What better way to kick of St. Patrick's Day 2022 than to feature the team at Guinness Open Gate Brewery in Baltimore MD!?! 

Today we're talking with the National Brand Ambassador, Ryan Wagner and Head Brewer of the Guinness Open Gate Brewery in Baltimore Maryland, Sean Brennan. 

First things first, we pronounce “Sláinte” properly and what it actually means.  We discuss the history of the Nitro Pour, a 9,000 year lease (!) and the Guinness Book of World Records.  The more you know! 

We dive into the plethora of breweries Guinness has that you didn't know about, including Open Gate in MD, their 1,000,000 visitor(!) and all of the 20+ other beers you were unaware of.  Oh, and they have a new brewery coming to Chicago, IL!  

Go visit.  Happy St. Patty's Day and, well, Slainte! https://www.guinnessbrewerybaltimore.com/ #guinness #guinnessstout #beermightythings

Today, we’re talking Barrel Aging 101 & Wild Yeast Innovations with none other than the former Barrel Program Manager at New Holland and Goose Island (Bourbon County!) and now the Technical Brewing Manager Mark Anthony Brewing (White Claw Seltzer) in Chicago IL - Tim Faith.

We discuss his origin story from Pre-Med to homebrewing to professional brewing, and his OG beer blog - www.beertotry.blogspot.com

We break down Barrel Aging 101 and why it's become so popular. We talk barrel types, transitioning from Traditional Brewer to Barrel Program Manager, how to prepare barrels, tasting notes, time, temperatures and what not to do.

At the end, we get into what Tim's really excited about regarding innovations in the wild yeast spectrum.

Enjoy!

We had a blast talking about a great event in the works.  Get excited! 

The WCFA Executive Director and WIBS Founder, Melissa McCann is a Certified Beer Judge and has been involved in the beer community for several years organizing, volunteering, and managing beer events.  

Michele Wonder is the WCFA Marketing/Web Director and WIBS Co-founder Michele Wonder is a self proclaimed beer/fermentation geek. She is an award winning home brewer, BJCP Certified beer judge, and is a fledgling blogger at seesmelltastebeer.com    

The Women’s Craft Fermentation Alliance (WCFA) founded 2021 and is ready for the 2nd annual Women’s International Beer Summit (WIBS) taking place virtually through Crowdcast Saturday, April 23 and Sunday, April 24th. The summit will kick off with keynote speaker Julia Herz, Executive Director of the American Homebrewers Association, with over 35 sessions and over 55 speakers from around the globe to follow over the course of the two-day event.  

WFCA is dedicated to enabling, empowering and encouraging women and non-binary folks in all facets of the craft fermentation space, and this year’s summit is representing that with a wide range of topics including how to build a brewery, hop sensory analysis, becoming a BJCP certified judge, creating more safe and inclusive workspaces, the history of beer, cider-making, digital content strategy, yeast science, NA Beer and the strategy behind crowdfunding to launch the first female-led craft brewery in Rwanda with Kweza Craft Brewery. 

Learn plenty more here:  https://wcfa.beer    and   https://wcfa.beer/2022-wibs 

And follow on IG at:   @womensintlbeersummit   //  @seesmelltastebeer Michele's Blog:  https://seesmelltastebeer.com/

We welcome back our friends Matthew Steinberg, Head Brewer/Co-Founder and Kelsey Roth, General Manager of Exhibit ‘A’ Brewing Company in Framingham, Massachusetts - known for its local sourcing, social initiatives, and great beer.

Did you know that for every case of Exhibit ‘A’ beer you drink, you support 24 square feet of local farmland?  #themoreyouknow

We discuss the Square Foot Project and their Northeast Grainshed collab with Valley Malt, Kent Falls and Big Alice, their various initiatives around diversity, equity and inclusion and the importance of a GM - what they do, when to hire, and why it's key!

Go online and order their beer!  It's tasty and made with love! (Alaska, DC, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and Virginia)

This was fun, enjoy!

