Podcasts about grain podcast

This week, we're on location at Washington Brewers Fest. Held each year smack dab in the middle of Seattle Center, with dozens of Washington breweries and cideries, local food, and all the funk music you can handle.  We scoured the festival floor, found a few familiar faces, and made some new friends. The folks at Capitol Hill's Outer Planet Brewing joined us for a few minutes to talk about ownership changes, unique recipes, and their brewer's long history in the Washington beer scene.  Our best buddy Barry from Lucky Envelope hopped on to talk about their festival beers, including the amazing Karakuchi lager, currently taking Seattle by storm.  And finally, we were joined by Rob from Friends and Neighbors Brewing, who fills us in on all things Kingston and getting his start in Washington's incredibly welcoming beer world. If you missed the festival this year, tune in for the highlights. And be sure to catch us on our next festival field trip to Grainmaker in Spokane in August. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite flavor from the 2026 Washington Brewers Fest. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 194: Washington Brewers Fest 2026 appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

A little over a year ago, we had the fantastic folks behind Burien's own Logan Brewing on the podcast to celebrate our amazing collab with them and Lander Coffee for Tacoma Beer Week 2025.  Since then, they've opened a new space, acquired some new toys, and made the leap into beer distribution (with someone we know!). Michael and Chris are back this week to fill us in on all the changes they've gone through in the past year. The beer business is a little crazy these days, and seeing our friends grow through it all is so exciting. Tune in to find out what makes their new brewery space so amazing, details on the tremendous beers Michael has been able to brew in their new space, and get some extra details on what a small brewery should consider before moving over to distribution. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite Logan blonde ale. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 193: Checking In with Logan Brewing appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

The 2026 Firestone Invitational Beerfest was amazing.  Matt, Ron, and Phaedra had all planned to meet up for the festival, but Ron had to rain check this one as he had a staff emergency and hung back to cover the bar, because he is an absolute saint of a business owner.   BUT! with our long-time industry friend Melissa having gone for the first time this year, we wanted to hang out for a beer and recap the shenanigans. Tune in to discover which California beers Matt smuggled back for tastings, why the Yoho Brewing team from Japan loves American, and which Seattle brewery made the most amazing splash for their first invite to the festival. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite Firestone Walker 2026 Invitational moments. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 192: Firestone Invitational Recap with Melissa Urquhart appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

The World Beer Cup added a “Rice Lager” category for the first time in 2026, and two Northwest breweries promptly earned medals in it — which is pretty amazing. Much like Mexican lager, rice lager, or Japanese rice lager, as some folks call it, seems to remain relatively ill-defined outside of the newly instituted guidelines.  This week, we sat down with a flight of five iterations of this wonderful but potentially misunderstood style to see how our favorite breweries are approaching this beer. Tune in to find out what makes different versions unique from one another, what some Japanese breweries are doing to help develop their own lager distinctions, and get some bonus spicy takes from our best buddy, Barry! Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite rice lager. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 191: What’s so Japanese About Rice Lagers? appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Way back when our episodes were still in the double digits, the stellar brewing talent Mike Hunsaker sat down to tell us about his journey setting up shop in Washington and winning every award in the book brewing at Grains of Wrath. We've been long overdue in getting the rest of the Grains of Wrath team behind the mic and thankfully they were in town and made it a point to swing by and hang for a beer!  Owner and operator Brendan Greenan, Production Manager Owen Lamb, and Sales Manager Kira Harris joined us this week to talk about everything they've been doing to push the brewery to the next level. Tune in to find out how the GoW team is maintaining demand in a tough market, how a few new key team members will help level up their brewery, and why Mike is mysteriously absent for this episode! Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments and opinions. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 190: Shouldering the Weight of Limitless Talent with Grains of Wrath appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Summer slowdown is real for many urgent care clinics, but it can also create one of the biggest growth opportunities of the year.In this episode of Walk-Ins Welcome, Nick and Michael sit down with Ira Pasternack, founder of WebForDoctors and lead instructor for the Occ Med Growth Cohort, to talk about how urgent care clinics can build and grow occupational medicine programs that create long-term, recurring revenue.Ira shares how occupational medicine sales and marketing differ from traditional urgent care marketing, why relationship-building matters more than ads alone, and how clinics can use slower seasons to build systems that continue producing results long after summer ends.The conversation covers employer outreach, networking, sales cycles, AchMed strategy, and how urgent care clinics can carve out their own niche even in competitive markets. If your clinic has talked about growing occupational medicine but never fully committed to a strategy, this episode gives a practical roadmap for getting started.

