The Brewery Underground Podcast | Craft Beer Interviews, Reviews and Beer Travel

Earlier this year, we had the opportunity to meet up with beer community friends Tom and Tracy Munden here in Nashville. They were visiting from Colorado and live in the western part of the state.

Tom reached out to us after listening to our podcast. We all spent a few hours together one evening at Stoke Haus Brewing and Barbecue in East Nashville. It was there we shared a lot of laughs over some great beer. Plus, some unexpected surprises that you will hear us talk about.

Tom is known as Colorado Beer Hunter on social media platforms. He's also a Cicerone-CBS.

He's been all around Colorado visiting many of the breweries and has a website dedicated to all his brewery travels.

In addition, he's been a judge in a local beer festival. That led us into doing a bit of a deep dive of what you can learn judging beer styles.

One beer style we debated was the seasonal pumpkin beers that are out right now

Our beer discussion also led us down the path of " Untappd", and the rating system used by all of us. Tom has rated more than a few beers on there!

Cheers!

Our friend Cody Brown from Cody’s Beer Adventures sent us a box, so naturally we had to open it on camera and see what was inside.

We dug into a haul featuring North Carolina craft beer from Salty Turtle Beer Company, Bill’s Brewing Company, Wilmington Brewing Company and more, with everything from hazy and West Coast IPAs to a honey brown ale.

And Cody didn't stop at beer. There were a few bourbon and whiskey surprises hiding at the bottom of the box too.

Thanks to Cody for the killer beer mail and for giving us another reason to put Wilmington and the North Carolina coast on our craft beer travel radar.

This is a BONUS VIDEO and not a numbered episode of The Brewery Underground Podcast.

Cheers from The Brewery Underground!

We’re smack dab in the middle of Murfreesboro, Tennessee for a special collaboration episode with our friends The Foamy Heads!

For Episode 144 of The Brewery Underground Podcast, we sit down with the team behind Smackdab Brewing for a behind-the-scenes look at a brewery that’s getting closer to opening its doors. We recorded inside their future taproom while the work was still underway, giving us a chance to hear the story before the first official pint is poured.

The Smackdab crew shares how a group of homebrewers spent years working toward opening their own brewery, why they chose to put down roots near downtown Murfreesboro, and the work that has gone into transforming an older family-owned building into their future home.

We also talk about their plans for the beer. Expect everything from traditional lagers, Czech pilsners and dark beers to hazy and West Coast IPAs, fruited sours and more experimental releases. Smackdab even has a cool concept planned for its beer menus: “Analog” for traditional styles and “Digital” for the more modern and experimental side of craft beer.

And because this is a Foamy Underground collaboration, with our good friends Rich and Mitch, you know there are plenty of laughs, beer conversations and detours along the way.

Join The Brewery Underground Podcast and The Foamy Heads as we get an early look at Smackdab Brewing and the next chapter of craft beer in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

This is a Foamy Underground Production.

Cheers!

Steve & Scott recently hit the road and took a trip to Cincinnati! This annual adventure is one we look forward to every year. We covered a lot of ground during the entire week.

Our goal was to visit many of the local breweries we been before. We also checked off other new ones. Including a taproom at a Marathon Gas Station!

Making our list of breweries on this trip:

• Brink Brewing
• Braxton Factory 52
• Wooden Cask
• Hofbrauhaus
• Darkness Brewing
• Northern Row
• Little Miami Brewing Company
• Big Ash Brewing
• Streetside Brewery
• Dead Low
• Esoteric Brewing
• West Side Brewing
• HighGrain
• Rhinegeist
• Madtree
• Mt. Carmel
• Wandering Monsters
• Paradise Brewing

Hofbrauhaus in Newport, Kentucky invited us in for a tour, and taste of the great beer they have to offer. This was a memorable highlight.

Another memorable highlight was attending the 50th Anniversary of Oktoberfest Zinzinnati! It was at this event, we got to meet Jim Koch, co-founder of Sam Adams. The gathering for all the festivities also included meeting up with many friends in the beer community.

