Richard Christy

1. When did you start to find your passion for craft beer?

I discovered craft beer well before the age that I was supposed to be drinking beer haha.  I grew up in Southeast Kansas so I've moved Boulevard Beer since the early 90's.  Boulevard is still my go to during Kansas City Chiefs, KU Jayhawks, and Kansas City Royals games at my favorite bar in Queens where I live, John Brown Smokehouse.  You can't go wrong with Tank 7!  I know this is going to sound like I'm doing an advertisement for them, but I'm so lucky that I live a few blocks from the gathering place for all New York City fans of everything Kansas City!  This BBQ is incredible too, the burnt ends are delicious!  John Brown Smokehouse is like my "Cheers" and they always have amazing craft beers on tap there.  I also tried Sam Adams Triple Bock around 1993 and I instantly loved it and wanted to find more beers like it.  I've also been a big fan of Belgian beers and Trappist beers since the early 90's.  I discovered Samichlaus in the early 90's too and it's still one of my favorite beers - I drink it every year on St. Nicholas Day, December the 6th, the day it is brewed in Europe!

2. You've become an expert at pairing beer and horror movies, even writing an article for Decibel Magazine about it.  How can our readers go about learning how to pair the right beer with their favorite horror movie?

Thank you for the kind words!  There are so many great beers nowadays that are horror film themed so it's not too hard to find a great beer to pair with your favorite horror movie.  Alesmith's Evil Dead Red goes great with any of the Evil Dead fiylms.  I recently had it while watching the newest season of Ash vs. Evil Dead, which is one of my favorite TV shows ever!  Unibrou's Maudite goes great with Satan themed films like John Carpenter's Prince of Darkness.  Great Lakes' Nosferatu obviously goes great with vampire films.  Pumpkin beers pretty much go with any horror film because they all remind you of Halloween and come out in the fall.  I personally watch John Carpenter's Halloween every year on Halloween with a nice bottle of my favorite pumpkin beer, Southern Tier Pumpking! Elysian's Dark O' The Moon pumpkin stout goes wonderfully with the werewolf masterpiece An American Werewolf in London.

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3. What's your funniest/craziest beer related story?

I won't get into graphic details but I've drank beer though an orifice that isn't my mouth where I work on Sirius-XM satellite radio!  I also got to drink one of my favorite beers, Ballast Point sculpin, right out of the tank in San Diego, and it sprayed uncontrollably all over my face so we called it brewkakke!  I'm also trying to convince my family that when I die I want my body to be put into a barrel full of beer and I want to ferment for a few years and then be released as the first corpse fermented craft beer so that all of my friends and family can drink me.  I think it's safe to say that qualifies as a crazy beer story!  Richard Christy Barrel Aged Corpse Barleywine, hopefully not coming very soon!

4. What's your favorite beer right now?  Why?

 Wow that's a tough question because I have MANY favorite beers! If I had to choose one, I've really been digging Evil Twin Imperial Biscotti Break on Sunday mornings lately. I LOVE coffee beers, and it is so relaxing to go for an 8 mile Sundaymorning run, come home, shower, pop open a can of Imperial Biscotti Break and sit down to watch a relaxing episode of CBS Sunday Morning! I love the brewery Funky Buddha too because they make tons of amazing breakfast beers like Maple Bacon Coffee Porter, which is like heaven in a glass! Their French Toast beer is unbelievably delicious on a weekend morning too! I also recently traveled to Chicago and brought back some Three Floyd's Zombie Dust Pale Ale, which is my favorite pale ale ever. Also, The Alchemist's Heady Topper is my favorite IPA, see I told you I couldn't pick just one favorite! Spring is here now too so I'll be drinking plenty of my favorite spring beer Pretty Things' Fluffy White Rabbits if I can find some! 

5. Ever think about starting a beer review channel where you review beers alongside your dad?

Maybe one day, although my dad is more old fashioned than I am and he just likes a good Coors. I tried to get him to drink an IPA recently and he thought something was wrong with it, although it could be fun to have my dad try some of the crazy beers that I'm into! I'd love to have my dad try Wynkoop's Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout, which I think is delicious, but a lot of people can't get past the fact that bull testicles are involved in the ingredients. My dad would probably love that one though because we grew up on a farm and ate Rocky Mountain Oysters quite often! Trust me, you don't want to see what Rocky Mountain Oysters look like in their raw form, sitting in a pan before getting breaded and fried, I still can't get that image out of my head 30 years later! 

