This episode happened in the spur of the moment when we heard that the folks from Craft Brews Travelers had decided to visit us as their 800th brewery. We were honored to have a special place in their long list of visits and wanted to find out a bit more about what drove them to make this journey. We get some great tips regarding brewery tourism and find out a bit more about the brewing scene in some far-flung parts of the world.

 

Check them out here:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B6a9VczJJz3/

Steve and Ben welcome a special guest who has been a friend of the brewery for many years as we recap the year of 2019, share some old stories and make a few predictions regarding 2020. This episode has not been edited for content or clarity, so you have been warned!

Happy Holidays to all!

 

Steve and Ben were joined by Doug O. with equipment assistance from Jon. Intro and Outro music by Steve and his G&L Legacy.

INTRODUCTION:

Steve and Ben welcome a special guest to the podcast, Paul Gentile of Gentile Brewing in Beverly, MA.

Gentile is a family-run brewery tap room that has been serving its loyal fans since 2015. As one of the first tap rooms in the area the Gentiles were instrumental in breaking ground for the newer generation of tap rooms. In addition to all of that Paul discusses his recent trip to Munich, developing a tap room culture in the US and the convergence of vacation time and equipment failure.

MAIN FEATURE:

The concept of the brewery tap room is relatively new and still evolving, especially in the Northeast of the US. From an idea, to a plan, to the execution and adjustments of opening the doors the team discusses what the identity of the tap room is and can be. As a community gathering space the tap room has fast become one of the centers of daily life for many people throughout the area. We touch on the challenges and pitfalls of creating a new type of gathering spot.

Meet Andy!

NEWS:

We get caught up with Chuck and the events happening in the tap room as well as meeting Andy for the first time. There is a run-down of some of the favorite fall beers for the whole crew, with some surprises in the mix.

Oktoberfest 2019 is in the books, with a bigger and better crowd than 2018!

We finish off with a wide ranging discussion regarding breweries moving into new territories with physical tap rooms and production facilities, sparked by this news.

Be sure to check out Gentile Brewing in person or on Instagram.

CREDITS:

Steve and Ben were joined by Paul Gentile, Chuck and Andy with equipment assistance from Jon. Intro and Outro music by Steve and his G&L Legacy.

INTRODUCTION:

 

Steve and Ben welcome Chuck back to the podcast after some weeks away from the microphone.

 

Riverwalk was proud to receive two awards from North Shore Magazine, and the crew discusses a bit of what that means for the staff.

 

 

MAIN FEATURE:

 

The concept of the brewery tap room is relatively new and still evolving, especially in the Northeast of the US. From an idea, to a plan, to the execution and adjustments of opening the doors the team discusses what the identity of the tap room is and can be. As a community gathering space the tap room has fast become one of the centers of daily life for many people throughout the area. We touch on the challenges and pitfalls of creating a new type of gathering spot.

 

NEWS:

 

We summarize our involvement with the Black Ale Project in a bit more detail, as we have received some questions regarding our work with this organization. The mission and flexibility of the project really drew us to working with Dave and creating a beer.

 

http://blackaleproject.com/

 

We finish with some always-important playlist recommendations for Ben and his new boat! Feel free to add to this list.

 

CREDITS:

 

Steve and Ben were joined by Nolan from Crosby Hops with equipment assistance from Jon. Intro and Outro music by Steve and his G&L Legacy.

INTRODUCTION:

Steve and Ben wrap up some of the happenings at the brewery over the last couple of weeks, including an update on Steve's car! Some new beers and old favorites have been rolling off the line including Slow Roll, Gnomad and The Saga Continues...

 

Gnomad was one of the three original beers that Riverwalk produced, starting in 2012, and makes its triumphant return with a blend of Belgian yeast, American hops and a variety of grain. Limited quantities are available in cans and draft now.

 

 

 

Gnomad's Back!

 

GUEST:

Nolan Russell from Crosby Hop Farms joins us to talk about his path through the craft beer industry as well as all things hops. Nolan started his career in a tap room and worked through the process of selling beer for several regional and national breweries before falling in love with the beautiful hop plant. We get Nolan to dig into what makes hops special and how the hop market works, as well as what makes Crosby different.

 

 

 

 

Nolan gets interrogated by Christian.

 

NEWS:

 

We continue our discussion of some of the more recent legal rulings and challenges to the alcohol industry in our area.

 

The first story relates to the discounting of beer and the recent ruling by the Mass. Supreme Court

 

The next story refers to the ongoing saga of franchise law reform in Mass. and the recent hearings related to this law.

 

 

We finish up with a roundup of Steve and Nolan's soccer rivalry and the upcoming EPL season.

 

 

CREDITS:

Steve and Ben were joined by Nolan from Crosby Hops with equipment assistance from Jon. Intro and Outro music by Steve and his G&L Legacy.

Steve and Ben welcome Dan Graovac, the president of the board for the Merrimac River Watershed Council. This is a brief discussion regarding the natural resources of our river and the 117 mile kayak trip that the organization has put together to raise awareness regarding the health of the river.

 

 

 

Steve and Ben were joined by Dan from the MRWC with equipment assistance from Jon. Intro and Outro music by Steve and his G&L Legacy.

Steve welcomes Dr. Janel Jackson-Beckham (Dr. J) to the podcast to continue our discussion on diversity and inclusion in the beer industry. Dr. J is the Brewer's Association Diversity Ambassador as well as an experienced academic researcher of the beer industry in the United States. Dr. Jackson-Beckham joined this role in April, 2018 and has spent the last year travelling the country and engaging with breweries throughout the industry.

