accident * Beer Sales are Strong Again in U.S. Retail Stores

Beers of the Week * WeldWerks Brewing + Advanced Fluid Dynamics DIPA + Blueberry Cobbler Berliner + Cereal Killer Pilsner-Style Lager + French Toast Stout + Starriest Night

More Colorado Beer * Ancient Ales and Historical Brewing with Avery's Beer Archaeologist Travis Rupp | Ep. 191 * Fruit and Funk with Troy Casey of Casey Brewing & Blending | Ep. 169 * WeldWerks Brewing with Neil Fisher and Jake Goodman | Ep. 160

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Work Sucks, Drink Beer Lupulin Brewing sounds like they've got things figured out - Work Sucks, Drink Beer seems appropriate, especially now. Founder Jeff Zierdt and Matt Schiller focus on making delicious beers for your off-hours. Although they're known for their hoppy offerings, as their name implies, they offer up many other styles as well. They've won several awards for their German-style lagers, make some tasty porters and stouts, and have a thriving sour program. We caught up with Schiller as he passed through Atlanta and sat down to talk shop and share some of his brews.

We had to talk hops so we discuss the different methods of hop delivery and what Lupulin prefers to use. We dive some into experimental hops and the interesting flavors that are coming out today (oak barrel and coconut?), and we dive into lagers some, with talk of their GABF Doppelbock and other German goodies.

Visit Lupulin Brewing Lupulin has two tasting rooms for you to enjoy:

• Minnesota | 570 Humboldt Drive, Suite 107, Big Lake, MN | 763-263-9549
• South Dakota | 2425 South Shirley Avenue, Suite 112, Sioux Falls, SD | 605-275-5544

Craft Beer News * Sweetwater Brewing Company is Being Acquired by Global Cannabis Company Aphria Inc. * BrewDog is Going All Willy Wonka With 24-Karat Gold Punk IPA Cans * VinePair Says They Can Guess Who You Voted For Based On What You Drink

Beers of the Week * Lupulin Brewing + 8 Count IPA + CPB Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter + Imperial CPB - Like CPB but more Imperial + Fashion Mullet IPA + Hooey IPA * Monks Meadery Dragon's Nectar

More from the Midwest * August Schell celebrates 160 years of family brewing | Ep. 243 * Ninjas and Unicorns and Pipeworks Brewing | Ep. 238 * Off Color Brewing with co-founder John Laffler | Ep. 223

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Diversity in craft beer is improving, but we still have a lot to do Leaders of the Brew School (LOBS) is an Atlanta-based organization celebrating people of color in craft beer. The industry has a fairly accurate stereotype of being dominated by bearded white guys, but people of all races and colors love craft beer, and LOBS wants to encourages others to drink, brew, and enjoy.

We're ahead of the curve in Atlanta. There are at least half a dozen black-owned breweries opened or opening in the city. Speaking with members of LOBS they mention that they have new ideas and new flavors to bring to craft. Just like we enjoy foods from many cultures, black brewers want to express their culture through beer.

Even with the boom of black breweries in Atlanta there are still many challenges ahead. Business education, funding resources, and other core needs are lacking in the community. LOBS wants to spread the word on what is needed for true acceptance and growth of black brewers in Atlanta and across the country. The group is actively seeking allies for idea generation, education, and brewing opportunities.

One of the group's most well-known breweries is Atlantucky Brewing, founded by members of Nappy Roots. Fish Scales and Skinny Deville joined us this week to talk about their brewery and their vision. Through various collaborations as part of their Great American Beer Run tour (paused due to Covid-19) they've introduced many new people to craft beer. Their brick and mortar brewery will be opening in Atlanta very soon.