6. You can only have one beer for the rest of your life.  What is it?

Southern Tier Pumking. I have so many great memories of drinking that beer because October is my favorite time of the year, I love Halloween and horror films, and Pumking reminds me of all of my favorite things every time I drink it. My birthday is April 1st and I always save a bottle of Pumking to drink along with my favorite movie of all time John Carpenter's Halloween. I save that beer and that movie for two special days a year, April 1st and October 31st. I even have some Pumking that I've been aging for several years that I'll be popping open this year, it ages very well, especially the Rum Barrel Aged Pumking that came out a while back. I LOVE the Rum Barrel Aged Pumking after aging it for a year. I didn't just jump on the pumpkin beer bandwagon either, I discovered it in the mid 90's and have loved it every since! 

7. We know you like traveling for beer related events/festivals.  What's the best trip you've taken so far and what made it so special?

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Luckily there are many! My wife is awesome and she loves traveling to fun beer related events like me! We traveled to Belgium a few years back and visited Cantillon in Brussels which was incredible. We got to tour the brewery and drank tons of Cantillon there. We even bought several bottles to bring back in our luggage, we were like rock stars to all of our craft beer friends when we got back haha! Moeder Lambic is an incredible bar in Belgium that has Cantillon on tap, that was definitely a highlight of our Belgium trip too, I had one of the best IPA's ever while I was there, Amiral Benson from Brasserie du Monte Saleve in France. While in Belgium we also visited the most unique and cool bar we've ever been to in Ghent. It's a bar that one of my beer gurus, my friend Robert Hodson, told me about. Called Velootje, and also known as "The Bicycle Bar", it's unlike any other bar I've ever been too and I don't even know if it's still open. It's at a very friendly guy's house and you have to walk a path through his collection of oddities to get to a bench to sit down. He has two types of beer Delirium regular and Delirium dark and it's unlike anything my wife and I have ever witnessed. We stayed there for five hours and even went back the next day. If you google "Velootje Ghent" you'll see what I mean! My wife and I were fortunate enough to travel to Oktoberfest in Munich last year and it was beer HEAVEN! If there is a heaven, I want it to be a mix of two events, Oktoberfest and Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando. 

8. Burnt Hickory makes a beer for your band, Charred Walls of the Damned.  What is it and how did that come about?

Scott Hedeen, the owner of Burnt Hickory is a big music fan and he contacted me one day about doing a beer for my band Charred Walls of the Damned and I of course said hell yes! It's a Belgian style barleywine and it is so freakin' delicious! I'm so proud to have our band's name on the beer because it is such a well made beer and people love it. I'm so excited for the Decibel Metal and Beer Fest April 22nd and 23rd at The Fillmore in Philadelphia because Scott will be pouring Charred Walls of the Damned there! I've never had it on tap so I'm so excited! One of my beer gurus, Dave Witte, who is the drummer for the band Municipal Waste, is a beer genius and he'll be hanging at the fest and I'm sure bringing some crazy rare beers! We recently were both part of a massive drum jam at Hardywood Brewery in Richmond Virginia which was incredible! I LOVE Hardywood's beers (especially the Farmhouse Pumpkin and Gingerbread Stout) so getting to visit their brewery and play drums there was a dream come true. Dave also took me to a bar he's been telling me about for years that is beer heaven on earth, Mekong in Richmond, VA. 

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9. Are you buying into the hazy IPA craze?

Yes I LOVE hazy IPA's! The hazier the better in my opinion! I love IPA's that you can almost chew, with things floating in them! There are so many breweries making incredible IPA's these days like Tree House, Grimm, Other Half, The Alchemist, Finback, Lawson's Liquids, Prohibition Pig, and Maine Beer Co. It's a wonderful time to be an IPA lover! My wife and I live right near an amazing brewery in Queens called Rockaway and they make an IPA called Hawaiian Pizza that we're obsessed with! I'm such a beer geek that I have a specific IPA Glass at home that's made to enhance the aroma of IPA's. I pretty much have a glass for every different style of beer which drives my wife crazy cause half our cabinet is beer glasses haha!