Happy Seattle Beer Week! A bunch of amazing brewers and beer folks have converged on Seattle this week to celebrate all things beer.  We took advantage and dragged Michael Messenie down for a quick pod to talk all things cask, English brewing traditions, and recipe tweaking. Michael started Dutchess Ales to bring the balanced, refined English beer he loved to New York, where he lived. It quickly grew into a much bigger project, and now he hops all over the country spreading the gospel of real ale. Tune in to hear about his approach to complex grain bills, secretly hand-delivering firkins to NYC’s only beer engine bars, and some of his favorite English pubs, should you ever visit. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite cask ale. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 189: Real Ale with Michael Messenie from Dutchess Ales  appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Happy Cinco de Mayo / May the 4th week! Owners and operators of Vice Beer, Michael and Bria Perozzo are in the house! We are flush with Star Wars-themed beers, and we just couldn’t wait to bring the Tournament of Beer Best PNW Breweries champion onto the pod.  Round after round of single-digit victories led Vice to the top spot of Peaks & Pints‘ 10th iteration of their famous bracket event.  Fresh off the podium, Vice leaned straight into their yearly Star Wars-themed beer releases with seven new beers. Tune in for the tourney recap, all the info you need to pick out the best Star Wars beer for you, and we even get some extra special news about the new brewer joining the Vice team. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and Jar Jar Binksberry recipe suggestions. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 188: May the 4th Be With You: A New Vice  appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Matt’s back from Berlin!  He was gone so long and missed so much that we figured we might as well just crack a few beers and catch up a bit. Ron’s been busy traveling all over the PNW trying to hire as many breweries as he possibly can to wrap up his 10th year of the Tournament of Beers. Matt fills us in on his Berlin trip. And Bethany and The Funk Busters have some updates of their own! Plus, we get into the recent Brewer’s Association Annual Craft Beer Production report and what it says about where things might be headed in the industry. Tune in for all the updates, some of Matt’s Germany stories, and to get a few highlights and early upsets in the Tournament of Beer! Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite Pacific Northwest brewery. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 187: Berlin, Ron’s Road Trip, and American Beer Economics appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Matt’s still in Germany, and Ron, Bethany, Phaedra, and Doug held down the fort beautifully for this week’s super special episode. We are joined this week by one of the strongest brewing duos working the state right now — Dan Cady and Meghan Michels of Holy Mountain Brewing.  Dan, having recently moved back up to Washington after years of brewing some of San Diego’s best beer, got rolling at Holy Mountain just a few months ago, where Meghan has been holding down the fort for the last few years, producing some of Seattle’s best beer. Tune in to find out a little about Dan’s unexpected hometown, his work down in California, which Seattle brewery Meghan cut her teeth at before Holy Mountain, and what it takes to become a certified LUKR tapster. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite Danish beer. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 186: Dan Cady and Meghan Michels from Holy Mountain Brewing appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

