Four Brewers | Craft Beer And Homebrew Podcast

Season 1, Episode 16 - This week, we go to the dark side and are baptized in the blackest of beers.   Roasted in fire, veiled in wax where it stoodBorn in the darkness of dark malts and woodDevoured by organisms, freed spirits drew nearCoating the tongue with the darkest of beers   This week, we travel to the deepest parts of our cellar to sacrifice the darkest of beers upon the alter of the internet, to the Beast, called by his disciples, “Palate.” The ritual begins with a roasted porter implanted with the darkest of coffee beans. Bred for darkness at Smog City Brewing Co., Groundwork Coffee Porter is reminiscent to that of coffee beans drenched in the eternal darkness and evil of chocolate. Smog City Brewing Co. – Groundwork Coffee Porter Born in twilight of a darkening sky in the year 2012, the next victim is an elusive beer that manifests only in the coldest of winters in the northernmost part of the land, from a place known as Hill-Farmstead. Hill Farmstead – Twilight of the Idols Twilight of the Idols t

Season 1, Episode 15 - This week, We ‘mule’ some beer from Massachusetts and up our game with live Google Hangout + IRC Chatroom!  This week on the show, Greg brings in two beers brought by houseguests @2BeerGuys and@aljpeace from coastal Massachusetts. They were in town for Disneyland and the 2014 Beer Bloggers Conference and left some fun session beers from Notch Brewing Co in the fridge–  Hootenanny Berliner Weisse and Cerne Pivo. Jason hand-muled his beers. Mystic Brewing’s Day of Doom, and Spencer Brewery’s Trappist Ale. Notch Brewing Beers With Notch’s Hootenanny, we discuss common off flavors in some Berliner Weiss’ like butyric acid, present from oxygen getting in a sour mash. Notch’s is clean and lacto-tart! We also discuss clarity in the style. We loosen the belt one notch for Notch Brewing’s Černé Pivo, and are shocked at something that is commonly present in most dark lagers, but not this beer. Is it weird? Good? Bad? Listen and find out! Spencer Trappist Ale is up next…you know, America’s first a

Season 1, Episode 14 - This week, a show four years in the making. Matt shares four different sours that he brewed in 2010, along with a final blend of the four beers. This week on the show, we’re going “back in time”, so to speak. We recorded this episode back in June with Denise Ratfield, but it never made it to the interwebs. Well, it’s finally here, and it’s pretty great. We kick the show off with two stellar beers from Jester King Brewery out Austin, Texas. The first beer on deck is a farmhouse ale called El Cedro, made with Citra hops, aged on Spanish cedar spirals, and bottle conditioned with brettanomyces. Jester King Beers The next beer on deck was brought to us by Andrew Bell, Matt’s co-worker at The Bruery, who purchased it at Jester King during one of his recent trips to Texas. Nocturn Chrysalis is an oak-aged sour ale made with Marion blackberries from the state of Oregon. This is a rather remarkable beer—almost akin to eating fresh pie. Even though it’s made with blackberries, dark cherry notes

Season 1, Episode 13 - This week on 4B: English IPA, English porter, and two homebrews with issues. Welcome to lucky episode thirteen of Four Brewers! This week is a bit all over the place for us. We kick the show off with what is probably one of the most tradition and easy to find IPAs on the market, Samuel Smith’s India Ale. India Pale Ale tends to be a very regional beer, meaning that it can vary widely in translation. East coast IPA, for example, is thought of as being more balanced and malt forward, and greatly influenced by traditional English IPA. Keeping with that logic, one would think that this IPA from Samuel Smith’s would be a malt bomb of an IPA. But that’s actually not the case here. While this IPA is indeed quite balanced as far as IPA goes, the malt backbone is actually quite pleasant and not very dominating. It has a nice bitterness and comes off quite refreshing. It’s totally worth trying out sometime, and will give you an idea of what an actual English IPA is all about. Samuel Smith Beers S

