Podcast 43: Beers Near and Far

Social Media Tags:

Dancing Gnome

Cinderlands

War Streets Brewery

Bier’s Pub

Church Brewworks

Eleventh Hour Brewery

Levante Brewing

Deschutes Brewery

The Beers We Drank:

The Paddler - Grist House (Dessert Sour - 7.5%)

Better 1 or 2 - Dancing Gnome (DIPA - 8.5%)

Subsurface (Raspberry) - Hitchhiker (Smoothie Sour - 7.0%)

Passion Fruit IPA - Deschutes (IPA - 6.8%)

The Beers We Discussed:

Palo Alto Pale - War Streets Brewery (APA - 6.5%)

Monterey St IPA - War Streets Brewery (IPA - 7.0%)

Amanecer - Enix Brewery (APA - 5.5%)

Deep Fields - Eleventh Hour Brewery (Breakfast Stout - 7.5%)

Plumbus Shaman - Grist House (Sour - 5.5%)

Dream Beaver - Grist House (DIPA - 8.0%)

General Braddock’s IPA - Brew Gentlemen (IPA - 6.8%)

Tentacle Squad - Dancing Gnome (IPA - 7.0%)

Flock - Dancing Gnome (IPA - 6.0%)

Bay Spritz IPA - Barebottle Brewing (Blood Orange IPA - %Unknown)

Podcast 42: The Answer to Life

Social Media tags

@canspgh

@breakingbrewsco

@pgh_craft_beer

Hitchhiker

Dancing Gnome

Four Points

Abjuration

Insurrection Ale Works

Pita My Shawarma

Beers:

Fourth Street IPA - Four Points Brewing (IPA 6.6%)

Dbl _____ Raspberry - Dancing Gnome (Fruited Sour - 7.0%)

This one was off the rails and we still made some good points about beers! Listen and the description will be up soon!

Description will be posted soon.

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Podcast 38: The Yearly Re-cap

We do a year in review! (Shocker!)

Everyone go check their untappd year in review and follow along with us!

Dog friends Hercules and Jackson join us by destroying dog toys!

Beer #1: Brut IPA - New Belgium (6.8% Brut *duh* IPA) Alex said the beer guy at Liberty beer said this was very forgettable. Very light body and seems under carbonated for the style.

We talked about all our New Year celebrations. Alex had a rowdy time.

Alex made some calculations about how much we all spent at Dancing Gnome this year (Hint: it’s more than we would all like to admit) and our favorite beer people.

Our first segment was about beer trends in 2018.

- Sours were up first

- Hazy IPAs were the top dog for sure

- Milkshake IPAs

Beer #2: Sparkler - Sixpoint (7% Brut IPA) Pours very cloudy but definitely has a lighter color and a lot of carbonation.

Ryan discussed his favorite beers/breweries from his travels this year. Noble Creature was one of his highlights in Youngstown, OH.

Alex had some fun in Cleveland this year. We all appreciate his discovery of Platform beer.

Ryan recounted his trip to Jacksonville and how impressed he was with everyone in the chain restaurants having local state beers on tap.

We explore the idea of online reviews and how much weight they carry in choosing your nightspot or food or whatever else.

Segment 2: Favorite beers of the year!

Sara: Underscore Passionfruit (Dancing Gnome), Stackhouse Imperial Stout (Charles Towne Fermentory), Permutation #52 (Trillium)

Nick: Blueberry Cobbler J.R.E.A.M. (Burley Oak), Gnome’s Soul (Barreled Souls/Dancing Gnome), Permutation #52 (Trillium)

Ryan: dodged the question and said he liked can designs.

Alex: Toucan Slam (Strange Roots), 3 Scoops Passionfruit/Lemonade/Mango (The Answer)

Jake: Permutation #52 (Trillium), Very Green (Treehouse)

Least Favorite beers:

Sara: Mike (Magnify/DG collab)

Alex: Lemon Ginger Saison (Platform)

Nick: Gorilla Snacks (Burley Oak)

Ryan: Nothing particular but he’s not a fan of Christmas beers.

Jake: His own homebrew was the worst, Backlash beers were very underwhelming,

We covered the beer festivals we went to and the good/bad/ugly that came with them. From there we launch into some of the cool bars we visited this year.