There are brewers who arrive with a résumé, and then there are brewers who arrive with a landscape. Kulshan Brewing Head Brewer Wes Finger brings the latter — a stretch of Bellingham terrain shaping how he brews and how he thinks. In this episode of the Grit & Grain Podcast, Wes traces his roots to the Nooksack River Valley and a life built around weather, water, and patience. That ethos shows up clearly in his love for Helles lager — a style that demands precision, restraint, and a willingness to let the process speak without shouting. Kulshan reflects that same grounded approach — community-first, quietly confident, and growing without losing its center, from its early days to the open, trail-connected energy of Trackside. The conversation also touches on today's realities, including distribution shifts and the move from NW Beverages/Odom to Columbia, all handled with steady pragmatism. At its core, this is a conversation about beer as a reflection of place — honest, patient, and built to last. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite Bellingham bike trails. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.= If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 185: Trails, Tanks, and the Long Game — Wes Finger of Kulshan Brewing appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

This week, we are joined by Stoup Brewing co-founder, board president of the Washington Brewers Guild, and all-around industry powerhouse, Robyn Schumacher! After spending her early career teaching high school biology for over a decade, Schumacher made the jump into the beer world and has been running at full speed ever since — being one of the earliest recipients of the Cicerone Certification in Washington, a regular in the famous Drunk Herstory lineup, and now using her platform and leadership in the Brewer's Guild to establish a tighter knit Washington brewer community. Tune in to learn all about her Spokane roots, her early beer influences, and her vision for the future of the craft beer industry in Washington. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments and opinions. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 184: The Unstoppable Grit of Robyn Schumacher appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

The Grit and Grain team was lucky enough to be invited to the famous yearly celebration of Double Mountain's legendary inception, so we packed up the cars and took a field trip to beautiful Hood River. Nestled in the Brewer's Lounge couches, the entire Double Mountain team sat with us for a glorious hour of brewery history, shenanigans, and fond memories of the early days of Hood River craft beer.  From award-winning beer to award-winning cider, airplanes, early influences, and future plans, we get the full scoop on the brewery that has spent nearly two decades helping to shape Hood River's incredibly tight craft beer scene. Do not miss this one! Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite Double Mountain pizza. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 183: Double Mountain's 19th Anniversary Party appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Happy Orval Day Eve! Saturday, March 21st, marks this year's international celebration of one of the most unique and highly regarded beers ever made, Orval. A 1000-year-old Belgian ale brewed by Trappist Monks and bottle conditioned with Brettanomyces. We thought it was the perfect time to bring back Aaron Cohn, regional sales manager at Merchant du Vin and lover of all things monastically produced (including cheese!). We dive into the 1500-year history of Trappist beer, starting with the original Benedictine monks, the technology developed by the Order of Cistercians, and eventually the reform movement that would create Trappist monks, and lead to the rules that all 10 current Trappist breweries must follow to maintain the revered title. Tune in to hear some of the often-untold history of these beers, the new distinctions in the BJCP guidelines for Monastic beer, and find out why Matt has so much trouble pouring bottle-conditioned beer. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite Traps. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 182: Orval Day and Trappist History with Aaron Cohn appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

We’re back for the second half of our Tacoma Beer Week double header.  Hopefully you tuned in last week for the stellar hour we spent with Ezra Johnson-Greenough of New School Beer + Cider — he’s back again for another episode and joined this week by an extra special guest. Founder, publisher, and CEO  of SIP Magazine, Kristin Ackerman Bacon joins us this week alongside Ezra to talk all things beer and cider journalism, publishing, and collaboration. Just this week, Kristin and Ezra dropped the news that The New School and SIP Magazine will join forces in a what is sure to be a powerhouse of adult beverage media. Tune in to get the scoop on how this partnership came about and how these two titans plan to provide complementary coverage of the PNW beer, wine, and cider world.  Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and your favorite seasonal fluorescent mint dairy drink. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 181: A News Worthy Tacoma Beer Week Special, Part 2 appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Happy Tacoma Beer Week! A whole week dedicated to fun events and just about everything craft beer around Tacoma and the Pacific Northwest.  No better time to bring on one of the busiest beer writers and event organizers in the industry. We are joined this week by the founder of New School Beer + Cider, Fuji to Hood Beer Festival, and the Oregon Beer Awards — Ezra Johnson-Greenough!  From his beginnings at a beloved Portland taproom to his conquest of the beer media landscape, Ezra gives us a crash course on everything he’s done in the beer world. Tune in this week to hear about Ezra’s fellow Belmont Station alumni going on to create their own beer legacies, his work as an ambassador for the craft beer scenes of Mexico and Japan, and how his unflinching beer journalism has helped to shape the Oregon beer world. The post Episode 180: A News-Worthy Tacoma Beer Week Special appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

