We are rebroadcasting a show first recorded back in 2012, from the early days of our podcast. This episode was recorded before The Brit persuaded ex-pat Fin, Mark Naski, to join as co-host, and features Lingo and The Brit getting a beer appreciation lesson from him. We really didn’t know anything about beer before Mark came around (and some people say we still don’t!), and his schooling helped us be more knowledgeable about craft beer and brewing, and developed the podcast to become a little more than just two guys drinking beer.

Soon after this recording, we persuaded Mark joined us as our ‘Brewmaster’ and give his technical expertise to the show. We have created a video version of this show which has many of our favorite pictures of Mark, and this is the way we want to remember him. He was a generous man with his beer, his food, and his knowledge. He was our friend, and a friend to many others across the Midwest.

A couple of years ago, Mark moved out to Boise, Idaho, and immediately made an impact to their burgeoning craft beer market. You can check out our series of 5 episodes which he brokered for us, with breweries in Boise, on our YouTube channel.

His loss will be felt for sometime, but we know he is in the big brewery in the sky that never closes, and he has left behind a lasting legacy for all those who knew him. He was one of those people who you were glad he was in your life, and our thoughts are with his wife Tiina and all of his family.

Kippis Mark!

The video version of this edition is to be found on our YouTube channel…or play below

Play the audio podcast on our players above…or your favorite smartphone podcast app…we have a direct link to iTunes and Spotify below…and lots of other links on the sidebar!

 

It’s a second ‘vacation’ recording, and this time we are at the Sedona Beer Company, gazing at the beautiful red rocks and getting a good dose of vortex energy. Heading up this operation, together with her husband Mack, is Sedona native Kali Gajewski.

The Brit sat down with her in their cool patio courtyard, of course with a couple of brews and found out about what makes them the top dog for brews and food. Not only do they have a great selection of styles on tap, but also a fine selection of specialty brews which come out of their awesome, reusable barrels called Squarrels, which we talk about in detail and are a cornerstone of SBC’s sustainability certification.

From the last episode we have gone 180 from grass roots Verde Brewing, to a more ‘tourist’ setting, but in both cases we have brewpubs that have character, and people who are passionate about brewing beer and do it very well! Please check out SBC if you are in the area, and let us know what you thought…we highly recommend them! We sampled most of their brews, and The Brit returned with a bottle of the Scotch², which he and Ken McMullen sample midway through this podcast! Cheers to getting your vortex under control at this fab location!

Play the audio podcast on our players above…or your favorite smartphone podcast app…we have a direct link to iTunes and Spotify below…and lots of other links on the sidebar!

 

Nestled just south of Sedona AZ, is a small town of 15,000 called Camp Verde, centered around the Verde River valley. Alex Goetting is a 32 year old who has founded a local watering hole in a small industrial area, where Verde Brewing Company provides some great craft beers to the local community and tourist population.

Take exit 287 off I-17 S , take a left past the new Starbucks, and head about 1/2 mile down Industrial Drive and the signs for VBC take you to a warehouse location that provides indoor and outdoor seating, great beers, and some tasty ‘pub’ food.  Alex had just finished transferring beer to a bright tank, and took out some time to chat to The Brit about starting up, surviving the pandemic, and what the future holds. If you are out this way, this brewery offers a great ambiance for drinking well-made, solid craft brews. Cheers Alex, and thanks to the great wait staff there as well.

Play the audio podcast on our players above…or your favorite smartphone podcast app…we have a direct link to iTunes and Spotify below…and lots of other links on the sidebar!

 

We first found Big Thorn back in December of 2018 when we tasted their Wood Thyme Tart Gruit, and from then on we were hooked! It took us until September 2019 to arrange to visit the brewery, as it is 3 hours south of the B&Y pub down in Georgetown, IL. It was worth the wait, and co-owners Anna Schweig and Aaron Young showed us their brewery and fermentation room which was built by them, and remains one of the only off-the-grid breweries in Illinois. It’s amazing the quality of the brews produced by brewer Aaron, using local ingredients and fermenting them on different wood varieties to impart subtle flavors into their beers.

At the beginning of June, The Brit and his wife, the lovely Kimberlee, headed back down to the brewery to see how things had changed, post-pandemic. The amazing Tree House bar is still the centerpiece, but the addition of a food truck with a fantastic chef, has meant that you can add great food to the list of beers, making it possible to spend an entire day down on the ‘farm’.

The Brit brought back a selection of their bottles, plus a fantastic rice peach brew in a howler, and Anna contributed a bottle of the upcoming release for Father’s Day, Dad’s Bourbon Stout. Ken McMullen from Hopvine and Chuck Fort from Church Street headed over to the pub garden one hot and sultry afternoon, and we sample four of Big Thorn’s offerings. And as we sample we talk about electric Harley’s, electric SUV’s, foraging, and the lads do a little birdwatching as the population of birds visit the pub’s bird buffet! Oh, and we check out the ‘nodules’ on the bottom of the Big Thorn snifters, and find out what they do…yeah, it was definitely a laid back episode!

We highly recommend a visit to BTF&B very soon for anyone looking to experience something new in craft beer and breweries. Cheers!!

Brews Sampled:

• Fight For Your Rice (peach), Rice Beer, 5.0% ABV
• Scruit, Sour Gruit, 5.0% ABV
• Oats #3, Sour ale with raspberries, 5.0% ABV
• Dad’s Bourbon Stout, Imperial Stout aged on Bourbon-soaked oak, 10.0% ABV

Play the audio podcast on our players above…or your favorite smartphone podcast app…we have a direct link to iTunes for iPhone users below…and lots of other links on the sidebar!