Check out Episode 35 with Exhibit A Brewing  &  Episode 79 with the GrainShed

Follow: @sqftproject // @northeastgrains  // @exhibitAbrewing

Today we connect with Julie Rhodes, Founder of Not Your Hobby Marketing Solutions in Denver, CO. We talk about Julie's journey from Texas to Chicago to Colorado, her gateway beers, and her "weird skillsets."  

We dive deep into Distributor Management and selling your core, flagship brands as well as helping you create a Release Calendar.

She loves email and tells us how to ask your customers what they want, and how to create emails that get opened, read and clicked.

She's a Certified Strategic Coach and wants to help you succeed.  Visit her website to book a call and you can choose one-on-one, a group chat or an online course at your pace.

Also - catch Julie at the THRIVE workshop at the 2022 CBC in Minnesota.

Follow Julie at @notyourhobbymarketing on IG and @NotYourHobbyMS on Twitter

www.notyourhobbymarketing.com/

Marc Martin of North West Brewery Advisors has consulted and guided over 50 North American breweries in getting up and running. 

We're talking A to Z - Choosing your location, floor plan, system design, STEEL(!), brewing processes, training, equipment, and recipe scaling. He teaches me a new term -“Kettle Factor,” and we hit on how to choose your contractors and the common mistake with brewery setup.

We discuss why a start-up brewery needs to invest in a consultant and a realistic startup budget.  This was fun.  Enjoy!

Don't hesitate to contact Marc: 

[email protected]

512-917-2464

Liquid Confidence was founded in January of 2021 to give health conscious drinkers a better-for-you spirits-based canned cocktail with the functional benefits of traditional kombucha (probiotics & electrolytes). 

Co-Founder & CEO of Liquid Confidence, Ashley Sherman, runs us through her background and the leadership team behind the Chicago-based brand.   We talk through the Kombucha and how to make it as well as the evolution of Ready to Drink Cocktails (RTDs) Liquid Confidence's "hero sku" is a Bourbon Whiskey and kombucha cocktail, infused with fresh Lemon and ginger. 

For more information, head over to www.liquid-confidence.com, follow on Instagram @LQConfidence and Ashley encourages you to email her at [email protected]  Keep an eye out for this MIGHTY product!

The first episode of 2022 (and 10,000th listen!) features beer blogger Jeff Alworth. Jeff is a blogger/author living in Portland, Oregon. 

He is the author of The Beer Bible (1 & 2), Cider Made Simple, The Widmer Way, Beer Tasting Tool Kit, and The Secrets of Master Brewers.  His writing is renowned in the industry and he's a wealth of knowledge and a great guy to have a beer with.  

We talk about the explosion and evolution of craft beer over the last decade, how the Widmer Brothers shaped Craft Beer in Portland and what he's learned from traveling for beer. 

The Beer Bible 2nd Edition breaks down into 4 parts:  The History, The Variety, The Curiosity and The Pleasure. We talk trends, cannabis companies getting into beer, unique farmhouse styles in Lithuania and his favorite author(s). 

Give him a follow on IG and Twitter:  @jeff.alworth @beervana - jeffalworth.com - @beervanapod

It's a wrap!  2021 has come to an end and a wild ride it was.  In this episode, I share with you the milestones achieved and recap the Top 10 Most-Listened-to Episodes. Thanks for being a listener!

Top 10 - Most to Least:

# 107 - On Making Change F'ing Happen! with Brienne Allan & Ash Eliot

#  78 - On SELL. MORE. BEER. with Taphandles LLC

#  87 - On Bringing Your Draft System out of Hibernation with Micro Matic

#  93 - On Boosting Taproom Sales with Secret Hopper

# 106 - On Strong Foundations & Integrity with Wild Goose Filling

#  75 - On Hop Contracts with Yakima Chief Hops (YCH)

# 110 - On Yeast Care & QC Practices with Imperial Yeast & BruSciences

#  74 - On 0.0% Alcohol with Hairless Dog Brewing

#  92 - On Coloring Outside the Lines with Naked Brewing Co

#  79 - On Embracing Community with the Northeast Grainshed Alliance

Cheers!  and #beermightythings