Good Beer Hunting

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EP-261 Ben Henning of State Bird Provisions and The Progress Apr 11, 2020

Show notes

Producer's Note: we're going to continue bringing you timeless stories and important interviews, some of which have newfound relevance because of COVID-19, and some that are explicitly unrelated. This episode you're about to hear was recorded during San Francisco's Beer Week in February 2020, so the context is removed a bit from what's happening in the world right now, but the information is still valuable, and we want to share it with you. Listen for an update at the end of the episode.

How many times have you sat down at a nice restaurant and perused the drinks menu, only to find yourself thoroughly disappointed by the beer list?

Ben Henning, a beer buyer for two Michelin-starred sister restaurants in San Francisco, makes it his life's work to ensure that that never happens to his patrons.

Henning works with State Bird Provisions and The Progress, two widely lauded neighboring restaurants in the city's Fillmore District. You'll often catch him on the floor working alongside waiters, discussing the restaurants' robust beer offerings with guests, and espousing the merits of pairing beer with their many exceptional dishes.

But Henning isn't always successful at converting the wine drinkers. In the high-end restaurant game, convincing guests to consider beer over wine or spirits is always an uphill battle, even though Henning, a certified Cicerone with years of buying experience, is bringing in the best of the best. On any given day, State Bird and The Progress carry carefully selected, rare Lambics and farmhouse ales.

On the day I arrive to speak with Henning, in the middle of San Francisco Beer Week, the restaurant is bustling ahead of its 4 p.m. opening. A line is forming outside of locals hoping to snag one of the few tables kept open for walk-ins. Management is readying for the opening of two new restaurants elsewhere in the city. Upstairs, staff is setting up for a private event, and just after Henning and I begin our conversation, we're asked to relocate to another room—you'll hear that break in the interview.

Even within the chaos, Henning is cool-headed. Staying level in ever-changing circumstances is what his work is all about.

This is Ben Henning of State Bird Provisions and The Progress. Listen in.

SL-021 On the Frontline — The Shifting State of U.K. Retail Apr 09, 2020

Show notes

Welcome to this special episode of Sightlines, part of Good Beer Hunting's continued coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. I'm Jonny Garrett.

The U.K. is now several weeks into near-total lockdown, with everyone told to stay indoors barring medical emergencies, food shopping, and one bit of exercise a day. While internet and TV services are thriving, the high street and hospitality industry have been devastated.

Over the last month, I have been writing Sightlines pieces that try to describe and analyze that devastation. In this episode, I'll be giving you first-hand insight into the kind of conversations I've been having day in, day out with people in the beer industry. We'll hear from three very different businesses on the frontline, and I'll ask how each one has been affected by shutdowns—and what their futures might look like on the other side of this crisis.

I talk to the owner of London bottle shop mini-chain We Brought Beer, who decided he had to close despite seeing record sales. You'll also hear the surreal story of the night all the U.K.'s pubs closed for the first time in history from the perspective of a London publican.

We'll start further up the supply chain, though. DEYA Brewing Company in Cheltenham only recently went through a major funding and expansion phase, and is supposed to be paying off its bills through brewing unprecedented volume and serving at its new taproom. Instead, it's barely brewing once a week and has thousands of pounds worth of stock going slowly out of date. Founder Theo Freyne has had to tear up his business plan for the next decade, but despite the uncertainty is upbeat about his brewery's prospects.

This is the Sightlines podcast. Listen in.

EP-260 John Szymankiewicz of the Beer Law Center Apr 04, 2020

Show notes

Producer's note: we're going to continue bringing you timeless stories and important interviews, some of which have newfound relevance because of COVID-19, and some that are explicitly unrelated. This episode you're about to hear was recorded on February 19th, so the context is removed a bit from what's happening in the world right now, but the information is still valuable, and we want to share it with you.

Here's a scenario for today's beer-loving entrepreneur: you want to start a brewery? There's a hypothetical situation in which your new business can build its brand by lifting the likeness of celebrities, or imitating famous movies and TV shows, and pretty much take the original ideas of others and slap them on a label or menu board.

Of course, this isn't entirely hypothetical. Breweries all over the country do some version of this every day, and there are even social media accounts created to track companies that steal the intellectual property of others. In this episode, we're talking about this and more—and how some companies can legally end up in these odd scenarios, and flirt with basing their entire business models on this kind of intellectual property theft. Or even sell cans full of beer and fruit that could explode.

John Szymankiewicz is a beer attorney. Based in Raleigh, North Carolina, he specializes in a host of practical areas, including contracts and dispute resolution, but also has expertise in trademark and licensing, label approval, and more.

