Pubcast 393 – Bob Salzman of BBGB Brewery Hopfarm

Bob Salzman has been the Brewmaster at BBGB for around 5 years, and we need to apologize to him upfront! We have no idea why we haven’t been out to taste his brews before, but we’re glad we have now!

BBGB is the brewery arm of an amazing restaurant called Hardware, which from a distance looks like something out of a Mad Max movie, but in reality is an experiment in recycling. Opened in 2007, they describe themselves as a sustainable gastropub and brewery, but it also includes a 1.5 acre hop farm, and the harvest from that provided our first sample brew. The restaurant presents a wonderful place to dine, plus the whiskey collection is vast, but we were there to find out more about the brewery, and of course, Brewmaster Bob.

Joining The Brit is co-host Ken McMullen, who find out about the beers, Bob’s background and his passion for brewing, and how the heck they put their taps into a solid piece of rock that rivals the black obelisk in 2001 A Space Odyssey! Plus we discover that the bricks used for some of the construction of the restaurant came from a crematorium! Pretty scary, but sustainable which is what they are all about, and their full-time master gardener grows most of their salad greens onsite in a hothouse.

Again, we regret not having tried Bob’s brews sooner, and you can believe we’ll be back to try the food, paired up with them!! Cheers!

Beers Sampled:

  • Bradley’s 1041, Vienna Lager, 6.0% ABV
  • Fresh Harvest 2023, Red Harvest IPA, 6.5% ABV
  • Saison Marilyn, Farmhouse Ale Saison, 9.0% ABV

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Pubcast 392 – Brülosophy with Steve Thanos

Home brewing is where the craft beer movement all started. President Jimmy Carter back in 1978 signed HR 1337, lifting some 50 years of prohibition on homebrewing regulations, and thereby creating a thriving amateur brewing environment that developed into the craft beer industry we have today. So many professional brewers have come from a homebrew background, and one of the organizations that has produced many of Chicagoland’s brewers in PALE, Plainfield Ale & Lager Enthusiasts.

One man who has remained in the club, has not become a professional, but who is very much involved in helping homebrewers with their education, is Steve Thanos. Steve is also one of the main contributors to Brülosophy, an organization that takes the art of homebrewing to the next level with their ‘Exbeeriments’ and discussions on brewing methods, just part of their extensive website.

In this episode, co-host Ken McMullen, who was also an originating PALE member, joins The Brit in welcoming Steve down to the Brit and Yankee Pub studio where we talk homebrew, plus we undertake one of Steve’s Exbeeriments! How do we fare? You’ll have to tune in to find out, but whether you are a professional, a homebrewer, or just like craft beer, this episode is a fascinating story of the total experience of tasting craft beer.

We held back and posted this episode AFTER Brülosophy posted the results of this Exbeeriment, at their request, so now you can also head over to their website and check out the full article on the results. Cheers to Steve and all those at Brülosophy!

Play our audio podcasts using your favorite smartphone podcast app or our player above. We have a direct link to Apple Podcasts and Spotify below…and lots of other links on the sidebar! Plus you can subscribe to our YouTube channel by clicking this link.

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Pubcast 391 – Steve Woertendyke of Two Hound Red Brewing

Glen Ellyn IL is home to The Beer Cellar, one of the first craft beer bottle shops in the area, and less than a block away is Glen Ellyn’s intriguingly-named craft brewpub, Two Hound Red. Steve Woertendyke has been the head brewer there for 3 years and has managed to provide a well-balanced variety of brews that will be sure to suit everyone’s palate.

The Brit and Yankee team of The Brit and co-host Ken McMullen, were long overdue for a visit, so we rectified that this week and headed out to sit down and chat with Steve in the soon to be full of barrels, barrel room. We talked a week ahead of their Oktoberfest celebration, so his fest marzen and the companion smoked marzen started off our interview in great style. Steve  and Ken worked together many years ago at the long-defunct Limestone Brewing, so it was nice to get the two old chums together again for some pub chat!

As a full brewpub with an extensive restaurant menu, we feel 2HR is definitely worth a visit so you can judge for yourselves…Cheers!

Beers Sampled:

  • Angel of Lite, American Lager, 4.1% ABV
  • Steel Machete, Mexican Lager, 5.5% ABV
  • Oktoberfest, Marzen-style, 5.0% ABV
  • Smokektoberfest, Smoked Marzen-style, 6.0% ABV
  • Pale Horse, IPA, 6.4% ABV
  • Boathouse, IPA, 6.0% ABV

Play our audio podcasts using your favorite smartphone podcast app or our player above. We have a direct link to Apple Podcasts and Spotify below…and lots of other links on the sidebar! Plus you can subscribe to our YouTube channel by clicking this link.

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Pubcast 390 – Non-Alcoholic Craft Beer at Go Brewing

This weekend is Labor Day and there’s going to be plenty of barbecues and parties held across the state. Why not offer your guests something that won’t leave them with a headache the next day, or perhaps you have guests who don’t drink, but want to be part of the craft crowd.

In this edition we visit with what we believe is the only non-alcoholic craft beer brewery in the state, Go Brewing Company, located in Naperville IL. Joe Chura is one of the co-founders and the President of GBC, and James Bigler is their head brewer. The Brit and co-host Ken McMullen (Fox Republic Brewing) sat down in their brewery taproom and talked with them about their ‘meteoric’ rise as one of the premier NA breweries in the country.

We talk build-out, process, styles and marketing, discovering many of the differences from being a traditional brewery, the biggest one of which is the distribution channel, online sales, which has led them to be able to sell on Amazon. Of course their brews are available in brick-and-mortar stores, plus many of the area breweries are now carrying their brews as the NA alternative. There’s also a bonus for those counting the calories with most of their brews coming in at less than 80 calories!

By the time this episode has published, their Oktoberfest Märzen will have been released, but we get a pre-taste of it, and a look at the awesome can art. This brew will be a hit at Oktoberfest celebrations for those who don’t drink alcohol, but want to raise their glass for a Prost toast!

We think they are going to only grow more, and The Brit has certainly been converted! We think you will be as well once you try them…cheers!

Beers Sampled:

  • Suspended In A Sunbeam, Pilsner, 0.49% ABV, 45 calories
  • New School Sour Berry, Sour with strawberries &blueberry, <0.5% ABV, 63 calories
  • Damn Good Oktoberfest, Marzen, 0.47% ABV, 65 calories
  • Street Cred Nitro Bold, Nitro Stout, 0.35% ABV, 60 calories
  • Vanilla Porter, 0.5% ABV

Play our audio podcasts using your favorite smartphone podcast app or our player above. We have a direct link to Apple Podcasts and Spotify below…and lots of other links on the sidebar! Plus you can subscribe to our YouTube channel by clicking this link.

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