In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized we hear from Chris Heier, co-founder and head brewer at Half Hitch Brewing in Cochrane, Alberta, Canada. At the height of the pandemic when most people were learning to make sourdough bread, Chris was learning how to make bean to bar chocolate. He's one-fourth Trinidadian, and he sourced cacao from Trinidad & Tobago through Meridian Cacao and made chocolate from it. He also made a chocolate Porter with the same cacao, and in this quick episode, Chris tells us about developing that beer and what he learned along the way. You can listen to my full interview with Chris here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized we hear from Nicole Hewat, the creative mind behind World Tree Chocolate. Nicole is an artist who has created a variety of artwork using cacao and coffee. She published a children’s book about chocolate illustrated with cacao butter-based paintings on glass, and also sells landscape paintings made with paint made from cacao husks and coffee. Listen in as Nicole explains her process for each.You can learn more about World Tree Chocolate here.You can listen to my full interview with Nicole here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

Today’s episode is a look back at my favorite beers and chocolates of 2023. You’ll also hear from several friends and colleagues in the beer and chocolate worlds who share their own favorites from the last year as well.Guests include:Ruvani de Silva  (beer writer)Mandy Naglich (beer writer) - Listen to Mandy & I discuss her new book How to Taste.Estelle Tracy (chocolate educator) - Listen to Estelle & I discuss pairing chocolate with wine & beer.Emma Wargolet (beer writer)Caterina Gallo (chocolate expert)Luke Owen Smith (beer & chocolate writer) - Listen to Luke & I discuss the New Zealand beer & chocolate scenes.Shay Pal (chocolate expert) - Listen to Shay & I discuss one of our favorite chocolate bars.Amanda Camp (beer PR professional)Click each to read the full lists of my favorite beers, chocolates, & pairings from the past year.You can listen to previous years' annual favorites episodes here: 2022, 2021, 2020.The following articles & episodes are mentioned in this episode:Precious and Grace—Brouwerij Van Steenberge's Tripel Van De GarreEpisode 71: Adam Krantz of Monsoon ChocolateEpisode 30: Nostalgia ChocolateCacao Fruit Pulp in BeerYellow Springs & Urban Artifact Partner to Benefit Women's Brewing ScholarshipCheck out the Bean to Barstool shop to order zines, beer cards & prints, and issues of Final Gravity (and preorder Issue 03 now!)You can support us on Patreon here.Happy New Year! Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

The arrival of fall means the arrival of fall seasonal beer styles. Fortunately for us, fall beer styles like pumpkin beer and Oktoberfest can pair great with craft chocolate, and today we’re going to talk about some of my favorites and recommendations to check out.Pumpkin ales, Märzen, Festbier, and even fresh hop and wet hop beers can be paired with craft chocolate. Listen to this bonus episode to learn which bean to bar chocolate bars will work best with each seasonal style.Here's a quick guide to the differences between Oktoberfest lager styles.Here's the link to the Beer Basics episode mentioned in this episode.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

A photo of a beer in a glass is a moment captured.There's a new zine in the online shop that gets to the heart of what Bean to Barstool is all about. Beers Remembered is a short zine of brief vignettes reflecting on beers from the past few years. Each of the 18 entries features a full page photo of a memorable beer, and a page talking about the experience of drinking it. These aren't beer reviews, though there might be a handful of tasting notes sprinkled throughout these short reflections. These are memories of everything that happened around the beer in the glass. Where they were enjoyed, and who was there, and what I was feeling at the time. What I feel when I come across each of those photos.Sometimes when I'm photographing beer in a taproom a bystander will sarcastically ask if I'm going to drink it. Yeah, I am. But I'm going to make sure I remember it first, and I’m sharing those memories with you now in this little zine.You can order the zine here.Or you can subscribe at the Zinester level on Patreon and get this and the rest of our standalone zines, along with a subscription to Final Gravity.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In today's episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized we talk with Anna Seear of Ritual Chocolate in Utah. Ritual brews a line of bars inspired by the surrounding Utah wilderness, and one of these bars honors Utah's nickname as The Beehive State. Ritual uses wildflower honey from local Hollow Tree Honey for this delightful bar. Listen in as Anna talks about how honey gets used in this bar and the importance of preserving and supporting pollinators. You can listen to the entire episode on honey here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

Belgian Witbier and Bavarian Hefeweizen are both standard strength wheat ales with expressive fermentation flavors, and while they hail from different national traditions, pairing guidance for both with craft chocolate is pretty similar.Despite the intriguing flavors of these beers, they are fairly light bodied and delicate, and they get bullied around by bolder chocolates. So what types of chocolate should you pair with them?Listen is an Advanced Cicerone David Nilsen, author of Pairing Beer & Chocolate, describes these styles and recommends craft chocolate bars to pair with them.You can order Pairing Beer & Chocolate here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

