Graining In

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#69: Dan Kleban | Maine Beer Company Oct 11, 2020

Show notes

They say to never meet your heroes, but this week proves that's poor advice. Dan Kleban, co-founder of Maine Beer Company, sits down with Noah and Matty. After some initial gushing about how generous Dan and his brother Dave were to get Noah and Pete into MBC's first space, the conversation shifts to the Dan's early experiences with beer (Sierra Nevada strikes again) and what laid the groundwork for what continues to be MBC's philosophy on the beer-making side of the business. Dan and Noah also get into their mutual roots as homebrewers and (early) brewing podcast listeners, as both Substance and Zoe begun their existence as thinly-veiled clone recipes. After discussing collaboration beers and the similar reasons both MBC and BBB do them less than most, things shift to Dan and his brewery's commitment to the environment. He talks about his inspiration for being a part of 1% For the Planet from the very start of his business, why customers are smarter than they are often given credit for, and the inertia that comes when you "Do What's Right". This fun, informative, and inspiring conversation with one of Noah and Matty's Dream Team brewers was simply a joy, and if anyone out there is looking for a role model, head to Route 1 in Freeport............ ........................ .................. ......................... .................. ........................ ....................... ........Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

#68: Matthew Bateman | Kennebec River Brewing Oct 05, 2020

Show notes

The beer industry and the state of Maine are both such special places to exist, due in large part to the people you meet within them. Both deserve equal credit for bringing this week's IN-STUDIO guest to us - Matthew Bateman. Matt works at Northern Outdoors, an operation in The Forks, ME that includes within it rafting, guiding, camping, and lodging services. Since 1996, the company has also included a brewery - Kennebec River Brewing, located within the Northern Outdoors lodge.
The BBB crew recently spent a couple nights on premise for a team getaway, camping a few nights, rafting the Kennebec (water) and thoroughly enjoying drinking Kennebec (beer) on-site. We met Matt as one of our boats' guides, only to find out he has also been cutting his teeth in the brewery since spring. We get into the many things that makes Northern Outdoors such a truly unique (and HIGHLY recommended), and Matt's life as both a whitewater rafting guide and new brewer. He gives us the ins and outs of rafting, talks about some of the craziest water he's ever been on, and defines the new-to-us term, "hydrology".
On the beer side, Matt talks about what makes Kennebec River Brewing so unique, touching on how it's bucked the usual brewpub pitfalls, avoided Ringwood in a pre-Y2K Maine, and had been run by ONE GUY (shoutout Mike!) from inception until Matt was brought on six months ago. We also get into his experience going from beer fan to actual brewer, discuss the distinct satisfactions he's taking from it, and mutually lament the punishing heat a brewery comes with.
This was an extremely fun one and felt particularly special in its full-circle nature. As you'll hear, we can't recommend the many things Northern Outdoors has to offer enough. Special thanks to Matthew for making the trip to Milo to join the shortlist of in-studio guests, and to all of Northern Outdoors for making our staff trip so special a few weeks ago!

#67: Matt Robinson | Bissell Brothers Sep 28, 2020

Show notes

We decided it was time to do things quite a bit differently this week. Noah tries to clarify a misperception about himself and the guys talk unseen baggage, which slides into what is far and away the most personal episode of Graining In to date.
Matty's positive, boisterous, almost Golden Retriever-like personality suits his profession just about as much as possible. But the path he took to get to where he is today is nothing short of astounding. He gets extremely candid with Noah about losing his father to cancer during high school, forming an addiction to opioids that grew to be nothing short of extreme, his multiple suicide attempts, and a year-long sentence in jail. The account of the hole he found himself in and the lengths he took to pick himself up is occasionally shocking and often painful, but is above all else a deeply and profoundly inspiring experience. Regardless of how self-hatred, addiction, and death have factored into your life, there are undeniable threads of universality in his story that can't help but boost your drive to be a more compassionate and grateful person.
Rest assured though - despite its heaviness, the conversation is still chocked full of the (healthy) self-deprecation and lack of pretension of a normal episode, just with a tear or two on the side.
Do yourself a favor and listen in... Your heart will thank you.
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Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill
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#66: Rob Lyle | Barreled Souls Sep 21, 2020

