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Tap That AZ - The Arizona Craft Beer Podcast

Arizona has one of the best craft beer communities in the country. But with so many amazing options, where do you even begin your journey to find your favorite spots and brews? That's where this podcast comes in. By talking with the folks who make it all happen, host Eric Walters helps you find the best local places to find a great Arizona-made beer. Weekly episodes include on-location interviews, news from the Arizona beer scene, and some great Arizona beer reviews by Marcus Piña. If you love Arizona and you love beer, this show is for you!
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Tap That AZ - The Arizona Craft Beer Podcast
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Now displaying: May, 2017
May 29, 2017

Growing up in a small town in Ohio my experience with beer was nothing like what I have available to me now. To me drinking craft beer meant drinking Killians. That was some off-the-wall behavior back in my day. Pulling into the traditional annual summer Steve Miller Band concert at Starlake Amphitheater my friends and I proudly displayed our coolers full of Natty Light and Buttweiser. Jesus, how did we ever make it out of life alive?!?! Now granted, there is a proper time and place for every beer and what exemplifies a classic tune like "Take the Money & Run" quite like an ice cold Natty Light? Your not rocking out to that with a $15 bottle of Firestone Walker Parabola Imperial Stout. You ever try to beer bong barley wine? Of course you haven't because if you did you wouldn't be alive to read this. Nothing flows through a funnel and tube quite like Busch Light.  

Fast forward to late 2007. I had made the 2000 mile trek from my hometown to the big city of Phoenix. New place, fresh start.....let's try a new beer! The local Sprouts had Shiner Bock on sale and it looked cool so what the hell?!?! And I liked it. I knew my days of drinking low grade carbonated urine water were officially over. From there things took off. Within a few months I was an adventure in a new land. And then I had my first true Arizona-brewed beer: Railhead Red from Beaver Street Brewery in Flagstaff (now Red Ale from Lumberyard). I was in love. From that day I have been all about Arizona made beer. Lucky for me the numbers of breweries has doubled since then and no end in sight for that growth. I am excited to see where this journey takes us. 

However, I have always wondered how a local brewery around my hometown would go over. Would the locals accept it or soak their torches in MGD and burn the place to the ground? Well, in 2015 three brave souls opened up Birdfish Brewing Company in the small town of Columbiana, Ohio to test that theory out. And it has treated them well. These 3 crazy dudes really do some whacky stuff too. I had a dill pickle gose when I was there and it was surprisingly fantastic. They love to push the envelope and really mix things up.  

In this episode I sit with 2 of the 3 owners. I talk with them about the challenges and joys of opening a microbrewery in a place where the craft beer culture barely even existed as well as how their existence is making some positive waves in the local community. I know this is an ARIZONA craft beverage podcast but I think you'll enjoy and appreciate what these guys are doing. And enjoy the Irish background music; I was lucky enough to beer there on St. Patty's Day to enjoy their Irish beers which were phenomenal. 

Intro/Outro music is "La Negra Tomasa" by Arizona's own Fayuca

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May 15, 2017

In this episode I get to hang out with Brian Helton. His focus is not to make some crazy concoction or off-the-wall thing but rather to make solid beer. And be able to consistently make it awesome. Time and time again. Well, so far so good Brian.

As of this writing Helton Brewing Company has been opened for just around 1 year and from what they are doing over there they are going to open for a long time. A beautiful brewery and tasting room along with a brand new beer garden make this place on 22nd Street and Indian School a must visit. Oh yeah, they make some awesome waffles and stuff too. Bacon cheddar waffles which are totally my style.

This Saturday May 20th, 2017 Helton is celebrating their 1 year anniversary with a grand old shindig. They are tapping a new Double IPA, will have live music, great food, and lots of other exciting stuff. And of course I'll be there so now you HAVE to come. See you there! Or if you are reading this and listening to the episode at a later date, well you sure did miss one hell of a party. You totally missed out and should regret it forever. 

Big thanks to Alexxis Grant for taking all the pictures for this episode. You can follow her photography Instagram page at @timelesspresent

Intro/Outro music is "La Negra Tomasa" by Arizona's own Fayuca

Want to show your support and help this show grow? Simply click here, give the show a rating and share some feedback! 

May 1, 2017

So apparently people from the Czech Republic drink more beer per capita than any other country in  the world. IN. THE. WORLD. Wow, that came out of nowhere. In fact they have claimed that title for 23 years in a row! Czechs drink 142 liters (equal to about 300 pints) per person which makes us Americans look like little girls at a mere 75 liters per person. And apparently it's cheaper to get a beer in the Czech Republic than it is to get a bottle of water so at least they have their priorities straight. On an unrelated note I will be moving to the Czech Republic next week.  

 

Dubina Brewing Company opened in 2013 behind a strong and proud family history of great beer making. In this episode I sit down with Jared Dubina to talk about how his grandfather was a huge influence on his passion to open his own brewery. We talk about how sometimes a little critical feedback can really light your fire to perfect your craft and how local businesses influence and contribute to so much of what they do on a daily basis. Enjoy the show!

 Intro/Outro music is "La Negra Tomasa" by Arizona's own Fayuca

Want to show your support and help this show grow? Simply click here, give the show a rating and share some feedback! 

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