A lot of my listeners come to this podcast from the craft chocolate world, and given how complicated and overwhelming beer can be, I want to make sure you all get to enjoy the beer-related parts of Bean to Barstool to the fullest. Today we’re going to look at the ingredients and processes of brewing and some frequently asked questions about beer, which will hopefully make the beer conversations we have on this show make more sense and be even more enjoyable. Grab a beer and listen in!Today we’re going to demystify beer by talking about beer ingredients, brewing processes, and frequently asked questions. This will hopefully make beer easy to understand for the chocolate lovers who listen to this show, or anyone who wants to better understand this beverage without being talked over, or talked down to. Some of this will sound complicated at first, but we’ll go through it step by step!If you're thinking about pursuing a Cicerone certification, you can check out The Beer Scholar at thebeerscholar.com. They're resources for the levels 1 & 2 exams have helped thousands pass their exams, and they're about to announce their new Advanced Cicerone Coaching Program. I wish this had existed when I sat for my Ac exam!Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In today's episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized we talk with Emily Stone of Uncommon Cacao, one of the leading companies providing ethically and traceably sourced cacao for bean to bar chocolate makers. Emily talks about the process of beginning a relationship with a new partner at origin and her desire for transparency in cacao sourcing to be a two way street between farmers and makers.Emily Stone is the Founder and CEO of Uncommon Cacao, a group of Transparent Trade cacao operations including Maya Mountain Cacao (Belize), Cacao Verapaz (Guatemala), and Uncommon offices in the U.S. and Europe. Emily spent 2010-2017 living in Belize and Guatemala developing the specialty cacao value chain operations and working directly with producers. Now based in the U.S., Emily leads Uncommon Cacao's work supplying delicious, high quality, transparently-sourced cacao from 12+ countries for hundreds of craft and premium chocolate makers globally. Emily is an Ashoka Fellow and Unreasonable Fellow, and a recipient of the FCIA Recognition of Excellence in Outstanding Contribution at Origin in Sustainability of Fine Chocolate.You can follow Uncommon Cacao on Instagram and Facebook.You can listen to our full interview with Emily here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, we spend about 5 minutes with Hazel Lee, the creator of Taste with Colour: The Chocolate Tasting Flavor Map. The map allows people to use color to identify flavors, and Hazel talks about how this process can be beneficial to folks of all levels of tasting experience, and why no one should feel intimidated when sharing their own tasting impressions.You can follow Hazel on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.You can listen to my full conversation with Hazel here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, we spend about 5 minutes with Natalie Suwanprakorn of Xoconat in Bangkok, Thailand. Nat makes her Up in Smoke bar by smoking cacao nibs over a Thai aromatic candle often used for Thai desserts. It’s a wonderfully evocative bar, and your reaction to it will largely depend on whether or not you have a cultural familiarity with the smoke of this candle. I didn’t, and it brought to mind bibliosmia, the smell of old books - quite a comforting and intriguing quality for this book lover. Listen in as Nat shares the story of this bar, how it was made, and its significance for her as a Thai chocolate maker.The music for this episode is by Anna p.s. You can learn more about Xoconat here. You can listen to my full interview with Natalie here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this quick bonus episode, Bean to Barstool host & Final Gravity co-editor David Nilsen shares details about the forthcoming Final Gravity zine—a new quarterly print beer publication—as well as the launch of the Final Gravity Patreon to support it! Listen in to get all the exciting details about this project and learn how you can be involved.You can preorder Issue 01 of Final Gravity here.You can check out the Patreon and support us here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized we hear from Annabelle Popa, an artist and graphic designer who has created many of the eye catching labels for Rabid Brewing in the south suburbs of Chicago. When you enter Rabid’s taproom, you’re greeted by an enormous 9'x16' mural hanging over the bar that depicts a fanciful scene telling a mythological version of beer’s origin story. Annabelle painted that mural, and here she talks about the creation process for that and the creative give and take of designing beer labels.You can listen to a longer interview with Annabelle, as well as an interview with Rabid founders Raiye Rosado and Tobias Cichon, here.Annabelle Popa is a freelance Illustrator and muralist living in the Hudson Valley. Growing up in Queens and having a lack of the natural world instilled an incessant longing for magic, nature, and tall tales. Creating comics, murals, paintings, and costumes is her outlet to weave personal mythologies together and reach undiscovered worlds. Gaze long into the work but take care - they gaze back.