The HOP: A Craft Beer Podcast

The HOP heads to Stephen’s backyard this week, back in California for a stop at Brouwerij West! Industry veteran Brian Mercer decided to hang his own shingle in 2010, founding the brewery after a long career importing Belgian candi sugar for some of the top breweries in America. The company rose to popularity in 2016 when they opened their production brewery and taproom, taking over a former U.S....

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 9/17/2020 This week, we take a trip up to the Boston area to visit a young, homegrown brewery that’s doing everything right. Crue Brew Brewery has been family owned and operated since its inception in 20...

It’s that time of year again and The HOP is back with a brand new episode! Despite not feeling too patriotic this year, the boys are commemorating the holiday the only way they know how . . . by drinking classic, American beers. First, we’ll swing by Kentucky for an obligatory shot of bourbon whiskey. Then, it’s up to New England for one of Gabe’s very favorite options, a go-to lager named for an...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 4/29/2021 We just can’t get enough of sunny California! This week, Stephen & Gabe head to Anaheim for a stop at Brewery X. The company was founded in 2018 by a ragtag group of industry veterans with...

The HOP returns to California this week, heading to the Central Valley for a stop at Full Circle Brewing! Recognized as one of the area’s oldest breweries, Full Circle gained new life in 2016 when it was purchased by Arthur Moye and a team of diverse, passionate investors. The company grew quickly, boasting a unique, varied beer lineup, a shiny new 15bbl brew system and a distribution network reac...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 10/8/2020 Opening Los Angeles Ale Works in 2017, founder Kristofor “Kip” Barnes set out to create a neighborhood brewery offering diverse, well-balanced beers to please any palate. As the first brewery i...

This week, The HOP goes international with our very first Belgian brewery! While you’ve likely never heard of Brewery Huyghe, a 4th generation family-owned company operating in the city of Melle, you likely have heard of Delirium. The flagship beer under the Delirium label, Delirium Tremens, has garnered worldwide recognition since its debut in 1988 with some calling it the “best beer in the world...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 3/25/2021 This week, the boys head back down to the Garden State for a visit to Hackensack Brewing! The company was founded by Herbert Lamont Barr III and Mike Jones, neighbors with a love of beer in sea...

With a brewing history dating back nearly 40 years, Bell’s Brewery is long overdue for a day on The HOP. Founded as Kalamazoo Brewing Company in 1985, Larry Bell’s operation was at the forefront of the American craft beer boom, leading the charge alongside industry pioneers like Anchor and Sierra Nevada. While many of their beers are classic, well known and widely available, the company has contin...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 6/11/2020 This week, the boys head to the East Coast to visit a brewery with a true artist’s spirit. Grimm Artisanal Ales has garnered quite a reputation for impressive, elegant and experimental beer off...

Have you ever found yourself perusing the craft beer aisle at Trader Joe’s wondering, “Where do they get this mysterious IPA that’s $4.99 for a 6-pack?” Stephen & Gabe have! This week, The HOP heads to the grocery store to uncover the truth behind the Trader Joe’s beer brands. Who really brews this stuff? Is it any good? Is Trader Joe’s the craft beer deal of the century or a case of, “you get...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 5/6/2021 It’s that time of year again and we’re busting out the sombreros! After last year’s celebration of authentic, Mexican craft beer, the 2021 pickings were limited. Listen to Stephen & Gabe mak...

This week, The HOP returns to Chi-town where an up and coming brewery is cooking up some seriously funky beers. (And they don’t even have any sours yet!) Funkytown Brewery opened in September of 2021, the brainchild of homebrewers Richard Bloomfield, Zachary Day and Gregory Williams. Operating out of Pilot Project, a local “brewery incubator” space shared with other microbreweries, the friends hop...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 4/1/21 "Industry fills the hive and enjoys the honey." This is the town motto of New Britain, CT and the inspiration for Alvarium Beer Co.! Brian Bugnacki, Chris DeGasero and Mike Larson founded Alvarium...

It started as a question: “Have you ever experienced sexism in the beer industry?” Before long, Brienne Allan’s Instagram post quickly grew into a global phenomenon, rocking the industry with stories of rampant harassment, misconduct and discrimination at some of the world’s best known beer brands. It was out of this movement that the Brave Noise beer collaboration was born, “a global collaborativ...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 6/4/2020 Stephen and Gabe are big fans of anything aged in a barrel. From whiskey, to wine, to beer, to water… barrels make everything better! This week, we pay our respects and feature a number of barre...

We’re throwing a pizza party! The HOP is back with a brand new episode and Stephen & Gabe are checking out Pizza Boy Brewing in Enola, PA! Al Kominski had been running his pizza shop for a full 6 years before he started serving beer in the restaurant, (a novel idea in 2008.) The move was so popular that Al decided to craft his own brews and Pizza Boy debuted their first offering in 2011. The h...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 5/13/2021 Ahoy, maties! Climb aboard, stow anchor and hoist your sails. This week, Stephen & Gabe take a voyage to Manheim, PA to taste some of the finest grog on the seven seas. Swashbuckler Brewing...

The HOP goes international once again, returning to the Emerald Isle for our annual celebration of everything green! Following a Guinness-heavy episode in 2021, Stephen & Gabe set out to see what else the leprechauns had to offer. True to tradition, we’ll kick things off with a shot of Irish whiskey, (looking at you Conor McGregor.) Then, it’s off to Carlow Brewing Company in Ireland’s Barrow...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 3/26/2020 The boys are back for Round 13 and a special, quarantine edition of The HOP! This week we take a look at Stone Brewing -- one of the largest craft breweries in the country headquartered in San...

This week, we head back down south as Stephen & Gabe pay a visit to Florida’s American Icon Brewing! Local real estate developer Michael R. Rechter founded the company in 2016 after purchasing and renovating Vero Beach’s historic Diesel Power Plant. Though relatively unknown outside the Sunshine State, American Icon has become a go-to watering hole for residents of Vero Beach and at a satellit...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 2/25/21 This week, Stephen & Gabe hit the west coast for a look at a dope new brewery with a strong focus on social justice. Crowns & Hops was founded by Beny Ashburn & Teo Hunter as a way to...

Having been on The HOP twice before, Tröegs Independent Brewing finally gets their own episode! Tröegs was founded by brothers John & Chris Trogner in 1996, driven by a passion for adventure and curiosity. More than a quarter century later and the Hershey, PA brewery is still proudly independent, despite having grown to more than 250 employees with distribution in much of the Northeast. Stephe...

The boys are staying sober this week which means a return to our THROWBACK THURSDAY series! Enjoy this trip down memory lane and we’ll be back with a brand new episode next week. Originally posted 2/11/21 In honor of the "Tom Brady" Buccaneers, we’re paying our first visit to the great state of Florida! Cigar City Brewing is Tampa’s go-to spot for tropical ales & lagers. Founder Joey Redner re...

Fresh off the heels of a nor'easter, (with another one well on the way,) Stephen & Gabe sample a variety of winter beers to keep you warm when you’re trapped inside. A winter beer can be anything from a sweet, malty, comforting lager to a gently spiced red ale to a rich, warming imperial stout and anything in between. Gabe heads to upstate NY for a visit to Frog Alley Brewing while Stephen sto...