Beervana Podcast

Today I welcome two new partners to the blog—but these aren’t ordinary advertisers. Together, pFriem, Reuben’s Brews and I plan to try a new model that strengthens rather than cheapens reader experience, and will result in a series of in-depth, interesting posts.

Darkness has fallen. Winter has come. And amid these cold, dark tidings, a pandemic rages. Jeff and I talk often about how we’re coping—which of course means thinking about which beers will allay which forms of malaise. On today’s show, we offer a pandemic survival kit of beers that will help you survive the winter. And because vaccines are on the way, and because warmth inevitably follows the cold, a celebratory beer as well.

A moment passing through a warm, cheery pub brought back vivid memories of cozy evenings I’ve missed the past nine months. As 2021 dawns, I kindle the hope we’ll be drinking together sometime this year.

I don’t pretend the beer I’ve chosen for 2020 is the “best”—that kind of designation is a fool’s errand. But this year’s selection is a perfect example of where American brewing is at this moment, and it’s an amazing beer.

Everyone is dying to leave 2020 behind, to forget its traumas and tragedies, and allow themselves to look forward with a glimmer of hope. Despite the pain, however, much about the year should be remembered. We may be too near events to extract their lessons, but the mere act of remembrance reminds us of what we’ve seen.

Alesong's Matt Van Wyk, one of three men behind Alesong Brewing in Eugene, Oregon, joins us on today's show. Alesong recently won two medals at the GABF to add to the six they’ve already won. The brewery focuses entirely on barrel-aging, working with aged ales as well as wild and spontaneous beers. Founded in 2016, the brewery has quickly become one of the most-decorated in the state, and its unusual approach makes it a fascinating subject for today’s discussion.

On today’s show we’re going to delve into one of the hottest old things in beer—kveik yeast. These old farmhouse strains of yeast have been around for generations—and longer—as brewers in Western Norway pass them from one generation to the next. Lately, IPA brewers have repurposed them to make bright, juicy IPAs, but the possibilities extend far beyond hoppy styles. Today we’ll dig into kveik and farmhouse brewing.

IMAGE: LARS MARIUS GARSHOL

On today’s show we are going to discuss one of the most interesting projects in the beer world, the Oregon Hops and Brewing Archive. On hand is the architect of that project and its archivist, Tiah Edmunson-Morton. The archive, founded in 2013 and housed at Oregon State University, contains extensive records of published books and periodicals, photographs, and memorabilia. In addition, Tiah has initiated a collection of oral histories with brewers, growers, scientists, with a special focus on women who have worked in the industry. It’s a hugely valuable resource—not just for Oregonians, but beer fans everywhere.

Today we do something we swore we never would--sit around drinking beer. But wait!--there's a method to our madness. A Boston listener sent us some very special beer from New England, and we taste a Maine-grown Cascade fresh-hop saison. Also, Patrick and Jeff encounter East Coast juice tarts from Trillium.

On October 16, the GABF awarded 271 medals to 240 breweries in their annual competition. On today's show, we look at those winners and see what patterns we can discern. Do different states and regions perform better in certain certain beer styles? We've crunched all the numbers and have all the answers!