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, host David Nilsen spends five minutes with Erica Gilmour of Hummingbird Chocolate. Hummingbird is in Lanark County, Ontario, the maple sugar capital of a region known for its maple. Fittingly, they make a bar that celebrates this sweet regional distinctive, and as the maple run is currently in full swing, we felt it was a good time to share Erica’s thoughts on working with this evocative ingredient.You can listen to the full conversation with Erica here.Want to stay up to date on Bean to Barstool episodes and blog posts? Sign up for the newsletter!Erica Gilmour’s love of chocolate and working with farmers around the world led her to found Hummingbird Chocolate in 2012 with her husband, Drew. Hummingbird focuses on ethical sourcing, highlighting the varied natural flavours of cacao and bringing a little joy into people's lives. Based in Almonte, Ontario just outside of Ottawa, Hummingbird has won 100 international chocolate awards and the coveted Golden Bean award from the Academy of Chocolate in London, UK.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this quick bonus episode, Bean to Barstool host David Nilsen shares some exciting announcements about upcoming projects! A couple of these you might know about, but listen to the end (don’t worry, it’s only 5 minutes) for news about a couple very exciting projects that will be launched soon!You can purchase The Bean to Barstool Guide to Bocks zine here.You can order tickets to the Beer Chocolate Virtual Tasting here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, host David Nilsen spends five minutes with Sara Ratza of Ratza Chocolate in Tarpon Springs, Florida. Sara is board-certified as a Holistic Health Practitioner, and uses medicinal herbs in many of her bars. She’s also the author of the new book Drinking Chocolate: Ancient Traditions for Modern Healing—30 Easy Recipes and Botanical Guide, which you can order along with her bars from ratzachocolate.com. Two of David’s favorite bars from Ratza are the Aphrodite and Self-Love bars, and here Sara spends a few minutes talking about the botanicals in these bars and how they can potentially benefit our bodies. Listen in as Sara discusses chocolate for our love lives, loving ourselves, and loving cacao.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this quick bonus episode, host David Nilsen, author of Pairing Beer & Chocolate, talks about how to pair craft chocolate with Doppelbock, a strong German lager style often released in mid-winter by U.S. craft breweries. The malt flavors of Doppelbocks work beautifully with a variety of dark chocolate styles, but there are things to keep in mind when you’re reaching for a bar to pair with these strong beers. Listen to this super quick episode as Advanced Cicerone David Nilsen explains how pair Doppelbock with chocolate.You can learn more about Paulaner Salvator—the first Doppelbock—from beer writers Jeff Alworth and Ron Pattinson.And you can purchase the Pairing Beer & Chocolate zine here!Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, host David Nilsen spends five minutes with Scott Watson, the founder and chocolate maker at Loon Chocolate in New Hampshire. Prior to becoming a chocolate maker, Scott was a brewer at Nutfield Brewing in the late 90s. Here Scott talks about the similarities between the two careers, and how the sensory romance of both tugs at the same corners of his heart and mind. To start out, I asked him if he ever missed brewing.You can check out Loon Chocolate and purchase their bars here.You can listen to the full conversation with Scott here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, we talk with Sanna Forslund, a chocolate educator from Sweden. Sanna is passionate about the tasting experience and sharing it with others, and speaks often of traveling through chocolate, a way of letting the wind wander during the tasting experience and allowing our chemical senses to take us to other places and evoke distinctive memories. Here Sanna shares how she prepares herself for traveling through the tasting experience.You can follow Sanna on Instagram here.Want to stay up to date on Bean to Barstool episodes and blog posts? Sign up for the newsletter!Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, we talk with Sam Ratto, co-founder of Videri Chocolate Factory in Raleigh, NC. Videri recently celebrated 11 years in business, and they have regularly collaborated with craft breweries during that time, providing nibs and other cacao products to breweries such as New Belgium, Fonta Flora, and Crank Arm. Here we talk about how Sam got involved with craft beer, and the products Videri offers to brewers.You can listen to the full interview with Sam, including conversations with Lauren Woods Limbach of New Belgium and Sean Lilly Wilson of FullSteam Brewery here. Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized we talk with Tyler Cagwin, co-founder and chocolate maker at Nostalgia Chocolate in Syracuse, New York. Tyler loves craft beer almost as much as he loves craft chocolate, and has a particular affinity for IPAs, so he decided to infuse a chocolate bar with the character of Chinook hops from The Bineyard hop farm. Here Tyler talks about the process for developing his Hop Aged bar.You can listen to the full interview with Tyler as well as Chad Meigs at The Bineyard here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

