It's a simple but brilliant idea - why not try to assemble a beer brewed in each of the 32 countries playing in the upcoming football World Cup? It's the kind of thing you wonder about doing with your mates down the pub... but Gus Hully has actually done it. He's become a beer celebrity, being interviewed on media outlets around the world. But now it's time for the big one... the Nant Fawr Brews podcast. 

Gus has great stories to tell. Why the Senegal beer troubled him for so long and required him to borderline stalk a random fella called 'Russian Rat' on Instagram. How he solved the puzzle of sourcing "beers" from alcohol-free countries and why his choices inspire both joy and sorrow amongst beer lovers and football fans  all across the globe.

To see Gus with his beers, and follow his journey through the tournament drinking them, find him on Twitter - @ballstothis

Massive thanks to my friend Tom Baker for finding out about Gus's challenge and coming up with the idea for this episode.

Please be a part of the podcast by suggesting guests or coming on as a guest yourself. Just email me - [email protected]

I'd love you to be on a future episode by recording your answers to 'The Beer Questionnaire' - using this new tech called Rumble Studio you can hear me ask the questions but record your answers in your own time (it's fine to just answer as many of the questions as you want - you don't need to do all of them if you don't want to). Just click the link below:

https://app.rumble.studio/forms/open/3f2a9501-a0cc-4094-a798-1b73db26d04a

Until next time... happy beery times everyone.

Ransom is my guest this week. Also known as The Revenant Alien (and he explains what he means by that in the episode). Ransom is a fellow podcaster and creative but worried he was not into beer enough to be on the pod. But, as you'll discover during this chat... a) Ransom has a lot more to say about beer than he thought and b) beer acts as a brilliant springboard into a whole world of other topics. We talk everything from IPAs that look like orange juice, to perfectionism, Rage Against The Machine, ancient Czech lager recipes... and even near-death experiences. Pour yourself a cold one, settle in and enjoy.

I mention at the end of this episode that you can have a go yourself at The Beer Questionnaire - this new software called Rumble Studio will allow you and I to do a "virtual interview" - it will record your answers, send them to me, and I can use the audio in a future episode. 

It would be brilliant to get some of these in, so please do get clicking on the link below and recording (it's fine to just answer as many of the questions as you want - you don't need to do all of them if you don't want to):

https://app.rumble.studio/forms/open/3f2a9501-a0cc-4094-a798-1b73db26d04a

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Episode notes...

If you want to check out Ransom's podcast, here are all the details you need:

Podcast: https://anchor.fm/arevenantalien

Twitter: @ARevenantAlien / Instagram: @ARevenantAlien / Medium: https://medium.com/@arevenantalien

Founding a new microbrewery is a dream for many of us beer lovers... so what is it like to actually do it? Zac Fox, COO and Head Brewer of Bad Idea Brewing Co (one of the greatest names for a brewery ever in my opinion) gives a brilliantly honest, passionate and positive account of his experiences. This interview really gets across the special community atmosphere that exists within brewing. There are highs... (Zac explains how brewing gives job satisfaction few other professions can match)... lows... (you won't believe what happened with their first professional brew)... and superbly random moments (toasters, metallurgy and Cinnamon Toast Crunch all get discussed). Enjoy!

No-one likes a pod that dies after one episode and this won't be that pod. My planned guest - Sai the poet beer critic - didn't come off (I hope to speak to him another time), but I wanted to get an episode out so, oddly, I am my own guest this week. My interviewer is me, but not me (you'll have to listen to see how that works). We (me) road-test the 'Beer Questionnaire' - 10 questions I can ask anyone to generate some fun beery stories. Question 9 is a particular highlight, for unexpected reasons. Enjoy, and don't worry, there will be good interesting guests (who aren't myself) coming soon...

The first ever guest on The Nant Fawr Brews podcast is a guy who has visited 120 microbreweries - Micah Ward.

Micah joins me from Tennessee to share his passion for beer and tell me some great stories from the many brewing establishments he's visited.

Highlights include - the beer that was so good his wife offered $100 for a tiny takeaway growler, one of the best-named breweries I've ever heard of, the 2 most improbable people to find either end of a bar... and Micah's tips on how to find the best microbreweries in your area and then make the most of your visit.

By the end of this episode you will have googled at least 3 of the places he talks about and put them straight on your must-visit wishlist.

Red Leg... that's all I'm saying.

Welcome to the Nant Fawr Brews Podcast. Nant Fawr means "big stream" in Welsh and is an area of Cardiff that gives the name to my own tiny brewery. I'm Andy, I make beer and enjoy talking about it, which is why I've started this "just for fun" podcast. I'll chat about beer, over a beer, to anyone. On the pod I'll be joined by home-brewers, professional brewers, beer critics, beer lovers, anyone who wants to talk beer in any way - all are welcome to this little beer-loving community.