Segment 3: Podcast Trends

Hairwatch 2018 - The story of one man’s hair control or lack thereof

Catchphrases - “Hello, and welcome!”

Merch in 2019 - we’re speaking this into existence

Memes were fire this year.

We hated some words this year

Everyone chimes in on our love of Hitchhiker brewery and we’re really excited to see what they bring in the new year. Our opinions were very mixed on them and we discuss our thoughts on what they should do. Dancing Gnome was up next on the roast. Some people think they need to sit on their beers a little longer. IPAs need to be fresh, but letting some DG beers sit in your fridge for a week allows it to develop differently.

Jake joined us for the end of the cast, and even with good service his service still sucked.

Segment 4: Looking forward - 2019 beer trends, festivals, guests and things

Travel: Alex wants to get to Bend, OR, Columbus, OH, Ryan is going to Breckenridge, CO

Dancing Gnome’s Bird series (replacing the Flower series), Dead Sleep, Underscore and Black Clouds.

Beer Fests: FreshFest, Dancing Gnome birthday party, Juicy Brews Late Night (Cinderlands/Hop Culture)

Upcoming events - Nugget Nectar release this week!

Grist House is opening a new location! Check their social media to get the scoop!

Let’s Get Munsoned - Breaking Brews No-Tap Bowling tournament 2/9/19

The wrap-up: Alex came out to Ryan first and then Nick and Sara which made for a good story.

We all really enjoy putting this podcast on and really appreciate our newfound friends and cool people who interact with us. Thank you to everyone who listens to us and we hope you enjoy us as much as we enjoy all of you.

Thank you all and cheers to great beers in 2019!

Podcast 37: Christmas (St)Eve and Happy Sue Year!

On location at Nick/Jake/Alex’s parents house, we’re recording our Christmas Eve celebration.

We had lots of different stuff and I really don’t feel like typing out everything we talked about. - Nick

Listen along as we go thru the beers we’re drinking and a couple more Christmas questions since Jake missed out.

The Beers:

Exquisite Beast - 8% DIPA (Dancing Gnome)

DDH Melcher Street - 7.2% IPA (Trillium)

Stillings Street - 7.2% IPA (Trillium)

Heini’s Good Cheer (2018) - 11.3% Old Ale (Roundabout Brewery)

DoubleMex (2018)- 9.9% Imperial Stout w/ Mexican Coffee (Brew Gentlemen)

Permutation #63 - 6.3% Wild Ale (Trillium)

Permutation #72 - 4.7% Pale Lager (Trillium)

Hunahpu’s (2015) - 11.5% Imperial Stout (Cigar City)

There’s quite a bit we covered in between drinking all these beers. We’ll be back to a little bit more normal next week, but thanks for listening.

Sorry about the issues with the microphone at the end, you’ll be able to tell….

Podcast 36: We Birthed a Podcast : Beery Christmas!

Nick and Alex hold it down while Jake is traveling from Nashville to Boston.

We decided to find some holiday themed beers and review them while drilling each other with Christmas themed questions.

Beer #1: Holiday Donut Cookie - Platform Beer/Brewnuts (7.0% Holiday Ale with milk sugar, vanilla, spice and Snickerdoodle cookies) Smells of cinnamon and nutmeg, very clear pour but tastes more beer-y than anything. Not a lot of carbonation which is to be expected for the style.

We went to Hal’s for Four Points Brewing tap takeover. We were blown away by the Orange Passion Biotix (5% Sour with Blood Orange and Passionfruit) sour. Check out Four Points Brewing (Link below!)

Nick and Sara went to Dancing Gnome this week for Simcoe Jam and we were pleasantly surprised. The guys always take care of us and we love going there. The beer was great and then we all headed to Hal’s.

Nick and Alex smashed out some Super Smash Bros Ultimate for an extremely long time.

Alex’s segment of the week: Awkward Christmas Questions!

Question 1: What are you thoughts on Candy Canes?

Question 2: Is there anything about Christmas you don’t like that most people do like?

Question 3: Who on your list is the hardest to buy for?

Beer #2: Celebration Ale - Sierra Nevada (6.8% Fresh Hop IPA) Reddish color, hoppy finish but the fresh hops make it taste like a crisp holiday beer. No spices to overpower anything.