Bean to Barstool host and Advanced Cicerone David Nilsen has written and published a guide to pairing craft beer and craft chocolate, and it's for sale now on the Bean to Barstool website. This 70-page, full-color zine provides all the information you need to begin pairing craft beer and craft chocolate. The zine provides basic information on how beer and chocolate are made and how to taste them properly, then explains the process for pairing the two and how to plan and lead your own pairing at home. 54 pages of style-by-style guidelines and recommendations provide careful instructions for picking the right chocolate to pair with each beer style.You can purchase the zine here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized we talk with Dr. J. Nikol Jackson-Beckham, the principle behind Crafted for All, a consultancy that helps craft beverage companies and organizations be more inclusive, equitable, and just, as well as the founder and executive director of Craft by EDU, a nonprofit whose mission is to champion those same goals in craft beer through education and professional development. I spoke with Dr. J. last year about descriptive tasting language for beer, how culturally informed those vocabularies can be, and how the tasting experience can be used to invite newcomers into craft beer. Recent articles by beer writers Mark Dredge and Courtney Iseman.You can listen to the full interview with Dr. J. here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

Marika Josephson and Aaron Kleidon, co-founders and brewers at Scratch Brewing in southern Illinois, love trees, and have brewed countless beers with nearly every part of the different species of trees surrounding the brewery. On my first visit to the property on a beautiful spring day in 2017, I tasted their Pine Needle IPA, whose lightly resinous character of drooping needles dovetailed beautifully with the beer’s gentle hops. The barrel-aged hickory stout offered images of a comforting campfire, damp flannel, a hint of whiskey, and a slightly wild fermentation. On a following trip I tried beers with black cedar, fermented acorns, maple, oak, cherry bark, and others. Beers that seem to speak with the voice of the forest, with wild edges but vibrant hearts.In Episode 19 (Wood), I spoke with Marika about these forest beers. In this episode of Bean to Barstool Bite Sized, Marika shares what she loves most about working with tree ingredients in brewing.You can listen to the full interview with Marika here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

Corina Gimenez is the founder and chocolate maker of Xoco by Corina, a bean to bar chocolate company in Norway. Corina is from Venezuela, and she uses Venezuelan cacao in dialogue with Norwegian culinary ingredients in her range of unique bars. Her 3 Bean Stout bar is made in collaboration with Lervig Beer. Their 3 Bean Stout is an Imperial Stout brewed with cacao beans, vanilla beans, and tonka beans, and Corina makes her bar with the beer. Listen in as Corina explains the spirit and the process behind this excellent beer-infused chocolate bar.You can listen to a longer interview with Corina and Lervig head brewer David Graham here.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

“My approach to tasting is to try to make it as approachable and accessible to as many people as possible.”In this episode we talk with Hazel Lee, an international chocolate judge and the creator of Taste with Colour: The Chocolate Tasting Flavor Map. We talk about how Hazel got into chocolate, what led to the development of her flavor map, and how it’s used to deepen and inform the experience of tasting chocolate for both newcomers and experienced tasters.A few months back we asked artist Katie Clark Gabbard to put paint to canvas in response to tasting beers and chocolates without knowing what they were. The results were illuminating, and today Hazel will share with us how she uses the connection between flavor and color to help people better understand what they’re tasting in their favorite chocolate.Chocolate and chocolate makers mentioned in this episode include La Iguana Chocolate, Mission Cupuaçu 70%, Hotel Chocolat, and Karuna Chocolate.In this episode we discussed Bean to Barstool Episode 01: Personal Flavor Vocabularies, Episode 16: Cultural Beer Language with Dr. J., and Episode 36: Painting Flavor with Artist Katie Clark Gabbard.The music for this episode is from the song “Umbrella” by my dear friend, indie folk musician Anna ps. You can find out more about Anna’s music in the show notes or at her website annapsmusic.com, where you can also get in touch to book her to play at your brewery or other establishment.Hazel Lee is the Creator of Taste With Colour®: The Chocolate Tasting Flavour Map, an international chocolate judge, home bean to bar chocolate maker and cocoa adventurer. She studied Food Science at Leeds University and currently works full time as a Liquid Development Manager for Fever-Tree. Hazel spends her free time judging chocolate awards, painting cacao pods, taking part in chocolate events across the world and, of course, eating plenty of fine chocolate!Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

Indianapolis, Indiana, has a thriving craft beer scene and a rich history of brewing. Amy Beers covers both in our latest episode.In this episode we talk with Amy Beers, the author of the new book Indianapolis Beer Stories: History to Modern Craft in Circle City Brewing. Amy is a Certified Cicerone and she leads walking beer tours around Indy through her company Drinking with Beers. In this conversation we discuss her book, the invisible history of Indianapolis beer prior to Prohibition, and the vibrant modern beer scene in central Indiana.Breweries and beers discussed in this episode include Broad Ripple Brewpub, Sun King Brewery (Polynesian Passion), Metazoa Brewing (Hoppopotamus IPA), Indiana City Brewing, Scarlet Lane Brewing (Dorian Stout), Upland Brewing (Champagne Velvet, Two of Tarts), Fountain Square Brewing, Chilly Water Brewing (Built to Last & Dark Side of the Munich), and Taxman Brewing.You can find out more about Amy Beers and book one of her Drinking with Beers tours here.Indianapolis Beer Stories: History to Modern Craft in Circle City Brewing is available now. If your favorite independent bookstore doesn’t have it, ask them to order it!You can purchase tickets to my Autumn in Belgium virtual tasting here.The music for this episode is from the songs “Come Home” and “Love’s Not” by my dear friend, indie folk musician Anna ps. You can find out more about Anna’s music in the show notes or at her website annapsmusic.com, where you can also get in touch to book her to play at your brewery, cafe, or other establishment.Guest:Amy BeersAmy Beers is a Certified Cicerone and the author of Indianapolis Beer Story: History to Modern Craft in Circle City Brewing. She leads walking beer tours around Indianapolis through her company Drinking with Beers.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

