All Things Beer

This episode we talk all things cask ale with Angelo Signorino of Barley's Brewing, the only brewery where you can count on getting a cask ale in Columbus. We then pivot to our British correspondent, Nick Smith, proprietor at Steam Machine Brewery in Durham UK to get his perspective on the current state of cask ale in the UK and C.A.M.R.A. (campaign for real ale).

We here at All Things Beer have got something new for you, something we are calling "A Beer Worth Drinking". Think of these as bonus episodes where we’ll introduce you to beers that are world class examples of style, rich in history, story and flavor. Definitely a beer worth drinking, we present Brouwerij Bosteels Tripel Karmeliet, one of the best beers in the world and a capstone for the Tripel s...

Columbus Underground's annual reader survey had a huge response in the category of local breweries for 2023. Join us as we review their list, refute it, explain what we look for in a top brewery, and present our official 2023 All Things Beer Top Ten Columbus area breweries list. Who will be number one? Listen to find out!

It's a Christmas miracle, a bonus episode! Every year for over four decades, Sierra Nevada makes the journey to the Pacific Northwest to hand-select the best Cascade and Centennial hops for Celebration IPA. Once the hops are picked, the countdown begins as race back to the brewery to capture the citrus, pine, and floral notes at their absolute peak. 

Dan Shaffer and Ralph Wolfe join us again, this time for a festive look at the Christmas beers of Belgium. During our journey we sample strong Belgian holiday seasonals that include Delerium Noël, Scaldis Noël, Chimay Grande Reserve, and De Dolle Stille Nacht. We finish closer to home with Fathead’s Pimp My Sleigh.

Brewed once per year on St. Nicholas Day, the Triplebock Samichlaus can rightfully be called the OG of extreme beers. Dan Shaffer, head brewer at Land Grant, and Ralph Wolfe join us for a closer look at this cult classic, as well as the Samichlaus-inspired Frogichlaus Swiss Style Celebration Lager from Akron’s Hoppin’ Frog Brewery. Along the way we discuss the historic St. Nicholas, and European t...

Whether you call them Scotch Ales or Wee Heavies, who can resist the charms of one of Scotland’s best exports. Brian Kimmel, a veteran of several hikes across the Scottish Highlands, joins us for an audio tour of Caledonia. We start in the south at the venerable Traquair House and work our way northward to Orkney Islands for a wee nip of the potent Skull Splitter, before finishing closer to home w...

In this episode, we remain in the UK but cross over Hadrian’s Wall and turn our attention to the malt-forward, yet sessionable family of Scottish Ales. We are joined by the dean of Ohio brewers, Barley’s brewmaster Angelo Signorino, who has been making his unique interpretation of a Scottish Ale for thirty years.  Inspired by a Scottish beer that no longer exists, the Barley’s Scottish Ale has cap...

Continuing our exploration of sessionable British styles, we turn our attention to Dark Milds in this episode. Packaged milds are almost impossible to find here in Ohio, but fortunately there are several local breweries that brew this classic low abv pub ale. Ryan Torres from Brew Brothers joins us to talk about his two time GABF medalist, Toasty, and we head out to Columbus’ newest brewery, Thund...

Ordinary Bitter, Best Bitter, ESB and English Pale Ale are not the easiest style to find here in the USA. Fortunately in and around Ohio there are still some microbreweries being them with pride and English tradition. This month we travel up to Mansfield Ohio to talk with Carmone and Duncan MacFarlane to learn what goes into making a great ESB. Being this is our Halloween episode for the year, it...

What makes the perfect Saison beer?? Find out in this episode as we explore this remarkable beer style and are joined by fellow BJCP beer judge and returning guest Bill Koeppen and number one All Things Beer mega fan Robert Nauman. In a blind tasting session, beer steward Ralph Wolfe helps our 4 judge panel navigate through 8 beers ranging from local, regional, and national. In the final round we...

In this episode we turn a spotlight on non alcoholic beers, defined as beers with < 0.5% abv.  We discuss the science behind various approaches to making NA beers and sample a bakers dozen examples representing styles that include lagers, wheat beers, stouts, pale ales and IPAs both traditional and hazy/juicy.

Fall is the time for beers made with freshly picked whole cone hops and no brewery in Ohio does fresh/wet hop beers like Columbus Brewing Company. In this episode Tony Corder tells us how the hop wizards at CBC conjure up a whopping 10 different fresh/wet hop beers, featuring hops from Washington, Oregon, Ohio, and Michigan.

