Liquid Bread

We got this master cicerone lyin' around, so why not talk about the cicerone program a bit? Rich shares some of his thoughts on and experience with the Cicerone Certification Program, including advice for anybody interested in checking it out! Larry talks about muppets and sitcoms.

Master Cicerone Rich leads us in a tasting of a more local brew, Pure Project's Pure West! Try it if you can find it, or grab an unfiltered West Coast IPA and... sorta follow along.

A man uses his first words for a relatable request, we get Larry's coleslaw opinions (again), and Rich discusses the Belgian beer style known as the saison.

Rich is in London, so we thought it appropriate that he lead us in a tasting of Ireland's most famous beer, Guinness Extra Stout!

We look back on Bud Light's controversial 2019 "No Corn Syrup" campaign, and give our thoughts on this year's Super Bowl beer commercials, including Rich's cicerone expertise and Matty's commercial directing PTSD.

Finally, Pliny. Rich leads us in a tasting of Russian River Brewing's classic double IPA. Trigger warning for cat pee-ophobes.

We're talking about beer off-flavors, because even flavors get sick of being on all the time. Does your beer taste like green apple? Butter? Sewage? Rich lets you know if there might be something wrong with it. Plus for our first episode of 2022 we give our new beer's resolutions, which it seems like Larry made up on the spot even though Matty emailed about doing them beforehand.

For the holidays, you better believe we're drinking a holiday beer: the classic Sierra Nevada Celebration. Grab a six-pack, sit down with five family members (or as many as you've got that you enjoy), and sip along!

In our Pastry Stout episode, we talk about drinking cask ale in London pubs, butterfly-assisted beer, brewing nuns... maybe pastry stouts at some point?

Rich leads Matty and Larry in a tasting of a couple sours from Portland's Cascade Brewing (which, coincidentally, go very well with a holiday meal...)!

We're talking pumpkin beers, whatever those are! We talk about the history of pumpkin beers, Larry's finally had a dunkel, and Rich has some spicy Diet Dr. Pepper takes!

Yeehaw, giddyup! In our rootinest, tootinest taster yet the boys are sittin' by the campfire and sippin' a bottle of the pride of Texas, Shiner Bock! I promise this bit is nowhere to be found in the episode itself.

The guys are tasting another one of those old traditional European beers that Rich loves, Ayinger Urweisse! Here's hoping Alfonso Cuaron likes it.

We're talking about awards! Rich talks about which awards to look out for, how the beers are judged, and some of the notable recent winners. Plus Matty comes up with just an insanely good beer pun that Larry loves.

Rich leads us in a tasting of North Coast Brewing's Old Rasputin Imperial Stout, which Rich notes is a great drink to share with a friend and/or podcast cohost.

Stout is the style of the day! Matty goes over the history of stouts (which is also the history of porters), Rich runs down the style and some of its varieties, and Larry's love affair with flavors of all types continues.

Rich leads a tasting of Newcastle Brown Ale! A wonderful suggestion from a cheeseburger. Grab a bottle at your local bottle shop (or anywhere, come on this stuff is everywhere) and taste along!

The guys each pitch a beer style they'd like to see given more attention, and briefly discuss Brave Noise, a great new collaborative effort to improve the brewing community.

Rich leads a tasting of one of his favorites, and our first listener-requested beer (thanks Mike!), Orval! Grab a bottle at your local bottle shop and taste along! And stay tuned for our Marvel-esque post-credits sequence.

Rich leads a lesson on hops, Larry knows what kudzu looks like, Matty doesn't know what acorns look like, and chocolate is ruined for everybody.

This week Rich has chosen a great American beer to try, the Tank 7 American Saison Ale from Boulevard Brewing Company. Grab a bottle at your local bottle shop and drink along!

Lewis McCallister, head brewer at Mountains Walking Brewery in Bozeman, Montana, joins us to talk about milkshake IPAs and smoothie ales! Larry loves milkshakes.

Rich leads us in tasting of one of his favorite beers, the Westmalle Dubbel. Find it at a bottle shop near you and drink along!

We're talkin' Kölsch, the pride of Cologne, as Larry finally gets his pickle beer, Matty does a so-so job putting a quiz together, and we see the duality of Rich as both the ultimate culinary man of the people and a geographic snob,

For Oktoberfest, Rich leads us in a tasting of Hofbräu's Oktoberfestbier! Plus a little diversion about beer that tastes like pennies.

The boys get a little tipsy talking all things Oktoberfest: what to expect when you head to Munich in October, and what to expect from styles like festbiers, Marzens, and Oktoberfestbiers.

Rich gives one of his most useful lessons yet, on how to store our beer so it doesn't taste like skunks and whether the reason our beer seems a little off at our favorite spot is because they're not pouring it right. Plus we talk Fiery Crunchy Cheesie Bois, mustard beer, and whether or not we're all comfortable with our future toilet-drinking society.

Sourmer continues! Rich takes Matty and Larry to Germany for Goses and Berliner Weisses, then on to a quick stop for vatted porters in the UK, then it's on to the US for American Wild Ales and Rich's controversial thoughts on farmhouses. Also, a vital message about exploding beer.

For our first tasting episode, Rich leads Matty and Larry on a tasting of a sour lambic, the delicious Lindemans Cuvée René!

Sourmer is here! We're starting our multi-part look at sour beers with Belgium, and their famous lambics and Flemish ales, which some call Flanders ales, which Rich finds unacceptable. Plus Larry gives his thoughts on pickles!

This week we're talking about how alcohol works! Rich gives his Alcohol 101 lesson, Larry and Matty tell stories of forgiving roommates and drunken croquet arguments, and Rich leads a tasting (1:43:10) of St. Bernardus Abt 12, an old Belgian ale with a number in the title for some reason.

Matty and Larry pitch their brewery ideas to Rich, we talk about kvass, and somehow we get dangerously close to becoming a Chicago Bears podcast.

We finish off the New Albion story, discuss what the hell a craft brewery is, Rich pitches his Big Lebowski-themed beer, we rattle off delicious food choices like it's nobody's business and Rich leads Matty and Larry in a tasting of Fuller's ESB!

This week's all about the history of craft beer, and one of its most important breweries! Well, two, really. Part one of the New Albion story covers the American beer industry in the first half of the 1900s, up to Fritz Maytag's revival of Anchor Brewing in the 60s. Plus Larry tries out a German accent!

Rich leads everyone in a comprehensive lesson in food pairing that'll help you pick the best beer for any food you'll eat. Plus, a tasting of our most promiscuous beer yet, Saison Dupont!

We're talkin' the wildly popular IPA style with Master Cicerone Rich, including its often-mistold history and why while some love it and some hate it, it's all over every beer menu. Also Rich goes food pairing, some brewery news in the wake of this whole pandemic thing, and Larry and Matty taste Firestone Walker's Union Jack and Mind Haze IPAs!

It's story time this week as we talk about the Founding Fathers and their relationship with an English-style porter that made them feel oh-so-American! Plus Master Cicerone Rich dispels some myths about beer storage temperature, and we taste Stone Brewing's Xocoveza!

We discuss a rogue White Claw agent, Saskatchewan, and Rich gets real science-y on a blind date as we explore the difference between lagers and ales. We're tasting Sierra Nevada Pale Ale this week, so grab a bottle and drink along (responsibly)!

The sudsy saga begins: for our first episode, we're talking about the most popular beer style in the world, Pilsners!