Sweet'N Up with Jeff Spencer

Zac Ross was previously head brewer at Kent Falls Brewing Company here in Connecticut before moving to Virginia to head the barrel program at Aslin Beer Co. In 2019, Zac came back to Connecticut to become head brewer at Twelve Percent's new production brewery in North Haven, CT. Twelve Percent produces beer on a contract basis for Stillwater, Evil Twin, Omnipollo, Dugges, Hoof Hearted, and Zac's new Marlowe Artisan Ales, a brand named after his late grandfather.

We had a fantastic conversation live over ZOOM video conferencing chatting about Zac’s start in the brewery world, where his love of beer comes from, what it’s like being a head brewer, his time at Kent Falls Farm Brewery, his favorite styles of beer to brew & drink, what he enjoys doing in his free time, his new brand Marlowe Ales & so much more! Zoom and our internet connection wasn’t the kindest to us so we apologize for the audio, but hey these things happen!!

Peter Le Floch is an incredible artist originally from Brewster, NY now living in Bethel, CT! You may have seen some of his works either live on Instagram with MSNBC’s Ari Melber, driving around Bethel, CT or when you are visiting Good Old Days Pizzeria & Cocktail Den in Newtown, CT.

We had a fantastic, wide-ranging conversation live in my new apartment here in Danbury talking about Peter’s start in the art world, his favorite style of art, how he made it through COVID-19 as an artist, how he met Ari Melber and got to showcase one of his commissions with Notorious B.I.G & Mobb Deep, his street art in Bethel, as well as some crazy stories from his earlier days in New York City, the artwork in Good Old Days Pizzeria & Cocktail Den & so much more!

Joseph Cavo is the current Mayor of Danbury, CT having taken over for previous Mayor Mark Boughton in December of 2020. Mayor Joe has called Danbury his home for over 35 years and has been a member of the Danbury City Council since 2003, of which he had been President since 2006.

We had a fantastic conversation live via ZOOM video conferencing covering Mayor Joe’s time as Mayor since December of last year, how he has gotten by during the age of COVID-19, his early days growing up in Brooklyn & New Jersey, what he enjoys doing in his free time as well as his thoughts on the John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant and so much more!

Dave Ackert is the Chief Maple Officer of Maple Craft Foods Based out of Sandy Hook CT, Dave & his family began harvesting maple sap from trees at family homes in Connecticut and Vermont in 2001. He did this because he loved maple syrup and wanted kids to develop a healthy connection with natural food and where it comes from.

After unthinkable tragedy struck our community in Sandy Hook, CT, he re-prioritized how he wanted to spend his time and energy. Dave & his family decided to start Maple Craft Foods in 2014 to help make people smile and develop healthier connections with food, with nature and with each other, while also supporting survivors and volunteers working to make our communities safer and sweeter.

They still tap their own trees, but also use high quality, organic maple syrup supplied by friends who slow boil it traditionally, over an open flame, on a farm in Vermont, giving it its rich caramel color and robust taste. One taste of Maple Craft products will make you smile. Available in Whole Foods, Williams Sonoma and close to 1,000 other stores, Maple Craft Foods is on the rise.

Miguel Rivas, who many consider the 'Anthony Bourdain of Craft Beer' is a Brooklyn-based photographer. His background in photography comes from his passion for live music shows, traveling, and the artistry of craft beers. He's the founder and curator of The BeerTrekker project, a photographic journey and storytelling project about beer culture and the people behind it. Over the last 4 years, Miguel has been published in prestigious industry magazines like Beeradvocate, Craftbeer.com, Craft Beer & Brewing as well as The New York Times Magazine and Plate Magazine. He’s also been on Beer Sessions Radio on the Heritage Radio Network and panels like Travel + Social Good to talk about #Beertography and the power of social media, branding, and brand recognition in the craft beer world.

