Every dedicated home-brewers’ dream is to create a craft beer that is appealing enough to go into commercial production. Viceland’s “Beerland” with host Meg Gill of Golden Road Brewing makes that dream a reality. For Season 2 Meg traveled to four US cities/regions and sought out the best home-brewers. Season 2’s travels included field trips to home-brewers in Portland, Alabama, Detroit and Florida.

The winning creation, Man-Go-War, was then brewed on Golden Road’s 50-barrel system and is now available at retail in cans. The original recipe actually uses a dash of ocean water from the Atlantic Ocean. (It’s a blueberry-flavored Wheat Ale with a hint of Spicy Mango.) The winning team of home-brewers and professional lifeguards from Sebastian, Florida, Michael Flinn and Jonathan Billings, join us.

Mike and Jonathan were most recently VIP guests in Southern California on January 4th for the Grand Finale Viewing Party of “Beerland” held at Golden Road Brewing’s new Anaheim Taproom and Restaurant across from Angel Stadium. All the guests in attendance were hosted to a 12 oz. can of Man-Go-War served at the conclusion of the finale viewing. This was Mike’s & Jonathan’s first opportunity to taste the finished production batch of Man-Go-War.

Every dedicated home-brewers’ dream is to create a craft beer that is appealing enough to go into commercial production. Viceland’s “Beerland” with host Meg Gill of Golden Road Brewing makes that dream a reality. For Season 2 Meg traveled to four US cities/regions and sought out the best home-brewers. Season 2’s travels included field trips to home-brewers in Portland, Alabama, Detroit and Florida.

Each finalist in those cities then competed at Los Angeles’ Golden Road Brewery in the Finale to decide the winner of “Beerland” Season 2. This was based on a panel of judges’ decision as well as a popular vote of attending craft beer enthusiasts. Meg Gill then made the final call.

The winning team of home-brewers and professional lifeguards from Sebastian, Florida, Michael Flinn and Jonathan Billings, join us.

Now a tempting preview of this Saturday’s mouthwatering show. It’s not, with profuse apologies, for dieters. If we’re successful we will always leave you incredibly hungry and thirsty. In our case, upon careful reflection, that’s probably a pretty good thing… Keep in mind we’re always here with you live every Saturday morning with a fresh show.

First a quick overview of the Forks, Corks & Pork Dinner at 4th & Olive Bistro and Wine Bar with Proprietor Dan Tapia. 4th & Olive Bistro & Wine Bar Executive Chef Alex McGroarty has partnered with Long Beach Chef Paul Buchanan, proprietor of Primal Alchemy Caterers, to design a multi-course dinner menu featuring pork in every course. The upcoming Forks, Corks & Pork dinner menu is available one night only, January 21st from 5-10pm at 4th & Olive Bistro & Wine Bar. The four- course plus amuse bouche and dessert menu is priced at $65 per guest and an optional beer/wine pairing is available.

Every home-brewers’ dream is to create a craft beer that is appealing enough to go into commercial production. Viceland’s “Beerland” with host Meg Gill of Golden Road Brewing makes that dream a reality. For Season 2 Meg traveled to four US cities/regions and sought out the best home-brewers. Each finalist in those cities then competed at Los Angeles’ Golden Road Brewery in the Finale to decide the winner of “Beerland” Season 2. That style, Man-Go-War, was then brewed on Golden Road’s 50-barrel system and is now available at retail in cans. The winning team are professional lifeguards from Sebastian, Florida. Michael Flinn and Jonathan Billings, join us.

Chef Pascal Olhats of Pascal San Juan Capistrano is recognized as the Dean of French Chefs in Orange County. 2018 marks his 30th year of being an independent restaurateur in Orange County. There will be special celebrations and menus to commemorate this worthy occasion. On Sunday, February 25th Pacal is hosting the 2nd year of The Gray Event benefit at Sherman Gardens to raise needed funds for the Save Elephant Foundation to rescue at-risk elephants in Thailand. We’ll chat with Chef Pascal.

Cameron Douglas enjoys the distinction of being New Zealand’s first certified Master Sommelier. He serves on the Board for the Court of Master Sommeliers Americas. He takes his position as unofficial Ambassador for New Zealand wine very seriously. Cameron is an experienced wine writer, commentator, judge, reviewer, presenter and consultant.

Our always dynamic Co-Host, Chef Andrew Gruel, is back in-studio from his recent adventures in Park City, Utah where he has just debuted the third Slapfish in Utah. Chef Andrew will share (and explain) some important hospitality business trends he sees for 2018.

Is delivery a growing trend for better restaurants? Is ticketing (and paying in advance) for fine dining a viable business model? This is another chapter of his conversation continued from the previous weeks.

Next week is a discussion of the “cashless” restaurant. Is this good for promoting welcoming hospitality?

Situated inside Herzog Wine Cellars in Oxnard, Tierra Sur Restaurant contin­ues to receive national recognition as one of the finest restaurants in Southern California. Head Chef Gabriel Garcia and his team bring bold and exciting ideas to life – while using only seasonal ingredients, sourced fresh from local farm­ers. Year over year, Tierra Sur has deservedly received the highest ZAGAT ratings in Ventura County.

Modern and inspired New American fare, and the ambiance of dining inside of the area’s largest winery delight guests of this truly one of a kind, farm-to-table concept. It’s unusually a kosher restaurant but you don’t have to be Jewish (or keep kosher) to fully appreciate the fine food or refined atmosphere.

Being located in the center of the region’s largest winery has its benefits; guests may order from a special ‘Wine Tasters Menu’ and enjoy a three -course prix fixe selection, each paired with Herzog Special Reserve award-winning wines. Whether stopping on the way to Santa Barbara, or traveling to Ventura County – Tierra Sur offers exceptional dining and a charming stop along the way.