Leaders of the Brew School Members * Down Home Brewing | https://www.instagram.com/downhomebrewing * Khonso Brewing | https://www.instagram.com/khonsobrewing * Our Culture Brewing | https://www.instagram.com/ourculturebrewing * Atlantucky Brewing | https://www.instagram.com/atlantucky * Indigo Brewing Project | https://www.instagram.com/indigobrewingproject * Soul Brothers | https://www.instagram.com/soulbrosbrewing * Off the wall Brewing | https://www.instagram.com/offthewallbrewing * Penelahpes | https://www.instagram.com/penelahpes * Ale Sharpton | https://www.instagram.com/realalesharpton * Art of Business Consulting | https://www.instagram.com/aofbconsultingllc

Resources and Useful Links The MJF Foundation created by Garret Oliver

• Website: https://www.themjf.org/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/igarrettoliver

The 8 Trill Pils Initiative created by Crowns and Hops

• Website: https://www.8trillpils.org/mission
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/crownsandhops

Crafted for all and Craft by edu ran by the awesome Dr. J

• Website 1: https://craftedforall.com/
• Website 2: https://craftxedu.org/
• Instagram 1: https://instagram.com/craftedforall
• Instagram 2: https://instagram.com/craftbyedu

[caption id="attachment_47343" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Fish Scales, one of the members of Nappy Roots and co-founder of Atlantucky Brewing, enjoying some Good Word IPA. Atlantucky recently held their brewery soft opening in Atlanta.[/caption]

Craft Beer News * Homebrewer’s Association Has Published Their 2020 List of the Best Beers in America * Guinness Has Released an Alcohol Free Version of Its Famous Stout * If You Turned 30 in 2020 Breckenridge Brewery Wants to Give You Free Beer

Beers of the Week * Arches / Atlantucky Kentucky Mud * Down Home Brewing Georgia Hooch IPA * Down Home Brewing T-Pom Pomegranate Wheat Ale * Our Culture Josie's Pilsner

More from the Black Beer Community * The Real Ale Sharpton | Ep. 185 * Belgian Beers with Kraig Torres and Jen Price | Ep. 122 * Brothers That Brew / Khonso Brewing | Beer Guys Radio Ep. 106

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Sixpoint Brewery talks Cicerone certification, crispy lagers, and nuclear submarines Sixpoint Brewery first came to recognition for their bright Resin DIPA. As the name implies, this isn't a hazy and fruity beer. Resin packs a punch of pine and citrus to quench your thirst for that West Coast goodness. Education and Training Manager Max Finnance wants you to enjoy Resin, and all your beers, a bit more and he joins us this week to talk about just how to do that.

Before his life in beer Finnance was stationed on a nuclear submarine and tells us some of the science background he gained has helped in his brewery life. He's a certified Advanced Cicerone as well as a BJCP Certified beer judge. Read, he knows his beer. He admits that this type of in-depth education isn't for everyone but if you're a passionate beer fan you can still learn a bit more about your beers, and how to drink them. Sure, we all think we know how to drink, but do we really? Some of the classes he teaches are designed to educate retailers, distributors, and employees on the art of beer. How to properly store, serve, and sip your brews. Finnance enjoys traveling and sharing his knowledge but with the Covid Curse upon us he's taken his classes online.

Hazy IPAs still rule when it comes to questions he gets about beer, but he'd also like everyone to know more about lagers. There's a huge variety out there well beyond the Crispy Boy pilsners but lagers still have a reputation with many people as clear and light beers. If you're in a larger area it's likely there's a local brewery brewing up a variety of lagers, so take a trip and see what's on tap.

As a silver lining to the Covid cloud, Sixpoint has been able to take advantage of some temporary laws to host an outdoor tasting room. A more permanent taproom (or two) is in the works, although there have been some delays due to landlord issues. Follow Sixpoint on social media to get the scoop as thing develop.

Craft Beer News * The Great American Beer Festival 2020 Results Are In * Mikkeller is Closing Their New York City Location * Heineken Has Been Fined $2.6 million in the UK

Beers of the Week * Sixpoint Brewery The Crisp Pilsner * Sixpoint Brewery Meltdown NEDIPA * Sixpoint Brewery Resin DIPA

More Beer from the Northeast * Burning the Ships with Able Ebenezer Brewing Co. | Ep. 245 * Wandering Into the Fog with Abomination Brewing | Ep. 230 * Brewery Ommegang with Brewmaster Phil Leinhart | Ep. 227

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Steady Hand Beer Co. talks collaborations, charity brews, and the booze hookah We're drinking local this week as Brian Sullivan from Steady Hand Beer Co. joins us in the studio!