If you’ve been following some of the big craft beer news outlets lately, you’ve likely seen some of the big stories coming from Oregon recently.  Distributor consolidation, new craft beer start-ups, and brewery buy-outs.  These are all big indicators of industry shifts — so what do they mean for the future of beer in the Northwest? This week, we discuss some of the big shake-ups in the Oregon craft beer world, how they telegraph the future of the beer industry overall, and how the Oregon and Washington markets can differ.  Our in-house distribution expert, Matt, takes the reins on this one, so tune in for his tipsy takes on beer distro economics, consumer market variables, and some interesting tidbits on how the sausage is made in the beer world. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and your most suspiciously specific distribution-era realizations. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 179: Let’s Talk About Oregon appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

This week, we are joined by Nick Ladd and Jessie Quan, owners, operators, and the respective Ladd and Lass from Ladd & Lass Brewing. Nestled in the heart of Seattle’s University District — and in the old Fabulous Rainbow Tavern, no less — the couple have spent the last four years creating something very special: bringing the attention to detail that comes from years studying architecture, and the creative instincts that have quickly turned them into one of Washington's newest sweetheart breweries. Tune in to meet Nick and Jessie. Find out how they got started, where they are headed, and how the two of them manage to run an entire brewery and taproom by themselves. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and the documented side effects of an architect who accidentally drinks too much Ladd & Lass Barrel-Aged Year 3 Barleywine. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 178: Brewing a New Legacy with Ladd & Lass appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Are you still scrambling for a thoughtful gift for your loved one? Look no further! The Grit & Grain team put our heads together and came up with a romantic plan you can use for the occasion — a beer and chocolate pairing, of course. We're joined again by our best buddy Stacey O’Connor, who stopped by to hang out after her Pink Boots episode last week and who also happens to teach a food and beer pairing class at South Puget Sound Community College. We gathered five of the most popular chocolate treats from the legendary Johnson Candy in Tacoma and paired each one with five different beers to see what works and what doesn't. The catch? The beers are not stouts. Tune in to find out why mint and saisons mysteriously taste like cherries, how Stacey uses the language of love to teach her food pairing classes, and how to build your own thoughtful Valentine's Day date-night shopping list. The post Episode 177: Beer & Chocolate appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

The Pink Boots Society Conference wrapped up a few weeks ago. The every-other-year occasion brings together women and non-binary identifying beer industry professionals together to learn, network, and build community. Our best buddy and fellow Funk Buster, Stacey O'Connor, was in attendance this year and joined us for a few beers to fill us in what the conference looked like. Everything from early morning talks, late-night brewery meetups, mentorship spaces, Zen dens for our neurodivergent friends. Tune in for updates on what issues Pink Boots is tackling in the industry today, how the organization looks to expand its reach and resources in Washington State, and how they (maybe accidentally?) ended up on a government watch list! Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and your best beer-career plot twists. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 176: Pink Boots Society Biennial Conference with Stacey O'Connor appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

This week are joined by veteran firefighter and Top Rung Brewing Company owner Casey Sobol. For over a decade, Top Rung has slowly but surely built a loyal community around Lacey’s only brewery by creating a hub for local drinkers, training a staff of hyper-knowledgeable beer servers, and brewing award-winning beers. Crack a Top Rung beer if you’ve got one, and tune in for the details on how this fantastic brewery was born from an unexpected homebrew competition win, how they’ve adapted to the changing craft beer landscape, and how a flagship beer ended up being one of the most highly awarded beers in the state of Washington. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and what month Casey should represent in the Fireman's Calendar. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 175: Building a Community Around Lacey’s Lone Brewery with Casey Sobol appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

