BAOS: Beer & Other Shhh Podcast

One of the most under-the-radar beer scenes in Ontario can be found in London. Two hours west of Toronto, the city often gets overlooked for their craft brews so we wanted to shine some light on one of the OGs - Storm Stayed. Justin joined Cee and Nate to chat about why the Pale Ale is the most popular style in London, how marketing craft beer evolved over time, their bragging rights as the first...

Cambridge, ON is home to some phenomenal breweries, and one of the newest, Farm League, has some big shoes to fill. Taking over the old Grand River location, they've turned a legendary brewery into something that truly reflects who they are and what they bring to the scene. Co-Founders Matt and Mike join Cee and Nate to chat about their interest in some of the less popular styles, what it was like...

Now that Rochester, NY is our new US backyard, we figured we needed to shine some light on the exceptional craft beer scene out there and who better to tell that story than journalist Will Cleveland. Widely renowned in the area for his work at the Democrat & Chronicle newspaper, Will has been a friend of the show for like half a decade but this is his first appearance on the pod. Cee and Will got...

Hamilton, ON has been a bit of a slow burner as far as their craft beer scene, but over the last few years things have really popped off, and none more than Fairweather. Co-Founders Ram and Brent joined Cee and Nate to chat about how it all came about, why they chose an NEIPA as their flagship beer, their gorgeous label art, how craft beer has impacted Hamilton, their unique approach to their prod...

Niagara Falls hasn't historically been known for its fire craft beer, but all that changed a few years back when Greg and his Co-Founder Joe opened Counterpart Brewing at the north end of town. Greg hung out with Cee and Nate to chat about the West Coast beginnings of his beer journey, how deep he is (or was) in the trading game, their Untappd-breaking first attempt at a barrel-aged stout, why foo...

We've been hella bullish on Prince Edward County for a few years now, so we were stoked to hang out with the newest brewery out of Bloomfield, ON, All My Friends! Co-Founders Ryan and Rob joined Cee and Nate to chat about the vibe in the County,  the kinds of beers that they're making and why it's so unique to the region, how they've carved out their own community while converting new folks, why "...

It's been a long time coming, but we finally got Kitchener Waterloo's Block Three on the pod! Co-Founder Graham Spence and Head Brewer Kevin Freer joined Cee and Nathan for a super fun chat about their approach to beer and obsession with crispyboiz, Graham's pilgrimage to the Czech Republic via the government program, why their flagship beer is a Belgian Saison, their disdain for their uber popula...

It's been a great start to 2023 on the pod, with a focus on the future, a focus on the past, and for this episode, Cee and Tiff talk about the present. For many folks, Dry January is an annual ritual to help kick off a new year and create better drinking habits, and fortunately for those who are participating (or those who just want some balance), there are a ton of amazing non-alcoholic options i...

It's that time of year again, folks. Cee and Nate sat down and did their best to figure out the best and brightest craft breweries in Ontario for the year that was 2022. With Cee's move back to Ontario in the summer of '22 giving him unlimited access to the most killer cans in the province, it's been an extra big year for the boys soaking up all the killer ON brews. The top 10 are listed in no par...

Happy 2023, y'all! Cee and Tiff sat down to look back at the year in beer that was 2022, including their favourite breweries and beers, new discoveries, trends and more. They also did a deep dive into what the future of craft beer could look like in 2023 and beyond, with a focus on some of the numbers from the big boys, brewery mergers and buy-outs from 2022, the burgeoning new beverage segments,...

Bonus drop! The fourth Link Up series saw the brewery collaborations expand south of the border, and what a way to launch in the US with Burlington, VT's Foam Brewers! Co-Founders Bob and Jon joined Tiff and Cee for an incredibly insightful chat about the state of diversity in Vermont, how breweries can deepen their connection to the community around them, their work with Pink Boots, what they've...

Brewing a Lager for Link Up requires a lot of notice and a lot of preparation, which is a testament to the dedication to the DEI mission from the legends at Caledon, ON's Sonnen Hill. Brewer and Founder Calum Hill joined Tiff and Cee to chat about the challenges of operating a diverse brewery located in a farming community, the benefits of being close to a major city, how to curate an inclusive ex...

Our final interview of 2022 goes down with a brewery making waves in Kitchener, ON. Counterpoint opened its cozy taproom a few years back to a resoundingly positive response from its community, and has gone from strength to strength ever since. Founder Graeme Kobayashi joined Cee and Nate to chat about lesser-known beer styles, the challenges of opening a brewery, the importance of focusing on com...