Steady Hand celebrated their first anniversary just before Covid shut everything down. They used that time to partners with others that were struggling and do some collaboration brews, as well as getting a beehive up and running at the brewery for future honey-brewing.

One of the great charities that Steady Hand partnered with is the Georgia Ovarian Cancer Alliance as they weren't able to hold their annual gala fundraiser. This one hits home for me as I lost my mother to cancer in '92. Check out their site for more info and definitely show them support if you're able to. We chat with Brian more about what's brewing and the plan for more lagers and sours, tiki drinks, culinary influences in brewing, their Liquid Lab, and a lot more.

We had a lot of Steady Hand Beer to sip on while we talked and really enjoyed the new Baratza sour ale with apple and quince as well as and old favorite, the Circles of the Sun white stout.

Visit Steady Hand Beer Co. in Atlanta's West Midtown Brewery District at 1611 Ellsworth Industrial Blvd NW UNIT F, Atlanta, GA 30318.

[caption id="attachment_47312" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Brian Sullivan (left) checks on his beehive and gets some tips for keeping it healthy. (Pic: Steady Hand Beer Co.)[/caption]

Craft Beer News * Surly Employees Voted Not To Unionize * Saturday Night Live’s Sam Adams Pumpkin Ale Sketch * Ball Corp is Reporting a 10 Billion Can Shortage in the US this Year

Beers of the Week * Steady Hand Beer Co, + Baratza Sour with Apple and Quince + Circles of the Sun White Stout + Cloudland NEIPA + Confirm Humanity Foggy Lager + GOCA Benefit Blonde Ale (Benefitting the Georgia Ovarian Cancer Alliance) + Tangerine Flower Business DIPA

More Georgia Breweries * La Fria cerveza con Second Self Beer Co. | Ep. 240 * Burnt Hickory Brewery Explains it All | Ep. 237 * Kombucha and Fermentation Fun with Cultured South | Ep. 236

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Burn the Ships and press on, there's no turning back at Able Ebenezer Brewing Co. Able Ebenezer co-founder isn't a New Hampshire native, he's a California boy. But when Frizzelle and partner Carl Soderberg were looking for a place to call home the Granite State won it. The brew scene was vibrant but not too crowded, and Frizzelle liked the Live Free or Die motto.

They even named their brewery after a local hero, Ebenezer Mudgett, who defied the British crown in 1772 to fight oppressive laws. Frizzelle shares the story of Ebenezer with us as we talk about his beer and brewery and the stories behind some of the beer names. Their best seller Burn the Ships (a cherry wood smoked IPA) is a reference to a military tactic where you leave no option to retreat, success is the only choice. We also sample their Victory Nor Defeat, a tasty DIPA. Interestingly, both of the IPAs we got from this New England brewery were very clear. Crazy.

We also discuss the booming craft beer scene in New Hampshire, whether it feels crowded there, and what the density means as far as collaborations. Frizzelle also shares how self-distribution was key to launching and growing his brewery.

Able Ebenezer beer can be found only in New Hampshire. If you're in the area you can visit the taproom at 31 Columbia Circle, Merrimack, NH.

Craft Beer News * No Event, Dark Lord is Going Curbside Pickup * Yuengling and Hershey’s Chocolate Porter is Returning * Snyder’s is Collaborating with New York’s Captain Lawrence on a Pretzel Keg

Beers of the Week * Able Ebenezer Brewing Co. Burn the Ships | Cherry Wood Smoked IPA * Able Ebenezer Brewing Co. Victory Nor Defeat | DIPA * Variant Brewing Co. Snake Money | NEIPA

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Bravus Brewing has helped usher in a new wave of non-alcoholic beer

It wasn't that long ago that your choices were limited to a few macro brews if you want a beer but didn't want the booze. O'Doul's and... what are the others? Today, Bravus Brewing and a handful of other brewers are offering up an increasing variety of non-alcoholic options.