In this conversation, we'll first learn how someone arrives at this profession in the first place, and why more lawyers could be headed toward similar specialization in beer or elsewhere. But we'll also get a better grasp about what is legally possible in today's industry when breweries are constantly looking to stand out. Decisions to toe the line of copyright or trademark infringement may start to appear a bit more black and white, even if the ethics of those decisions can be rather gray.

This is attorney John Szymankiewicz. Listen in.

SL-020 Retail Therapy—New Ways To Sell Apr 01, 2020

Show notes

Welcome to this special episode of Sightlines, part of Good Beer Hunting's continued coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. I'm Bryan Roth.

A month ago, millions of Americans were sitting at bars and breweries, sharing a pint or cocktail with friends and loved ones. Today, for most of the country, that's not possible, as states have issued stay-at-home or shelter-in-place guidelines, forcing the closure of what's known as "on-premise" for the alcohol industry—the bars and restaurants and places we all went out to for a drink.

What's left is the "off-premise," the many kinds of grocery, convenience, liquor, and other stores where we go to get some food—and toilet paper, if we're lucky—and stock up on beer. We can't go out to drink, so it's these locations that are thriving as shoppers bring the bar home.

COVID-19 has forced an unprecedented pivot toward off-premise since the start of March, and in Good Beer Hunting's Sightlines stories, you may have kept up with all the changes that have happened as breweries have been forced to adapt to to-go sales or get as much product in off-premise chain stores as possible.

In the first three weeks of March compared to last year, Americans spent about 17% more in off-premise chain stores tracked by IRI, a market research firm. In the second and third weeks of the month, seven-day stretches have been roughly the equivalent of what's sold around the Fourth of July, typically the highest-selling beer holiday, amassing about $1 billion for the week of the summer celebration.

For some businesses, like grocery or liquor stores, this new reality has meant something as simple as non-stop sales. Nothing's really changed operationally except for the amount of hand sanitizer and cleaning wipes readily available. On the business side, things are booming.

For others—namely those on-premise establishments—it's meant trying to create a whole new business model out of thin air.

COVID-003 — From the Newsroom Mar 26, 2020

Show notes

Welcome to this special series of the GBH Collective podcast, where we'll be checking in with members of our global team to keep you updated on unfolding events surrounding COVID-19. I'm Ashley Rodriguez.

We're consuming news at a rapid rate. The front page of the New York Times is totally dedicated to COVID-19 coverage, and many other outlets have shifted to focus on the current global pandemic.

I wanted to understand how folks who work in breaking news cover stories. We've shifted our editorial platform dramatically, so I'm first chatting with Kate Bernot, lead contributor to Sightlines, our news vertical. Kate has years of experience reporting on breaking stories, and we talk about how this moment is different—and the surprises she's uncovered through a week of nonstop reporting.

Then we shift to Alyssa Pereira, GBH contributor and staff writer for the San Francisco Chronicle, a news outlet primarily serving the Bay Area and Northern California. From their computers to yours, we talk about how to cover such an unprecedented event, and how you can look at the news through the eyes of a reporter. Here's Kate to kick us off.

A Bryan by Any Other Name Mar 24, 2020

Show notes

What happens when a guy with your exact name invites you to brew a beer with him? In this special episode of the GBH podcast, Sightlines editor Bryan Roth drives from Durham, North Carolina, to meet up with Brian Roth of Southern Brewing Co. in Athens, Georgia, to engage in a friendly competition over who can brew the best beer: Bryan or Brian? More than just a story about a beer-brewing challenge, this episode explores the ways we're all connected—either by name or otherwise—and how sometimes, all you have to do is say yes.

SL-019 Econ 101° — Supply and Demand in a Panicked Market Mar 21, 2020

Show notes

Welcome to this special episode of Sightlines, part of Good Beer Hunting's continued coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. I'm Bryan Roth.

Parts of the country are in some kind of encouraged self-isolation—if not lockdown in some locations—and in many states, bars, restaurants, and breweries have been told by governments to shutter on-site sales and restrict business to takeout or delivery services. Bottom lines are suffering as cash flow dwindles with people sheltering in homes, spending money on extra groceries, and small businesses await help from elected officials to see them through this time.

Not all breweries are hurting equally, however, as packaged beer flies off the shelves in stores as drinkers stock up, and kegs sit untapped. All this happened in a matter of days.

So when we hear this is not going to be a short blip, the attention of business owners and economists has shifted to what all this means with short-term gains versus long-term solutions. And in this episode, we're going to school to learn more about what this all means, and how and why breweries are eyeing all the scenarios in between.

It's not as simple as supply and demand.

