Tony resisted long enough, so Jenn and Chip force the issue by bringing in some terrific fall brews from Fainting Goat, Compass Rose, Two Roads and a spectacular mead from Honeysuckle Meadery & Teahouse! We happily sampled the Fainting Goat Fluffernutter, Compass Rose Munich Masquerade, Two Roads Ok2berfest plus the awesome Honeysuckle Elderberry-Blueberry Blend Mead! And that’s not all: we have exclusive chats with some of our friends who were at GABF last week!

MegaMergerMania once again starts us up with the last story about the ABI takeover of SABMiller courtesy of The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, followed by the announcement that Kirin is betting on the future of craft beer with a Brooklyn Brewery stake, via Bloomberg. Next up The Beaver County Times reveals a blood-red beer-special comic book collaboration brewing for Halloween (you knew Chip had to include that one!) then Grub Street reports that Starbucks is introducing a new drink that combines coffee and beer, Munchies believes your liver will thank you for drinking hoppy beers, and we wind up with The Times-Call News’ profile of a ‘beer archaeologist' who balances invention at Boulder's Avery Brewing with teaching at CU Boulder!

Since we recorded early last week we carried over the #caskquiz “how would a lower excise tax affect the #craftbeer industry? And this week we want to know “do you add any flavorings to your beer and if so what?”

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram or friending on Untappd @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing written or audio messages to talesfromthecask@gmail.com! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t

With Chip’s return from overseas, we decided to close the bar and kick back with some awesome taste treats from Anchor, Blake’s, and Alchemist! They are the Dry-Hopped Steam Beer, Apple Lantern, and Focal Banger!

MegaMergerMania leads the newstime via Eater reporting that the biggest beer merger in history gets a thumbs-up from shareholders, followed by a companion piece by OPB lamenting when small beers go big time. Next up The Denver Post discusses  The Great American Beer Festival turning 35, then VinePair asks why bars serve salty snacks with beer, Fast Company reveals that Vice Media is launching its very own beer, and we close with Beer Connoisseur on the art of coopering.

Since we recorded early this week we are carrying over last week’s #caskquiz was “how would a lower excise tax affect the #CraftBeer industry?”

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram or friending on Untappd @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing written or audio messages to talesfromthecask@gmail.com! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

We are working overtime to get Wicked Weed out there, and our buddy (and former co-worker!) Kyle Pederson is right there with us! Kyle talks about his history with our friends in Asheville, including how he wandered into the brewpub and how he ended up working for the brewery! Plus, he brings a special treat for us to try: Old Fashioned Barrel-Aged Ale!

The news stories are chocked-full of fun this week! Paste rates 55 Oktoberfest/Märzen beers, then The Denver Post relates how the Denver beer scene made a German beer connoisseur realize he didn’t know much after all, and The Federalist believes that pumpkin beer is super gross, just like Tony does! Next VinePair ranks the 7 best craft beer cities to see fall colors, Fast Company demonstrates how one college student got 3,000 strangers to Venmo him beer money, and we wind up with WFTS Tampa FL’s revealing that 'Hootie & the Blowfish' are celebrating their custom craft beer launch with special concert!

Last week’s #caskquiz was “do you think Oprah and Steadman should FINALLY tie the knot and if so what beer should they serve at the reception?” and this week we want you to tell us “are you taking any beer-themed trips this fall and if so where?”

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram or friending on Untappd @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing written or audio messages to talesfromthecask@gmail.com! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

It took us years, and we finally did it - we got Charlie Clement, our VP of Chain Sales, to join the fun at the little bar! Charlie regales us with tales of olden times, when the horses still pulled the beer carts from town to town, and how things have evolved into the 21st Century craft beer world! Plus, we found a few more taste treats from the summer cellar as the season winds down, including Foothills Hop of the Month Azacca Golden Ale, Coronado Guava Islander IPA, and the Wicked Weed/Creature Comforts Collaboration Juiceless IPA!

Election/beer news is our lede this week via Politico asking can a beer keep Trump and Clinton honest? followed by Paste reporting that Brewdog plans to bottle a 55% beer in a taxidermy squirrel. Next up we have two from Thrillist featuring Britain and Ireland’s greatest contributions to beer and craft beer’s dark secrets, and we close up with The HuffPo unveiling the illusion of choice facing America’s craft beer lovers.

Last week’s #caskquiz was “should we have a hops-themed Halloween costume contest?” and this week we want you to tell us “do you think Oprah and Steadman should FINALLY tie the knot and if so what beer should they serve at the reception?”

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram or friending on Untappd @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing written or audio messages to talesfromthecask@gmail.com! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

In Chip’s absence We take this show on the road to the City of Durham to catch up with our old friend Ryan Trask of the newly minted Durty Bull Brewing Company. With our veteran news man away from his desk Jenn and Tony searched high and low to bring you stories about Texas Beer laws and the Constitution, A Bible Belt Beer Revival, Why it’s good to be a chemistry student in Maine. We also take it international with an inspiring story of the man who brought craft beer to Jerusalem. Did you know that San Diego’s own Stone Brewing is getting in the hotel game? We wrap with TWO listener submitted pieces detailing a blatant disregard for city statutes and brewing in Charleston and some more news regarding layoffs at a large NC brewery.

We needed some refreshment after such a robust news segment and Durty Bull was quick to provide just that with samples of their House Lager, Brettanomyces Table Beer and Rhubarb Berliner Weisse.

Last week for our #caskquiz we asked “Do you think Devils Backbone should have been banned from the VA event even though they are still independent for now?” And this week we want to know if you’d like to see a hop themed halloween episode with the tales cast?”

