It’s almost Halloween so of course we decide to charge ahead to trying some whales from the holidays of yore with our friend and co-worker Daniel Menestres! Daniel shares his Belgian background, relates how he got in the beer business, and then opens his vault to us with three terrific aged brews: 2013 Tröeg’s Mad Elf, 2014 Anchor Christmas, and 2015 Prairie Christmas Bomb!

The news begins with another sign of the times courtesy of Vice reporting that a women-only craft beer forum has been shut down by a “men’s rights activist”. Next up Market Exclusive has a story on how BrewDog has launched the first cryptocurrency bar that accepts Bitcoin for drinks! Then we head to Chi-town via The Chicago Tribune (thanks Scott!) revealing that a Planters peanut IPA collaboration with Chicago brewer Noon Whistle tastes better than a gimmick! Then we close the week with The Miami Herald going over to OKC to find that not all Oklahoma brewpubs are offering higher ABV beers!

You have great responses to last week’s #caskquiz “have you been influenced to purchase beer or cider to support a cause? Which products and causes?” This week we are curious about your take on the lead story regarding the shut down of the women-only beer forum. Was this justified?

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

The boys from Michigan are back in town! Yes it’s Aaron Lanctot and Kirby Dean from Blake’s Hard Cider Company! They share the latest from the world of cider, and they debut the amazing FIDO (Latin for faithfulness)! It’s the second release in the #KinderCider series, made in support of non-profits that pair veterans and shelter animals.

We start with some downer news, then we build back to the fun we love. The downer comes via Indy Week reporting that after four decades, All About Beer Magazine Is shutting down. Next, scary potential news arrives from The New York Times (thanks mhjell!) with the potential that heat and drought could threaten the world beer supply. We then go to a happier place, your local brewpub, with The Washington Post (thanks Frank!) sharing tips on what parents should do, and not do, when taking kids to a brewery. We wind down the week with Motley Fool recommending beer stocks that can defend your portfolio, NPR’s good news that consumers say they'll pay more for sustainable beer, and lastly The Hollywood Reporter’s  profile of a Disney child star-turned-brewer who is trying to make mead cool!

You have some tons of terrific responses to last week’s #caskquiz “what’s your fave IPA style?” This week we are asking “have you been influenced to purchase beer or cider to support a cause? Which products and causes?”

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

Jenn revs up the DeLorean this week and travels back to Warren, MI to visit with our friends from Kuhnhenn Brewing! Eric Senior, Eric Junior, and Bret all sit down and discuss what’s been brewing and open a rare 2013 4th Dementia to taste! Then Jenn zips back and brings out a Barrel-Aged Cherry Oud Bruin that she shares with Chip, generating much rejoicing in the bar!

The news begins with more MegaMergerMania via The Watauga Democrat revealing that Appalachian Mountain Brewing and two other breweries have sold to Craft Brew Alliance. Next up is a follow up to last week’s Lagunitas layoff news from Munchies asking do the layoffs signal trouble for big craft beer? Then we go overseas with Food & Wine reporting that Europe’s craft beer associations have formed their own union, and The Japan Times profiling Japan’s craft beer scene, 25 years in the making. We close the week with Fortune forecasting that if you like IPAs, you'll love craft beer's upcoming trends!

You have some terrific responses to last week’s #caskquiz “what’s your fall/Oktoberfest beer for 2018?” This week we want to know “what’s your fave IPA style?”

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

It’s Ballast Point time in the bar this week courtesy of our friend Spencer Kilgore! Spencer reveals his beer origins, talks about the latest offerings from the brewery, and shares a couple of treats: White Wine Barrel-Aged Sour Wench and High West Barrel-Aged Victory at Sea!

Newstime begins with some sadness from the Petaluma Argus Courier in that Lagunitas Brewing is planning to cut 12 percent of its workforce. Next up Bloomberg is reporting that with the rise of Helles lagers, craft brewers are embracing subtlety. Then we have The Chicago Tribune demonstrating why the intersection of coffee and beer has become a dominant force in craft brewing, followed by The LA Times’ piece revealing that France has (finally) discovered craft beer. We close with the news that we won an honorable mention from the North American Guild of Beer Writers in their podcast award category at the GABF!

We love your answers to last week’s #caskquiz “what’s your take on the Gaffigan story? Humorous or no?” Given the time of year, this week we want to know “what’s your fall/Oktoberfest beer for 2018?”

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

We love making new friends in the beer world and it’s so easy when you share wonderful frosty malt beverages! This week we do it again with Andrew Goliwas from Lagunitas! Andrew talks about his journey into the beer business and his time with Lagunitas, and then he has some super beers for us to try: Passion Grass, Mozango, and SuperCluster!

In the news, we go financial via Alphaville (from The Financial Times) exploring the UK’s craft beer euphoria. Next up VinePair schools us with The Definitive Craft Beer Urban Dictionary. Then we examine the all in fun “controversy” that starts with CBS when Jim Gaffigan makes the case for beer that tastes like beer, and the reaction is wild! We have two examples of the buzz, starting with Paste saying Jim Gaffigan's anti-craft beer op-ed is equal parts pointless and short-sighted, and then Food & Wine asks why does Jim Gaffigan hate craft beer so much?

We love your answers to last week’s #caskquiz “what’s your optimal can (or bottle) size for craft beer?” This week we want to know “what’s your take on the Gaffigan story? Humorous or no?”

