On this episode of All Things Beer, hosts Mark and Pat take a deep dive into the rich history and bold flavors of barleywine—a style that’s as legendary as it is misunderstood.

They’re joined by Angelo Signorino, brewmaster at Barley’s Brewing, and Sandy Hugill, Cicerone, beer judge, and craft beer enthusiast, to explore the origins of this high-gravity ale, its evolution from historic English strong ales to today’s craft beer scene, and what makes it such a unique experience for brewers and drinkers alike.

Chris Davison and Bill Koeppen join us as we drink and discuss a variety of beer styles featuring smoked malts.  In the first half of the episode we sample homebrewed versions of the Polish Grodziskie and the German Lichtenhainer, as well as Bill's gold medal winning Smoked Helles. Then we shift our focus to the homeland of smoked beers, Bamberg, with three different Schlenkerla beers, the Marzen, Urbock, and Doppelbock. Along the way we discuss the history of these unusual styles, the flavors imparted by different woods, and offer up some tips for brewing these styles.

In this episode we explore one of Germany's classic exports, the Rothaus Tannenzapfle Pils. Clean, crisp and eminently quaffable, this beer exemplifies the simultaneous simplicity and precision of German brewing traditions. 

In this short episode we get a chance to sample three Idaho beers - Sweetgrass Pale Ale from Grand Teton Brewing, Mackinaw Red from McCall Brewing, and Longship IPA from Mad Swede Brewing - with Zach Popp who hails from the Gem State. Join us for a jump back in time to drink two classic American styles and one curious concoction that doesn't quite live up to it's description.

Mary MacDonald and Justin Hemminger from the Ohio Craft Brewers Association join us to talk about some important behind the scenes issues. We learn about the laws affecting craft beer in the Buckeye state, including the outdated franchise law, the OCBAs role in getting Ohio beer to the GABF, and which major and minor league baseball stadiums have the best craft beer selection. 

This episode we had the opportunity to sit down with Rob Camstra and Kayla McGuire to discuss a myriad of topics surrounding the history and brewing of German Lagers and are lucky to enjoy with them some award winning beers from Gemüt Biergarten in Columbus OH. Pröst!

This episode is going to be a fun one as we host three repeat guests, Dan Eaton, Madeleine Bogard, and Chris Mercehill as contestants for a bizarre beer gameshow! Our hosts Pat and Mark alternate rounds, each with their own challenge. Pat's game, Wait Wait... Don’t Beer Me! has our contestants scratching their heads to figure out which of three extremely unusual beers is the real one. Next, they take their chances with Mark in a game we call ReinheitsgeWHAT? to see if they can identify the unusual ingredients that would never fly according to the centuries old German beer purity law. Play along and see if you can spot the fake beers as our contestants go for the win!

The Trappist brewery at Orval makes only one beer. A wholly unique creation that is a cross between a saison and an English pale, made even more complex by the addition of Brettanomyces yeast in the secondary. On this episode we drink a 5 year old version, a 6 month old version, and a 2 year old homebrewed approximation of Orval to explore the ways in which the beer evolves as it ages.

As the craft beer industry matures brewers are facing a number of economic challenges. In this episode we discuss those challenges with longtime Columbus Business First writer, Dan Eaton, who has covered the beer industry for nearly two decades.