This week we go 'down under' as we discuss the origins of the UK's "Australian" beer of Fosters. In the Hop Topic, we answer a question from a listener on Lager purity and its cultural perception in the UK vs the rest of the world.

Be sure to follow Fosters 📲

👊 Website: https://www.fosters.co.uk/

📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fostersuk/?hl=en

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/fostersuk

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/b/foster-s-group-foster-s-lager/5519

This week we grab our passports as we travel back to Thailand for the Royal Beer of Singha. In the Hop Topic, we start slimming for the holidays as we chat low calorie beers.

Be sure to follow Singha 📲

👊 Website: https://www.singha.com/singha

📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/singhabeer_us/?hl=en

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/singhabeer_us?lang=en

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/b/boon-rawd-brewery-singha/6344

Location: Bangkok, Thailand

Products:

The Original Thai Beer. Distinctive, Full Bodied 100% Malted Barley Beer with no rice or adjuncts. Winner of 7 gold medals.

Brewed with three hops: Saaz, Perle and Hallertau.

LEO, U Beer, My Beer, Snowy, Kopek Beer

History:

Owned by Boon Rawd brewery

1993. Singha is a pale lager beer with 5% alcohol content manufactured in Thailand by the Singha Corporation Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of its parent company, Boon Rawd Brewery. Singha was first brewed in 1933 and is considered the original Thai beer. It is currently available in 53 countries

2014 production increased to 1bn litres per year

Can be found all round the world

Points of interest:

Golden logo - symbolising one of the four mystical lions in Thai literature who is believed to be the king of Himmapan Forest

Can buy online, in the UK, through Amazon, Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons & Ocadao

Since 2019 Distributed in the UK by Shepherd Neame was Molson Coors for 10 years before then “comes to a natural end"

In 2015 a Thai joint-venture featuring Boon Rawd bought a portfolio of 32 hotels in the UK

In this week’s episode we chat “No Nonsense” beer with John Smith’s Bitter, in the Pursuit of Hoppiness. In the Hop Topic, Simmo shares his views on the growing trend of Cannabis infused beers.

Be sure to check-out John Smith's 📲

👊 Website: https://www.johnsmiths.co.uk/

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/JohnSmithsBrewery

John Smith’s “No Nonsense” Ads: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15l3hx6loQc&ab_channel=JohnGraham

Location: Yorkshire, UK

Products: John Smith’s - We champion everyday, ordinary folks that are actually anything but. Because we know, just like our beer, they are “Only ordinary by name"

Number 1 classic ale in the UK

Original, Original Cask & Extra Smooth

Bitter: is a British style of pale ale that varies in colour from gold to dark amber, and in strength typically from 3% to 5.5% alcohol by volume. What makes a bitter: Adding hops early in the brewing process contributes bitterness to beer.

History:

Founded in 1758

John Smith's Brewery in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England, produces beers including John Smith's, the highest selling bitter in the United Kingdom since the mid-1990s. The majority of John Smith's sales are of the nitrogenated Extra Smooth product, although a cask conditioned variant is available nationally.

3.8m hectolitres (1.3m hl of John Smith’s)

John Smith - actual person - one of the son’s of the Tadcaster brewery

Born 1824. Put his own name on the door 1952

Chuck Norris vibes

Points of interest:

Peter Kay - “No Nonsense” advert campaign

In this week’s episode we breakdown the science behind America’s favourite Belgian White beer, Blue Moon. In the Hop Topic Simmo stuns us with the Highest ABV beers!

Be sure to follow Blue Moon 📲

👊 Website: https://www.bluemoonbrewingcompany.com

📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluemoonbrewco/

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bluemoonbrewco?lang=en

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/b/blue-moon-brewing-company-belgian-white/3839

Location: Denver, Colorado, US - near Wheat ridge!

Our US Brewery is located in the Trendy RiNo district of Denver, Colorado. As a hub for creativity and innovation it's a place teeming with artists, designers and of course brewers. Our beer list offers 20+ tap handles showcasing our fan favourites as well as experimental beers that can only be found in RiNo.

