Between Two Fermenters, a podcast by Great Lakes Brewery

In this episode, Troy sits down with Jen Reinhardt, the Senior Sales Manager with Great Lakes Brewery and one of the driving forces behind the brand, to discuss her journey in the craft beer industry.  

Jen has been with GLB for almost six years, but her journey with us started way back in 2014. After getting her feet wet in the beer industry while still working in publishing, Jen realized how thrilling this world was and moved on to Muskoka Brewery before returning to her true home at GLB in 2019. Since then, she’s reshaped our sales team and brought incredible energy to the brewery, leading teams with kindness.  

But there’s so much more to Jen’s story. From co-founding the Society of Beer Drinking Ladies to her past life as a DJ, Jen has worn many hats, and today we’re diving into it all. 

Thank you for tuning into the #BetweenTwoFermenters podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on whichever platform you get your podcasts at and be sure to follow GreatLakesBeer on all social channels. greatlakesbeer.com. Supporting local never tasted soooo good! 

Hosted by Troy Burtch, Between Two Fermenters, a podcast brought to you by Toronto's Great Lakes Brewery, is your go-to deep dive for all things craft beer from an insider perspective.    

Jeff Talmey, one of the founders of Town Brewery in Whitby, ON, made his way to Etobicoke to tell us about the history of the seven-year-old brewery, how he got into the beer industry, discusses social media and their recent rebrand, his work with the Ontario Craft Brewers Conference, and much more.  

Town was founded with a simple goal in mind; to make better beer and build a stronger community, something that Jeff and co have worked extremely hard one since opening their doors. A strong voice in beer, Jeff weaves together the startup story of the brewery with today’s current landscape and how Town fits into in. A fun and lively conversation with the Town Mayor!

Thank you for tuning into the #BetweenTwoFermenters podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on whichever platform you get your podcasts at and be sure to follow GreatLakesBeer on all social channels. greatlakesbeer.com. Supporting local never tasted soooo good! 

Hosted by Troy Burtch, Between Two Fermenters, a podcast brought to you by Toronto's Great Lakes Brewery, is your go-to deep dive for all things craft beer from an insider perspective.    

Steve Hukari, one of the founders of Southern Ontario Beer Boys, a group of Beer lovin' buddies from, you guessed it, Southern Ontario, joins the pod for the first time. Steve, and the SO Beer Boys, as they are frequently referred to, are said to be “ready and willing to conquer all beers while doing their part to make the world a better place,” and indeed they do. 

What started out as an Instagram account, documenting what they were drinking and where they were drinking it, has morphed into something much larger with the crew organizing and running some amazing events like "Kans 4 Kids (Can/Bottle drives)" and the Brewers Ball (Brewery baseball tournament), raising thousands and thousands of dollars in the process. A force for good, Steve discusses the importance of community, why the Ontario craft beer industry means so much to him, and has a fresh Canuck Pale Ale or two in the process.

Cole Raiskums answers listeners questions in his beloved Cole’s Notes segment, including a weird one from his assistant?? If you’re interested in sour beers, you’ll enjoy this one.  

Thank you for tuning into the #BetweenTwoFermenters podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on whichever platform you get your podcasts at and be sure to follow GreatLakesBeer on all social channels. greatlakesbeer.com. Supporting local never tasted soooo good! 

Hosted by Troy Burtch, Between Two Fermenters, a podcast brought to you by Toronto's Great Lakes Brewery, is your go-to deep dive for all things craft beer from an insider perspective.    

Milos Kral joins the pod all the way from his perch above Milos’ Craft Beer Emporium. It would be hard to argue that no one person has done more for the London, ON beer scene, since the days of John Labatt himself, than Milos has. He’s created a place for beer lovers to enjoy from all parts of the province – a place people add to their “beer bucket list” to visit. Why? Because he curates a dynamic beer menu, supports local, and puts the customer first and foremost. He’s propped up and supported start up breweries and has done so while continuing to work with the old guard of craft and does so with one goal in mind – to be the best at what he does day in and day out while having a fun time doing it. A colourful storyteller, Kral will have you captivated with his views on hospitality, craft beers, and how much he loves hearing chatter in his pub. Milos Kral - King of the Beer Emporium

Cole Raiskums, the Quality Assurance Lab Supervisor at GLB is back with his Cole’s Notes, and he spills the beans on what really goes on in the lab, and why it is important for a brewery to have a lab. It’s riveting!  

Thank you for tuning into the #BetweenTwoFermenters podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on whichever platform you get your podcasts at and be sure to follow GreatLakesBeer on all social channels. greatlakesbeer.com. Supporting local never tasted soooo good! 

Hosted by Troy Burtch, Between Two Fermenters, a podcast brought to you by Toronto's Great Lakes Brewery, is your go-to deep dive for all things craft beer from an insider perspective.  

Mary-Beth Keefe, the Head Brewer of Toronto’s family-owned Granite Brewery joins the pod for her first time in the hot seat. The Alpha Female Mom and Lifter of heavy things, as she describes herself on her Instagram account, takes us through the history of the Granite, shares how she got her start in brewing and why she chose to pursue a career in the family business. She’ll also discuss what it’s like being one of only a handful of female brewmasters in Ontario and why she loves Ringwood yeast. 

