Steal This Beer

Episode 302 - Evan Price, Green Cheek Beer Co.

Happy Monday, Thieves! We’re phoning into warmer climes this week with Evan Price of Orange County, California's Green Cheek Beer Co. We talk a while about the frustrations of ever-changing pandemic restrictions in LA and Southern California and how Evan and his team have tried their best to keep up with the cycles of shutting down and reopening over and over. We have a fun discussion of the blind beers (yes, Justin got them to everyone this week #2021JUSTIN) and geek out a little on water profiles for West Coast vs. New England IPA's. All in all, we had a great time chatting with Evan and think you'll enjoy the listen. Tune in and let us know what you think!

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.

Episode 301 - Jeff Alworth is back for 2021

Happy MLK Day, Thieves! We’re three episodes into the new year so we thought it was about time to get Jeff Alworth back on the show to help us digest 2020 and look forward to the remainder of 2021. Jeff talks us through some major changes that happened in his city of Portland, Oregon, last year including the shuttering of more than one of PDX’s legacy breweries. We talk about the reasons for those and why he’s hopeful that 2021 will be a better year for beer. Tune in and let us know what you think!

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.

Episode 300 - Vinnie Cilurzo, Russian River Brewing Co.

We made it, Thieves! This week marks a milestone on the show. We've achieved the 300 episode mark. For the last 100x3 weeks we've come to you Monday at 5pm. Some shows have been better than others, many were at Barcade Jersey City or Treadwell Park in Manhattan. Sometimes we took it on the road to Boston, or Philly, or Atlantic Highlands, NJ. More than once we had Chief, Evan Watson, and our friends stop by to pour beer into the black glass. It got nutty sometimes. 

To mark this significant number of shows we called out to California and asked Vinnie Cilurzo of Russian River to finally give us the recipe for Pliny the Elder. He did not disappoint. Over the course of this very very very long episode he tastes along with us (Casse was in charge of both beer selection and FedEx. Well done, young man) in the black glasses and shares stories about his first ever canned beer, his relationship with Sierra Nevada and what Younger Day will look like for 2021. 

We've made it this far because of you, so thanks for all the support and conversation. Looking forward to 300 more. 

Cheers!

Augie, John, Justin, and Casse

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.

Episode 299 - Kevin Davey, Wayfinder Beer

Happy 2021, Thieves! We’ve made it across the line to a new year and we’re happy to share our first show with you. This week we’re welcoming Kevin Davey of Portland’s Wayfinder Beer to the show to talk about lagers, “Cold IPA’s”, and all things low-temp fermentation. It’s a fun talk and a great way of easing into the start of a new year before celebrating our 300th episode (!!!) next week. Tune in and let us know what you think!

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.

Episode 298 - 2020 Holiday Special with Joel Shelton

Happy Almost 2021, Thieves! It's a holiday tradition around these parts to close out a calendar year with a visit by Joel Shelton. We weren't going to let a pandemic or the recent closure of his brother's beer import business get in the way. We dialed up Joel to talk about the shit show of the year that was. He has some stories. Since the postal service stranded Justin's Bodega beers (Hey, we have tote bags available) at some sorting facility near the Gowanus Canal for weeks, we had to dip into our cellars to open something special. 

From talking about reconnecting with his music career, to holiday traditions, and what the future might hold for travel, beers coming to our shores, and more Joel was a real delight to connect with as usual. 

So, open up something from your cellar and toast us as we end 2020 and get ready for the new year. 

Cheers! 

Augie, John, Justin, and Brian

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.

Episode 297 - Sean Towers & Amanda Cardinali, The Seed Beer Project

Happy Monday, Thieves! We're headed down the Jersey Shore to visit with one of the state's newest breweries, The Seed Beer Project. Owner Sean Towers walks us through all that the Seed is and how opening during COVID-19 impacted the business. Listen in as a budding brewing romance builds between Augie and Sean that will sure to lead to some kind of collaboration down the line. Cassee also has a new toy that he tries to get working throughout the show. We're minus beers for the black glass this week because of a delivery service snafu, so each of us decided to go into our cellar or beer fridge to open something special. Augie takes us on a three episode journey with his selection. Tune in and let us know what you think!