“People are seeing, ‘Hey, if this girl from Youngstown can do it, why can’t I?’ I think it just takes someone seeing someone who looks like them to see it’s a possibility.”In this episode we talk with Hannah Ferguson, a brewer of beer, a maker of cider and wine, and the founder of D.O.P.E. Ciderhouse & Winery, which will open soon in Youngstown, Ohio. Hannah was the first Black female professional brewer in the state of Ohio, and only the second Black female cidery owner in the entire country. Her enthusiasm and positivity have helped her push through the challenges involved in following her dreams, and I know you’ll find her story inspiring and encouraging.Breweries and beverage makers mentioned in this episode include Barley’s Brewing, Weathered Souls, Penguin City, Modern Methods, Woodland Cellar, Alematic Artisan Ales, and McBride Sisters.Specific beers discussed in this episode include Alematic/D.O.P.E. I’m DOPE Belgian Hazy IPA and Modern Methods Black Is Beautiful Imperial Stout.The music for this episode was sampled from an instrumental version of the song “Come Home” written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps. You can find out more about Anna and get in touch about booking her for a show at her website.Hannah Ferguson was born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio, and graduated from Kent State University in 2004 with her B.S. and received her MBA from Keller Graduate School in 2011. Hannah has been a home wine and cider maker for 10 years. She started D.O.P.E. (Dwelling On Positive Energy) Brands LLC in 2017. To expand her knowledge in the industry in 2018 she became an assistant brewer for a local brewery and stayed in the position for 2.5 years. Hannah is the first female black brewer in the state of Ohio, she will also have the first black female owned cider and winery (which she will be the head wine and cider maker) in the state of Ohio when she opens DOPE Cider House and Winery this year. DOPE Brands, LLC is not only a cider and wine manufacturer, but also a lifestyle brand that takes pride in creating connections and experiences through cider and wine. Most importantly, D.O.P.E. is about Dwelling On Positive Energy and empowering underrepresented minorities in the industry.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

“There are challenges with chocolate that beer didn’t have to overcome. The main one is around price, and that’s because beer didn’t have this history of exploitation and slavery behind its core ingredient. When you start trying to do the ethical thing, you have this huge price jump, and that takes time for consumers to get their head around.”Luke Owen Smith lives in Wellington, New Zealand, and has worked in both the craft beer and craft chocolate industries in this island nation, giving him insight into what these artisan industries have in common and what they can learn from each other.In this episode we discuss pairing beer and chocolate, the beer and chocolate scene in New Zealand, the challenges and opportunities for both in a small market, and how craft chocolate can learn from craft beer’s growth and its mistakes.You can learn more about Chocstock, a New Zealand craft chocolate festival Luke organizes here. (last year's info)The music for this episode was sampled from an instrumental version of the song “Umbrella” written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps. You can find out more about Anna and get in touch about booking her for a show at her website.Luke Owen Smith is a writer, photographer, and professional chocolate taster based in Wellington, New Zealand. After working in the craft beer industry for many years, Luke fell in love with craft chocolate and founded The Chocolate Bar, New Zealand's first ever craft chocolate retail store. Luke is a regular judge at the New Zealand Chocolate Awards and he has written about both chocolate and beer for a wide variety of publications. Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

Beer & chocolate belong together.In today’s episode we’ll look at a number of recent chocolate and beer collaborations, including beers made with ethically-sourced cacao and craft chocolate made with beer or beer ingredients.Hopefully you discover some new tasting experiences to try out, or if you’re a brewer or chocolate maker, some inspiration for a new project. Just be sure you let me know about it.Beers discussed in this episode include:Burial Beer Lessons in Solitude: Portrait II & Portals Into Infinite NonexistenceHi Wire Blueberry Crumble 10W-40 & Chai 10W-40Wolf’s Ridge Office PartyEel River Vanilla Citrus StoutLady Justice Queerly BelovedFiction Beer LunasRabid HemogoblinBranch & Bone Skinwalker & Campfire CandleMadTree S’more GratitudeChocolates discussed in this episode include:Moka Origins Slab Castle Stout 72%Dick Taylor Vanilla Citrus Stout 55%Fu Wan Strawberry Beer Yeast 70%Indulgence Chocolatiers Porter 58% & IPA 64%Chocolats Latour Rhinegeist Bengal bonbonMap Dear Madame FruitcakeThe music for this episode was sampled from instrumental versions of the songs “Come Home” and “Winter”, written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps from her 2016 album Umbrella. Anna p.s. conveys a sense of weariness throughout her simple yet resonant songs, but it’s a weariness that keeps a blanket of hope tucked up under its chin, even as the rain keeps falling outside the windows. You can find out more about Anna at her website.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