There are myriad reasons someone may reach of a non-alcoholic brew. For me, the doc told me to take it a bit easy on the alcohol - a tough thing for a Beer Guy. You also have people who need to totally avoid alcohol, pregnant mothers, designated drivers, and calorie conscious folks looking to enjoy a brew.

Under doctor's orders I started exploring some of the options available. I've found a few good alternatives and a lot of not-so-good ones. The big struggle for NA brewers is that, whether you taste it or not, alcohol does add to the flavor profile of a beer. This makes it easier to brew alcohol-free options with bolder flavors, and pretty tricky to nail a beer light a light lager.

Bravus Brewing has been honing their art since 2015. They offer IPAs, and Amber Ale, fruited gose, and even some stout variations including a bourbon barrel-aged brew. We really enjoyed the Raspberry Gose and the Peanut Butter Stout and we're pleasantly surprised at the flavors they delivered.

We talk with Bravus Brewing founder Philip Brandes this week about the many reasons people choose non-alcoholic beer, whether he drinks exclusively NA beers, the benefits of choosing an NA brew (outside of the obvious), and what's coming up in the future.

Even if you don't need to avoid alcohol you may find an NA beer you enjoy. Plus, you can party hard and not have to worry about that hangover the next day.

CRAFT BEER NEWS

• The Covid-19 Pandemic Will Cost the U.S. Beer Industry 651,000 Jobs
• Munich Has Banned Alcohol on its Oktoberfest Grounds

BEERS OF THE WEEK

• Bravus Brewing
  • Amber Ale
  • IPA
  • Oatmeal Stout
  • Peanut Butter Stout
  • Raspberry Gose

In addition to Bravus Brewing be sure to check out our great show sponsor Athletic Brewing Company!

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August Schell Brewing Co. embraces their past as they look ahead to a bright future There aren't many breweries in America that can say they are working through their second global pandemic, but August Schell Brewing Co. has that "honor." Founded in 1860, the brewery sold candy and other items to survive Prohibition and the sixth generation of the Marti Family is still running the brewery today.

VP of Operations Kyle Marti and Brewmaster Jace Marti joined us on the show this week to talk about their breweries history and future. With gardens, a museum, a mansion, and even a small family of deer and some peacocks, Schell's is a lot more than just a brewery. In addition to brewing their famous Deer Brand pre-Prohibition style American Lager they also have an impressive mixed fermentation sour beer program.

Craft Beer News * Molson Coors and Yuengling Have Formed a Joint Venture * Boston Beer Company is Getting Into the Non-Alcoholic Beer Game * A Man in Vacaville, California Saved His Home With Beer

The Beer List * Contrast Artisan Ales Brownie McBourbonface * Hitachino Nest XH * Monday Night Brewing With a Little Help From My Friends * Off Color Brewing Sparkles Finds Some Trouble

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Tomme Arthur talks state of the industry, beer trends, dextrose farmers The Lost Abbey and Port Brewing are well known to most craft beer fans. Many of their beers make "White Whale" lists and see fans clamoring for short pours at bottle shares or searching trade forms to land their catch.

Founder and Chief Operating Owner Tomme Arthur discovered craft beer while pursuing an English degree. By the time he he graduating his mind was set on a career in brewing. Prior to starting The Lost Abbey he earned several accolades at other breweries including Small Brewpub and Small Brewery of the Year at the Great American Beer Festival along with Small Brewpub and Small Brewery Brewer of the Year.

Arthur talks with us about brewing in those early days and the styles that were popular, comparing beer to music and where we are as an industry. We discuss the role and importance of terroir in brewing, and how each beer tells a story. We also sample offerings of his other brands (The Hop Concept and Tiny Bubbles) and discuss why each deserves it's own identity.

