May 2, 2020
This is part two of a two-part feature from New York City Beer Week. This was recorded at The Well in Brooklyn, just a week or so before the city announced a state of emergency because of COVID-19. We’re now releasing these episodes in an entirely new context—keep that in mind as you listen. Many of the topics are timeless and will continue to be valuable long after this pandemic has passed and New York City comes back to life.
This is our second year hosting these talks at The Well—and it’s a great opportunity to take stock of things as local NYC brewers, brewers from upstate, and some from far away all come together for an increasingly exciting series of events, special releases, and festivals for the week.
This year, NYC Beer Week fell at the exact same time as GBH’s annual Uppers & Downers festival in February, so I wasn’t personally able to make the trip and host the panels. But I’m glad to say we got a couple of local hosts we greatly admire in my stead.
The first session, which I hope you’ve already listened to, was hosted by Joshua Bernstein. This second session is hosted by Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery and author of the Oxford Companion to Beer—among many other accomplishments.
Garrett is as iconic as any one figure in the beer world. I was lucky enough to interview him waaaaay back on Episode 53 of our podcast five years ago. He’s a great ambassador for the craft, but more than that, he’s a great inquisitor. He’s as easily enamored with a new trend as he is skeptical. And this makes him a wonderful person to have to host a panel discussion with a variety of opinions and perspectives.
We were honored that he was willing to step into my role for the night. In this episode, he hosts a panel with friends from Threes Brewing in Brooklyn, Fox Farm in Connecticut, Hudson Valley from upstate, Transmitter from Brooklyn, and Sand City from Northport, New York.
This our second recording from New York City Beer Week, hosted by Garrett Oliver. Listen in.