CRAFTED

Dearborn Denim founder, Rob McMillan is a thoughtful guy with some grand ambitions. He’s working on building a big apparel company that ethically manufactures premium products at an affordable price, right in Chicago. Impossible you say? This past Monday, Jonathan Ellsworth met up with Rob at Dearborn Denim’s factory in Chicago to tour the factory with him, then record this conversation where he l...

Yia Vang is a multi-nominated James Beard Award chef; the founder & head chef of Union Hmong Kitchen , and he’s carved out time to compete on the Netflix show, “Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend,” host the show, ”Feral” on the Outdoors Channel , host another show, “Stoked” on the Food Network , and host the excellent podcast,“ Hmonglish ” which focuses on the Hmong people, their culture, rep...

How do you define “consistency” — the ability to produce the exact same thing time & time again? Or producing a product that is never exactly the same, but is always of high quality? That question is at the heart of this conversation about official offerings vs independent bottlings, but Matt and Jonathan also find time to talk about Scotch and spit buckets; Matt’s current top-3 ‘hottest’ Scot...

Matt Manser (Atomic Ski Boots), is back to dive into the world of Scotch and independent bottlings. He and Jonathan compare a Bunnahabhain independent bottling against their official 12-year offering; discuss a single cask that cost $19M; debate whether you should add water to your Scotch; learn about the fanciest bottle Matt currently owns; and more. TOPICS & TIMES: What does a ski boot desig...

Today’s conversation explores the broader question of how to assess greatness? To get there, Jonathan Ellsworth and Troy Russ discuss the art & craft of tennis (and whether it is the greatest of all sports?); the art & craft of great sports writing (and whether David Foster Wallace’s essay, Roger Federer as Religious Experience is the pinnacle of the form?); and finally, we discuss Troy’s...

Today, Napa Valley is home to some of the most respected wineries and coveted wines being produced, but not too long ago, it was a sleepy farm community. So in this conversation, Jonathan talks with Marilyn Harris of Paradigm Winery about how Napa … became Napa. Marilyn and her husband, Ren, own Paradigm Winery in Oakville, CA, and they’ve had a front-row seat — and played a first-hand role — in t...

Last week, Jonathan headed to The Crown in Oakland, California, which is the Coffee Lab and Tasting Room of Royal Coffee . He was there to sample experimental coffee drinks, meet with Royal Coffee CEO, Max Nicholas-Fulmer — whose favorite ski is the Moment Blister Pro — and to discuss the world of specialty “green” (not-yet-roasted) coffee. Max and Jonathan discuss the history of changing coffee p...

Today we’re discussing the rules of rum with Karen Hoskin, founder of Montanya Distillers , which produces some of the best rum in the country — right here in Crested Butte, Colorado. If you’re someone who hasn’t been all that into rum, this conversation will shed light on why you might have felt that way; explain why Karen doesn’t make Montanya’s rum the way that a lot of mainstream rum is produc...

Not all beer is created equal, and that certainly goes for NA beer, too. So what’s the secret? Bravus Brewing Company has been making some of the very best NA beer out there, so I headed to Bravus’ headquarters in Anaheim, CA, to meet up with Bravus founder, Philip Brandes. We talked about what led Philip to start a non-alcoholic craft brewery back in 2015; what Philip regards as some of the bette...

Before Alex LeBlanc started Calibration Coffee Lab in Greenville, South Carolina, he was a mechanical engineer by trade, a home brewer, a home distiller, and a home coffee roaster. So what led him to leave the world of engineering to start Calibration Coffee Lab, and roast beans for a living? And how did he go about doing it? This conversation is about the process of turning your passion into a bu...

ON3P Skis founder, Scott Andrus, is back on CRAFTED to go deep into the weeds about the various gear options out there to make great coffee and espresso. We discuss the very inexpensive options; $1000 coffee grinders; Scott’s mind-blowing “ Coffee Checklist for Jonathan ”; and more. It’s an amazing, slightly terrifying, definitely fun conversation about Drinking Gold and the gear used to make it....

Today we’re talking all things guitars and guitar making with a fantastic guide to this world, Jason Verlinde, publisher of the Fretboard Journal . Jason and Jonathan discuss how and where guitars are being made; boutique vs. mass market brands; who is pushing innovation; guitar quivers; the greatest guitarists ever; and (much to Jonathan’s delight) Blind Willie McTell. TOPICS & TIMES: Gear Ne...

Jonathan talks to JING Tea founder, Ed Eisler, about the origins, production, and culture of tea;  “Duckshit” tea; what goes into making an exceptional cup of tea; the pros and cons of coffee vs tea; trends in the tea world, and more. TOPICS & TIMES: Starting JING (5:47) Single Malt & Craft Tea (16:08) Coffee vs Tea (20:25) Caffeine & Flavor (33:10) Milk in Tea? The Debate (39:30)...