The Tacoma News Tribune is in the building!  We are joined this week by food and dining reporter Kristine Sherred. A longtime food writer who first cut her teeth writing a feature for a Chicago brewery, Kristine moved to Tacoma in 2019 to immerse herself in the city’s long-standing food and beverage scene via the TNT Diner. Crack a Tacoma Brew and tune in to find out what hoops an up-and-coming writer in Chicago has to jump through, what spots have been the highlight of her Tacoma journey so far, and see if we finally get an answer to the age-old question, “When do people consider you to be from Tacoma, when you’re not from Tacoma?” Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite grease trop stories. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 174: Food and Beer Journalism from Chicago to Tacoma with Kristine Sherred appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Way back in 1978, craft beer legends Charles and Rose Ann Finkel founded a small importing business and began shipping classic European beers into the US, effectively changing the American craft beer landscape for generations. Nearly five decades later, and they’re still setting the standard. Aaron Cohn, regional sales manager at Merchant du Vin, joins us this week.  After many years in the beer industry working with local breweries, Aaron found his calling slinging the absolute best beer in the world to American consumers looking to deepen their knowledge and appreciation for the classics. Tune in to hear about Aaron’s history in the beer world, his affinity for the funk, and that one time he ghosted the rep for one of the most sought-after breweries on the planet! Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and your best import-beer moments. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 173: Merchant du Vin with Aaron Cohn appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

It's 2026! After a short holiday break, we are back to bring you an absolute banger of an episode to kick off the new year. We are joined this week by fermentation expert and beer education icon, Shanleigh Thomson. A longtime industry professional and creator of extra-crispy beer-focused content, Shanleigh has amassed an insane amount of beer experience and expertise. We dive into her history in the beer world, her diverse background and education, and her insights on the future of beer as the industry looks to utilize vintage hops and regional ingredients. Tune in for shenanigans, fantastic nuggets of knowledge, and to hear about how Shanleigh may have accidentally gotten one of her professors arrested. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite Bad Weather Tour locations. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 172: The Future of Beer is “What, When, and Where” with Shanleigh Thomson appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

We’re less than a week from Christmas, which means it was the perfect time to sneak away with our best buddy and former co-host Sean Jackson for a secret Sunday podcast. Tucked away in Doug’s studio, we popped a few fancy bottles to celebrate Sean’s 50th birthday and caught up with him as much as we could in an hour (it's never enough time). Tune in to hear about Sean’s birthday surprise and, considering the recent news of Rogue’s closure, catch a few of his favorite stories from the Issaquah taproom and even some Dead Guy hat lore. Have a safe and wonderful holiday, y’all. Thank you a million times over for listening to us every week. We’re going to take a couple of weeks off to reset for the new year, but stay tuned for some great upcoming episodes. Much love! Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and the Rogue beer you'll miss most. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 171: Pre-Christmas Special with Sean Jackson appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

As odd as it may sound, there really is an art behind making smoothie sours taste good.  Like anything else, there are good and bad examples, and often the difference is the thoughtfulness of the ingredients.  That's why we wanted to bring in our buddy, Odd Otter head brewer, to help answer the age-old question: “How much soft serve ice cream is too much to add to your beer?” In all seriousness, Shelby is doing great work at Tacoma’s own Odd Otter Brewing Company, with a thoughtful emphasis on the “odd.” Everything from graf co-ferments with a Belgian dubbel base to peppermint white chocolate sour with winter spices. Tune in to hear the details and inspiration behind these well-executed beers and to catch up on how the brewery is doing after reopening under new ownership with a new direction. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and hopefully Odd Otter holiday gift ideas. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 170: The Art of Smoothie Sours with Shelby Bible appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