"I think each chocolate can say something different in each of its own settings. I think it’s more of what you’re looking for it to say to you. You can sit on your couch and essentially travel around the world with chocolate."Rebecca Hess is the founder and chocolate maker at Cleveland Chocolate Company in Cleveland, Ohio. Rebecca was a classically trained fine dining chef who fell in love with bean to bar chocolate and changed her career to make chocolate her life. Cleveland Chocolate produces classic single origin bars that let their cacao shine through, as well as a thoughtfully curated rotation of imaginative inclusion bars.In today’s episode we’ll talk with Rebecca about her transition from chef to chocolate maker, her favorite cacao origins, and collaborating with Noble Beast Brewing in Cleveland on their elegant chocolate beers. We’ll also hear from Shaun Yasaki, founder of Noble Beast Brewing.On Wednesday, February 9 at 6:30 p.m. I’ll be giving a 45 minute Facebook Live talk called Chocolate, Beer, & Chocolate Beer. I’ll be talking about the basics of bean to bar chocolate and the use of ethically-sourced cacao in the craft beer world. The event is completely free and no registration is required. You can watch the video on either the Tipp City Public Library page or on my beer events page. Hope to see you there!Chocolate bars discussed in this episode from Cleveland Chocolate include Pisa Haiti 79% and the same bar with chili pepper, as well as Oko Caribe Dominican Republic 70% and 91%.Beers from Noble Beast Brewing mentioned in this episode include Baker’s Russian Imperial Stout, Peacemaker Imperial Stout, and Cookies & Milk.The music for this episode was sampled from instrumental versions of the song “Valentine”  written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps from her 2016 album Umbrella. You can find out more about Anna and get in touch about booking her for a show at her website.Rebecca Hess is a traditionally-trained chef with 20 years in the culinary industry. She is the owner and chocolatier at Cleveland Chocolate Company, a craft bean to bar chocolate shop that she established in 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. The transition into the world of handcrafted chocolate started as a hobby and quickly grew into much more after receiving fresh cacao pods.  With her long fascination with fermentation, she started fermenting the fresh cocoa beans to learn the process of chocolate making from start to finish. Utilizing the same values she had as a chef, her focus is on quality, ethically-sourced ingredients, which results in well-balanced, approachable chocolate. Shaun Yasaki started his brewing career at Fat Head’s Brewery, co-founded Platform Beer Co., and moved on to create Noble Beast Brewing Company, a brewpub in Cleveland, Ohio. He has won multiple GABF medals and has a passion for traditional beers and techniques, and designing new and innovative brewing equipment.  Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

Join me for a look back at my favorite beers and chocolates of 2021, with some pairings along the way. After you’ve listened to the show, I’d love to hear your own favorites from this bizarre trip around the sun.In the episode, you’ll also hear favorites from some of my friends in the beer and chocolate worlds. You’ll hear from:Ruvani de Silva is a prolific and talented beer journalist living in Austin, Texas. She writes for Good Beer Hunting, The Burum Collective, and numerous other publications, and brings energy and insight to every conversation about beer and the culture around it. You can find her at https://craftbeeramethyst.com/ and on Twitter & Instagram.Shay Pal runs the popular choccoffeewine Instagram account, and is an enthusiastic advocate for savoring chocolate with our favorite beverages. You can find her at https://www.choccoffeewine.com/. Kindsey Bernhard writes for PorchDrinking.com and hosts the popular Boys Are from Marzen podcast for the site. She also works for the Hi-Wire Brewing taproom in Louisville, Kentucky. You can find her at https://www.kindseybernhard.com/. You can also find her on Twitter & Instagram. Megan Giller is the author of the book Bean to Bar Chocolate: America’s Craft Chocolate Revolution. Megan is a chocolate educator & writer and the founder of Chocolate Noise. You can find her on Instagram.Dr. Christina Wade is a beer historian living in Ireland who writes about the history of women in brewing. She co-hosts The Beer Ladies podcast. You can find her at https://braciatrix.com/. You can also follow her on Twitter & Instagram.Sanna Forslund is a Swedish chocolate educator who runs Cacao Sana, leading chocolate tasting events. She is the co-founder of The Chocolate Cooperation, importing craft chocolate into Sweden. Tristan Chan is the founder and editor-in-chief of Porchdrinking.com, as well as the founder of The Porch Collective, a craft beverage marketing company. You can follow him on Twitter & Instagram. The music for this episode was sampled from an instrumental version of the song “Come Home”, written and peFollow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

“From the first moment I touched a bag of beans, roasted them, and winnowed them, I was absolutely hooked.”Sam Ratto is the founder of Videri Chocolate in Raleigh, North Carolina. Videri is celebrating its 10th anniversary on December 15, and makes a full line of single origin and inclusion bars, as well as bonbons and other confections, and they also provide cacao in various forms for numerous breweries in the craft beer hotbed of North Carolina.  In this episode we hear Sam talk about his ongoing delight in chocolate and his partnerships with a number of craft breweries. We also hear from Sean Lilly Wilson of FullSteam Brewery and Lauren Woods Limbach of New Belgium Brewing. Episode Timeline::00-1:32 - Introduction1:32-10:24 - Sourcing, tasting, & partnering with breweries (Sam Ratto, Videri Chocolate) 10:24-23:41 - Partnership with Fullsteam Brewery - 10:24-11:53 - Sam on the source of the partnership - 12:53-23:41 - Sean Lilly Wilson of Fullsteam Brewery23:41- - Products for breweries & partnering with New Belgium Brewing - 23:41-28:19 - Sam on brewer products & relationship with Lauren Woods Limbach at New Belgium - 29:38-44:00 - Lauren Woods Limbach of New Belgium Brewing - 44:46-45:42 - Sam on New Belgium Exquisite Extraction45:42-46:45 - Sam on the story he’s telling through Videri Chocolate46:45-47:50 - ConclusionBeers discussed in this episode include Fullsteam Brewery Videri Gold, Videri Gold, Igor, and Workman’s Lunch, and New Belgium Exquisite Extraction.Other breweries mentioned include Crank Arm, Casita, and Deep River.Chocolate discussed in this episode from Videri Chocolate include Guatemala Lachua, Dominican Republic Zorzal Reserve, and their Peppermint Crunch bar.Other chocolate or cacao companies mentioned include Uncommon Cacao, Chocolate Alchemy, and Meridian Cacao.The music for this episode was sampled from an instrumental version of the song “Umbrella”  written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps from her 2016 album Umbrella. You can find out more about Anna and get in touch about booking her for a show at her website.Guests:Sam Ratto is founder and head chocolate maker at Videri Chocolate Factory. Videri Chocolate Factory takes its name from the North Carolina state motto: Esse Quam Videri - To be, rather than to seem. Since 2011 we have been making bean to bar chocolate and bon bons from organic, direct trade cocoa beans and organic local ingredients. Sam Ratto and a group of friends started the company in Raleigh, NC with the goal to create a welcoming and friendly chocolate factory. We continue to build a welcoming chocolate factory committed to making delicious chocolate.Sean Lilly Wilson is the owner and “Chief Executive Optimist” at Fullsteam Brewery in Durham, North Carolina. After years working in fine dining, he decided to Fullsteam to highlight the agriculture and food economy of the South. He finds joy and meaning connecting people to the land and to one another. Beer is how he makes it happen.Lauren Woods Limbach developed New Belgium Brewing’s award-winning sour beer program. She serves as its chief curator, carefully tasting and blFollow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