Products:

5.4% Blue Moon - Belgian White - Belgian-style wheat ale. Orange wedge - the “garnish ritual"

Barmen traditionally paired belgian witbier’s with lemon - Keith wanted them to use orange wedge to heighten the citrus aroma and enhance the drinking experience - point of differentiation

Pair with seafood, asian dishes and chicken dishes

History:

Est 1995 - founder and master brewer - Dr Keith Villa - P.h.D in Brewing at Uni of Brussels

Owned by Molson Coors

The Molson Coors Beverage Company is a multinational brewing company, formed in 2005 by the merger of Molson of Canada, and Coors of the United States. It is the United States' second and the world's fifth largest brewer by volume. $10.6bn revenue - 17,700 employees in 2019 - listed on NYSE - TAP (stock symbol)

Aspels, Carling, Cobra, Fosters, Miller, Peroni, Sharp’s, Staropramen, Sol

Number 1 craft in the US (Nielsen data in 2018) - sold in 25 countries across the globe

Sustainability / Responsibility:

Intrinsically linked with Molson Coors - Landfill-free verified - industry leader in waste reduction - to earn verification organisations must demonstrate no more than 1% of waste generated at a single site goes to landfill.

Community:

Benefiting from Molson Coors global community - hard to differentiate the “Blue Moon” community - might be felt around their tap rooms and breweries or in Denver itself - but doesn’t come across online like other breweries communities do.

Points of interest: Need to do better on SEO - you type in blue moon into google, instagram, twitter - get everything from jewellery brands, holistic healers, media companies to people reading star signs and horoscopes.

In this week’s episode, we discuss how Northern Monk is reinventing how breweries are seen both as makers of beer and as employers, in The Pursuit of Hoppiness. In the Hop Topic, we apply to become Michelob Ultra’s new Brand Ambassadors and Rich dashes Simmo’s dreams!

Be sure to follow Northern Monk 📲

👊 Website: https://northernmonk.com/

📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/northernmonk/

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/NMBCo

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/b/northern-monk-faith/970642

Location: Leeds, UK

Products:

5.4% A Modern Hazy Pale Ale packed with soft fruit flavours. Smooth, tropical and juicy. You’ve got to have Faith. - pineapple

History:

Humble beginnings of a £5,000 gift from a grandparent

2015 started, Old Flax Store and their LDS tap room.

Beer brewed across two sites, second much larger brewery on Sydenham Road in 2017.

Sustainability / Responsibility:

Created a Zero Waste beer in 2016 - The junk food project - make meals out of food that would have been thrown out - reclaimed or recycled pears, croissants and brioche. Hops and malt used in production is donated to a local farm for feed and fertiliser. Bottle made out of 100% recyclable glass.

Community:

Pride - social mission - committing to working with their communities for positive change - Every 12 pack of their “Keep the Faith” beer sold, donate £3 to LGBTQ+ community programs

Points of interest: Language - monk logo - refectories (what they call their venues / bars) - a room used for communal meals in a religious institution - calling their people “brethrin”

Angel of the north

This week, the boys sail with the pilgrims to Maine, USA with Shipyard Brewery as they try their Pale Ale in the Pursuit of Hoppiness. In the Hop Topic, they breakdown the high courts ruling on BrewDog vs the Elvis Presley estate.

Be sure to follow Shipyard 📲

👊 Website: https://shipyard.com/

📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ShipyardBrewing/

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/ShipyardBrewing

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/ShipyardBrewing

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/shipyardbrewing

Location: Portland, Maine, USA

Products: American Pale Ale (not listed on their website - UK specific?) Lager, Double IPA, New England IPA, American Pale Ale, XXXX IPA (non-traditional American IPA - citrus notes of Cascade Hops - 9.25% - this beer is best enjoyed at 55 degrees Fahrenheit), Shorter Day IPA,

Quality, Handcrafted

History:

Shipyard Brewing Company is a brewery and soft drink manufacturer in Portland, Maine, USA, and founded in 1994. Shipyard is the largest brewer in Maine. Shipyard is the fourth largest microbrewery in New England after Boston Beer Company, Harpoon Brewery, and Magic Hat Brewing Company

In the US they are ranked as the 25th largest Craft beer company

Started and Owned by Fred Forsley

Maine is known for its seafood - clam chowder, lobster

The Portland Head Light, which dates back to 1791, and is the oldest lighthouse still in continuous use in the U.S.