Craft Beer News * Surly Brewing Closing Beer Hall After Employees Announce Their Intent to Unionize * USDA is Trying to Cut the Definition of Moderate Alcohol Consumption For Men * Deep Ellum’s Founder Has Been Thrown Out of the Brewery He Founded

The Beer List * The Lost Abbey + Judgement Day + My Black Parade + Number of Beast + Red Poppy + Veritas Key Lime * The Hop Concept IPA * Port Brewing Hop 15 DIPA * Tiny Bubbles + Orange Guava Brut Ale + The Original Brut

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Oktoberfest brings Festbiers, Märzens, and Mustard Flights Once again it is time for our annual Oktoberfest blind beer tasting! We look forward to this show every year and its frequently my first dip into Oktoberfest beers after my self-imposed ban from drinking any before September 1st. It’s my little way of standing up against seasonal creep. Just say no to Oktoberfests and pumpkin beers in July.

To help us with this daunting task we invite some of our friends from the industry to help us out. This year’s judging panel:

• Joe McIntyre | Brewmaster at Scofflaw Brewing Co.
• “Digi-Dude” Nate Hanson | Executive Producer and On-Air Personality at Bailey and Southside on Atlanta’s Rock 100.5
• Nathan Schieber | Renaissance Man. Nathan has worked at a couple of brewers and can frequently be found collaborating with other brewers in the South.
• Nathan Ellingson (aka “No Mic Nathan”) | Beer Buyer for Vintage Bottle Shop in Acworth, GA and occasional Beer Guys Sound Assistant

That’s right, the studio was 50% Nathans this week. Weird. I’m glad that’s over.

We go all out for this show and bring in a bit of a German buffet. This year we had Brats, a flight of four mustards and pepper kraut made personally by me, some soft pretzels, and various cheeses and pickles. It was all delicious and a perfect accompaniment to our beers. We also share a few facts and fun stuff about the Munich Oktoberfest. If you’re ready to party and need to get in the spirit check out our Spotify Oktoberfest playlist.

Oktoberfest Blind Beer Tasting 2020| Ep. 241 Tim Dennis September 4, 2020 Oktoberfest Blind Beer Tasting 2020| Ep. 2412020-09-04T23:34:07-04:00Shows No Comment Oktoberfest brings Festbiers, Märzens, and Mustard Flights Once again it is time for our annual Oktoberfest blind beer tasting! We look forward to this show every year and its frequently my first dip into Oktoberfest beers after my self-imposed ban from drinking any before September 1st. It’s my little way of standing up against seasonal creep. Just say no to Oktoberfests and pumpkin beers in July.

To help us with this daunting task we invite some of our friends from the industry to help us out. This year’s judging panel:

• Joe McIntyre | Brewmaster at Scofflaw Brewing Co.
• “Digi-Dude” Nate Hanson | Executive Producer and On-Air Personality at Bailey and Southside on Atlanta’s Rock 100.5
• Nathan Schieber | Renaissance Man. Nathan has worked at a couple of brewers and can frequently be found collaborating with other brewers in the South.
• Nathan Ellingson (aka “No Mic Nathan”) | Beer Buyer for Vintage Bottle Shop in Acworth, GA and occasional Beer Guys Sound Assistant

That’s right, the studio was 50% Nathans this week. Weird. I’m glad that’s over.

We go all out for this show and bring in a bit of a German buffet. This year we had Brats, a flight of four mustards and pepper kraut made personally by me, some soft pretzels, and various cheeses and pickles. It was all delicious and a perfect accompaniment to our beers. We also share a few facts and fun stuff about the Munich Oktoberfest. If you’re ready to party and need to get in the spirit check out our Spotify Oktoberfest playlist.

Our Blind Beer Tasting Methodology We taste the beers in flights for each of the shows four segments. 2-3 beers per round. We consider appearance, aroma, and taste in our judging. Overall the final vote is all about how much we enjoy each beer. We pick a favorite from each flight then we are allowed to re-taste our favorites for the final round. We tally up everyone’s Top 3 for a final list as judged by the group as a whole. Informal, fun, and delicious.

