Better On Draft | A Craft Beer Podcast

Kristen Radaich joins Wendy and Rob to talk about her recent book, Beer Hiking Minnesota, Wisconsin & the Upper Peninsula. We talk about hiking with dogs, finding breweries near trails, finding trails near breweries, beer flights, and so much more.

Wendy and Rob get caught up on various pieces of beer news. Some new laws, TTB stuff, mergers, grocery store beer, harbingers of spring, celebrities doing celebrity things, and some cool new technology useful to the beer industry.March Draftness is coming to May. If you are a brewery in Michigan who wants to be involved, email us!

We had some real-world difficulties this week so cut the show very short. Episode 386 will be on March 27 and will most likely be a news show.April 10 we will talk to Kristen Radaich about her book: Beer Hiking Minnesota, Wisconsin & the Upper Peninsula: Great Hikes and Breweries from the Twin Cities to the NorthwoodsMay 8 we have Nick Lesogor of Exit 12 Homebrew to learn about BrewTubers, an online homebrew club. 

Wendy and Rob catch up on some beer news and important lists!Vinepair's highest rated beer in each state (and DC) using BeerAdvocate's ratingsVinepair's article about cheersing with a list of equivalent sayings in other languages.Portland, OR's Shebrew beer festivalUSA Today's multiple articles - the final 20 that will be voted on for rankings:Best Beer GardenBest Beer CityBest Beer FestivalBest Beer LabelBest Brewery TourBest BrewpubBest New Brewery

Wendy and Rob talk to Stephen of OPA Design Studio about designing breweries, taprooms, and fun places to visit.OPA Design Studio's blog with more looks at their projects and related topics: https://www.breweryarchitect.com/blog The Obituary card game Stephen designed: https://obituarygame.com/

Wendy and Rob catch up in the new year and make some predictions for 2026. Predictions were about apples, the trend with IPAs, big releases, effects of consolidation, average ABV on shelves, and packaging formats.We also talk about non-alcoholic versions of styles and what that means when you get into things like beer judging, Untappd, or as a consumer looking to purchase a beer.Is Rob alone in having craft beer singles become rare to find around him?What are some breweries you think could be legacy breweries and how are they changing with the times? (Segment inspired by Beervana)Better on Draft is an independent podcast currently ad-free because the hosts have not gone looking for sponsors! 

Wend and Rob talk to Jared Williamson, lead brewer at Schlafly of St. Louis. We talk about beer education, some historic styles, Schlafly's growth and role in the community, and the community of St Louis. This episode may cause you to want to visit St Louis!

Every year, like clockwork, we celebrate the winter solstice in December. Kuhnhenn Brewing is celebrating this year by releasing 13 heavyweight beers. They will be on draft and your preorder bottles are ready for pickup. Wendy and Rob catch up with Eric and Bret on the night before their festival which begins December 20th and they still have a lot of work ahead of them.Kuhnhenn website with more information!

Wendy and Rob prepare for Christmas with a little beer news and a lot of Christmas beer discussion.39 Affordable Towns With the Most Craft Breweries Per Capita -- With some suspicious math but could help with planning a move or vacation.MLive's Analysis of the brewery scene in Michigan with parallels to the US.The Michigan Craft Beer Community on Discord.What Christmas beers are you looking forward to? Let us know!

Wendy and Rob talk with Carmen Amato, author of the Galliano Club book series. This series takes place in upstate New York (Rome, NY is the inspiration) during prohibition. Beginning as a murder mystery and continuing as a power struggle for different factions related to the distribution and consumption of alcoholic beverages (such as beer, of course!). We ask Carmen about her research into this series and learn a few things about bootlegging during prohibition.You can learn more about the Galliano Club books and Carmen Amato at her website.Better on Draft is an independent production. If you or someone you know would like to be a guest on the show you can reach out to us at https://betterondraft.com

