Announcing The Gist by Sightlines
Good Beer Hunting
We're coming to you today to bring you up to speed on some things we’ve doing since our hiatus. One of the ways we’ve refocused our efforts is on our brand. If you’re not already aware - is our industry leading insights platform for the beverage alcohol and functional beverage industry. It’s a subscription-only newsletter and consultancy run by myself, and two voices I know you’re familiar with - Bryan Roth and Kate Bernot. You can subscribe to Sightlines at , or now you can follow our weekly brief in audio form by subscribing to The Gist by Sightlines, our new podcast...
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Finding The Joy Of Craft Beer
Good Beer Hunting
Despite alarming headlines and loud proclamations that “craft beer is dead,” that’s only part of the story—and not a particularly accurate one, at that. Industry insiders can get bogged down in the depressing details (even we’ve been guilty of it at one time or another). But reporters Kate Bernot and Beth Demmon decided to see how and where the heart of craft beer still beat, and went to the 2024 Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Festival in Paso Robles to find out. It turns out, the craft beer industry can’t just be measured by Circana numbers or market share. Websites and social...
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The Hunt For Craft Beer's Cool
Good Beer Hunting
Beer is having a hard time these days. Category-wide, sales are down and interest just isn’t the same it used to be. But what if the enthusiasm that got us to this point—excitement that helped lead to almost 10,000 small and independent breweries scattered across the country—is still just as palpable now as it was one, two, or 10 years ago? It’s just a matter of looking. In this special episode of the Good Beer Hunting podcast, beer enthusiasts from around the country explain why for them craft beer still means friendships, new experiences, and most of all, something cool at a time...
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EP-421 Kevin and Britt Templin of Templin Family Brewing
Good Beer Hunting
Brewing is famously a science and an art. There are loads of technical aspects a skilled brewer should nail down to create something special, but there’s also a point where you just have to give up some autonomy. Or, at least accept it’s OK to play a little for some R&D. One of the most important things people in American craft beer have learned in recent years is how this also applies to their customers. A diverse menu that may expand beyond just beer is becoming table stakes and creativity in what kind of styles and flavor experiences you offer—in or outside of beer—can matter...
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EP-420 Eeva and Trace Redmond of Elder Piper Beer + Cider
Good Beer Hunting
It’s a classic question asked first in a novel, then in music, and often as a half-joke pop culture reference: Can you go home again? People change over time, but of course, places do, too. What we’ve previously experienced in our hometowns and where we grew up can feel distant for a very good reason. Time and experience changes us all, whether we like it or not. But in this episode, we’re going to explore what it means to lean into this question and ask instead, “what does it feel like to be home, again?” Working through this with me is Trace and Eeva Redmond, a couple who in recent...
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EP-419 Matt Kwasniewski of Big Timber Brewing
Good Beer Hunting
West Virginians take a lot of pride in their state. As well they should—it’s one of the most stunningly gorgeous destinations in the United States, albeit one that can be hard to get to, thanks to the same mountainous spectacle that draws people there in the first place. Matt Kwasniewski is a West Virginia native, as well as the owner and head brewer of Big Timber Brewing in Elkins, West Virginia. It’s the largest craft brewery in the state, with an annual output of around 6,000 barrels last year, positioning them solidly in the “microbrewery” category. He says that West...
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On Becoming Hawk
Good Beer Hunting
# On Becoming Hawk Hi there - this is Michael Kiser, founder and publisher of Good Beer Hunting. I’m coming to you today with a difficult message—but a simple one. Good Beer Hunting—after nearly 15 years, and at least 10 of that that I would consider serious years—is going on a platform-wide sabbatical. It’ll be indefinite. It might be permanent. We have some ideas for what the future of Good Beer Hunting might look like—and soon I’ll be working on that vision with the counsel of my colleagues to see where it takes us. But the earliest vision is so drastically different...
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EP-418 Luke Bauer of Snake River Brewing Company
Good Beer Hunting
The definition of “local” can be quite different when the nearest urban regions are hundreds of miles away. That’s certainly the case in Jackson, Wyoming, where (quote-unquote) neighboring cities like Boise, Idaho; Denver, Colorado; and Bozeman, Montana all require a few hours in the car, if not on a plane, to get there. But it’s precisely that sense of remote grandeur that attracts millions of visitors to the Jackson Hole region every year. Where do they go when they want a good, local, craft brew? To Snake River Brewing Company, of course, which is the oldest operating brewery in the...
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EP-417 Jon Renthrope of Cajun Fire
Good Beer Hunting
We’re squarely in the midst of political season—presidential debates have begun, campaigning has kicked into high gear, and November elections are closer than we think. Amongst it all, there’s an adage this episode’s guest once shared that likely sounds true, whether your a deep-in-the-weeds politico or fair-weather voter: If you want to make the biggest impact in politics, you go into business. Well over a decade ago, Jon Renthrope did just that, opening up Cajun Fire Brewing in his hometown of New Orleans. Enticed by what he found in the world of homebrewing, Jon took a degree in...
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EP-416 Kristen Sumpter of Red's Beer Garden
Good Beer Hunting
It's easy to find examples of what success in entrepreneurship looks like. There are dozens of TV shows, thousands of books, and millions of blog posts that are meant to share tips, secrets, and let us into the minds of people who've made it in all kinds of business. But the fact of the matter is that the only ones who can truly understand what it's like—the many failures that typically come with a breakout win—are the people who've taken a leap of faith without any idea of how their attempt to launch a product or start a business will turn out. You're as likely to be built up as broken...
info_outlineSo much has changed in craft beer since I became a fan more than a decade ago. One of the most intriguing things I’ve noticed as someone who loves being in taprooms is how many new breweries are moving away from the industrial look that was once ubiquitous in craft beer. For me, the shift represents a second wave, a move towards standing out instead of running with the pack.
In this episode, we talk to Nicole Oesch, co-owner of Kismetic Beer Company, a brewery that looks more like a swanky cocktail bar than a taproom, to learn what made her want to differentiate her brewery from everyone else. Where did she get the idea for building a space with jewel-tone shades of purple and turquoise, leather wrapped booths, and geometric artwork decking the walls?
You’ll hear Nicole talk about how she focuses on comfort and beauty and how it makes it unique in a crowded market, offering customers something that other breweries in the area might not. She shares the importance of going beyond making great beer and how she used her own personal preferences to build an authentic brand that connects with local beer drinkers and engages with people outside of beer’s usual scope. Nicole also talks about how one of those personal preferences—drinking low ABV beers—led Kismetic to brew with tea, which helps them reduce sugar, and as a result alcohol, without impacting the final taste of their product.