Cheers with Nat

Today's guest is Claire Ashbridge-Thomlinson, Director and Founding Partner of East London Brewing Company.

Claire tells us what her day-to-day role as a Director there looks like, how the business got started, and what it's been like to help navigate the brewery through these incredibly challenging last 16 months.

We then learn all about her career before beer, what transferrable skills she brought with her, and what advice she has for others looking to start their own business.

Finally, we hear what she enjoys most about her role at East London Brewing Company and about being a part of the beer industry.

(Just a quick heads up, this episode was recorded remotely, so the audio quality is not quite the same as previous seasons, but I hope you still enjoy it!)

Here's Claire…

Today's guest is Dr. Margaux Huismann, Hop Applications Scientist at Totally Natural Solutions.

Margaux tells us what her role at Total Natural Solutions entails, what the business does, and we even do a little tasting experiment with some of their products!

Then we learn what sort of training it took for Margaux to get to this role by focusing in on her academic journey, which saw her move from Wisconsin to Scotland to pursue her Master's in Brewing and Distilling and later PhD in Brewing Chemistry at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh. She tells us all about what it was like to move across the pond, along the with topics of her Master's and PhD theses and the research that each entailed.

Finally, Margaux tells us what she enjoys most about being a part of the beer industry.

(Just a quick heads up, this episode was recorded remotely, so the audio quality is not quite the same as previous seasons, but I hope you still enjoy it!)

Here's Margaux…

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Check out Margaux's recently published paper(s) in the Journal of the American Society of Brewing Chemists here:

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03610470.2021.1937460

Today's guest is Mellanie Struthers, Co-Founder of Draught Drop, the UK's first draught beer delivery service.

Mell tells us what her day-to-day life at Draught Drop looks like, how the business works and what inspired her and her husband to set it up.

We also hear about the many skills Mell brought with her from her previous career… which was conveniently in e-commerce in the food and drinks space!

Finally, Mell shares what it's been like to go from working for someone else to working for herself, her advice for others looking to start their own business and what she enjoys most about being a part of the beer industry.

(Just a quick heads up, this episode was recorded remotely, so the audio quality is not quite the same as previous seasons, but I hope you still enjoy it!)

Here's Mell…

Today's guest is Sophie de Ronde, Head Brewer at Burnt Mill Brewery.

Sophie lets us in on what her day-to-day role as a head brewer looks like… but she's quick to acknowledge that her experience in the role likely isn't the same as others.

That's because in recent years Sophie learned she's allergic to wheat and barley, so she can't actually spend much time on the brewery floor or even enjoy the products of her labour… but she still loves making beer.

She talks us through how she went from serving beer, to brewing beer, and her time spent as a brewing technologist at a malt producer, too.

Finally, Sophie tells us all about International Women's Collaboration Brew Day, an annual celebration of women in beer that she's been organizing since 2014, and what she enjoys most about being a part of the beer industry.

(Just a quick heads up, this episode was recorded remotely, so the audio quality is not quite the same as previous seasons, but I hope you still enjoy it!)

Here's Sophie…

Today's guest is freelance beer writer Ruvani de Silva.

Ruvani tells us what her day-to-day life as a freelance beer writer looks like and talks us through some of her latest pieces for Burum Collective and Good Beer Hunting.

Then we hear about her many careers before beer, how she made the transition to full-time beer writing, and what advice she has for others looks to follow a similar path.

Finally, as a Brit now based in central Texas, Ruvani shares her thoughts on how the US and UK beer scenes stack up and, of course, what she enjoys most about being a part of the beer industry.

(Just a quick heads up, this episode was recorded remotely, so the audio quality is not quite the same as previous seasons, but I hope you still enjoy it!)

Here's Ruvani…

Today's guest is Cherisse Ketchum, Co-Founder of Gusto Brand Marketing.

To start, Cherisse tells us what her business does, what inspired her and her Co-Founder, Crystal, to set it up, and some of her favourite projects that she's worked on so far.

We then talk about Cherisse's decade-long career in beer and the various roles she's held, before discussing what she was up to before beer and the transferrable skills she brought with her.

Finally, Cherisse shares what it's like to work for yourself, her advice on starting a business and, of course, what she enjoys most about being a part of the beer industry.

(Just a quick heads up, this episode was recorded remotely, so the audio quality is not quite the same as previous seasons, but I hope you still enjoy it!)

Here's Cherisse…

Today's guest is Jules Gray, owner of Hop Hideout and the organizer of Sheffield Beer Week, Indie Beer Feast and Indie Beer Shop Day.

Jules tells us all about how she set up one of the UK's first drink in bottle shops, how it's changed over the years, and how the learnings she took from her previous roles in the beer industry have helped with her business today.

You'll also hear more about the different activities and local charities Jules supports; how you can get involved with her latest initiative, Indie Beer Shop Day; and, of course, what she enjoys most about being a part of the beer industry.

(Just a quick heads up, this episode was recorded remotely, so the audio quality is not quite the same as previous seasons, but I hope you still enjoy it!)

Here's Jules…

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P.S. To hear more from Jules, listen in to our recent conversation on the Good Beer Hunting podcast!

Today's guest is Em Sauter, a beer educator, Advanced Cicerone®, and the founder of Pints & Panels.

In this episode, you'll hear how Em combined her love of beer with her skills as a cartoonist to create Pints & Panels, her business dedicated to visual beer education.

We start by discussing what the day-to-day life of a professional cartoonist looks like. Then, we look ahead to Em's upcoming Master Cicerone® exam and forthcoming book. Before taking look back at what Em was up to before beer and how she made the transition from drawing about beer to working in it.

Finally, Em lets us know her motto when it comes to drinking beer and what she enjoys most about being a part of the beer industry.

(Just a quick heads up, this episode was recorded remotely, so the audio quality is not quite the same as previous seasons, but I hope you still enjoy it!)

Here's Em…

Welcome back to Beer with Nat.

After a long hiatus, Season Four is finally here!

This season, you'll hear from a beer educator, bottle shop owner, beer marketing expert, and more. And – as always – each guest is someone who works in and is incredibly passionate about the beer and pub industry.

Before the new season starts though, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention what's been going on in the beer industry of late.

Over the past few weeks – here in the UK, in the US, and beyond – women in beer have shown up in numbers to call out the inappropriate and sexist treatment they've been subjected to for years.

The movement began thanks to Brienne Allan in the US and Siobhan Buchanan has stepped up here in the UK to help amplify even more voices needing to be heard.

Despite the progress that's been made these past few years, with more women working in and drinking beer, the thousands of incidents that have been shared on social in recent weeks show just how far we have to go. Not only for equal representation, but – more importantly – for equal treatment. My goal with the Beer with Nat podcast has always been to help shine a spotlight on women in beer, in order to show how many of us there are and to help normalize our presence.

So consider this season yet another reminder from me, and my incredible guests, that beer is for everyone.

Check back soon for the first episode of Season Four.

Welcome back to Beer with Nat.

This isn't a return to our regularly scheduled programming just yet!

This is Part 2 of Beer Nation 2020, a podcast collaboration that looks back on the year in beer here in the UK.

If you haven't listened to Part 1, scroll down on your podcast feed and start there to hear more about the idea behind the collaboration, the podcasters involved and what we chat about.

For those of you who have listened to Part 1, I won't keep you waiting any longer. This is Beer Nation 2020, Part 2.