Chef Gabe gently pulls the cork on the unusual experience for us.

It’s the culmination of SideDoor’s current cheese series. On January 17th it’s the Ultimate Cheese & Charcuterie Backyard Party at Corona del Mar’s SideDoor.

SideDoor is known for its award-winning cheese and charcuterie offerings, and in 2017 began presenting a new series dedicating one evening a month to boutique creameries and specialty cheeses. A different creamery is featured at each event, and twice a year the series culminates in the ultimate celebration of fromage with the Cheese & Charcuterie Backyard Party – the next taking place on Wednesday, January 17, 2018.

The evening will showcase the previous four creameries of the series including Jasper Hill (September 2017), Rogue (October 2017), French Theme (November 2017), and Andante (December 2017), and offer cheese, charcuterie, passed appetizers and beverage pairings. SideDoor’s own certified expert and cheese monger, Tracy Nelsen, will be on hand to educate guests on the various cheeses presented and to recommend the perfect pairings.

SideDoor is Corona del Mar’s first and only English gastropub. A red key hangs over the entryway on Poppy Street as an unspoken invitation to indulge in world-class spirits, craft beer and wine flights.

SideDoor’s resident certified expert cheese monger, Tracy Nelsen is our guest.

All sports fans eagerly anticipate putting their brackets together for the college basketball championships also known as March Madness. Why not a craft beer bracket competition with great prizes and samples of unique craft beers from 14 small producers?

For the 3rd year the ever- creative Jon Sanchez, the proprietor of the popular Native Son Alehouse in Downtown Santa Ana, has done just that. Every Thursday night, with the finals on March 29th, craft brewers are competing head-to-head in pairs. All participants were invited by the staff at Native Son Alehouse.

Already decided are the matchups between Artifex and Cellador Ales, and Mikkeller and Homage Brewing.

At any given time Native Son rotates a carefully hand-picked selection of 27 craft beer styles for their discriminating guests to enjoy. A new addition is the Ember BBQ kitchen serving Kansas City-style barbecue. We’ll be visiting with the dedicated culinary team of Embers BBQ on January 27th.

Jon taps the keg on the spirited competition just for us.

Chef Neal Fraser of Redbird in Downtown Los Angeles is the Host Chef for the upcoming C-CAP Los Angeles Full Circle Winter Dinner Benefit on February 9th. Chef Neal has assembled an impressive group of celebrity chefs to join him for the stellar evening.

It’s 6:30 p.m. for the Cocktail Reception featuring a specialty libation created by mixologist Devon Espinosa of Sunset & Vinyl and also a C-CAP alum. The grand, five-course premium wine & craft beer-paired Dinner (and the Live Auction) is set for 7:30 p.m.

The A-List chef brigade stars Host Chef Neal Fraser, Josiah Citrin (Melisse), Ben Ford (Ford’s Filling Station), Ray Garcia & Ivan Marquez (Broken Spanish), David LeFevre (Manhattan Beach Post), Jason Neroni (Rose Cafe), Amar Santana (Vaca & Broadway by Amar Santana), Michael Voltaggio (ink.well) and Sherry Yard (iPic Entertainment).

We also caught Chef Neal on national TV in colorful chef’s attire riding on the front of the Kaiser Permanente 2018 Rose Parade float. The float was named “Inspiring Healthy Communities.” We’ll ask Chef Neal about this unusual New Year’s Day honor.

We’ll pull Chef Neal out of the busy Redbird and Vibiana kitchens to provide a tempting preview.

January 27th marks the return of Orange County’s all-noodle-everything food festival, NOODS NOODS NOODS, presented by Foodbeast. This wild and unrestrained food festival will feature some of the craziest, most delicious, and inspired noodle creations.

Event Date: January 27th, 2018

Event Location: Downtown Santa Ana, outside of Esports Arena at 120 W 5th st, Santa Ana CA 92701

Standard Ticket Price: $10 Marketplace | $60 VIP

Tickets for NOODS NOODS NOODS can be purchased right here.

Listen to the podcast to obtain a special discount offer for VIP admission exclusively for our listeners. It does sell out!

Foodbeast Founder Elie Ayrouth joins us with the slurp-worthy details.

Surprisingly craft beer is still a bit of a novelty in Mexico due to some odd distribution regulations. Fortunately (due to very hard work among dedicated & patient beer aficionados) these archaic regulations have been relaxed in the last few years and local craft beers can now reach restaurants and bars. In Sunny Puerto Vallarta the first craft brewery and brewpub to gain traction is the growing Los Muertos Brewery.

“For years during the proliferation of tourism in Mexican beach destinations like Puerto Vallarta the beer scene was completely dominated by smooth drinking Mexican lagers. As demonstrated by every Corona commercial ever this is great for sitting on a beach. To this day many tourists think of a “local” Mexican beers as Corona, Pacifico, or Dos Equis XX. But as a growing number of beer drinkers are pushing craft tastes into the mainstream these standard macro beers definitely leave many connoisseurs wanting more. Upon relocating full time to Puerto Vallarta, the founders of Los Muertos could not have agreed more. Driven by the thirst for flavorful varieties of beer, bringing Vallarta its first craft brewery became their dream.”

Los Muertos Brewery has become a popular destination for locals, visitors from other parts of Mexico, South America and the US, as well as American ex-pats now living in Vallarta.

Expansion is on the way. A new building a few doors away from the existing brewery restaurant has been secured. It will be expanded brewing capacity alongside a different food concept. Stay tuned…

We’ll enjoy a cold one with founder & restaurateur Conner Watts.