Wandering Monsters had been on our list for a while of getting to. We attended a ticketed beer event that turned out to be pretty spectacular.

Prost!

It’s Oktoberfest season, and we’re celebrating by bringing Episodes 108 & 109 (Parts 1 and 2) of our conversation with Hofbräuhaus America together into one complete episode!

Steve and Scott are joined by Steve Ksycki and Jerry Bishop from Hofbräuhaus America to dive into the beer, history, culture, and traditions behind one of the most recognizable names in German beer.

We explore what makes an authentic Munich Oktoberfest beer different from many of the Oktoberfest beers Americans are familiar with, why Hofbräuhaus chose to bring the same style served in Munich to the United States, and how centuries of Bavarian brewing tradition continue to shape the brand today.

We also talk about the legendary Hofbräuhaus München, the history and pride surrounding Bavarian beer culture, the Reinheitsgebot, traditional German beer styles, proper glassware, Hofbräuhaus locations in the United States, and what it takes to bring authentic Hofbräuhaus beer from Munich to American beer drinkers.

And, of course, we get into Oktoberfest itself—including the six Munich breweries, the beer served at the festival, and why Hofbräu's connection to Oktoberfest is about much more than simply releasing a seasonal beer.

Whether you're planning an Oktoberfest celebration, love German beer, have visited Munich, or simply want to understand the history behind the beer in your stein, this episode is a deep dive into the traditions that have made Hofbräuhaus part of Bavarian beer culture for centuries.

Originally released as Episodes 108 & 109 of The Brewery Underground Podcast, now combined and re-released as one complete episode for Oktoberfest season.

Prost!

Prost! Oktoberfest season is here, and we’re celebrating with some of our favorite Oktoberfest conversations from the past year.

We revisit guests from across the craft beer community to talk Märzens, seasonal releases, Oktoberfest celebrations, beer travel, and the age-old question: when is it too early for Oktoberfest beer?

From Tennessee to Australia and beyond, grab a stein and celebrate one of our favorite times of the beer year with The Brewery Underground Podcast!

Prost!

The Brewery Underground Podcast sits down with Von Wotring of Curio Brewing Company for a wide-ranging conversation about the future of craft beer in Middle Tennessee, the evolution of Curio Brewing, and a major new chapter: Leiper's Creek Brewing.

Von shares the story behind Curio Brewing in Franklin, Tennessee, and why creating a true sense of community around beer has always been at the center of what he does.

We talk about brewery tourism, the challenges facing independent breweries, and what it means to operate a craft brewery in one of Tennessee’s fastest-growing areas.

We also sample several of Von’s beers and dig into styles including English Pale Ale, Kölsch, West Coast IPA, amber lager, ESB, and the ingredients and brewing decisions that give each beer its character.

Then the conversation turns toward the future.

Von explains the decision to close Curio’s original taproom and move toward a new agricultural brewing model centered around his family farm near Leiper’s Fork. The vision includes growing hops and barley, brewing beer on the farm, supporting Tennessee agriculture, and creating an experience that helps visitors understand where beer ingredients actually come from.

We discuss Tennessee’s Farm to Tap initiative, the relationship between breweries and local farmers, brewery legislation, beer taxes, sustainability, spent grain, and how farm breweries could help strengthen both Tennessee agriculture and the state’s craft beer industry.

Von also talks about the importance of rural brewery destinations, community-driven breweries, preserving local culture, and why some of the best brewery experiences require getting off the interstate and exploring smaller towns.

And during the conversation, Von gives The Brewery Underground Podcast an exclusive: Curio Brewing is evolving into Leiper's Creek Brewing, a new identity designed to better represent the farm, agriculture, community, and Middle Tennessee roots behind the beer.

From Franklin craft beer and Tennessee-grown hops to farm brewing, brewery tourism, agriculture, community, and the future of independent breweries, this episode covers a lot of ground.

If you love Tennessee craft beer, brewery stories, farm breweries, local agriculture, beer tourism, or discovering what’s next in the brewing industry, this episode is for you.