Sustainability / Responsibility: Opening late 2020 a $36m co-packing facility in New Hampshire - capable of producing and packaging thousands of barrels of beer, distilled spirits and non-alcoholic drinks

Community: Time of Halloween - Smashed Pumpkin - Orange - Pumpkin Head Ale - Halloween mascot called Pete - Pumpkin Pete - to

Socials are fun - lots of interactions with people, people sending photos and tagging Shipyard - high engagement

Positing regularly for brewers - last one month ago - on YouTube

Points of interest:

We use only top quality ingredients and pride ourselves on the consistency and freshness of our products. All our beer is handcrafted from recipes developed by master brewer Alan Pugsley, one of the most influential people in the craft brewing movement in North America.

In this week’s episode the fellas try to charm some snakes with their dulcet tones with Cobra Beer and their Cobra Premium in the Pursuit of Hoppiness. In the Hop Topic, we discuss AB InBev's new scholarship program for students in STEM.

Be sure to follow Cobra Beer 📲

👊 Website: http://www.cobrabeer.com/

📷Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cobrabeer/

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/CobraBeer

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/w/cobra-beer/434240

Location:

Cobra Beer is primarily produced in Burton upon Trent, Rodenbach in Belgium and in Patna in the Indian state of Bihar.

Products:

Cobra Premium: At 4.5% ABV bottled or 4.3% ABV draught

King Cobra: Served in a champagne style bottle at 5.2% ABV King Cobra

Malabar: This 4.7% ABV blond IPA

Cobra Zero

Cobra Gluten Free

History:

Founder - Lord Karan Bilimoria founded Cobra Beer in 1989

In June 2011 Molson Coors bought a controlling interest in Cobra.

Sustainability / Responsibility:

Cobra Foundation; Cobra Foundation is an independent charity providing health, education and community support for young people in South Asia, especially through the provision of safe water. Our charitable objectives include giving help with Disaster Relief in the Region. (Founded in 2005)

Community:

121 Gold and Grand Gold medals At Monde Selection; In 2020 Cobra Beer was awarded 11 new Monde Selection medals, taking the total medal tally for our product range to over 120 gold medals since our first entry in 2001.

Points of interest: Cobra smooth pour glass https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJG8PhFgJho&feature=emb_logo

Originally planned to be called Panther, the beer was ready to go, but the name wasn't popular with customers and was changed to Cobra at the eleventh hour.

In this week’s episode we discuss a North London craft beer staple of Camden Town, as we try their Pale Ale in The Pursuit of Hoppiness. In the Hop Topic, a pub landlord goes to extreme lengths to keep his patrons social distanced and Rich doesn’t like a beer!

Be sure to follow Camden Town Brewery 📲

👊 Website: https://www.camdentownbrewery.com/

📷Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/camdentownbrewery/

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/camdenbrewery

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/b/camden-town-brewery-camden-pale-ale/45380

Location: Camden, London, UK

Two Breweries - Little Brewery and Big Brewery (Enfield, not open to public)

Original brewery under the arches in Camden - dubbed “Arch 55” this brew site creates their small batch and new idea beers innovation centre - visitor centre

Products:

The Original, never Pasteurised Lager. 10 Tenants: https://www.camdentownbrewery.com/about/

Hells - Designed an Arsenal football club beer (north London - red) - selling as a beer season ticket - subscription - 12 bottles delivered every month - limited at 500 on offer

Mixed packs, limited editions, seasonally, core beers (all year round) - Pale Ale in this category

4%, Pilsner, Light Crystal, Munich Malts. Suitable for vegans.

We love our American cousins. But sometimes they can be kind of full on. So we've crafted this beer to more British Tastes. Hoppy, fruity and dry, ours is a drinkable 4%. Made with American hops, its still got all the punch of a pale ale. Just less shouty.

History:

Founder - Jasper Cuppaidge, 44 years old - 2009

Owned by ABInBev since 2015 - £85m deal

Jasper said that he has more energy than ever for his venture

Sustainability / Responsibility:

Vertical Farm - partnered with GrowUp Community Farms, a London social enterprise, who champion sustainable urban farming for their ingredients for their “Strawberry Hells, Forever Lager” - making a 20p donation for every can sold. One step further - teamed with Rootlabs who build their urban vertical farms, to build on in their Enfield brewery.