Wendy and Rob talk to Jeremy, founder and operator of Broken Clock Brewing Cooperative. We talk about what it means to run a business as a cooperative, Broken Clock's philosophy about where they fit in their world, and we get a little off topic here and there...You can learn more about Broken Clock at https://www.brokenclockbrew.com/  Better on Draft is an independent production. If you or someone you know would like to be a guest on the show you can reach out to us at https://betterondraft.com

Wendy and Rob talk about the Great American Beer Festival's medal winners from Michigan, Indiana, and a few other places. We'd love to hear about your GABF experiences as an attendee, brewer, vendor, volunteer, judge, or concerned citizen! Reach out to us on any of our social media sites (we're betterondraft on all of them) and let us know what stuck in your memory from a GABF.Article displayed in the video is from the Brewers Association Better on Draft is an independent podcast and always looking for guests and sponsors.

Wendy and Rob are joined by Seth from Elm Street Brewing. Hear how Seth got into brewing at Elm Street and became the head brewer there, designing and brewing his own recipes on a commercial scale. Elm Street Brewing's main space is set up to accommodate large groups easily and serve them delicious food from an exciting kitchen. We also talk about the city on Muncie, IN and why a beer tourist might want to spend a day there.You can learn more about Elm Street Brewing at their website!Better on Draft is an independently produced podcast. If you have topics or guests that you would like to hear about on the show, let us know! We're BetterOnDraft on all the social media sites.Audio file has been re-generated since first publishing to attempt to remove some of the audible lag.

Wendy and Rob talk to Steve Murray, one of the founders of Burn Em Brewing in Michigan City, IN. Burn Em is in a newer space with an interesting kitchen and lots of good beer on tap. You can find out more at their website. If you would like to see the labels mentioned in the show, those are also on their website.

Wendy and Rob talk to Brian Koch from Phantom Canyon Brewing in Colorado Springs, CO. Colorado's oldest brewpub sits right in the heart of the Springs' downtown and is worth a visit for provisioning your next hike or celebrating your hiking success - or because you want some good food and good drink (you earned it, you woke up today!). Brian has been in the industry for a number of years and talks about his experiences - how he started, how his career grew, and what he enjoys about being a head brewer.Better on Draft is an independent podcast always looking for guests and sponsors. 

Wendy and Rob talk to Liz and Chelsea of Berkeley Alley Beer and BodyByBeer podcast. Berkeley Alley Beer can be found at https://thealleybrews.com/ and in Denver, CO. It is a proudly welcoming space so you should go check it out!The Body by Beer podcast website https://www.bodybybeerpodcast.com/ has information about the podcast and the books we discussed (and the jerky related to the book).

Wendy and Rob talk to Derek from Unmapped Brewing outside Minneapolis, MN. You can learn more about Unmappd and plan a visit (maybe for one of their charity events, maybe for their to-be-determined winter parking lot event) by visiting https://unmappedbrewing.com/ NOTE: The brewery from Strange Brew is called Elsinore, not Excelsior like Rob thought.

Rob talks about his recent trip to Grand Rapids aka Beer City, USA. Wendy talks about her upcoming trip to Columbus, Ohio and her cruise from Boston. 

Wendy and Rob talk to Steve aka Hold MI Beer about his last year of being a beer writer, bartender, and traveler.Steve writes for Better on Draft: https://www.betterondraft.com/ and you can follow him and find additional writing on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61562608120577

Wendy and Rob talk to Eric Bean from Columbus Brewing Company. If you find yourself in Ohio, especially in Columbus, check out some of their beers. Eric talks about how he got started in craft beer in the early 90s all the way up through the things they're doing today (year of the lager!). Learn more at https://columbusbrewing.com/ and follow them on Facebook@columbusbrewing, Instagram @columbusbrewingcompany, and TikTok@columbusbrewingcoYou can follow Better on Draft wherever you got this podcast or at www.betterondraft.com (and all the socials).