Rogue Ales & Spirits has just release this video that remarkably captures everything they’re doing – brewing, distilling, barrel making, growing their own, bees and more.
The highlight for me is that moment in the last frames where we see my mentor and Rogue Ales founder Jack Joyce.
Cider Riot! ciders are, bar-none the best cider available. After running into Abram and trying their hopped cider Everybody Pogo, I understood why ciders are becoming more and more popular. This particular cider is dry, crisp and delicious.
On their website they describe themselves like this:
Cider Riot is a crowd funded urban cidery in Portland Oregon dedicated to producing high quality ciders from Cascadian grown apples. With tradition as our guide and
our roots firmly planted in the rich soils of our bioregion, our urban cidery will produce refreshing, flavorful ciders.
During the interview Abram addresses the apple shortage that we’ve been hearing about in the news, Kickstarter lessons, cider making, glycol free refrigeration, and details of embarking on this Cider venture.
At the beautiful Breakside Brewery in Portland, Oregon I interviewed Brew Master Ben Edmunds over 7 tasters of his fine craft beer. Each beer was an exquisite representation of it’s style. The quality of these brews is evidenced by the 2011 Great American Brew Festival medal awarded the Dry Irish Stout. This was no doubt one of many awards to come for this innovative brewery.
In this interview Ben tells us about Breakside from it’s beginnings through today’s expansion plans. He also shares the surprising fruits of collaborations with award winning chefs. Together they’ve created unique beers that subtly merge culinary flavors in complex layers. The teacher in him peeks out as he discloses “how to” details, tricks and tips including use of alternative ingredients. Chestnuts anyone?
His journey to becoming a professional craft brewer is surprising yet the approach he has taken may be a necessary one for those wishing to succeed in today’s Craft Brewing community.
Finally we wrap up the the program with a tour of this modest brewery, where the real magic begins.
Brewmaster Alan Sprints founded Hair of the Dog Brewing Company in 1992. Inspired by Winter Ales Alan’s brewing focuses on robust, complex beers.
This small batch brewery produced roughly 700 barrels of beer in 2009. These extraordinary, rare brews are bottle conditioned, and are therefore ideal for aging. Described in Malt Advocate magazine as having , “the best aging potential of any American-Brewed beer”, this brewery has found it’s niche. Not only among those who appreciate Vintaged beer, but in American Micro Brewing history.
During our interview this veteran Brew Master shares strategies for new brewers, unique features of his brewery and exposes tough decisions that one must make with regard to profitability and craft.
This episodes kicks of my Green Series with the Beer Institute’s President Jeff Becker. Jeff provides a history of ecologically sound practices in the brewing industry as well as discussing current technologies and breweries raising the bar in this area. Jeff also offers up resources for those of you seeking to minimize your brewery’s footprint.
Ben Love with Portland Oregon’s Eco-Pub Hopworks Urban Brewery touches on the myriad of building and brewing steps they have taken. A tremendous move for a small local brewery demonstrating their commitment to the environment and their community. It has paid of in a big way. I join him on the eve of their opening night.
The Local Brew is a production company producing in depth coverage of breweries and what’s behind them. The host is entertaining, and the camera work is outstanding. Their first release features Stone Brewing Co. and I have a brief review of this wonderful DVD for you.
Finally, the music featured on this show is a performance by the VB Stubby Symphony playing Victoria Bitter’s jingle, but get this – all the instruments are VB beer bottles!
Special thanks to Rolling Boil Blues Band for allowing me to use their music for the Craft Brew Cast intro.