 

We discuss some of the insights and challenges that she has seen throughout her time with the BA and look for guidance as we try to expand our reach and remove barriers to the enjoyment of craft beer.

 

Dr. Jackson-Beckham

 

For those of you interested in Dr. J's academic work, you can check it out here.

 

Please note that the audio for this interview isn't up to our usual standard. Steve's portion isn't quite as clear as we would like it to be but Dr. J sounds great.

 

CREDITS:

 

Steve and Ben were joined by Katie and Maureen, with equipment assistance from Jon. Intro and Outro music by Steve and his G&L Legacy.

INTRODUCTION:

Ben and Steve start a conversation regarding diversity and inclusion in the craft beer community. This is reflective of discussions that have been taking place internally, and also throughout the industry recently. Our guests from the Massachusetts Brewer's Guild are Katie and Maureen.

Katie Stinchon is the Executive Director of the Mass. Brewer's Guild and Maureen Fabry owns CraftRoots Brewing Co. and chairs the diversity committee. This is the first part of our series looking at diversity within the industry and larger community.

Maureen Fabry from CraftRoots Brewing Co.

Katie Stinchon, Executive Director of the Mass. Brewer's Guild

We do reference an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, which can be found here. There has been further media coverage which we will address in a future episode.

CREDITS:

Steve and Ben were joined by Katie and Maureen, with equipment assistance from Jon. Intro and Outro music by Steve and his G&L Legacy.

INTRODUCTION:

 

Ben, Steve and Jamie dive right into a marathon session, to be broken up into two episodes. We get a surprising update from Steve regarding the health of his car and then Ben shares some gifts from down under.

 

After rhapsodizing about his early experiences with beer in Australia, Ben has finally been able to score some beer from the brewery that started him on this path. He shares some Little Creatures Pale Ale with the crew:

 

These came from a land down under.

 

Sampling these beers leads to a wider discussion regarding Australian beer culture, brewing on the West Coast in the 90's and global beer trends.

 

NEWS:

 

After reaching a breaking point over the last week Christian fired off an email to the company that created our brewery management software expressing his frustration. A bit of the email text appears below:

 

WHY HAVE YOU BROKEN EKOS!?Seriously, I'm the Head Brewer here and there by the one utilizing the production aspect of Ekos. You have all broken that part to the point at which I no longer want to use the program. this major update is beyond terrible and one of the worst roll outs I've ever seen in software. Everyday I go to use it and something else is broken or bugged. Frustrated doesn't even begin to cover my emotional state. Software is here to make our lives easier, not drive us all insane. The previous version before this update was just fine and did all we needed it to do!PUT IT BACK! PLEASE!

 

We were surprised and happy to learn that the founder of Ekos wanted to fly out and meet with us to address our concerns. A few days later the folks from the company were here and spent hours with us in a show of some of the best customer service that I have experienced. They also sat down for an interview, which we have included in the podcast.

 

 

RECOMMENDATIONS:

 

Jamie has been reading a book by Charles Brandt called "I Heard You Paint Houses" and it is fulfilling his interest in true crime, the mafia and the Kennedys.

 

 

Steve recommended a book that covers the oral history of the Seattle music scene, entitled "Grunge is Dead" and featuring interviews with many of the characters from the music world.

 

Steve has also been watching the new season of Endeavour on PBS, and fills in the crew on his Anglophile tendencies.

 

Chuck is reliving his youth and listening to the Mother Love Bone album Shine, so check it out!

 

 

CREDITS:

 

Steve and Ben were joined by Jamie and Chuck, with equipment assistance from Jon. Intro and Outro music by Steve and his G&L Legacy.

INTRODUCTION:

 

Ben, Steve and Jamie kick off the the third episode of the podcast with updates about Steve's transportation situation as well as Jamie's experience leading the Slow Roll.

 

Riverwalk released two new beers over the past week:

 

Slow Roll is a light lager brewed with Cashmere hops, perfect for the pool or post-ride!

 

Renewable will scratch the Double IPA itch, with Southern Hemisphere hops!

 

Steve and Ben discuss some of the food pairing options for Slow Roll, as well as the brewery's love for the Cashmere Hop. More information regarding Cashmere hops from our friends at Crosby Farms can be found here.

 

Chuck is back from his Texas trip and filled the group in on the beer culture in Austin and beyond. He recommended checking out Jester King Brewery and Lazarus Brewing in Austin.

 

NEWS:

 

Ben experienced a milestone in his life, meeting one of the idols of 80's wrestling, Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake. Not only did Ben get to interact with the legend, but he came away from the encounter with a signed can of Brutus, our Brut IPA.

 

Destined for a place of glory in the brewery.

 

Ben with the legend!

 

On a more serious note, the story of a questionable cocktail from the Yukon Territory leads to a discussion on the idea of extreme beer and whether the industry has reached a tipping point. The resurgent interest in lagers and lighter offerings brings up a few questions for the crew. For those of you who aren't squeamish, here is the source of this story:

 

Nick Griffiths donated some digits.

 

We also tackled a few listener questions, including the return of Stratabus and whether there would ever be a "Men of Riverwalk" calendar.

 

RECOMMENDATIONS:

 

The whole crew is eagerly following the new show from the creator of Patriot, with some of the same cast. Perptual Grace Ltd is now showing on Epix and will feature a cameo by Cool Rick!

 

 

 

You can now find our podcast on all of your favorite platforms, so go ahead and subscribe!

 

CREDITS:

 

Steve and Ben were joined by Jamie and Chuck, with equipment assistance from Jon. Intro and Outro music by Steve and his G&L Legacy.