Question 4: What is your least favorite Christmas song? This one got really heated. Alex was upset with Nick’s pick and Nick was lost on what Alex thought was the worst. After the worst we both named our favorite Christmas songs as well. Sara joined us for this question.

Alex comes right out and says he hates Trans-Siberian Orchestra. No one else is in agreement.

Question 5: The true meaning of Christmas is… (the cringiest of questions)

Question 6: Do you have a Christmas movie you have to watch during the season?

Beer #3: Noel - Delirium (10% Belgian Triple) The quintessential holiday import. Highly carbonated and deep red in color. Caramel-y and syrupy. The alcohol is well hidden and the carbonation does not lend to a light drinking experience.

We discuss the local breweries and their forays into Christmas ales and holiday beers. Mad Elf is obviously part of the conversation. We drink it in a little bit, so stay tuned.

Question 7: What was your favorite gift ever? This question launches us into a discussion on Eeyore the donkey from Winnie the Pooh.

Beer #4: Holly Jolly - Fatheads Brewery (7.4% Winter Warmer Ale) Very clear pouring but still darker than a standard IPA. Lots of spices but not overpowering. A very well balanced Christmas ale. (Add Fatheads to the breweries we Stan, this week)

Holly Jolly being brewed with honey threw us into a conversation about Strange Roots and mead and it got a little weird.

Wrapping up, we rank the beers we had tonight:

Alex:

#4: Holiday Donut Cookie - Platform

#3: Noel - Delirium

#2: Holly Jolly - Fatheads

#1: Celebration - Sierra Nevada

Nick:

#4: Holiday Donut Cookie - Platform

#3: Holly Jolly - Fatheads

#2: Celebration - Sierra Nevada

#1: Noel - Delirium

We close it out with a Happy Holidays to all! Check out the links below!

Four Points Brewing: https://fourpointsbrewing.com/

Holiday Pop-up Bar: https://www.facebook.com/miraclepgh

Podcast 35: A Strange Funk

We’re back with another guest this week! Nikki is in studio with us to discuss the craft beer industry and her experience with our Brewery of the Week - Strange Roots Experimental Ales.

Nikki gives us a run down of her history in the industry. She was a bar manager for one of our favorite local restaurants, Mad Mex. She gave us some insight into how the craft selection was made and who she worked with to have on tap at her locations.

With almost 20 years of food industry experience she has a few stories to tell.

Nikki also works a couple days a week at Strange Roots currently. She was able to shed light on the shipping/purchasing of beer within PA, which is apparently a lot easier if you produce beer in the commonwealth.

Beer #1 (Studio) - Ragnarok - Strange Roots (8.2% Wild Ale with Elderberries, Black Currants, Red Raspberries and Black Cherry juice) This one was a carry over from the days of Draai Laag and very much lends to the flavor. Wild fermentation makes this a very tart beer. Brown in color, lots of cherry/berry on the nose but not a lot of barrel flavor.

Beer #1 (Jake) - Zing Pop - Strange Roots (9.1% American Wild Ale) Jake said think alcohol Sprite. Very carbonated and floral.

We get into the beers Strange Roots makes and the theme here is experimentation and pushing the limits. Behemoth is a 20% barleywine which is crazy for a beer.

Jake fires off some questions at Nikki about her favorite breweries and personal beer consumption. We hit on Dancing Gnome and Grist House for cool hang out spots and discuss a little bit about hours and demand.

We took a hard right and discussed Ben Affleck’s back tattoo. Google it. It’s a train wreck.

Hercules makes his presence known.

Beer #2 (Studio) - Breakfast Superhighway - Platform/Hitchhiker collab (6.8% IPA with milk sugar, citrus zest and breakfast cereal) Nikki was not a fan of this one. It’s very bready and fruity and the milk sugar is very present in this beer.

From here we went over Platform and Hitchhiker and the experimental styles. We talk about adjuncts in beer, such as ginger, pop tarts, count chocula, etc.

Jake dabs and then Alex accuses people of not being able to floss. Not the dance, but the dental care activity. Alex questions his youth because he didn’t know what the floss dance was.

Looping back to Strange Roots we talk a little about their business tactics and quality control. Nikki gave us her couple of favorite beers from Strange Roots - The Balloonist and Toucan Slam were her favorites.