Season 1, Episode 12 - Co-founder of Almanac Beer Co., Jesse Friedman, joins us for a healthy dose of Almanac brews, gives insight on the company’s history, and their place in the craft beer world. This week, we’re drinking not one, not two, not three, but FOUR different Almanac beers.Jesse Friedman, co-founder of Almanac Beer Co., crashes the party via Google Hangouts to chat about his beer, get thrown a few softballs, and drink some Almanac brews with us. Almanac Beer Co., located in San Jose, CA, was founded in 2010, and has already made waves in the beer scene with their outstanding barrel-aged beers, ranging from bourbon porter, to sour blonde fruit ales. Founders Jesse Friedman and Damian Fagan first met in their local homebrew club, where Jesse happened to sample a homebrew made by Damian that had the quality, taste, and presentation of a commercial beer. Jesse gets into this a bit more on the show, as well as what makes their brewery unique in its vision. Almanac Beer Co. – Episode 12 Beers The first

Season 1, Episode 11 - Newport Beach Brewing Company brewmaster, Derek Bougie, joins us for a mouthwatering pucker-fest, featuring two great brews from Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, and three sour homebrews from Derek himself. This week on Four Brewers, our friend and special guest, Derek Bougie is bringing his beer geek “A” game as well as his unique style of ball-busting. We start off with two great beers from Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, out of Dexter, Michigan. The first beer is a collaboration with Maui Brewing Company called “Sobrehumano Palena ‘ole” (which means “superhuman” and “without limits”), a wild ale made with cherries and liliko’i fruits. Jolly Pumpkin, Maui Brewing, and Anchorage Brewing Collaborations The second beer is another collaboration ale, but this time between Jolly Pumpkin andAnchorage Brewing Co. called “Calabaza Boreal“, a saison style ale made with grapefruit peel, grapefruit juice and peppercorns. It almost comes off sort of like an IPA with it’s grapefruit character, and is an int

Season 1, Episode 10 - This week, we’re drinking the saison rumored to be the source of Wyeast Laboratories 3711 saison yeast, a delicious sour from Allagash, stout from Freeport, Maine, and finally, Matt’s first small batch brew in quite a long time. This week, we’re joined once again by our in-house special guests Sara and Yvonne, and it gets a little crazy this week. We start off with some “discussion” on the movie The Godfather, and drink a tasty brew from Brasserie Thiriez called “Extra“, a dry-hopped french farmhouse ale, rumored to be the source of Wyeast’s 3711 French Saison ale yeast. Brasserie Thiriez, Allagash Brewing Company, and Maine Beer Company After that, we dive into a couple of excellent beers via Mr. Nagel, Allagash Brewing Company‘s Coolship Cerise, and Maine Beer Company‘s Mean Old Tom. Coolship Cerise is an open-fermented sour ale aged in oak barrels with cherries, and it’s nothing short of delicious. Greg gives us a some insight on how Coolship is made, fresh off his recent trip to the

Season 1, Episode 9 - This week, we’re sippin’ on two delicious IPAs, both of which involve Beachwood Brewing, and then we’re going to the dark side with John’s black oatmeal IPA, Oats N’ Bros. Joined by our in-house special guests Sara and Yvonne, we kick off the show this week with Beachwood Brewing‘s third anniversary IPA, aptly named “Greenshift“, which is made with nearly every hop under the sun. Well, not really, but it’s got a butt-load of hops in it, and it’s surprisingly smooth for being a 10% ABV beer. Beachwood Brewing has really been kicking ass this last year, and we couldn’t be happier for them and to celebrate their third anniversary with them. Stone Brewing Co./Beachwood Brewing/Heretic Brewing – Unapologetic IPA and Beachwood Brewing’s Greenshift IPA Next up, we’re drinking another beer that Beachwood had a part in, called “Unapologetic IPA.” A collaboration between Stone Brewing Co., Beachwood Brewing, and Heretic Brewing Co., this IPA was brewed with all experimental hops, which give it a v