Our three guests include John Dantzler, CEO and co-founder of New York City's Torch & Crown Brewing Company—his background is in finance having worked for Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, and Barclays Investment Bank before entering the beer world.

And also Scott Metzger, general manager of Massachusetts' Wormtown Brewery, and co-founder of San Antonio's Freetail Brewing. Scott's background is in economics, having worked as an economist at Valero Energy Corporation and the University of Texas-San Antonio.

But we start with another economist, Michael Uhrich, former chief economist of the Beer Institute, and current founder and chief economist of Seventh point Analytic, a data-driven consulting company.

This is Sightlines. Listen in.

COVID-002 — Finding Moments of Brightness Mar 20, 2020

Show notes

If you have an iPhone, it probably tells you how many hours per day you've looked at your screen. According to my phone, my screentime has been up 63%—and I'm sure I'm not alone. I'm doubly sure most of us are looking at articles that make us feel a sense of dread as opposed to providing comfort.

In this check-in, I wanted to talk to our team about the bright spots: the ways that folks have come together, the ways that communities have brainstormed creative solutions—anything that makes us feel better in this weird time. I catch up with Jim Plachy first, who is the community manager of the Fervent Few, our subscriber-based beer community. Then we jump to Jonny Garrett, one of our U.K.-based GBH contributors. He has been searching for small optimistic episodes within the pandemic—and offers some hot tips for folks who suddenly find themselves at home for the foreseeable with their partners and spouses.

This is the Good Beer Hunting Collective podcast. Listen in.

COVID-001 — An Update on Coronavirus Mar 16, 2020

Show notes

I'm writing and recording this from my home office. I imagine at this point, COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, has affected your life in some way. Maybe you're quarantined at home; maybe you're a business owner who's wondering what measures like social distancing will do your business; or maybe you're just trying to navigate what is shaping up to be one of the weirdest times in our collective history. Either way, there's a lot going on.

We decided to bring you a special edition of the GBH Collective podcast, checking in with our team of writers and editors across the globe. Our team has always consisted of folks reporting from their corners of the world, and this global crisis is no exception. One thing I've always appreciated about working for Good Beer Hunting is our willingness to be frank and have open conversations … and that includes bringing you folks—our listeners, supporters, and fellow beer professionals—in on how we're handling the current state of affairs.

What you're about to hear is a series of five short interviews that I conducted with members of our team. The first is with Bryan Roth, who is our Sightlines editor, reporting from Durham, North Carolina. Next you'll hear from GBH founder and creative director Michael Kiser, who will update you on how we as an organization are handling the pandemic. Next, we're gonna check in with Claire Bullen, our editor-in-chief reporting on what's happening in the U.K., and the influence of social media on community responses. We'll then touch base with Eoghan Walsh, a staff writer reporting from Brussels, and lastly we'll go to the epicenter of the U.S. outbreak and talk to Dave Riddile about working in service and supporting local businesses in Seattle.

This is the Good Beer Hunting Collective podcast. Listen in.

EP-259 Ehren Schmidt of Mikkeller Baghaven Mar 14, 2020

Show notes

I'm Jonny Garrett, and you're listening to the Good Beer Hunting podcast.

Listeners in California may remember a brewery called Toolbox Brewing, which for a brief period around 2015 and 2016 was making waves with some delicious, mixed-fermentation beers. Sadly the brewery closed in 2018, about a year after the departure of its head brewer, Ehren Schmidt, who is my guest today.

Schmidt gained plenty of critical acclaim for the beers he was making at Toolbox, but in 2017, he got an offer he couldn't refuse. That job offer came from Mikkel Borg Bjergsø, founder and owner of Mikkeller, who wanted him to move to Copenhagen to help him start a wild brewery arm of his global cuckoo brewing empire.

We talk a bit about his decision to move halfway around the world, and it's clear that that risky choice has paid off. Schmidt has complete creative freedom at Mikkeller Baghaven, and has used it to build a brewery that takes a scientific approach to deeply traditional brewing. The medieval lettering and cork-and-cage presentation belie the hands-on way that Schmidt goes about sourcing his yeasts and nurturing the fermentations in barrels and foeders.

We recorded in his office between the Saturday sessions of the first-ever Mikkeller Baghaven Wild Ale Celebration, an exclusively wild- and mixed-fermentation festival where the participating breweries were handpicked by Schmidt. Given his history, the roster featured a predictably heavy U.S. focus, but some exciting European and South American breweries were also represented. Most of our conversation is spent musing on the level of understanding in the wild brewing community about the concept of terroir in beer, and how it isn't just the ingredients, or even the place, that dictate it. It's the people—their stories, tastes, and biases.

This is Ehren Schmidt of Mikkeller Baghaven. Listen in.

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