The Beer List * Arches Festbier | Märzen | 6.3% * Ayinger Oktoberfest | Märzen | 5.8% * Brooklyn Oktoberfest | Märzen | 5.5% * Highland Clawhammer | Märzen | 5.0% * Hofbrauhaus Festbier | Festbier | 6.1% * New Realm The Bavarian Prince | Märzen | 6.3% * Paulaner Oktoberfest | Märzen | 5.8% * Sam Adams Octoberfest | Märzen | 5.3% * Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest | Festbier | 6.0% * Spaten Oktoberfest | Märzen | 5.9% * Tucker Tucktoberfest | Märzen | 5.5%

If you’re interested in some of our past info and thoughts on Oktoberfest check out our episodes from 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016.

As always and as expected, we had a great time with this tasting. Our next one is our Christmas beer tasting which I’m sure will be here before we know it. For now I’m just going to hope for some cooler temps and get all over as much Oktoberfest beers as I can. Prost!

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La Fria es la nueva Caribbean Lager de Second Self Beer Co. y es muy sabrosa

Second Self Beer Co.'s co-founder Jason Santamaria joins us on the show this week to talk new beers, new beverages, heading to Puerto Rico, and what beers pair best with classic video games.

In their sixth year, Second Self reflects on the past to help brighten their future. Santamaria tells us there will be some changes to the beer line-up and branding, and plenty of new beverages on the horizon. There were plans for a big remodel of the tasting room this year to fit a Bladerunner retro theme, complete with some retro games, but Covid but the brakes on that for now. The brewery recently launched two new beverage brands with Cirrus CBD water and Rudi's Hard Seltzer. Ready-to-drink canned cocktails are in their future as well.

We sample two of the newest offerings from Second Self's beer portfolio as we chat - La Fria Caribbean lager and Game Night DDH IPA. Santamaria corrected me a couple of times when I likened La Fria to a Vienna Lager or Festbier noting that it is lighter. It is, but it does offer up toasty sweet notes similar to those beers. Game Night is a super-balanced IPA with tropical hops and a light bitterness for balance. You could have a few of these and not Punch Out your palate.

With distribution in Georgia, Florida, and Alabama now the brewery has a decent footprint in the South. They'll soon ship out their first order to Puerto Rico as well. If you're feeling caliente, look for some Second Self to cool you down.

THE BEER LIST * Second Self Beer Co. + Game Night DDH IPA + La Fria Caribbean Lager + New Contender IPA * Rudi's Hard Seltzer + Ginger Tumeric + Blue Razzberry

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Luminous Brewhouse is helping introduce their small town to craft beer Although they weren't the first brewery in town, Luminous Brewhouse is still helping to introduce a lot of non-craft drinkers to craft beer. It wasn't that long ago that your typical macro lagers were the only game in town, and plenty of folks are just fine with that. With just 18,000 people Sheridan, Wyoming is home to three breweries. Impressive.

Co-founder Cooley Butler and General Manager Jonny Law (yes, his real name.. well, Jonathan Law) joined is this week to talk about what's popular in their area, utilizing local ingredients, and tell us all about the Chilluminati.

Sponsor Spotlight: Southern Recipe Small Batch pork rinds - Beer pairing, discount code! We also had Donn Paul with Southern Recipe Small Batch join us, our super-tasty pork rind show sponsor. He gives us some fun pork rind facts (so fun) and we talk about pairing their interesting flavors with beers. Seriously, we love these pork rinds. You can get some at your local Kroger (get a coupon for Buy 2 Get 1 Free here) or order online on their Amazon Webstore. Order via their Amazon store and use code BeerGuys for 10% off your order!

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Pipeworks Brewing focuses on controlled expansion and innovative brews to keep things moving forward Since opening in 2012 Pipeworks Brewing has received praise for their brews. As their became more and more popular the brewery chose to keep their growth controlled, only sending beer to areas where it would be appreciated and move quickly. Locally, Pipeworks makes sure only their freshest and best beers get to consumers by self-distributing. In addition to allowing the brewery to keep more of the money from the beer they sale it also allows them to remain hands on with all of their accounts.

