It’s been ages since we saw our buddy Heath Perkins from Bell’s Brewery, but that just means lots of terrific brews to taste! First Heath shares the latest from Michigan with us, especially news about the latest and upcoming releases. Then we get a six-pack to sample! It includes Official Hazy IPA, Two Hearted IPA, The Prairie Grass Dividing Gose, Octoberfest, Best Brown, and Special Double Cream Stout!

In a surprise twist, the news begins with a NOT MegaMergerMania event, courtesy of  Oregon Live (thanks Steve!) wherein Anheuser-Busch has opted not to buy Portland’s Craft Brew Alliance! Next up CBS News shows us a craft beer even Jim Gaffigan would like, followed by Forbes offering a beer for people who don't want to get too drunk, and then Bloomberg reveals that Spanish beer isn’t flowing and Brexit is part of the problem. We wind down the week with The Richmond Times-Dispatch heading to a historic marker at the Richmond beer caves at Rocketts Landing and The Bend Bulletin reporting that beer pong is going to get an upgrade!

Last week’s carry over #caskquiz asked for your take on the Uproxx/Instagram female craft beer influencer uproar, and this week we want to know when was the last time you played a beer game and what was it?

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!

To help celebrate Duck Rabbit Brewery’s milestone 15th anniversary, we are delighted to welcome back their sales guru and our good friend Robert Owen! Robert fills us in on all the fun at the recent celebration party at the brewery, plus all the news on the latest releases. Then we are so happy to try the Say What? Wood Aged IPA !

Diversity in the craft beer world remains in the news, beginning with Food & Wine arguing that craft beer has a diversity problem according to a Brewers Association report. Next up Forbes brings us objects of desire or: The Pretentious Beer Glass Company’s high gravity set. Then in companion pieces, Time reports that a beer named after the nuclear testing site Bikini Atoll has been called out for insensitivity, while The Dallas Observer opines that the brewery in question is choosing defensiveness over respect. We wind down the week with The Motley Fool showing how craft beer keeps growing as consumers go local, and Vinepair revealing how Big Beer is eyeing Latinx drinkers with targeted ad campaigns and collabs!

Since we recorded early this week, we are carrying over last week’s #caskquiz asking for your take on the Uproxx/Instagram female craft beer influencer uproar!

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 ourFacebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

It’s crazy to think it’s been a year since we started working with our friends Eric McKay and Scott Apicella from Hardywood Park Brewery! Time flies when you are selling beer, which is why we have a DeLorean! The guys join us at the bar to tell us about what’s been happening in Richmond (and Charlottesville!), reveal their historic Jamestown beer, and bring the goods to try! They include The Original Five Flavors Ale, Dreamlike NE DIPA, Cuvée Peach White Wine Barrel-Aged Belgian Tripel, and Bourbon Cru Barrel-Aged Belgian Quad!

We start the news with a followup to an item from last month. Back in July, Uproxx profiled some Instagram beer influencers to follow. A backlash then ensued over a Brewbound podcast that disparaged some of the women in that list. Our buddy Steve found Vinepair sharing Uproxx, Brewbound, and the Internet gaze on women in beer, which lead us to Uproxx itself talking with these same female beer Influencers, discussing sexism and representation in the industry. Next it’s a potential return of MegaMergerMania courtesy of The Motley Fool as they examine 3 reasons AB-InBev will probably try to buy Craft Brew Alliance, followed by Fox News visiting a beer festival that banned offerings with sexist names and labels. Then it’s Nikkei Asian Review reporting that Kirin is aiming to become Japan's top brewer with a jump into craft beer,and Reuters singing the praises that Guns N' Roses has settled a lawsuit over Guns 'N' Rosé beer. We wind up the week with The Daily Mail’s piece on a food historian who has recreated ancient Egyptian beer, and then Ohio.com shows who’s coming to the inaugural Pro Football Hall of Fame Craft Beer Fest!

Last week’s #caskquiz asked when you visit a craft brewery, do you take the family? Just go with friends? Mix it up? This week we want to hear your take on the Uproxx/Instagram uproar!

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 ourFacebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

The last meteorological month of summer begins this week, and it’s just the two of us to kick it off! We have a delectable wide span of treats from Sycamore, Wicked Weed, and Olde Hickory to boot! They are: Sycamore Luau Lemonade, Wicked Weed Coastal Love, and Olde Hickory Photon Sphere!

We start the heavy news week with a double dose of MegaMergerMania! First up  WOIO reports that Cleveland-based Platform Beer is joining AB InBev as its newest craft acquisition. Then The Mercury News reveals that a distributor buyout is causing over 1,000 employees to lose their jobs in the Bay Area and beyond. In happier news, Fortune shows that over 1,000 new craft breweries have opened in the past year, while Vox explores the rise of babies in bars, and Reuters (thanks Frank!) finds that India's capital has banned AB InBev for three years for alleged tax evasion. Next Forbes visits the largest celebration of women in craft beer, and then NBC examines a clean water case fermenting trouble for craft breweries and environmentalists. We then wind up with Thrillist heading to the US-Mexico border, where craft beer diplomacy is bringing brewers together!

For last week’s #caskquiz we asked “do you think you are becoming less adventurous in trying new beers? If so, tell us why!” This week we want to know “when you visit a craft brewery, do you take the family? Just go with friends? Mix it up?”

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 ourFacebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!

Summertime demands refreshing brews, and our friends Summer Blaylock and Matt Holmes are in town with treats from Radeberger Brewery that fit the bill! They chat with us about the latest from Frankfurt, Germany, and then they share a couple of tasty light brews with us: Clausthaler Dry Hopped and Schofferhofer Pomegranate!

The news begins locally here in Mayberry via WRAL (thanks Scott!) with the announcement that an Orange County woman has been named the first North Carolinian to be certified as an expert in 'all things cider'! Next we have The Boston Globe opining that the craft beer industry has a diversity problem, followed by The USA Today (thanks Michael!) unveiling an Area 51 raid that has caused Bud Light to offer free beer for 'any alien that makes it out'! Then it’s Food & Wine demonstrating that craft beer drinkers are becoming less adventurous than they used to be, and we close with Boston.com’s list of 6 expert tips for reading a beer label!

For last week’s #caskquiz we wanted to know what beer event/festivals have you done this year or are planning to do? For this week, we ask “do you think you are becoming less adventurous in trying new beers? If so, tell us why!”

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!