Beer #3 (Studio) - Double Disco - Funk Brewing (7.7% DIPA) A double version of their Silent Disco IPA. This one is hazy and hoppy. Dank and resinous tones but very crisp fruity finish.

Nikki’s Top 3 beer styles: Session IPAs, Stouts/Porters, Sours/Saisons/Wild ales.

Jake gets back on his soapbox about how the brewery bubble is gonna burst, although he thinks Strange Roots is gonna stick around.

Toward the end of the podcast, we go off topic and discuss tattoos and artwork.

Beer #4 (Studio) - The Balloonist - Strange Roots (8.7% Sour Golden Ale with Orange Peel) Very carbonated. The orange peel lends to the sourness of the beer.

Jake is excited about all the travel going on in the next few weeks. We stereotype the pacific northwest including bean boots, beanies and flannels.

Nikki enlightens us about how the yeast in wild fermentation works. Hint: It’s not an exact science but there is a lot of science involved. From there we get into the inner workings of determining alcohol content. Hydrometers and chromatography are the primary ways to measure ABV %. The debate on whether or not 100% accuracy really matters to the average beer drinker spawns out of this conversation.

As we wrap up, we want to extend a huge thank you to Nikki for coming on and shooting the shit with us for an hour and a half. Look for our Christmas episode next week!

Podcast 34: The Maine Event!

We’re all back together and we’re gonna hit it hard with some segments and anniversary parties!

Abjuration and Cinderlands both celebrated 1 year this week!

Shout out to @canspgh - follow them on instagram! They’re posting all the can releases from local breweries so follow along and get some cans!

This week’s brewery of the week is Maine Beer Company! Fairly new to Pittsburgh, but you can find them at all the great spots around Pittsburgh and in Boston.

Alex did his research and found out some very cool things they’re a part of and how they’ve developed their brand.

Beers:

Lunch - IPA 7.0% (Jake)

Another One - IPA 7.0% (Nick/Alex)

Obviously we discuss the can [bottle] design and the simplicity is incredibly appealing and extremely recognizable.

“Do What’s Right” is Maine’s motto and we discuss what that means and how they’re part of the 1% to the Planet non-profit organization.

Nick and Sara went to Cinderlands for their can release on Sunday after their 1 year anniversary Pajama Party on Saturday. They were first in line, btw. We discuss the can design and the anniversary glasses, which we’re in love with.

Saturday night Nick and Sara hit up Abjuration in McKees Rocks. If you haven’t been, you need to get there. Really cool spot with super unique beers and a cool mix of independent brewing and the theatre in the building.

Beers:

RBWv1.1 - Rice Barleywine - 11%

MIPAv1.0 - Milkshake IPA - 7.3%

BA-RW v1.2 - Barrel Aged Rye Barleywine - 11.7%

Abjuration still has cans of both the RBW and MIPA available.

Alex wanted to make this an ASMR episode by eating a cucumber very close to the mic. So we’re sorry.

Sara and Nick give their reviews of the anniversary beers from Abjuration. Alex adds in his experience with Milkshake IPAs.

In the mix with the milkshake IPAs we hit on Grist House’s Kaboom Kandy series and how we’re excited to try Kapow Kandy.

Jake tells us the story of his most recent Treehouse visit. He got a new beer called Snow (a wheat double IPA) and he’s really excited about it. He drank Trail Magic (German Pils) on the podcast.

Jake reminisces over a year of Cinderlands and his absolute love of their beer.

The next beer we sampled is called Just Baked by Hitchhiker. A beer brewed with Samoa cookies, this beer is super dark and flavorful. We launched into a conversation about our favorite Girl Scout Cookies.

We set aside Just Baked and picked up Did We Just Become Best Friends? from Hoof Hearted. Thanks to Sean P! Extremely smooth and really hop forward. 8.0% DIPA

Nick and Alex got a Nintendo Switch! We’re playing Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and if you wanna play with us, DM us your gamertag and we’ll add you!

Nick talked about BCBS and the big beer releases.

We then changed gears and discussed the Thank U, Next music video. Yeah, we did. Just tune out if you want? And of course this leads into a debate about Hallmark movies… ugh.

We wrap up with a giveaway, so listen to the end this week and we appreciate all our listeners.

Cheers!