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

We are so excited about the success we have had with our friends from Hardywood Park Craft Brewery! And we celebrate this week with our Hardywood friend (and Mims alum) Scott Apicella! Scott reveals all the latest from Virginia and opens a cooler filled with treats: Cuvee Gold, Farmhouse Pumpkin, Crasseux Grisette, and Prim Looking Stargazer!

There is much fun news for us in the beer world this week beginning in The Houston Chronicle’s profile of a a San Antonio company that is taking its bakery-to-brewery model nationwide! We follow that with VinePair showing us that ‘stovepipe’ cans are here because craft beer wants to party, and then The Advocate (Baton Rouge) praises thirty-three breweries that are releasing one collaborative brew for Louisiana Craft Beer Week! Next up is The Marin Independent Journal on craft beer culture lagging in Europe, followed by Eureka Alert having a prehistoric thirst for craft beer. We wind down the week with The Dayton Daily News demonstrating why Warped Wing's beers went globe-trotting on vacation and People Magazine (!) and the news that the famous NY bar Black Tap is serving an over-the-top “Mean Girls” milkshake and it's so fetch!

We love your answers to last week’s #caskquiz “what’s your coolest beer gadget? High tech or low!” This week we want to know “what’s your optimal can (or bottle) size for craft beer?”

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

Are we gadget people? You know we are! And we get to scratch our gear itch with cool tech from our friend Chris Lorkowski, who is CEO of BruVue! He tells us about the company’s origins, and then he shows us how the BruVue system tracks draft beer sales and inventory. Then we kick back and sample delicious treats including Blake’s Rosé Cider, Bear Republic Brut Squad IPA, and Roak French Toast Devil Dog Oatmeal Stout!

We begin the news with a reply to last week’s story about low craft beer pricing from Vinepair,  with their belief that craft beer is getting cheaper, and that’s a good thing. Next is Eater Chicago’s historical review of how the Cicerone Certification Program has changed craft beer service across America, followed by The LA Times’ (and our friend John Holl!) opinion that when it comes to beer, 'craft' isn't always synonym for 'good'. Then (appropriate to this week’s guest) we move to Digital Trends asking can a tabletop Krups keg really deliver a perfect pour? We wind up the week with The Daily Telegraph on a pint of beer for £22 that is worth every penny and The Motley Fool on why big beer stocks are struggling.

We have your answers to last week’s #caskquiz “do you think craft brewers should be competing on price against each other? Against the megabrewers? Does that lower perceived value of craft?” And for this week we want to know “what’s your coolest beer gadget? High tech or low!”

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

Four years has been the blink of an eye to us since we talked with Ted Dwyer and Bill Gerds from Lynnwood Brewing Concern! Amazing! So this week we fire up the T-Bird and head over to their production brewery near downtown Raleigh to find out all the latest, plus we hear about all the awards they have won! And we get to sample both the Holus Bolus Sour and Australian Pale Ale!

What a challenge culling the news - seems like everyone is back to work! We start with two from Forbes: in the first we learn that some craft breweries are defying convention by beginning to drop prices, and in the second we take a trip in the Delorean to try a beer from the Middle Ages! Next we go sporty via ESPN’s score that the Atlanta Falcons are going to sell $5 craft pale ale at home games this season! Then it’s Fortune’s visit to the last Blockbuster Video in America, which is getting its own craft beer, followed by The ABA Journal (thanks sfringer!) affirming that In-N-Out Burger has sent a pun-filled letter to a beer maker to address a 'brewing' trademark issue. We wind down the week on CNBC reporting that BrewDog is launching a video-on-demand network with original content!

We have your answers to last week’s #caskquiz “what’s your take on ownership with all the different structures? Do these definitions matter in the craft world?” This week we want to know “do you think craft brewers should be competing on price against each other? Against the megabrewers? Does that lower perceived value of craft?”

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

We are delighted to welcome back our old friend and colleague Ryan Trask from one of our favorite NC brewers, Olde Hickory! Ryan reveals all the news from western NC and has a cooler full of terrific beers for us: Summer Sonker, Oktoberfest, Auxo, and Imperial Stout!

The news begins with a pair of stories from who else, VinePair! First up is a terrific thought piece that proposes craft beer was built on an us-versus-them ethos and now it’s tearing us apart. The second reveals five things no one wants to say about Italian craft beer. Then we pivot to Science Daily (thanks Bill D!) reporting on scientists who have debuted a super-insulating gel made from beer waste! Next Food & Wine shows us the most popular category at this year’s GABF, and we close with The Cincinnati Enquirer’s visit to an Ohio craft beer hotel!

We have your answers to last week’s #caskquiz “does it matter if A-B InBev is the biggest craft beer producer?” This week we ask “what’s your take on ownership with all the different structures? Are you an us or them partisan?”

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

It’s Texas time again in Mayberry and our friend Ryan Mcaulay has ridden up from Austin EastCiders to share some delicious cider with us! We learn all about the explosive growth of the cidery and we taste the amazing Spiced Cider!

MegaMergerMania™
The Chicago Tribune: Anheuser-Busch on its way to becoming king of craft beer too
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Want to open a craft brewery? Having great beer isn't enough to get a loan
NBC 7 San Diego: 9 Beers Inspired By San Diego's Music Scene
Travel + Leisure: This Icelandic Craft Beer Is Made From a Giant Whale Testicle
The News & Observer: This app will pay you to go out for a beer

We have your answers to last week’s #caskquiz “what’s the lowest price you have paid for a craft beer?” This week we want you to tell us “what’s the lowest price you have paid for a craft beer?”

We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!