Graining In

Matty and Noah get back to their roots with an old-school, non-remote chat between two buddies. The "mailbag" (@graininginpod DMs) - tearing at it seams and chaotically overflowing - is attended to with listener feedback answered publicly for the first time. Highlights include comments on the guys' sloppy interviewing style, confirmation of Matt's status as resident ham, and requests for implementing a version of the tried-and-true "beer of the week" segment. The boys try to reclaim a semblance of self-confidence through a conversation about bottle conditioning, carbonation, and the very foundations of fizz. Turns out, Matt hates bubbles, Noah loves 'em, champagne is cool, and by the end of it all, it kinda feels like everything stops right where it started - Vampires.

Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

Phoning in from Atlanta, co-founder/CEO of Monday Night Brewing Jeff Heck joins the podcast! Jeff and his brewery conducted a survey (discussed in "#46: Past Wrongs Made Tannerite") that's led to him becoming a de facto leader of sorts within the beer industry as it adapts in the wake of COVID-19. We naturally go deep on both the survey and his take on the pandemic's ramifications, as well as his history in private equity (much to Matt's delight). We also talk about Monday Night's bible study roots, compare Jeff and Noah's experiences as start-ups, and dive into how Monday Night manages to stay authentic while being willing to follow trends. Above all, our conversation highlights the glaring differences in state college and Harvard educations...(Why doesn't Jeff have a podcast?)

Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

Coming at you from his bunker/studio/home, we (virtually) welcome Ryan Peters - better known as Spose, preferably known as The King of Maine - to the studio! Spose is EASILY the most lauded rapper to ever emerge from Wells, Maine, and his connections to Bissell Brothers run deep thanks to his former career as a Barnacle Billy's server, working alongside BBB's first employee, Seth Vigue. 
We talk about how COVID has effected his life as a musician, how he's created and maintained success through a myriad of unlikely channels, balancing different projects, and why honesty has been the biggest factor in his career. The conversation regularly veers *Off-Road* in the best of ways, touching on pandemic hairstyles, failed App ventures, the true purpose of hip hop, and the Portland Sea Dog's most accomplished alumni. It'd also be criminal to not mention a deeply important discussion on how Mainers truly feel about folks from Massachusetts...
Kidding aside, the path this dude has carved for himself is nothing short of remarkable and it's straight up impossible to not get motivated by listening to him talk. So, ride. That. Wave.

Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

Matt "Noodle Brain" Robinson and Noah "Lee Something Jr." Bissell are left to their own devices this week. Accordingly, the conversation begins with a recounting of a recent experience involving a 600 gallon foeder, ten pounds of explosives, and an ocean of catharsis. After a shameless request for reviews on streaming platforms and feedback on Instagram (@GrainingInPod), the guys roll out a new "segment", where Noah gets Matty's take on world events and their relation to the beer. Surprisingly, this opens up to a good exchange of thoughts on the effects COVID is having on breweries in different states, before Matty inevitably loses steam and fizzles out on pizza unboxing, Mad Men, and gas station beer caves.

Music: “Mountain Climb” by Jake Hill

Amid a precarious time for securing in-person guests, we decided to keep it in the family this week. We talk with Peter Bissell, co-founder of Bissell Brothers, co-owner of High Roller Lobster Co., and most critical to this conversation, Noah's older brother. Matt gets himself comfortable in the interview chair, and walks through some of the key points in the trajectory of Bissell Brothers history as well as Peter and Noah's relationship, getting the individual perspective of each brother along the way. Through this broad conversation (or therapy session, depending), the guys talk about growing up in the poorest and least populated county in Maine, the genesis of the brewery, the growing pains they faced with themselves and each other while trying to grow their business, and their unified desire to bring the brewery back to where their door-to-door gourd sales operation had once flourished. We also search for the TRUE Baby Genius, discuss "Death Houses", and dissect childhood pranks in this emotional rollercoaster of an episode.

Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

Artwork: Samuel Dunning

In a socially distanced world, devoid of live interviews, we finally dipped our toes into the remote recording waters. Those waters were mighty fine, as this week's guest is none other than the Pastry Stout Playboy himself, Alex Kidd.
Unless you've been in quarantine for the last decade, you know that Alex is the man behind Don't Drink Beer, a blog that remains unparalleled in its wonderfully unique combination of humor, insight, and perspective. We get into DDB's origin story and wild trajectory, which ultimately gave birth to Alex's podcast, Malt Couture. 
Like the DDB blog, Malt Couture very much occupies its own category in the beer world, consisting of equal parts beer commentary and improvisational comedy. Alex shares a handful of stories from the improv world, touches on his day job as a lawyer, and had us laughing in a way that nearly required medical attention. It's true -- Unicorns DO exist.

From the safety of Noah's bedroom, the guys address the COVID-19 elephant in the room. We get into the way brewery operations have looked in the current landscape and how Bissell Brothers, in addition to thousands of other breweries in the country, have leaned into a beer sales channel they never considered a few months ago: home delivery. After debating the viability of home delivery in the post-pandemic era, the conversation shifts to a less heavy realm in light of an impending "holiday". We chat marijuana, cannabis, ganja, herb, whack tobaccy, grass, and whatever else you'd like to call it, touching on our early experiences with the Devil's flower, its relationship with beer, and smoking's potential role in declining alcohol sales. 

Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

Recorded in the Hometown of America - Plymouth, MA - here is our long-awaited conversation with THE REAL Jake Hill! In addition to owning the beautiful voice that starts and ends the podcast, Jake has an extremely interesting musical resume as well as an increasingly captivating story in the culinary world. We talk about his beginnings in music (SKAcopaths - RIP), the frustratingly mysterious nature of writing folk songs, and his work as part of Jay Kill & The Hustle Standard, a duo who's songs have tens of millions of streams on Spotify. We also get into his life in food, particularly his love of baking bread and its evolution into the quest for making the perfect pizza. On top of all that, Plymouth's Favorite Pizzaman shares stories about encounters with Kanye West, Randy Johnson, and Rick Ross. This is the last pre-COVID episode we recorded, but goddamn is it a good one.

Co-owner/business director of Permanent Hangover and packaging extraordinaire Cam Bosch made his way up north for an overnight in Milo! Though he packages beer by day (first at Bissell, now at Oxbow), his side hustle for the last couple years has been helping grow and develop Permanent Hangover alongside its founder, Andy Godish. Perma Hang occupies a small, hard-to-define space of companies and brands that, despite not actually producing beer, have become undeniably relevant through their creative and intelligent commentary on the brewing industry itself. Our conversation touches on the value of self-parody, brand authenticity, an entity known as "Glassy", the merits of sending dog shit through the mail, and a glut of other topics both Noah and Matty found totally interesting. This episode was recorded (with appropriate attention to safety) as quarantine become the norm in Maine, and hopefully it serves as good a break for the madness for you as it did for us.