This week we're joined by Director of Sales Ricky Boehm and Brewers Scott Coffman and Nate Morton. We talk about the early days of the brewery and the days of killing it on Kickstarter, their Abduction stouts and any new variants that may be in the works, scaling up, and what Pipeworks beer would pair best with an Italian beef... there's some debate on this one.

Pipeworks Brewing Co.3912 West McLean Avenue Chicago, IL 60647 * As of this post Pipeworks is open for contactless curbside pickup pdubs.net Facebook | Instagram | Twitter 773-698-6154

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Meet brewery owner, punk rocker, and Emmy-winning TV news camera man... Burnt Hickory Brewery's Scott Hedeen Burnt Hickory Brewery's founder and brewmaster Scott Hedeen has been a "friend of the show" since before the show was even a show. In the early days of Burnt Hickory (when Georgia breweries could only do tastings) we visited for the monthly gathering to enjoy their core beers and sneak a small pour of their rarities like Kolb's Farm stout and Charred Walls of the Damned Quad. The tastings started with small groups of 30ish people but over time grew to welcome 1,000 or more at their events.

Hedeen has never shied away from doing crazy things with beer. You'll find basic IPAs, Pilsners, and Stouts available but you also might find a beer loaded with coffee and stroboscopes, or blended with Butterfinger bars. Most of his creations are excellent, although he admits the candy corn IPA was a bad call.

With opinions on every subject it's easy to get Hedeen on a roll. When asked, "How was your week?", we get a 10 minute dissertation on the impact of Covid on breweries. We also discuss brewing trends, his life before beer, punk rock, Georgia's new beer delivery bill, and what's next for Burnt Hickory.

Burnt Hickory Brewery2260 Moon Station Ct. NW #210 Kennesaw, GA 30144

burnthickorybrewery.com Facebook | Instagram | Twitter 770-514-8812

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We take a trip away from beer to talk kombucha and fermentation with Cultured South

Cultured South may not brew beer but they are craft brewers making some tasty artisan beverages like kombucha and kefir. Although they are fermented, like beer, the process is a bit different. Kombucha starts as sweet tea and fermentation is done via a SCOBY, a Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast. Sarah "Petals" Adams, Cultured South's Fermentation Manager, explains you can't just create a SCOBY even if you know the cultures present in one. They come together only under very specific conditions, and only when they damn well feel like it. Cultured South Founder and CEO Melanie Wade Styles tells us the SCOBY used to make Golda Kombucha comes from her grandmother and is over 40 years old. They work hard to keep it alive and healthy so it can continue making great kombucha.

Since we took up food fermentation as our lockdown hobbies we talk about getting started with simple ferments at home, Adams recommends starting with a basic sauerkraut. We also talk probiotics (Golda Kombucha is 100% raw with live cultures) and how some brewers pasteurize and then add cultures back, rather than allowing the natural probiotics to remain. As we chat we sample some of their fermented offerings like their Kraut-Chi, Collard Green Kimchi, and Luna Cashew Cheese.

If you're in the Atlanta area and looking for something fun and a bit different, head to the Cultured South taproom and order up a kombucha flight and vegan cheese plate.

Cultured South Taproom 1038 White Street SW Atlanta, GA 30310 www.culturedsouth.com | Golda Kombucha | Atlanta Fermentation Fest 404-549-8314

THE BEER LIST

• Golda Kombucha
• • CBD Hopped Georgia Citrus
  • Lavender Lemonade
  • Peach Ginger
  • Strawberry Mint
• Atlanta Brewing Co. / Red Brick Conjuring Cultures Volume 1
• Boulevard / Sierra Nevada | Terra Incognita | Blend of ales and barrel-aged ales
• Sudwerk Brewing Microfauna | Barrel-aged Golden Sour Beer

THE FERMENTED FOOD LIST

• Cultured South
  • Kraut-chi | Sauerkraut / Kimchi hybrid
  • Collard Green Kimchi
• Pure Abundance Luna Cashew Cheese

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