The Granite Brewery, and its Toronto founder, Ron Keefe (MB’s Father), hold a special place in the beer industry here in Ontario. Ron, a friend and mentor to many, has passed down his wisdom to Mary-Beth as she leads the second generation of Keefe’s in the operation of the brewhouse. A long-time friend, Mary-Beth and Troy tell some fun stories never told before.  

Thank you for tuning into the #BetweenTwoFermenters podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on whichever platform you get your podcasts at and be sure to follow GreatLakesBeer on all social channels. greatlakesbeer.com. Supporting local never tasted soooo good! 

Dan Grant, the co-founder/owner of Toronto’s Bossanova Wine and Beer Shop, joins the pod to discuss the wonderfully curated wine and beer shop, or boutique if you want to get fancy, at 103 Roncesvalles Ave in Toronto.  

But, Dan was in the beer industry long before he opened the doors to Bossanova in 2021, and Troy and Dan cover that in great detail.  From his beer writing days with NOW Magazine, his own blog BrewScout, to the founding of the very popular RUNTOBEER run club, teaching Prud’homme, hosting Toronto Brewery Tours, and more, Dan has been a fixture in the Ontario beer scene since 2012 and it was a pleasure to sit down with him to discuss it all, and more - like the time he attempted to run a marathon dressed as Gordie Levesque (Lumberjack on Canuck Pale Ale can), or when he got his head shaved at GLB for charity, or all the collaboration beers we’ve done together to support local causes. Buckle up for some fun stories. 

Our Cole’s Notes segment has our man in the lab, Cole Raiskums, talk about seltzers and how they are different than beer, which is ironic as we just released a new Seltzer – Electric Spritz with Hibiscus & Lime Seltzer  

Cass Enright, the founder of bartowel.com, amongst many other things, joins the pod to discuss his longtime role as “Ontario’s Craft Beer Promoter”. 

Cass has made a significant impact on the beer scene here in Ontario over two decades, in many many ways. From his “Free Our Beer” campaign to the Golden Tap Awards, importing beer from other Canadian provinces to Toronto Beer Week, Bar Towel Radio, Brewers Backyard events, Ontario Beer Delivery Index, A Quick Beer, and the old Saloon League days, Cass deserves a big slap on the back and some proper acknowledgement for being such a great ambassador for beer here in the province. Cass and Troy get into it all in this jam-packed episode.  

Thank you for tuning into the #BetweenTwoFermenters podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on whichever platform you get your podcasts at and be sure to follow GreatLakesBeer on all social channels. greatlakesbeer.com. Supporting local never tasted soooo good! 

Hosted by Troy Burtch, Between Two Fermenters, a podcast brought to you by Toronto's Great Lakes Brewery, is your go-to deep dive for all things craft beer from an insider perspective.    

This is a special one-off conversation with the newest member of the GLB team – Rob Morra.  

Morra, the new On-Premise Sales Manager with GLB, brings a wealth of industry experience and knowledge to the brewery, with more than 15 years of sales success in the beer biz. He joins the podcast to introduce himself to listeners and spills the beans on his first ever experience with a craft beer. We cover his history with GLB, his love of travel, talk about what makes a great beer rep, and drink a couple of Summer Ale beers in the process.  

Hosted by Troy Burtch, Between Two Fermenters, a podcast brought to you by Toronto's Great Lakes Brewery, is your go-to deep dive for all things craft beer from an insider perspective.    

Jennifer Tamse, the Director of Beer and Beverage with the Charcoal Group of Restaurants, which includes 10 Beertown locations across Ontario, joins Troy Burtch to discuss a variety of topics that span hospitality, Belgian beer, creating memorable experiences and more.   

During the lively conversation, we find out how Jenn discovered beer at an early age, what it really means to her, and how she became known as “The Beer Czar”. We discuss her leadership role with Beertown, hear about how Beertown plays a vital role in the Ontario craft beer industry, understand her thoughts on Beertown’s vision as “The leaders in the craft beer dining revolution”, and find out what’s it’s like to be “Knighted”.  

Cole Raiskums is back with his Cole’s Notes segment. On this episode, Coles talks about how we taste our beer, and he gives you some tips on how to sound really smart (and potentially pretentious) when telling your friends about your favourite brew. 

Thank you for tuning into the #BetweenTwoFermenters podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on whichever platform you get your podcasts at and be sure to follow GreatLakesBeer on all social channels. greatlakesbeer.com. Supporting local never tasted soooo good! 

Hosted by Troy Burtch, Between Two Fermenters, a podcast brought to you by Toronto's Great Lakes Brewery, is your go-to deep dive for all things craft beer from an insider perspective.    

Scott Simmons, the President of the Ontario Craft Brewers Association (OCB), joins Troy Burtch to dissect the recent news about the Ontario government expediting the sale of beer in convenience and big box stores across the province. The Premier of Ontario, alongside the Minister of Finance,

Simmons, who has been steering the ship for Ontario’s small brewers for seven years, covers every aspect of the development(s), sharing ‘behind the scenes’ information and insights, highlighting the pros and cons of the retail system we currently have and where it’s going. He also gets into why joining the OCB is smart for all breweries, clears up some misconceptions about the OCB, and identifies his celebrity doppelganger.  

If you work in the beer industry, and/or want to learn more about beer going to convenience stores, big box stores, and what getting rid of the Master Framework Agreement a year and a half early really means, this episode is for you.  

Hosted by Troy Burtch, Between Two Fermenters, a podcast brought to you by Toronto's Great Lakes Brewery, is your go-to deep dive for all things craft beer from an insider perspective.