Season 1, Episode 8 – This week, we’re once again joined by the lovely Denise Ratfield of Pink Boots Society and Stone Brewing Co., who (like the dope lady she is) brought #AllTheBeers. Robert French is also back in the studio with us. We try three varieties of Societe’s “The Bachelor”, learn more about Denise, and learn that Jason simply dominates during “Guess That Brew.” If you have yet to hear about Societe Brewing Company in San Diego, California, well…get in the know! They’re making killer beer in San Diego that’s uncompromising and true to their take on what craft beer should be. Societe Brewing Company – The Bachelor Denise brought three varieties of Societe’s American IPA, The Bachelor, to share with us. These growlers were provided by our good bud, Mike Sardina, Societe’s “Ruler of the Underworld.” Mike is one of the most sincere craft beer geeks we’ve ever met, and he’s a perfect fit over at Societe. The Bachelor is an ever-changing, single hop IPA. The hops in the beer vary from batch to batch, so

Season 1, Episode 7 - This week, we’re shaking trees and drinking something old and tasty with award-winning local homebrewer, Robert French. Denise Ratfield of Pink Boots Society and Stone Brewing Co. is also along for the ride.   Fort George Brewery – Sunrise Oatmeal Pale Ale and 3-Way IPA Jason is, once again, bringing the Fort George love with these two excellent offerings, Sunrise Oatmeal Pale Ale, and 3-Way IPA, which is a collaboration between Fort George, Block 15, and Boneyard Beer. Suffice to say, we’re all becoming huge fans of Fort George. The topics of the localization of breweries and prioritized markets also come up in the discussion. Feature: Homebrew – Robert French’s “Old Bandersnatch” and “Shake Your Tree.” Robert French is a long time friend of ours, and he’s been brewing for about 18 years. Recently, he built this super-dope single tier brewing stand that’s just beautiful. But he’s not just a pretty dude, with a pretty brewing stand—he makes excellent beer, too. Robert French and His Br

Season 1, Episode 6 - This week, we dive into some tasty farmhouse ales, first from Bellwoods Brewery, and then a fun From the Cellar segment featuring Prairie Ale from Prairie Artisan Ales, finishing up with a session of the always fun Guess That Brew.    Bellwoods Brewery – Farmageddon We start off this week with Farmageddon from the not-well-known (to us, at least) Bellwoods Brewery in Toronto, Ontario. We alienate some Canadian fans, mix up our accents, and contemplate peaches. We really, really enjoy the beer, too. Plus, Steve Jobs is dead. Feature: From The Cellar For our first true From the Cellar segment, we taste a delicious Saison from Prairie Artisan Ales – Prairie Ale. We have a fresh bottle side-by-side with a bottle aged for about a year, and we do some fun contrasting and comparing. Prairie Artisan Ales – Prairie Ale Feature: “Guess That Brew!” Finally, we bring back the reverb for a game of Guess That Brew! We have a beer with no slut fruits, John loves and hates this game, a beer that definit

Season 1, Episode 5 - This week, we chat about Session IPA and safely chug Beachwood BBQ Alpha Waves out of Long Beach, California, followed by Going in Blind! Then, Nagel’s non-beers: Sake and Cider.  We start off the show this week with a sessionable IPA from Beachwood BBQ, Alpha Waves then dive into non-beer homebrews from Nagel. Beachwood BBQ & Brewing – Alpha Waves Alpha Waves from Beachwood BBQ & Brewing in Long Beach, CA, is a described by the brewery as a “trickster of a ‘session IPA’ that will knock you down with surges of flavor and aroma.” “Session IPA” have been all the craze this year. Beachwood Brewing’s stands out from the rest in that it is a true session ale, clocking in at 3.8% ABV. It has a healthy malt backbone, and quite a big hop presence, even though it’s only 50 IBU. Feature: Homebrew – Greg‘s Homebrew Sake and Cider Greg’s Sake, named “Kamakazi Gang Bang” was an experiment to see how good a homebrew Sake can be. Much how Japanese WWII pilots would get tons of ass before their