“I use [chocolate tasting] as a bit of a yogic moment to find some peace and quiet and sit back and enjoy what I’m eating.” - Tyler Cagwin, Nostalgia ChocolateWhen I talk to chocolate makers or other chocolate professionals about the tasting experience, what drew them to chocolate, and what happens when they close their eyes with a piece of chocolate on their tongues, nostalgia is the word that comes from their lips more often than any other. So if a chocolate maker is going to use that word in their company name, they better know what they’re doing. Tyler Cagwin at Nostalgia Chocolate in Syracuse, New York, definitely does.In this episode we talk with Tyler about his perspective on tasting chocolate, his experience working with brewers and hop growers, and his process for crafting his unique Hops Aged chocolate bar. We also talk to Chad Meigs at The Bineyard hop farm, who supplied the hops for this bar, and Jordan Pollock and Ivan Dedek at Meier’s Creek Brewing, who recently used Tyler’s cacao in a new Porter.Episode Timeline::00-4:10 - Introduction4:10-6:10 - Tyler Cagwin of Nostalgia Chocolate on his background and cacao sourcing6:10-33:52 - Nostalgia Hops Aged Tanzania Kokoa Kamili 70% Dark Chocolate - (6:10-14:30 - Tyler Cagwin on his Hops Aged bar) - (14:30-21:20 - Explanation of IPA and hops in brewing) - (21:20-33:15 - Chad Meigs of The Bineyard hop farm)33:52-43:10 - Nostalgia Chocolate’s work with Meier’s Creek Brewing - (34:08-37:33 - Tyler Cagwin on his partnership with Meier’s Creek Brewing) - (37:33-43:10 - Jordan Pollock & Ivan Dedek of Meier’s Creek Brewing)43:10-51:48 - Tyler Cagwin on other beer collaborations and his reflections on chocolate tasting51:48-54:01 - ConclusionEpisode Notes:Beers discussed in this episode include Meier’s Creek Choccy Milk Porter and Talking Cursive Blonde Porter. Chocolate bars discussed in this episode from Nostalgia Chocolate include Hops Aged 70% Tanzania Kokoa Kamili, Madagascar Sambirano Valley, Madagascar Sambirano Valley 70%, Reserva Zorzal 70%, and Guatemala Chivite. These and other Nostalgia products are available on the Nostalgia Chocolate website. The music for this episode was sampled from instrumental versions of the songs “Free” “Come Home” written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps from her 2016 album Umbrella. You can find out more about Anna and get in touch about booking her for a show at her website.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

