Tag: A Podcast & A Beer

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In the Tap Lines for July 2022

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Even though I have lived in Los Angeles for quite some time, I never like the sweaty season.  July is the start of the heat that beats me down.  But I will be escaping to Portland this month and will relay any NW beer news I find. But before that, a quick interview with brewer Brian Waters from Figueroa Mountain about him and the big L.A. news.

~ e-visits to (3) breweries from the Pacific Northwest
~ special featured review of Morning Phase Sour from Eagle Rock Brewery
~Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads Tracy Flick Can’t Win
~ A Podcast & A Beer listens to Betwixt the Sheets
~ Great Beer names and Best Beers of the Month
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.

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A Podcast & A Beer – Doctor Who: Redacted

I am usually a non-fiction podcast listener but I have quite enjoyed the seven episodes that I have listened to so far of Doctor Who: Redacted.

People are going missing. Forgetting seems to be happening to everyone and three intrepid podcasters try to track down the mystery of what is happening and why a mysterious blue box is involved.

For me, fiction audio needs to have immersive techniques used. Bring in the foley artists, use echos and other sound tricks. Actors reading can take you only so far and DW: Redacted is using a lot of effects that work really well with the story created that has a lot of Whovian history shout outs. Though they have been way tooo heavy with the Doctor. Who? dialogue. We know this is about memory, no need to bang on about it so often.

That quibble aside, the twenty minute episodes move fast and are give room for each of the three main characters, Abby, Shauna and Cleo to tell their stories.

To pair with this podcast you can go one of two ways, three if you want to use it as an excuse to have British beer. One is to have beers brewed by women to match with our protagonists.

The other option being to pick a beer that embodies the spirit of someone no longer with us. A beer that brings back a memory. I might pick up a wine/beer hybrid that is a combo of what my dad drank and what I drink. Take a walk down memory lane.

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In the Tap Lines for June 2022

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We have made it to Summer.  Or as close as we can get what with climate change making things hotter and colder and just plain weather weird.  Here is what June has in store for you on the blog.

~ e-visits to (3) breweries related to June
~ special featured review of Nectar Creek Sting Ginger Mead
~Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads When I’m Gone, Look for Me in the East by Quan Barry
~ A Podcast & A Beer listens to Doctor Who: Redacted
~ Great Beer names and Best Beers of the Month
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.

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A Podcast & A Beer – Dishing on Julia

Time to get foodie with Julia Child and the companion podcast to the HBO Max series, Julia.

Companion podcasts are a big thing right now. Any prestige series needs to have a podcast where the creators talk about making the show. And I can’t get enough of them.

That said, this podcast is 2/3 good. It is broken into a section re-cap which I skip by, one section talking to people involved with the show and a final section with someone from the broader food world. And there is some fascinating tidbits to be learned just about Julia’s husband Paul alone.

When it comes to beer, this is the time to globe trot like Julia did before and with Paul. Massachusetts. China. Sri Lanka. Holland. And especially France. So look for Biere de Garde, Grissette and Saisons. For bonus points pick up 1903 Lager from Craftsman Brewing in Pasadena where Julia was born.

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In the Tap Lines for May 2022

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Moving into May with another month of fun beer news and maybe even longer visits to breweries and even maybier festivals but for sure, this…

~ e-visits to (3) breweries in NBA playoff team cities
~ special featured reviews of Abnormal beers
~Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads The Kaiju Preservation Society
~ A Podcast & A Beer listens to Dishing on Julia
~ Great Beer names and Best Beers of the Month
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.

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A Podcast & A Beer – History Hit

With news of finding Ernest Shackleton’s ship, The Endurance in the news, time to listen to a podcast from someone who was there when it was found, Dan Snow. The podcast is History Hit.

I have bemoaned the fact that history, as taught in school, is dreadful boring. Proceeding from one date to the next in a linear fashion briefly touching down on high points with an emphasis on remembering dates.

When it could be like History Hit. Thirty to forty minute mini deep dives into a corner of history. Mary Queen of Scots, the first inventor of motion pictures who mysteriously vanished or as has been recently covered extensively, the wreck of The Endurance in Antarctica.

Dan Snow has a pleasant English accent and steers the conversation very well so that you can quickly learn fascinating anecdotes.

Beers to pair with this could go in many different ways but I will suggest that you find the first beer that you had (or can remember having) from a local brewery and re-visiting that “historical” or past flagship beer.

A fun side excursion would be to hunt down a gruit and sip on that whilst listening.

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In the TapLines for April 2022

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One quarter of the year gone by in a flash.  Now it is time for spring-y beers or as they should be called in SoCal, early summer ales.

~ e-visits to (3) breweries that will be pouring at the return of the Firestone Walker Invitational
~ special featured reviews of press review beers from Figueroa Mountain, Stone and Firestone Walker
~Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads South to America by Imani Perry
~ A Podcast & A Beer listens to History Hit with Dan Snow
~ Great Beer names and Best Beers of the Month
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.

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A Podcast & A Beer – Plain English

I don’t really do political podcasts or takes on current news but I like Plain English. Host Derek Thompson doesn’t break a topic down as much as he just is plain clear. It cuts through the noise. The podcast has been especially good of late in breaking down the crisis in Ukraine.

For this podcast, let’s get literal. Real literal. First despite a trend to complicated, ingredient laden beers, find the plainest blond ale or crispy pilsner as you can find. Go as simple as possible.

Or, you can pick up something English, perhaps an ESB or a Mild ale. Eagle Rock Brewery brings their dark mild, Solidarity out this time of year and that would be perfect.

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A Podcast & A Beer – Wild Things

Siegfried and Roy. They had a legacy but now most people remember one thing, the tiger attack and that is what Wild Things is all about…

Like most people, I assume, big cats, the early Vegas camp factor and the S&R hairstyles might be our other recollections when pressed. With the actual magic behind nowhere to be seen. But this podcast travels back and forth in time between their early career to post attack and the investigation into it. While also talking about their act. This type of of podcast fills in history gaps entertainingly which is more than can be said of most dry lectures.

There is not too many Las Vegas or Nevada beers out in SoCal distribution but a different tack would be to find the most over the top beers that you can. Be it high ABV, or a strange ingredient, or heck find a marshmallow beer. Or you could go macabre and find some red ales to match the blood.

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In the Tap Lines for February 2022

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It is birthday month!  That means special reviews and fun.  Also a head to head battle of beers, the Premier League and a big ol’ doorstop of a book.  And a white tiger too.

~ e-visits to (3) breweries from Premier League locales
~ special featured reviews of beers bought from City Beer Store
~Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads The Love Songs of W.E.B Dubois
~ A Podcast & A Beer listens to Wild Things
~ Great Beer names and Best Beers of the Month
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.