All Things Beer

Scotch Ales/Wee Heavies

Whether you call them Scotch Ales or Wee Heavies, who can resist the charms of one of Scotland’s best exports. Brian Kimmel, a veteran of several hikes across the Scottish Highlands, joins us for an audio tour of Caledonia. We start in the south at the venerable Traquair House and work our way northward to Orkney Islands for a wee nip of the potent Skull Splitter, before finishing closer to home with Zaftig’s complex barrel aged Wee Heavy. 

Scottish Ales

In this episode, we remain in the UK but cross over Hadrian’s Wall and turn our attention to the malt-forward, yet sessionable family of Scottish Ales. We are joined by the dean of Ohio brewers, Barley’s brewmaster Angelo Signorino, who has been making his unique interpretation of a Scottish Ale for thirty years.  Inspired by a Scottish beer that no longer exists, the Barley’s Scottish Ale has captured the fancy of beer writers from Michael Jackson to Rick Armon.  Join us for a wide ranging conversation that touches on topics including wort caramelization, maintaining a house yeast strain for decades, the value of a schilling, cask ales, and single malt whiskey.

Dark Milds

Continuing our exploration of sessionable British styles, we turn our attention to Dark Milds in this episode. Packaged milds are almost impossible to find here in Ohio, but fortunately there are several local breweries that brew this classic low abv pub ale. Ryan Torres from Brew Brothers joins us to talk about his two time GABF medalist, Toasty, and we head out to Columbus’ newest brewery, Thunderwing, to talk with owner/brewer Jason Wing about his dark mild, Far Shores.

English Bitters

Ordinary Bitter, Best Bitter, ESB and English Pale Ale are not the easiest style to find here in the USA. Fortunately in and around Ohio there are still some microbreweries being them with pride and English tradition. This month we travel up to Mansfield Ohio to talk with Carmone and Duncan MacFarlane to learn what goes into making a great ESB.
Being this is our Halloween episode for the year, it is no coincidence that the Phoenix Brewery is housed in a former mortuary. Their resident ghost Charlie makes his presence known! Hopefully it is not too distracting a listen due to the clawing, shuffling noises, and bumps in the night that we picked up while recording. It was no doubt we were picking up something from the paranormal.
 

The Great Saison Taste Off

What makes the perfect Saison beer?? Find out in this episode as we explore this remarkable beer style and are joined by fellow BJCP beer judge and returning guest Bill Koeppen and number one All Things Beer mega fan Robert Nauman. In a blind tasting session, beer steward Ralph Wolfe helps our 4 judge panel navigate through 8 beers ranging from local, regional, and national. In the final round we compare our favorites side by side and pick a winner. We hope you enjoy this listen as we find out what makes the perfect Saison. (NOTE: We had technical issues with this recording so the sound quality is not up to our usual standards. We apologize for that and promise to rectify things next time around.) 

Non Alcoholic Beers

In this episode we turn a spotlight on non alcoholic beers, defined as beers with < 0.5% abv.  We discuss the science behind various approaches to making NA beers and sample a bakers dozen examples representing styles that include lagers, wheat beers, stouts, pale ales and IPAs both traditional and hazy/juicy.

Fresh Hop Beers at Columbus Brewing Co

Fall is the time for beers made with freshly picked whole cone hops and no brewery in Ohio does fresh/wet hop beers like Columbus Brewing Company. In this episode Tony Corder tells us how the hop wizards at CBC conjure up a whopping 10 different fresh/wet hop beers, featuring hops from Washington, Oregon, Ohio, and Michigan.

The Great Pilsner Taste Off

Ever wonder what makes up a perfect Pilsner beer? Do you prefer a Czech Pilsner, German Pils, New Zealand Pilsner, or maybe an Italian Pilsner?
In this episode we explore these beer styles and are joined by fellow Pilsner lovers Jamie Gentry and Hans Gorsuch to determine what makes a great Pilsner-style beer. In a blind tasting session, beer steward Ralph Wolfe helps our 4 judge panel navigate through 10 domestic pilsners ranging from local, regional, and national. In the final round we compare our favorites side by side and pick a winner. We hope you enjoy this listen as we find out what makes the perfect Pilsner.

Ohio and the World Beer Cup

Held every two years the World Beer Cup is arguably the most prestigious and competitive beer competition on the planet. In 2022, breweries from the Buckeye state took home a total of 14 medals.  In this episode we drink and discuss the medal winners from Central Ohio breweries including Wolf’s Ridge Brewing (Daybreak Coffee Cream Ale), Gemüt Biergarten (Woden’s Hunt Dunkel), and Columbus Brewing Company (Lager and Crocodile Tongue).

Brown Ales

With a malt bill more poetic than it's name may suggest, Pat and Mark are joined by Barley’s Homebrew Competition winner Jim Sudduth to explore this classic beer style from the origins of the modern Brown Ale to modern day interpretations brewed here in Ohio. Along the way Jim shares some tips for what it takes to make an award winning Brown Ale.