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing written or audio messages to talesfromthecask@gmail.com! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

Our friends at Lagunitas see all the Oktoberfest beers out right now and they say “summer is still here!” So they have some late-summer brews that we just had to try this week with our buddy Mike O: Stoopid Wit and Wilco Tango Foxtrot! Plus, they FINALLY have introduced a canned beer, 12th of Never! As they say on the can:

“And then at the very moment that the lands beyond the River Styx froze over, as the last pig took flight, as the last winged monkey departed the darkly fragrant netherlands, when wishes become horses and all of the beggars rode, when a moon rose newly blued on the morning of the 12th of never, and the second to last craft brewery in America pressed the green button on their canning line. We wanted be the Last Small Brewer in the U.S. to can their beer and maybe by now we are... “

As usual these days, we open with more MegaMergerManiaTM via The Washington Post reporting that amid its deal with Anheuser-Busch, Devils Backbone has been kicked out of its own festival. We follow with Plastics Today on innovative craft beer concentrate packaged in a thermoformed pack, then Bloomberg believes that American beer ain’t what it used to be thanks to European barley and SFGate goes old school (really old) with the East Bay beer that’s 45 million years old! We wrap up this week with VinePair’s suggestions for the ideal wine for every kind of beer lover and C|Net uses virtual reality to ask is beer better in Scotland?

Last week’s #caskquiz was “if your fave brewery were bought by a super megacorp, would you still drink the beer?” and this week we want you to tell us “do you think Devils Backbone should have been banned from the VA event even though they are still independent for now?”

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram or friending on Untappd @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing written or audio messages to talesfromthecask@gmail.com! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

The heat is really on outside, so our friend Chris Sorey joins us to escape it and we share some sweet relief from Colorado’s Trinity Brewing! Chris talks about the latest in the world of trademarks and beer, plus he has some fun stories of legal shenanigans! Then we have some of the best beers of the summer from Trinity: Elektrick Cukumbahh Saison d'Été, Menacing Strawberry Fresh Harvest Saison, and Red Swingline IPA Primitif!

We have so much craftbeer news this week! We start with The Daily Beast’s sky-is-falling piece on what they call craft beer’s looming crisis, followed by another example of why that might not be the case: yet one more MegaMergerManiaTM deal via The Dallas Observer who asks does it matter who owns Revolver Brewing? Next is Fast Company showing Sam Adams's secret weapon for winning back the American craft drinker, and then The Guardian reveals how the Soviets helped America’s craft beer revolution. With the Olympics going full-throttle, Thrillist tells us why you need to care about Brazil’s craft beer scene and we close with CBS News reporting on what beer has to do with mosquito bites?

Last week’s #caskquiz was “should we get a doorbell for the bar and what sound should it make?” and this week we want you to tell us “if your fave brewery were bought by a super megacorp, would you still drink the beer?”

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram or friending on Untappd @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing written or audio messages to talesfromthecask@gmail.com! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

It’s finally here - our homebrew competition! We had 7 submissions from listeners and we sample them with special guest judges Leif Larson from Olde Hickory Brewing and internet craftbeer blogging sensation Bryan D. Roth! Who will come out on top?

Before the judging, we have your news! First up is VinePair listing the five egregious beer habits you need to stop right now, followed by Geek showing us a smart glass that earns you free beer. Next we have a terrific in-depth piece by Paste called Let's Talk Beer Styles: IPA, and we close up with Eater (LA) calling an LA craftbeer hotline that’s both hilarious and informative!

Last week’s #caskquiz was “is craftbeer getting too expensive ?” and this week we want you to tell us “should get a doorbell for the bar and what sound should it make?”

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram or friending on Untappd @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing written or audio messages to talesfromthecask@gmail.com! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

We have been hearing a lot from the San Diego area lately!  Chip has returned from a week in the area as well as our very own NC rep Wil Cooper!  They both fill us in on the latest from Coronado Island and we get to try some limited brews along with a new canned beer Easy Up Pale Ale!  Wil tells us the unique story behind Frog’s Breath IPA and we round out the tasting portion with the Hibiscus IPA.

We kick off the news segment with some Mega Merger Mania as MillerCoors has recently gotten into the game acquiring both Terrapin and Hop Valley Brewing in the same week! We continue our calorie counting coverage with the top ten lists for highest and lowest calorie beers.  On the pricing front, we discuss an unfair taxation strategy that was proposed in Canada and ponder if craft beer is becoming too expensive.  We’ve also got the must try list for this summer’s most popular beer style-Gose!

Last week for our #caskquiz we asked:  “What is your Heady Topper Story?  Where were you when you first tried it?”

This week we want to know: “Is craft beer getting too expensive?”

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing us at talesfromthecask@gmail.com.

Not every brewer has the patience and talent to lead with lagers, and we lucked out this week with one who does it so well -  Kyle Williams from Brevard Brewing! Kyle talks with us about his background, the founding of his brewery, and has some terrific brews for us: American Premium Lager, flagship Bohemian Pilsner, and Munich Dunkel!

Is all the craftbeer news financial this week or what? Just look at the sources! First up Reuters reports that big brewers see strong potential for weak beer, followed by Fortune shows us big brewers are adding calorie counts to their labels and MarketWatch tells us that craftbeer brewers are copying the tasting-room experience of wineries. Next Forbes reveals the cheapest time to buy beer, wine and everything else and we close with The Wall Street Journal’s piece on craft brewers brawling over catchy names as puns run dry.

Last week’s #caskquiz was “what’s your ice cream and craftbeer pairing?” and this week we want you to create your own catchy craft beer name - there’s a prize for the best one!

We love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, tweeting us @talescask, following our Instagram or friending on Untappd @talesfromthecask, posting on and liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TalesFromTheCask or emailing written or audio messages to talesfromthecask@gmail.com! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!