“The satyr is the fun-bringer, and that is really what we wanted the spirit of this place to be. A poetic hub of fun.” - Tobias Cichon, Rabid Brewing co-founderThe large, hand-painted mural above the Rabid Brewing taproom in Homewood, Illinois, depicts a mythical origin story for beer in which fantastical creatures pour the golden elixir out for the denizens of this imaginary world. Fantasy and mythology drive much of what husband and wife team Tobias Cichon and Raiye Rosado do at Rabid Brewing. As the brewery celebrates their 4th anniversary, I sat down with the pair to talk about the passion behind their brewery, the mythological backstories behind their beers, and the sense of adventure the keeps them pursuing their dream.I also spoke with Annabelle Popa, the artist behind the taproom mural and many other accents around the brewery.Episode Timeline::00-5:45 - Introduction5:45-13:17 - Raiye & Tobias - Rabid background and taproom artwork13:17-20:40 - Annabelle Popa - Creating art for Rabid Brewing20:40-27:10 - Raiye & Tobias - Rabid’s cohesive mythology and the Feast of the Goat Queen27:10-34:11 - Raiye & Tobias - Dwarves of Doom and Rabid’s use of single origin cacao from bean to bar chocolate maker Ethereal Confections34:11-38:29 - Raiye & Tobias - The significance of the Halloween season and the story Rabid Brewing is telling 38:29-39:12 - ConclusionEpisode Notes:Beers discussed in this episode include Rabid Brewing Horus Imperial IPA, Dwarves of Doom Imperial Stout with Smugglers Coffee and Ethereal Confections cacao, and Shadowstepper Milk Stout with lactose and Ethereal Confections cacao.Other beers mentioned include Three Floyds Apocalypse Cow and Alpha King.Chocolate and cacao discussed in this episode included Ethereal Confections Ecuador and Dominican Republic.You can find examples of Annabelle Popa’s artwork and get in touch about working with her at her website.You can read more about Raiye’s dinosaur beer deliveries in my article for The Reporter’s Notebook here. The music for this episode was sampled from an instrumental version of the song “Umbrella” written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps from her 2016 album of the same name. You can find out more about Anna and get in touch about booking her for a show at her website.Guests:Raiye Rosado & Tobias Cichon are the husband and wife co-founders of Rabid Brewing. They began dating in 2010, and Raiye promptly introduced Tobias to good beer. Their wedding was a Halloween costume party. The pair began homebrewing together, and decided to open a brewery after getting married. Rabid Brewing opened on October 13, 2017. Annabelle Popa is a freelance Illustrator and Muralist living in the Hudson Valley. Growing up in Queens and having a lack of the natural world instilled an incessant longing for magic, nature, and tall tales. Creating comics, murals, paintings, and costumes are her outlet to weave personal mythologies together and reach undiscovered worlds. Gaze long into the woFollow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

“Chocolate acted as a central vehicle of women’s ritual power, and was a flashpoint for women’s disorderly behavior in public settings.” - Martha Few in her article “Chocolate, Sex, and Disorderly Women in Late 17th and Early 18th Century Guatemala” as quoted by Megan GillerChocolate is a plant-based food or drink in which the main ingredient—the seed of a tropical tree—is ground and melted and mixed into something wholly new. Sometimes spices or botanicals are added, and in the past this was all done by hand. This sounds almost like making a potion, right? That’s certainly what some folks in 17th and 18th century Mexico and Central America thought. It turns out many women were prosecuted at that time for reportedly casting spells with chocolate or outright poisoning people with chocolate potions.In the last episode, we spoke with Dr. Christina Wade about the connections between Medieval alewives—female brewers who made part or all of their living brewing and selling unhopped beer known at the time as ale—and our modern depictions of fairy tale witches with cauldrons, cats, broomsticks, and pointy hats.In this episode we’ll talk with Megan Giller, a chocolate writer and educator. Megan will tell the story of women in 17th and 18th century Mexico and other Central American countries who were accused of using chocolate in their witchcraft. Grab yourself some tasty bean to bar chocolate and follow along for this spellbinding tale.This episode was inspired by Megan article “Poison Your Lover with Chocolate and Other Advice from 17th Century Witches” in issue three of Cacao Magazine. Also referenced in this episode is Martha Few’s article “Chocolate, Sex, and Disorderly Women in Late 17th and Early 18th Century Guatemala” in the journal Ethnohistory Volume 52, Issue 4 in fall 2005.The beers referenced in this episode were Fibonacci Brewing Pepo Pumpkin Porter and Hulu Fresh Hop Ale. The chocolate mentioned in this episode was from Cultura Chocolate.The music for this episode was sampled from an instrumental version of the song “200 Miles” written and performed by indie folk musician Anna ps from her 2016 album Umbrella. You can find out more about Anna at her website.Megan Giller is a chocolate journalist and educator living in Brooklyn. Her food writing has appeared in The New York Times, Food & Wine, and numerous other publications, and her website Chocolate Noise was a 2016 Saveur Food Blog Awards finalist. Her book Bean to Bar Chocolate: America’s Craft Chocolate Revolution was published in 2017.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

While craft beer and bean to bar chocolate are both artisan products savored by connoisseurs, the language and freedom of expression used to describe each are often very different. In this episode we explore what leads to these differences in description, what craft beer and bean to bar chocolate can learn from each other to provide helpful and evocative descriptions for consumers, and talk with numerous experts.Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

Craft breweries and bean to bar chocolate makers often collaborate to make beers infused with chocolate or vice versa. French Broad Chocolates and Burial Beer, both woman-owned businesses in Asheville, North Carolina, are constantly partnering on exciting creations that bring these worlds together. In this episode, we talk with Jael Rattigan of French Broad and Jess Reiser of Burial about their creative partnership and taste some of the recent results.  Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!

The first episode of Bean to Barstool focuses on our personal sensory vocabularies, how they have been shaped by geographical, cultural, and other details of our backgrounds, and how they impact the flavors and aromas we recognize in craft beer and bean to bar chocolate. The episode includes interviews with Master Cicerone Brian Reed and Chocolate educator London Coe. Follow Bean to Barstool on social media!InstagramTwitterFacebookPinterestTikTokSign up for host David Nilsen's newsletter to get regular updates!