Ever wonder what makes up a perfect Pilsner beer? Do you prefer a Czech Pilsner, German Pils, New Zealand Pilsner, or maybe an Italian Pilsner? In this episode we explore these beer styles and are joined by fellow Pilsner lovers Jamie Gentry and Hans Gorsuch to determine what makes a great Pilsner-style beer. In a blind tasting session, beer steward Ralph Wolfe helps our 4 judge panel navigate thr...

Held every two years the World Beer Cup is arguably the most prestigious and competitive beer competition on the planet. In 2022, breweries from the Buckeye state took home a total of 14 medals.  In this episode we drink and discuss the medal winners from Central Ohio breweries including Wolf’s Ridge Brewing (Daybreak Coffee Cream Ale), Gemüt Biergarten (Woden’s Hunt Dunkel), and Columbus Brewing...

With a malt bill more poetic than it's name may suggest, Pat and Mark are joined by Barley’s Homebrew Competition winner Jim Sudduth to explore this classic beer style from the origins of the modern Brown Ale to modern day interpretations brewed here in Ohio. Along the way Jim shares some tips for what it takes to make an award winning Brown Ale. 

The invention and rise of the American IPA is one of those rare moments in the history of brewing that forever changes the rules of making beer. In this episode we turn our attention to this ubiquitous and hugely influential style by sampling six year-round American IPAs from our home base here in Columbus.  We are thrilled to be joined on our journey by Dan Shaffer, head brewer at Land Grant Brew...

March is a month that takes us to Ireland as we celebrate St. Patrick's Day and wrap up the third installment of our three part Stout series. On this podcast, Mark and Pat talk all things Irish with Irish dancer, Guinness enthusiast, and good friend Madeleine Bogard. Join us at St. James Gate as we taste through Draught, Extra, and Foreign Extra Stouts and explore the unique culture surrounding th...

In a continuation of our exploration of stouts, join us as we dive into three more styles - Milk, Oatmeal, and Oyster! We get into a bit of the history on the styles, taste a three time GABF gold medal winning Milk Stout from Cincinnati's Brink Brewing, take a road trip to Bellefontaine where we find a wonderful small town and an outstanding Ohio Brewers Cup medalling Oatmeal Stout at the Roundhou...

Dark days call for dark beers, and in that spirit we kick off a series of three podcasts on stouts with an episode on Imperial Stouts. We start by reaching out to our friend Nick Smith, co-founder and head brewer at Steam Machine Brewing in the UK, for a fascinating discussion on the historical origins of the style.  We then jump across the pond and see how American brewers in the 1990’s reimagine...

Just in time for the holidays we offer up a fascinating conversation with Jason McKibben of North High Brewing. Listeners in Central Ohio know Jason as the Brewmaster and Co-owner of North High Brewing, but his career in the brewing industry also includes stops at Anchor Brewing, where he was the Production Director, and Budweiser, where he spent 12 years in a variety of positions including a stin...

Our friend Johnny Clift from Jackie O’s on 4th joins us for a special Halloween-themed episode. Johnny shares stories, past and present, on one of Ohio’s most beloved breweries, and we take a closer look at his vision for their new Columbus outpost, Jackie O’s on 4th. Along the way we savor a vertical flight of the iconic black walnut infused imperial stout, Oil of Aphrodite, starting with the bas...

After a summer break the All Things Beer podcast is back with an episode devoted to homebrews. We welcome back recurring guests Hans Gorsuch and Chris Mercerhill to discuss and dissect the fruits of our labor, including a hefeweizen, two different saisons, a biere de garde, and a wet hop harvest ale. Our conversation touches on topics like decoction mashing, the use of herbs and teas in brewing, a...

In this episode we take a deep dive on strong German lagers from the bock family (doppelbock, maibock, weizenbock, eisbock). We trace the history of this style back through the mists of time to the city of Einbeck and it's reinvention as a lager in 17th century Munich. Then we head out to Edison Brewing in Gahana, where they are pouring a bock, a doppelbock and a maibock, for a conversation with o...

In a follow up to Episode 18 (Going for the Gueuze) we welcome back Dan Reeve for more discussion of Belgian Lambics. In this episode we explore Lambic variants beyond gueuze, with a focus on lambics conditioned on fruit. Along the way we enjoy and describe Krieks from both Cantillon and Drie Fonteinen, as well as Cantillon's Rose de Gambrinus (featuring raspberries). We discuss the microbiology b...