Finally, Link Up Series 4 takes us to Quebec! One of the newer kids on the block, Toltèk Brasseur Artisan opened in late 2020 into one of the most challenging times to open a brick-and-mortar business. Co-Founder Frédérick Bois-Chassé joined Tiff and Cee to chat about how to reach the members of your local community who don't know about beer, working with community groups, the importance of brewer...

The pendulum is swinging in the world of IPAs, and it's slowly but surely headed in the direction from whence it came. Cee and Nate recently dropped an episode focusing on all things Fall beers, and they're back with a pod exclusively exploring their deepening love for the West Coast India Pale Ale. They picked four fantastic WC IPAs from Ontario and Quebec and discussed the origin of the West Coa...

Week 4 of Link Up Series 4 brings us back to Toronto, ON with our first ever Black-owned brewery collaboration - Mascot Brewery! Founder Aaron Prothro joined Tiff and Cee to chat about the challenges of being a BIPOC craft brewery owner (and the first Black-owned brewery in Canada), the importance of standing for something as a business, how to interview for a diverse workforce, why putting himsel...

There's almost nothing we love more here at BAOS than a successful contractor-to-brick-and-mortar story, so this chat with Griffin Data of Newark Brewing was right up our alley. We connected with Griffin back in 2018/2019 when they were budding contractors, and now they've opened their own brewpub in Beamsville, ON, deep in Niagara wine country. Cee and Griffin spoke about their journey from being...

The third entry in Link Up's Series 4 sees us swing back to Ontario with the legends at Elora Brewing! Founder Jonathan Laurencic joins Tiff and Cee to chat about the challenges of finding diversity in small cities, how tourism is helping diversity in Elora, how they target larger nearby cities to tap into their diverse talent base, and how meeting people at their comfort zone with things like lan...

London, Ontario has been slowly growing its reputation for fire craft beer over the past half a decade or more, and one of the breweries leading the charge is Anderson Craft Ales. Founder Gavin Anderson joins Cee and Nathan from NathanDoesBeer to chat about the growth of the craft beer scene and industry in London, why brown ales aren't popular these days (but are so fire), how their beers have ev...

We're back! Series 4 of Link Up has kicked off, and we're leading with one of our fave Ontario breweries - Willibald Distillery & Brewery! Cam Formica joined Cee and Tiff to chat about the growing diversity in their town of Ayr, their community endeavours, the benefits of a diverse business and how breweries can be more inclusive. We crushed their fantastic Fruited Gose with mango, apricot and pea...

Beer education is a fascinating and often misunderstood topic, and it's something that we've been wanting to cover on the podcast for a while now. Advanced Cicerone Michelle Tham joined Cee for a genuinely amazing conversation alongside Jacob Barrette, Co-Founder of 5e Baron and Link Up, a non-profit (co-founded with the BAOS team) focused on diversifying the craft beer industry via Cicerone schol...

Fall is easily our favourite time of year, for weather, fashion and of course, beer. To celebrate the season, Cee linked with Nathan to go deep into all things Fall in beer. From Festbiers to Märzens, Fresh Hop IPAs to Pumpkin beers, they covered all of the greatest seasonal hits to figure out what they are, who does them best, and why you should be drinking every Fall style. They cracked open som...

Toronto's Avling Brewery have been knocking out well-crafted, approachable beers for over three years now, and since we last had them on a lot has changed. Cee hung out with the man behind the beers, Brandon Judd, to get stuck into what they've been up to the past 18 months since they last connected, they got deep into their new series of mixed fermentation sours in cans, the differences between t...

Blending barrel-aged beer is truly an art, and for the first time we dedicated an entire podcast episode to it. Max Bergeron from Quebec City's BG Brasserie Urbaine, who creates some of the best barrel-aged, blended beers in the province, and Noah Forrest of Beerism joined Cee to get down to the tiny details on barrel-aging and blending barrel-aged beers. They got into how to brew specifically for...

Have you ever heard of a brewery with a barrel-aged sour as their flagship beer? Kitchener, ON's only sci-fi punk brewery, Short Finger Brewing, is definitely one of the most unique breweries in the province, let alone the country. Founder and Brewer Rob Hern joined Cee for a hilarious and fascinating conversation about their eclectic approach to beer, how they went from a home brew shop to a full...