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.

Episode 296 - Mike Messenie, Dutchess Ales

Happy Monday, Thieves! One of the things we miss most about going to bars is the opportunity to drink cask ales. We miss it even more after our recent conversation with Mike Messenie of Dutchess Ales, a small brewery from Wassaic, NY that crafts some of the most subtle and delightful cask ales we've had in years. Though Dutchess has recently shifted to contract brewing a variety of different styles at locations in Brooklyn and on Long Island, we discuss our mutual love for traditional real ale and talk about what drives Mike to make beers that are considered by many to be unfashionable. (Think: ESB, English-style pale ale, etc.). Our special guest, Brian Altschul, also joins us and tastes along in the black glasses. Tune in and let us know what you think!   

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.

Episode 295 - Josh Noel, author of Barrel-Aged Stout and Selling Out

Josh Noel taking a photo of all the awards he received for his book, Barrel Aged Stout and Selling Out. Courtesy of John Holl, of course.

Happy Monday, Thieves! If you tuned into our show with Ryan Scott of Odd 13 last week, you'll recall Justin played a rather mean trick on Augie, John, and Ryan by putting a "Christmas IPA" from ABI/Goose Island in the second black glass. That beer's barely-drinkable nature prompted us to wonder aloud whether we should get Josh Noel on the show. Josh literally wrote the book on Goose Island—BARREL-AGED STOUT AND SELLING OUT: GOOSE ISLAND, ANHEUSER-BUSCH AND HOW CRAFT BEER BECAME BIG BUSINESS—focusing on the eventual AB acquisition of that company, so we wanted to talk to him about what the hell we just tasted. So we called him up and got him to join this week. Tune in and you'll hear us discuss the journey that lead Goose from a small Chicago brewpub all the way to that repulsive Christmas beer we sampled last week. Tune in and let us know what you think!

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.

Episode 294 - Ryan Scott, Odd 13 Brewing (Third Time's a Charm)

Happy Monday, Thieves! We've tried twice to record a normal episode with Ryan Scott of Colorado's Odd 13 Brewing. The first was at a festival in Breckenridge a few years back. Justin hired a local recording engineer to record episodes in Holl's hotel room and, for one reason or another, the files were corrupted and we were never able to retrieve the audio. The second time was back out in Denver at Bierstadt Lagerhaus. Augie and John spent the morning sampling and pulling nails with Ryan at his brewery before we re-attempted a recording. That one panned out, but we were all in such bad shape we ended up posting it as a Patreon-only episode--a behind-the-scenes "treat" for our most ardent supporters.

Third time's a charm, or so they said, so we decided to give it one last shot and we think it turned out pretty well! Tune in here and let us know what you think!

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.

Episode 293 - Chris Herron & Adam Beauchamp, Creature Comforts Brewing

Happy Monday, Thieves! Who doesn't love Fat Thor? This week we're glad to welcome Chris Herron and Adam Beauchamp of Creature Comforts Brewing in  Athens, GA (and coming soon to Los Angeles, CA). Chris is the CEO and Adam is the brewmaster of the rapidly growing brewery that has a lot of deep thoughts on the world of craft. Specifically you might remember an article that Chris wrote a few years back. It stuck in Augie's mind and so we spend a good amount of time talking about how craft has evolved, how the larger breweries are confusing the market and customers, and how the little guy can fight back.  Then we get to talk about the brewery's cameo in Avengers: Endgame and how that eventually led to them announcing a soon-to-open brewery in Los Angeles. It's cool to geek out when they mention the Russo Brothers. We sure did.  Justin hit us with some fun in the black glass, but USPS dropped the ball and the fellas of Creature Comforts weren't able to play along. Tune in here to hear all about it, and of course let us know what you think!

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As always, you can email your questions, complaints, whimpers, or whines to us at [email protected]. We read everything we get and we'll try to respond as quickly as we can. If not online, then on air. And THANKS! You can subscribe to STB on iTunes and PLEASE LEAVE US A REVIEW!!! Co-hosts: Augie Carton & John Holl Producer: Justin Kennedy Engineer: Brian Casse Music: "Abstract Concepts - What Up in the Streets" by Black Ant.