Why are there so many collabs in the craft beer world? We talk to Offset Bier co-founder, Conor Brown, and New Image Brewing founder, Brandon Capps, for answers, and also about the new collabs they’ve just released; “New World” or “West Coast” pilsners; snooty bike shops; skiing pow; barley wine; & more. TOPICS & TIMES: Offset Bier (4:40) New Image Brewing (6:51) Why So Many Beer Collabs?...

The artist & designer Geoff McFetridge came to CB to pay us a visit, and in this conversation, he & Jonathan discuss his current show in LA, Return to Stoner Forest ; culture & commerce; Geoff’s approach to collaborations; the new film, ‘ Geoff McFetridge: Drawing a Life ,’ & more. TOPICS & TIMES: The Morning Show from CB (5:04) Geoff’s Show: Return To Stoner Forest (8:20) Bigf...

Sam Higby, co-owner of First Ascent Coffee Roasters , joins Jonathan to talk pour overs, grinders, brewing at altitude, programmability, and more. Listen up, then let us know what your pick is for the best coffee-making setup out there. TOPICS & TIMES: Sam’s Coffee Background (4:03) Why Coffee Gear Conversations Matter (12:17) Brevilles, MoccaMasters, & 3rd-Wave Coffee (13:39) Pour Overs(2...

What’s the best way to make coffee? Very strong opinions abound, and Jonathan is currently caught up in trying to figure out the right answer for himself; so he’s recruiting some friends and experts to help. First up is Andrew Gardner. They talk about coffee and life priorities; coffee and cycling culture; how to think about the cost vs the quality of coffee-making equipment; and whether Jonathan...

Today on CRAFTED, our podcast producer extraordinaire, the Strikingly Handsome Justin Bobb, is talking about watches with Jonathan Ellsworth for our latest edition of Amateur Hour. You’ll hear what caused Jonathan to stop ignoring timepieces and start appreciating the craftsmanship of this category; watches vs. outdoor gear; why he thinks watches are particularly important and interesting today; a...

When Atomic Ski Boots Product Manager, Matt Manser, isn’t nerding out about ski boots … he’s nerding out about Scotch. And in this conversation, Matt and Jonathan discuss butt casks and blood tubs; why cask size matters; barrel-aged ski boots; tea spoons; single malts vs. blends; and more.  TOPICS & TIMES: Scotch or Scotches? (5:16) Scotch, Bourbon, & Campfires (10:17) 5 Regions of Sc...

Danielle and Katie Nichols — the sisters behind CORK Natural Wine Shop & Restaurant in Stowe, Vermont — are back on CRAFTED to talk more about “natural wine”; discuss Italy, “priest stranglers,” and Corksicles; offer advice on holiday gift buying; and tell us about the revamped CORK Wine Club. TOPICS & TIMES: Natural Wine (4:27) Holiday Gift Help (15:24) Price Points & Natural Wine Imp...

Artist, John Fellows, and New Image Brewing founder & head brewer, Brandon Capps, are back on CRAFTED to discuss our Blister Artist Series collab. John talks about his inspiration for the art and how he produced it; Brandon talks about creating the beer by starting with John’s artwork; Jonathan talks about how he came up with the name of the beer (Ambulation); and we also discuss the differenc...

This past June, Jonathan Ellsworth stumbled across a gelateria in Firenze (Florence) Italy, that basically changed his life. Because after going there every day — usually twice a day — he knew that he would have to come back to Florence and sit down for a CRAFTED conversation with Alberto and Julia Bati, owners of My Sugar Gelato Artigianale , to talk about the craft (and the hard work) of making...

In the ski world, ON3P Skis founder, Scott Andrus, is known for being maniacal about the craft of building skis. But today, we talk with Scott about his other obsession: knives. We discuss how Scott got into knives; knife quivers; patina chasing; price ranges; cutting boards; and more. TOPICS & TIMES: Your background & ON3P Skis (6:27) How & When Did You Get into Knives? (8:45) What Ty...

We headed back to Shoreham, Vermont, to sit down with the head of whiskey development at WhistlePig , Liz Rhoades, to dive deep into the art and science of distilling, sourcing, yeast strains, specific types of rye, non-alcoholic whiskey, and … WhistlePig’s new bourbon. TOPICS & TIMES: Liz’s background & role at WhistlePig (3:46) What’s a “Diploma Distiller”? (7:27) Fermentation Science, B...

Barr Hill Gin is one of the best products being made in America today. And when paired with the mission of Barr Hill, you’ll understand why the company has such a fanatical following. Last week Jonathan Ellsworth was in Montpelier, Vermont, to spend the day at Barr Hill with Barr Hill president and distiller, Ryan Christiansen, to talk about bees and pollinators; the process of producing exception...