Check him out on Instagram - @TheBeerTrekker

Johnny Kraszewski is the Captain and Founder of Armada Brewing Company located in East Haven, Connecticut. It all began when a passion for craft beer and fantasy adventure stories collided on a kitchen stove top while founder John Kraszewski was living in Chicago, IL. Armed with a journal of beer recipes and an epic story to tell John moved back to his home state of Connecticut and launched Armada Brewing to the public in January 2017.

Armada Brewing is a proud member of The Beeracks; a collaborative brew space in East Haven, Connecticut. Inside The Beeracks they pump out a legion of beers for all to enjoy.

Visit armadabeer.com for more!

Jeff Taibe & Steph Sweeney are the owners of Taproot in Bethel, CT. Taibe previously served as the Executive Chef of Kawa Ni (Westport), a Japanese izakaya serving globally inspired small plates and ramen, and Oak and Almond (Norwalk), a New American restaurant featuring farm-to-table wood-fired fare.

Prior to bringing his simple and seasonal cooking style to Connecticut’s burgeoning restaurant scene, Taibe earned his stripes all over the globe. His resume includes positions in Thailand, St. Pierre (Singapore), and Beaches (Turk & Caicos), as well stints at Abigail Kirsch and Union Square Cafe in his native New York.

Jeff and I had such a fun conversation live in the Sweet N Up Podcast studio talking all things Taproot, the new menu, what its like cooking all over the globe, his culinary icons, learning about food and culture and so much more!

*Episode #45* (I said 44, oops! Lol) Matt Stanczak is a partner of GOOD OLD DAYS PIZZERIA AND COCKTAIL DEN that opened in December 2020 in the basement of Marygolds on Main here in Newtown, Ct. Pizza aficionados know him well as the former owner of Stanziato’s in Danbury, which he opened in 2009 and sold in 2015. 

After selling his business in 2015 Stanczak worked as a consultant, but was intrigued by the potential of this new space in Newtown, CT. Good Old Days opened in late December, mere weeks ahead of Marygold’s. He serves “Thin and crispy” pizzas, which feed one or two guests and feature creative flavor profiles. On top of that he has square pies as well that are light and airy and I keep going back for more! 

We had such a fun conversation, covering all things Pizza, his start in the industry, where this passion comes from, his culinary icons, and so much more! This is the ULTIMATE pizza lovers episode!

Katherine Hansen is the owner of Newtown Salt Spa here in Newtown, Connecticut! Originally with a background in forensics and crime scene investigation, she changed paths when her husband relocated for his job. Katherine traveled with her mom often and one of their trips took them to Poland where they toured the Salt Mines. While there she noticed how much better she felt - from cleared sinuses to an overall better feeling throughout the body. She learned that people from all over Poland move closer in order to send their kids to a school that is located inside the mine to help with breathing issues such as allergies and asthma. She also learned that salt therapy, called Halo-therapy, has been used in Europe for hundreds of years and is still prescribed by doctors as a complement to modern medications. Together with the help and support of her family and friends Katherine built the Newtown Salt Spa salt brick by salt brick.

Katherine and I had a great conversation, covering her background in forensics and crime scene investigation, opening the salt spa, traveling with her mom, her love for Newtown, what she enjoys doing in her free time, surviving COVID-19 shutdown and so much more.

Rob Scheer is the founder of Comfort Cases and an outspoken advocate for youth in foster care. His interview with Upworthy went viral in February 2017 garnering more than 100 million views, and he was later featured on Ellen and The Today Show. He was given a trash bag to pack his belongings, as he entered his first foster home at the age of 12. When he aged out of the system at 18, he became homeless, and again packed up his belongings in a trash bag. Nearly 30 years later when he became a foster parent, his four children arrived at his home with trash bags. He was saddened that nothing had changed. In 2013, Rob’s family and their community founded Comfort Cases and set out on a mission to eliminate trash bags from the foster care system.

Rob tells his story from the beginning until where he is today to give you the feel of what it was like being in his shoes. I asked him what we could do better with our foster care system, what it was like having his book published by Derek Jeter and Simon & Schuster, what hes taken away from his work at Comfort Cases, his passions in life and so much more!