We think it’s high time we took this interview gig a little more seriously, so we figured we might as well get some high-quality interview questions locked and loaded for future episodes, but we need to make sure they’re up to snuff first. This week, we are joined by the effortlessly dashing Erik Dahlin of The Odom Corp. to field test some of our new, totally professional interview questions. After years in the beer distribution game, Erik has tasted droves of world-class pints and traveled to many historic breweries, making wonderful memories and collecting excellent stories along the way. Tune in to find out which beers he holds in the highest regard and which ones he might encourage extraterrestrial visitors to consume “bottoms up” style. Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and favorite beer questions. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 169: Inside the Brewer’s Studio with Erik Dahlin appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Less than a week out from everyone's favorite chaotic family holiday—the annual turkey-fueled collision of joy, gravy, and emotional turbulence—we decided it was the perfect time to sit down with our buddy R.J. Adler, from Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., to discuss pairing beer with Thanksgiving dinner. Naturally, we lasted about 253 seconds before veering completely off the rails and dedicating the entire conversation to one of our mutual obsessions: the glorious, tart, ruby-kissed wonder that is a Flanders red ale. Why is it the perfect beer to bring to any family gathering? Why does it soothe generational trauma? Why does it pair so beautifully with turkey, stuffing, awkward political comments, and the profound desire to take a walk around the block for “fresh air”? We go deep. Maybe too deep. Maybe just deep enough. Tune in for laughs, actual usable beer pairing tips, and our unapologetic campaign to make Rodenbach the unofficial beer of Thanksgiving 2025. Thank you for listening, for supporting the podcast, and for bringing good beer to the table—no matter what your family throws at you. Have a beautiful turkey day, friends. See you all in December! Tap, tap, tap Alright, Grit & Grainers! Please email us at cheers@gritandgrainpodcast.com with your comments, opinions, and your best theories on what. You can subscribe to GGP on YouTube, Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and iHeartRadio, and please leave us a review. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. If this podcast is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. No such thing as a bad time to visit Tacoma. No such thing as too much barleywine. Tune in next Friday for more sweet chatter. Cheers! The post Episode 168: Who Brought the Rodenbach to Thanksgiving Dinner? appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Time for a good old-fashioned debate. This week, we dive into the now-infamous New York Times opinion piece by famed journalist Mark Robichaux, “Wacky Labels and Silly Names are Killing Craft Beer”. With a few... The post Episode 167: Wacky Podcasts Are Killing the Craft Beer Industry appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

We're back, baby! The Washington Brewers Guild‘s 2025 Washington Craft Beer Summit took place this week in SeaTac, Washington, bringing nearly 100 Washington breweries together under one roof to meet with vendors, attend expert lectures,... The post Episode 166: Live from the 2025 Washington Craft Beer Summit  appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Happy Halloween, Grit & Grain family! This week, we thought we'd dress up as a super serious political podcast. Just kidding! But we were indeed joined by the 10th District Representative and former Tacoma mayor,... The post Episode 165: Budget Battles and Belgian Beer w/Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

It's beer and cheese week! Beer industry veteran, professional cheesemonger, and German language educator, Ericka Baird, joined us this week to talk about everything beer and cheese. We picked up a variety of cheeses, from... The post Episode 164: Pairing Beer and Cheese with Ericka Baird  appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

The Great American Beer Festival wrapped up last weekend, and Ron attended for the second time with Peaks & Pints regular, Grit & Grain listener, and travel buddy, Bryan Johnson. Their four-day epic adventure had... The post Episode 163: GABF Adventures with Bryan and Ron appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Our best buddies at Vice Beer just celebrated their 3-year anniversary, so we figured it would be the perfect time to get owner, operator, and North Bank beer ambassador Michael Perozzo back on the mic... The post Episode 162: Michael Perozzo, Part 3 appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Back again with another hoppy episode this week! This time, we wanted to change it up and give you all a peek behind the curtain at a yearly industry tradition. During hop harvest season, brewers... The post Episode 161: Hop Selection Connection appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Nestled quietly in the margins of Oktoberfest and fresh hop season, pumpkin beers lay waiting to provide a reprieve from the punchy wet hopped IPAs and robust Marzen lagers. This week, we quickly sample 15... The post Episode 160: Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