Community:

Jun 2020 - will donate 260,000 pints of new brew (To The Pub) to post-lockdown pubs, whether bought through their website or at the pubs, proceeds going to the hospitality industry - “never would I have thought that the industry that’s brought me so much, would need so much help to survive” - Jasper

Points of interest:

OOH marketing on point - truck wraps “A truckload of Hells”, bar pop-ups (London walking around anecdote), merchandise

In this week’s episode, the boys step into the world of AB InBev and “the King of Beers”, Budweiser, in the Pursuit of Hoppiness. In the Hop Topic, we talk charitable causes with BrewDog’s last partnership with the All Dogs Matter non-profit.

Be sure to follow AB InBev & Budweiser 📲

👊 Website: https://www.ab-inbev.com/

📷Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/budweiser/

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/budweiserusa?lang=en

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/b/anheuser-busch-budweiser/3783

Commercials:

Wasssaaaaa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJmqCKtJnxM

Frogs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yb4Lc-Xqsq0

Location: St Louis, US - Truly global

Products: Many!

1 in 4 beers sold globally is ABINBEV.

https://www.brewbound.com/news/anheuser-busch-inbev-posts-17-declines-in-volume-and-revenue-in-q2-2020

History: Proudly say on their website “the history of AB InBev is a global story that spans continents and generations. It’s not just our history, its the history of beer itself.”

Over 800 years brewed by Monks - little known Belgian beer - Leffe!

They have also taken a hit in South Africa because they have banned alcohol during the pandemic vs 🇬🇧 and 🇺🇸 who consider it an essential service. The company took a $2.5billion write off in South Africa (that’s public knowledge)

The story of Budweiser - the most famous American beer - The kid of beers since 1876 - started by Eberhard Anheauser, soap merchant who took control of the Bavarian Brewery after it defaulted on a loan in 1860. Adolphus Busch, name of a brewing merchant who supplied the brewery and married Anheauser’s daughter.

Clydesdales (big horses) integral part of the brand’s marketing since 1933. Strict interview process to make the team of 6 - a tradition since the first team were gifted to celebrate the repeal of prohibition in the US.

Bud light introduced in 1982 as consumers started moving to Miller Lite. Bud light rose to take the number one spot on the back of humorous ads - a theme across Budweiser

Dispute with a Czech brewer Budejovicky Budvar claims the Budweiser name is its to use. So in EU Budweiser is Bud and in US Budvar is Czechvar.

Sustainability: 2025 a big year! Agriculture Goal - 100% of their direct farmers will be skilled, connected and financially empowered. Water Goal100% of communities in high-stress areas will have measureably improved water availability and quality. Packaging to be 100% returnable and made from majority recycled content. Climate - 100% of purchased electricity from renewable sources and have 25% reduced carbon emissions across supply chain.

Community: Used Sport to dominate the US beer market - Biggest sponsor in sport for almost 40 years - $350m on sports sponsorship deals in 2016 - a fraction of its annual revenues of $45.5bn.

At one point had sponsorship of 90% of all professional teams in the US and 25 consecutive years of Super Bowl sponsorship.

Investment group - ZX Ventures

In this week’s episode the gang duel aliens in outer space as they discuss Beavertown Brewery from London, and their beer, Gamma Ray. In the Hop Topic, we share our thoughts on the cancelling of Oktoberfest.

Be sure to follow Beavertown 📲

👊 Website: https://beavertownbrewery.com/

📷Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beavertownbeer/?hl=en

🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/BeavertownBeer?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

💪 Untappd: https://untappd.com/BeavertownBeer

Location: London, UK

Products: Beer

Ice lollies - heat wave here in the UK

History:

2011 - Started by Logan Plant… Rock fans may recognise the name Plant - Son of Robert Plant, lead singer of Led Zeppelin

Sustainability / Responsibility: Article from the FT - A pint todays costs the planet a fifth less than in 2008. Beavertown leading the way for craft breweries with its new plant - funded by Heineken, £40m - state of the art energy recovery system.

Built a micro-brewery built in the New Tottenham Hotspur football club stadium - serving beer to 62k fans

Community: Psychedelic Illustrations - mad

Beer delivery called Beavertown S.O.S