Show notes

This week, we have a nobility in the house - Rob "Stacklord" Lyle III, brewer at Barreled Souls! After examining exactly how one becomes a Stacklord, we get into Rob's path into the brewing industry, which far and away required more perseverance than any other we've heard yet. Then it's all about what makes the little brewery in Saco that could (accept his resume and take him in for an interview) so different. Barreled Souls does primary fermentation of literally all their beers - from goses to IPAs to barleywines to adjunct stouts - in 600 liter puncheons. To our knowledge, this is a truly unique feature of process among the thousands of breweries in the country. Frankly, that's just the tip of the iceberg. Barreled Souls simply marches to their own drum in virtually every facet, putting a ton of emphasis on styles like barleywines, old ales, scotch ales, and crazy stouts as the rest of the world has become increasingly hop-obsessed. The guys also get into the production methods for some of 'Souls most fun beers, like Superman punch (goes brewed with Kool Aid powder), their series of donut beers (which Noah has a particular sweet spot for), and of course, Stay Puft, a marshmallow stout that's brought the brewery a ton of notoriety. Like many of the sweetest people, Rob a tried and trued lover of heavy metal, so we get to wrap with an especially fun Three Bay with someone who actually knows the rules. If only it was episode 666...
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Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

#65: Bret, Brett, and Bretts Sep 14, 2020

Show notes

Hopefully distance does make the heart grow fonder, because Matty and Noah have found themselves alone once again. We reflect on the handful of guest conversations we've been privileged to over the last five weeks, but end up back where we always do: Allagash. Jason Perkins brought Brettanomyces to the forefront of Matty's mind via thoughts of Allagash's almighty Bret Michaels. So he uses a recent BBB3R release - Fire Road - to set the stage for a conversation all about the most misunderstood yeast in the game.
We talk about the seemingly infinite kinds of flavors that Brett can leave its mark through and try to go further than the grossly overused note of "funk" and "horse blanket", seriously questioning the percentage of the beer-drinking populus that has ever come within 100 feet of an actual barnyard. Noah also shares the brewery's method to try to actually become familiar with sensory "notes" commonly associated with Brett fermentations, like mango, passionfruit, lemongrass (Spoiler alert - the trick is to smell and taste the real thing). We also get into the rationale behind dry-hopping a mixed-ferm beer like Fire Road, the effect dry hops can have on the finished product, and the status of his quest to develop a true house culture for the brewery.
Regardless of its many, many different possible attributes, the overall "wild" character Brettanomyces can add to a beer is described as such for a reason, and this is not the first nor the last time we'll dive into a conversation exclusively about this beautifully confusing microorganism. Even so, it felt like we made some modicum of process...If not, at least the Three Bay is fun............................. ................................................. ......................................... Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

#64: Ryan Adams | Artist Sep 07, 2020

Show notes

We're looking for stoke outside of beer this week and talking directly with a man that's been mentioned on multiple episodes of this podcast: Ryan Adams!
Ryan is the co-owner of Better Letter Hand Painted Signs (the work of which can be seen at countless businesses in greater Portland), and independently takes on jobs as a muralist/graffiti artist. We orbit around the multiple jobs Ryan's done at BBB3R, as Matty and Noah were blown away by the process, approach, and level of quality they were each created through. But prior to keeping it contemporary, the guys have a seemingly endless list of questions about the mysterious world of DIY graffiti, where Ryan cut his chops as an artist. We also hear what it's like to paint for an audience (which occasionally is shitfaced), Noah learns there can be a lot more to tagging than an act of minor vandalism, Matt has an epiphany about curls in font, and we get an answer to the age old question, "Is Beer Art?".
The biggest takeaway from the episode, though, was how surprisingly analogous brewing is with painting - or most any creative pursuit done passionately. Episodes a bit removed from beer itself have a tendency of revealing those unseen connections between vocations, and this one uncovered the most links yet. So grab a Mike's Hard, Bud Light Lime, or whatever else you feel like putting down your gullet, and listen in to this conversation about a world that you'll likely find simultaneously foreign and familiar.
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Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

