471: Source Material with Firestone Walker: Quality is a Verb

471: Source Material with Firestone Walker: Quality is a Verb

When you look at the top restaurants around the world, no matter what cuisine they may focus on, there’s one commonality they all share, and that’s deep relationships with those who grow and raise the very best ingredients. It’s the same in beer—you can’t be the best at what you do without the meaningful, personal, financial, and long-standing relationships that ensure the brewery has access to the very best quality ingredients. These relationships don’t materialize overnight, but for Firestone Walker, they’re the product of 30 years of work. In this series, we highlight a number of these crucial growers, brokers, and processors who have played a role in the world-class beer that Firestone Walker makes.

*Episode 1: Quality is a Verb *
You don’t get great hops by accident, and the work doesn’t start with selecting them from brokers’ lots. The work starts with breeding the right hop varieties with the perfect mix of aroma and flavor compounds as well as the functional things that make them viable to grow as a commercial crop—disease resistance, robust hop-cone production, lower water and fertilizer needs, and more. Since its inception, Firestone Walker has been involved with the Hop Quality Group—an industry group of craft brewers who work cooperatively to help guide how the growers grow and process hops. In this episode, Firestone Walker Propagator brewer Sam Tierney and friend Patrick Chavanelle, head of R&D for Allagash Brewing, outline the work of this important group in developing new, modern hops that any grower can grow.

Intro music: VintageGroove / Pond5

Episoder(475)

459: Zach Typinksi of Urbanrest Brews Gold Medal Pilsner Without Pilsner Malt

459: Zach Typinksi of Urbanrest Brews Gold Medal Pilsner Without Pilsner Malt

Generally speaking, there’s some correlation between brewery scale and lager quality—and while there are plenty of exceptions to that rule, there’s no denying that honing lagers into the best versions...

13 Feb 1h 9min

458: Tom Nielsen of Emberside Redraws the Boundaries between the Science and the Art of Beer

458: Tom Nielsen of Emberside Redraws the Boundaries between the Science and the Art of Beer

Through his decades of work in the brewing industry, many spent in R&D and quality at Sierra Nevada, Tom Nielsen has played a critical role in getting craft beer a seat at the broader brewing table. W...

6 Feb 1h 18min

457: Cory Buenning of Fritz Family Focuses on Highly Attenuated Lagers With Perfect Proteins

457: Cory Buenning of Fritz Family Focuses on Highly Attenuated Lagers With Perfect Proteins

Fritz Family founder Cory Buenning brewed from the mid-90’s through the mid 20-teens for Wyoming craft beer pioneers Snake River, but the itch to do his own thing was strong, and after returning to Co...

30 Jan 1h 8min

456: Jaron Anderson of Helper Beer Applies Modern Techniques to Classic Styles with Winning Results

456: Jaron Anderson of Helper Beer Applies Modern Techniques to Classic Styles with Winning Results

For Jaron Anderson of Helper Beer, listening to the beer itself, rather than following prescribed rules, is the only way to improve it. He’s well-versed in the theory, but not a slavish adherent to do...

23 Jan 1h 15min

455: Doug Veliky of Beer Crunchers Offers His Predictions for Craft in 2026

455: Doug Veliky of Beer Crunchers Offers His Predictions for Craft in 2026

Doug Veliky, now of beverage consulting firm BrightBev, author of the BeerCrunchers newsletter and blog, and the personality behind the Beer Aficionado social media account, has a knack for explaining...

16 Jan 1h 21min

454: Ronald Mengerink of Dochter van de Korenaar is Still Hoping to Make the Perfect Beer

454: Ronald Mengerink of Dochter van de Korenaar is Still Hoping to Make the Perfect Beer

De Dochter van de Korenaar is unusual even for Belgium—a country full of brewers who don’t particularly enjoy being hemmed in by style definitions. Founder Ronald Mengerink has a passion for aging bee...

9 Jan 1h 7min

453: Gert Christiaens of Oud Beersel Is Preserving Oude Gueuze Heritage by Building New Flavor Bridges

453: Gert Christiaens of Oud Beersel Is Preserving Oude Gueuze Heritage by Building New Flavor Bridges

Gert Christiaens loved the beers of Oud Beersel so much that he couldn’t abide the brewery closing in 2003. So, he bought the brewery, learned to brew, and for the past 20 years has focused on preserv...

2 Jan 1h 39min

452: Counting Down Your Favorite Episodes of 2025

452: Counting Down Your Favorite Episodes of 2025

In this special year-end episode, we look at the ten most-downloaded episodes of the podcast, share stories behind the conversations, recount personal favorites, and more, with clips from the top ten ...

27 Des 20251h 4min

Populært innen Fakta

fastlegen
dine-penger-pengeradet
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
mikkels-paskenotter
foreldreradet
rss-bisarr-historie
treningspodden
jakt-og-fiskepodden
sinnsyn
rss-kunsten-a-leve
hverdagspsyken
ukast
rss-sunn-okonomi
rss-bak-luftfarten
fryktlos
tomprat-med-gunnar-tjomlid
lederskap-nhhs-podkast-om-ledelse
gravid-uke-for-uke
hagespiren-podcast