This is super special! We all know Yakima is known for its incredible hop agriculture, but what many folks may not know is that the modern hop industry has its roots a little closer to... The post Episode 159: Mansions and Museums in the Mecca of Hops appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

That's right! Besides being fresh hop season, pumpkin season, and festbier season, it's also homebrew competition season. We're lucky to be joined this week by Dustin Striplin from the Browns Point Homebrew Club to talk... The post Episode 158: Homebrew Competition Season! appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

In this episode of HubSpot's Marketing Against the Grain, GaryVee joins to talk about the future of marketing in 2025. From the decline of follower counts to the rise of attention-based algorithms, he explains why most businesses measure the wrong things and how AI is reshaping the landscape. If you want to understand what will actually matter for brand growth in the years ahead, this conversation is a must-listen.

We are just about a week away from the most wonderful time of the year for Pacific Northwest beer nerds — fresh hop season!  The chaotic, beautiful, and fleeting annual period where hops are plucked... The post Episode 157: Fresh Hop Season Preview appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

It's that time of year again! Brew Five Three Beer & Music Festival, Tacoma's biggest beer taster-glass gathering, kicked off in a new location this year, the historic Armory building, and we were lucky enough... The post Episode 156: Live from Brew Five Three Beer and Music Festival! appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Nestled in the small downtown area of Renton, Wash., a sleeping giant of a brewery is starting to make giant waves. We are joined by the family-owned and operated Four Generals Brewing. Brewer Ross, parents... The post Episode 155: German Purity Law (wink wink) with Four Generals Brewing appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

We're back with part 2 of our raw ingredients special, featuring Rikki Welz from Haas Farms and Brian Estes from LINC Malt. With Grainmaker only one week away, we figured it would be a great... The post Episode 154: Hop Growers and Grain Makers with Haas Farm and LINC Malt, Part 2 appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

It's an extra special double header! We are joined this week by our best buddy and legendary hop sniffer, Rikki Welz from the world-renowned Haas Farms, and we are so happy to welcome Brian Estes,... The post Episode 153: Hop Growers and Grain Makers with Haas Farm and LINC Malt appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

We're back! Thanks for sticking around during our holiday hiatus week.  We're back and have a bunch of catching up to do. Matt climbed a whole mountain, Bethany went camping with her little kiddos (arguably... The post Episode 152: Catching Up After a Week Off appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

This week, we were super lucky to be joined by another local beer podcast crew. Austin and Julie uploaded the first episode of Thru The Sightglass back in March 2024 (with our good friend Rachyl... The post Episode 151: Looking Thru The Sightglass with Austin and Julie appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

The Washington Brewers Festival and Firestone Walker Invitational have come and gone, and the Grit & Grain crew was lucky enough to be on the ground for both. This week, we're recapping the magic—our favorite... The post Episode 150: Beer Fest Fever appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Kendall Jones is back! For Part 2, we dive right into the article posted to his longstanding Washington Beer Blog the morning of our recording, wherein Jones breaks down the Brewers Association‘s announcement of Mexican... The post Episode 149: Washington Beer Blog with Kendall Jones, Part 2 appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Get ready for a super special double-header! This week, we are honored to invite local legend and Tacoma native Kendall Jones to Tacoma for a few beers and a few episodes dedicated to his decades-long... The post Grit & Grain Episode 148: Keeping up with Joneses with Kendall Jones from Washington Beer Blog appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.

Our best buddies at Seattle's Lucky Envelope Brewing are celebrating their 10th year in the beer business with a bang — A year-long series of collaboration beers with former brewers who have left Barry's tutelage... The post Episode 147: 10 Years of Beers! with Barry Chan of Lucky Envelope  appeared first on Grit & Grain Podcast.