#63: Carol Stoudt I Stoudt's Brewing Co. (REPOSTED) Aug 30, 2020

Show notes

Some technical difficulties arose this week, but we're making lemonade by revisiting one of the best conversations the podcast has afforded us to have. Carol Stoudt spent her entire brewing career at Stoudt's Brewing, of which she was the founding brewmaster. In the eyes of many, she is the foremost pioneering example of women excelling in the brewing industry. Her story, humility, and perspective on the the arc of her career and the accomplishments within it is profoundly humbling. This was also one of the last guest conversations we had before COVID-19 completely changed the landscape of the country. Simpler times, indeed.
Please enjoy this conversation with one of the most badass people - woman or man - to ever touch a mash paddle, whether this is your first time or a well-deserved revisiting.
................................................................................................................................................ Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

#62: Jason Perkins | Allagash Brewing Company Aug 24, 2020

Show notes

Whoa. It really happened. This week's guest is Allagash brewmaster and idol of the podcast, Jason Perkins!!! Noah and Matty do their best to quiet their nerves and make the most out of their time shared with greatness. Topics include, but are not limited to: Noah's most formative memories of Allagash; the steady and subdued Fight for White in Jason's early days at the brewery; the grist breakdown of the best wheat beer in America (besides Blue Moon); how Allagash's love affair with Brettanomyces began by accident via an old dairy tank; defining what it means to get "screwed by the 'Lude"; Jason's biggest takeaways from 13 years of producing authentic spontaneous beer; experiences with beers that have gotten "down with the sickness"; and how Allagash has grown its culture along side its production in such an unparalleled way. If that teaser is somehow not enough (and you're still reading this description), please know the Three Bay is all about some of Jason's favorite beers, and then immediately check your vitals. As corny as it may sound, in all seriousness this was a dream come true for the podcast, and leap frogged the guys' wildest expectations. And you know what they say - where there's a Jason Perkins, there just might be a.................. ...................................................... ....................................Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

#61: Allison Stevens | The Thirsty Pig Aug 17, 2020

Show notes

We're keeping it close to home this week with Allison Stevens, owner of The Thirsty Pig in Portland, ME! Allison is Noah's former boss, as well as a handful of other BBB employees, and Matt wastes no time in getting the scoop on Noah's performance as an employee (in an extraverted environment, no less). We shares countless stories about unique characters cast of people the bar has always attracted, the synergy that has come out of it, and the tremendous amount of impact it had on the brewery's formation and place in the Portland beer community. The last year also brought to an end to Allison and the Pig's involvement in two major events - Old Port Fest and Portland Beer Week, the latter of which Allison has been spearheading since she brought the concept to life in 2012. We get into the different, but equally complicated, reasons for and emotions from those eras ending.
After tracing Ally's interesting arc into the beer industry and the impact Shipyard and its owner Fred Forsley had on her perspective and career. Lastly, we revel in the wonder of the amazing place Allison calls home - Peaks Island. Legally part of Portland, but spiritually very distinct, Ally moved there after meeting her eventual husband Dave, and talks about how the different pace of island living has helped balance out both her business and mind.
This was an absolute fun one, full of real-time reflection, and was a great remind er of how fulfilling having a conversation between friends can be ...................................................................................... Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

#60: Frank Zagami | Deciduous Brewing Co. Aug 10, 2020

Show notes

This week we're in Matty's Motherland of New Hampshire, talking with Frank Zagami of Deciduous Brewing. Frank and his wife Maryann opened their brewery five years ago as the first in Newmarket, a traditionally quaint New England town in the greater Portsmouth area, with the intention to help push New Hampshire past it's reputation as a simple beer throughway between Maine, Vermont, and Massachusetts. We dive into exactly why the state's beer scene was in many ways slower than its neighbors to develop, how laws have held breweries back, and how they hell someone can be pulled over in an airplane.
As Frank oversees brewing operations at Deciduous (in addition to a litany of other roles), we also spend some time in technical town and get into the process behind some of the brewery's cocktail-inspired sour ales and (lightly) fruited lagers, both of which left a huge positive impression on Matty and - shockingly - on the cold, jaded shell of Noah.
Frank is one of the hardest workers in the business, shares some very interesting perspective on a state that has always left the guys a bit bemused, and even is gracious enough to allow Matt to be Pippen to his Jordan in a New Hampshire-centric Three Bay ...............................................................
.........................Music: "Mountain Climb" by Jake Hill

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