Season 1, Episode 4 - This week, a really enjoyable rye IPA from Mike Hess Brewing out of San Diego, California, followed by John Holzer‘s Cantaloupe pale ale named “Jill.” We start off the show this week with a delicious beer from Mike Hess Brewing in San Diego, California, called “Habitus.” It’s an 8.0% ABV IPA made with rye malt, and Sterling and Chinook hops. Overall, a nice spicy rye character comes though, but isn’t overbearing. The unique combination of hops really sets it apart and makes it an very quaffable IPA, even at 8.0% ABV. Mike Hess Brewing – Habitus Feature: Homebrew – John‘s cantaloupe pale ale, “Jill.” John brings us his cantaloupe pale ale made with Meridian, Simcoe and Amarillo hops. Fermented with one pound of cantaloupe, the original idea for the beer was for it to have some big tropical notes, but not be too hoppy, and too high in alcohol. Made in collaboration with David and Adam Gillanders, Jill was brewed in memory of their mother, Jill Marie Thibodeau, who fought a tough battle wit

Season 1, Episode 3 - A plethora of delicious craft brew on this week’s show reminds us that we are living in a great time in craft beer. This week on the show, we are quite possibly, drinking all the beers. Well, more like seven different beers, but hey, it’s still a lot of brew. Jason brings us some brews from the northwest from Bale Breaker Brewing and Fort Gorge Brewing. We wrap things up in the first segment with a tasty brew from Los Angeles based brewery, Monkish Brewing. Monkish Brewing, Fort George, and Bale Breaker Brewing Co. Feature: “Guess That Brew!” In the second segment of the show, we introduce our game of sorts, “Guess That Brew.” Basically, we read reviews of different beers from the internet and try to guess which beer the reviewer is describing. It’s actually pretty entertaining. Give it a listen, then try it out with your friends. Feature: “Going In Blind…” Hangar 24, Firestone Walker, Dogfish Head, and Ballast Point Brewing Co. beers for “Guess That Brew!” The final segment of the show

Season 1, Episode 2 - Modern Times Beer Fortunate Islands brings the wheat and hops… Welcome to episode two! This week on the show, we’re drinking wonderful a hoppy wheat beer from Modern Times Beer named “Fortunate Islands.” Modern Times is one of the newest breweries to sprout up in San Diego, California, and they’re making incredible beer. They’ve only been open since September 2013, and they’re already making a big name for themselves. Modern Times Beer – Fortunate Islands Feature: Homebrew - John’s Oatmeal IPA, “Oats N’ Hoes” John’s oatmeal IPA has really garnered a lot of attention in the local Riverside, California homebrew scene. Inspired by Lee Chase and Automatic Brewing Co.‘s Will Powered IPA, Oats N’ Hoes is a west coast-style IPA, made with one pound of oats and Falconer’s Flight hops. Recipe: Oats N’ Hoes 10 gallon batch, 82% mash efficiency. 148º mash temp for 40 min, 20 min mash out to 168º. 60 min boil. 65º fermentation temperature. 1.069 OG. Malts: 25 lbs 2 Row Malt, 2 lbs US Caramel 15 malt

Season 1, Episode 1 - Anchorage Brewing’s Rondy Brew Saison w/Lemongrass and Brett kicks off the inaugural episode of Four Brewers. Welcome to Four Brewers! Four Brewers is a new podcast from Matt Becker, John Holzer,Jason Harris, and Greg Nagel that celebrates craft beer and homebrewing.  This week on the show, we’re celebrating our collective return to the interwebs, and welcoming our newest member, Greg, to the show by opening some really special brews: A saison from Anchorage Brewing Company called “Rondy Brew,” and a wonderful sour from The Lost Abbey called “Veritas 007.” As with all new ventures, we’re working out the bugs of doing a new show (bugs, beer, title of the episode, get it ?…heh), and getting a feel for the overall flow. Episode one beers. Anchorage Rondy Brew, The Lost Abbey Veritas 007, Homebrew and force-carb bottle Feature: From the Cellar - Lost Abbey Veritas 007 – Sour Blend w/cab franc grapes. Matt brought a bottle of Veritas 007 from The Lost Abbey to celebrate the first episode. In

Four Brewers is a craft beer and homebrew podcast brought to you by Matt Becker, John Holzer, Grag Nagel, and Jason Harris. Episodes coming soon...