Cheers! 🍻

In Episode 140 of The Brewery Underground Podcast, Steve and Scott head Down Under—virtually—to hang out with JT Krafty from Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, for a conversation all about craft beer, travel and the global beer community.

JT shares his perspective on Australia’s growing craft beer scene, the beers and breweries making an impact there, and some of the differences between beer culture in Australia and the United States. And yes, we settle one important question along the way: Australians really don’t drink Foster’s the way Americans might think they do.

The conversation goes well beyond Australia as JT takes us through his beer travels in Thailand and Japan, where he’s discovered thriving craft beer scenes, unique breweries and beers that can be difficult—or expensive—to find back home. For JT, finding great beer while traveling can become a treasure hunt, whether it means following recommendations from friends, checking Untappd or jumping on a train to track down something new.

We also talk stouts, IPAs, Oktoberfest, Australian beer culture, beer festivals, social media and JT’s growing presence on Instagram, where his passion for sharing beers and beer stories has connected him with thousands of fellow beer lovers.

But at the center of this episode is something we’ve talked about since the beginning of The Brewery Underground Podcast: community. What started with a beer lover in Australia discovering our podcast has grown into a friendship spanning more than 9,000 miles—and a perfect example of how craft beer can bring people together no matter where they live.

Grab a beer and join us for a trip from Nashville to Brisbane and beyond with JT Krafty!

 Cheers!

The Brewery Underground Podcast heads to Rochester, New York, for an inside look at one of America's most historic beer brands — Genesee Brewing Company.

In Episode 139, Steve and Scott are joined by the Genesee Brew House team: Brew House Master Dean Jones, Assistant Brewer Matt Slattery, historian Paul Constantine, Sam Marroquin who creates all of the merch, and General Manager Carl Falk.

Together, they take us through nearly 150 years of Genesee brewing history and the special relationship between the brewery and the city of Rochester.

We dive into the iconic Genesee Cream Ale and the brewery's legacy beers while exploring the creativity happening today at the Genesee Brew House.

Dean and the team talk about balancing tradition with modern craft beer, seasonal favorites like Orange Honey Cream Ale, the history of JW Dundee Honey Brown, experimental beers, and creating something new without losing what has made Genesee recognizable for generations.

We also explore some incredible chapters in Genesee's history — surviving Prohibition, the brewery's historic proprietary ale yeast, classic advertising and the famous Jenny Girl, and the massive fermentation tanks that made their way to Rochester through the Erie Canal.

Then there's the Rochester connection. The crew explains why Genesee is much more than a brewery to the local community, from the Genesee Brew House, restaurant and beer garden to the annual Keg Tree celebration that draws thousands of people and has become a Rochester holiday tradition.

With Genesee approaching its 150th anniversary in 2028, we also look ahead at how a brewery with generations of history continues to evolve while staying true to the beer, people and city that helped build it.

From Genesee Cream Ale and craft beer innovation to Prohibition, Rochester history and nearly 150 years of brewing tradition, this episode tells the story of why Genesee remains one of America's most recognizable regional breweries.

Cheers!

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We were delighted to be invited to take a tour of 111 Motor Cars in Franklin, Tennessee on a recent Saturday. This was an experience we won't forget. Now, it's time for you to take a ride with us on what this place is all about.

Jeremy Scates, President and Co-Founder of 111 Motor Cars, and Von Wotring, owner of Curio Brewing Company sat down with us on this day. Taking time out of his very busy schedule, Jeremy explained the concept of this magnificent operation. From luxury vehicles to a car you drive every day, they work on them all. But wait, there's more!

111 Motor Cars is also the home where many vehicles are housed. If you've ever known someone who may have a "car problem" meaning they need room to store them, this could be the place for you.

Some of these cars have decades of history! Others showcase the newest technology available today. Then the ones with quite the reputation as you will see and hear during this episode.

But why stop there? 111 Motor Cars also believes in community. When you drop by, they want you have a good experience. That's where Von Wotring enters the picture. He has set up inside this massive complex, a place where you can sit and relax, and have a beer from his brewery. If that's not your thing, there are other options to.

We took a lot of pictures on this day and shared them throughout this episode.

Cheers!