10. What beers motivate you and get you ready for that double bass pedal?

The motivation for me is knowing that once I'm done playing that double bass pedal I'll be rewarding myself with a craft beer! I don't drink beer before I play drums, unless I'm playing a goof off gig with my buddies in the bands Pisser or Bung Dizeez haha, because I look at metal drumming as a race that you're running. It's so physical that I couldn't imagine doing it after having a few beers. I'm a runner too, thanks to my wife motivating me to run because she's a marathon runner, and I use beer as my motivation for running, just like drumming. I know after a half marathon that I've earned a nice craft beer and I've burned off enough calories to deserve it! My wife and I run the Brooklyn Half Marathon every year, it's our favorite race of the year and it ends at Coney Island which we love! We go right to Coney Island Brewing Company and have some of their delicious beers like Beermosa, Freaktoberfest, and the Cotton Candy Kolsch. Then we ride the Cyclone and the Ghost Hole! I consider myself lucky because when I toured with the bands Death and Iced Earth I got to drink beer all over the world and discover so many great beers that I still drink today! All this beer talking is making me thirsty, I think I'll go have a beer right now, awesome talking beer with you, Cheers! 

Great Notion Brewing

1. Where is your brewery?

In the cool Alberta Arts District of Portland, Oregon - at the corner of NE 22nd and Alberta St.

2. What was the first beer you had that made you realize craft beer was going to be a bigger part of your life?  

James: Stone Brewing "Arrogant Bastard" and Andy "Pliny the Elder".

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3. What is your favorite style to brew and why?

NE-style hazy, juicy IPAs.

4. If you were stranded on an island (with a working refrigerator that automatically replenished itself) and you could only have one beer for the rest of your life in that fridge, which would it be?

Cantillon Fou Foune or maybe our very own Juice Jr.!

5. What is your favorite music to listen to in the brewery?

Depends who you ask! James leans towards the Grateful Dead and Andy mid-90's indie rock.

6. Which other brewery has inspired you the most?  Why?

Russian River for the reasons most would say.  Locally, we loved watching Breakside grow from a little 3 bbl brewery to a regional powerhouse.

7. Single hop beer - which hops are you using?

We are loving Mosaic right now.

8. Where is your favorite place to get a beer after work and why?

We tend to like Hop and Vine, as we live nearby and they always have a great selection of beer and creative cocktails.

9. What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone who thinks they want to get into the craft beer industry?

There's a lot more to it than brewing!  Make sure you have some partners that will balance out your own weaknesses.

10. Dogs or cats?

We have both in the GNB family, so how about we just say giraffes.

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From left to right: Andy, Paul, and James

Julia Rosenthal - Co-Founder Pair O' Dice Brewing Co

1. Where is your brewery?

We're located in Clearwater, FL, but further Southeast than you'd expect.  We're very close to I-275 because we wanted to be centrally located to Pinellas and Hillsborough residents.

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2. What was the first beer you had that made you realize craft beer was going to be a bigger part of your life?  

Dogfish Head's beers are what really started to change the way I thought about beer.  My go to beer early on was their 90 Minute IPA, until the day came where my palate changed and I decided that it was too sweet and just not hoppy enough.  That was the day Ken won me over with his dry, West Coast style IPAs. 

3. What is your favorite style to brew and why?

IPA because it's one of my favorite styles to drink.   Every brewery makes an IPA because it's the largest selling segment in the craft beer industry, but that doesn't mean everyone should make an IPA.  There's a lot more to IPAs than just dumping a bunch of hops in.  We have a passion for it and we focus on balancing the hops with the malt and adjust our water chemistry to get the most out of every one of our IPAs.  We love the flavors and aromas you get from the different varieties of hops and we balance to create an experience.  As Ken would say, "it's poetry in a glass."

4. If you were stranded on an island (with a working refrigerator that automatically replenished itself) and you could only have one beer for the rest of your life in that fridge, which would it be?

Our Clearwater Honey Cream.  It is light enough to enjoy stranded on an island and the orange blossom honey and orange peel give it just enough flavor to keep it interesting.

5. What is your favorite music to listen to in the brewery?

Our music changes daily depending on who gets in to work first.  Today it's country, tomorrow might be Michael Jackson, last week it was a lot of rock and Frank Sinatra.  I'm a Rock & Roll girl at heart.

6. Which other brewery has inspired you the most?  Why?

We take a lot of inspiration from west coast breweries in California from the styles of beer to the design of our brewery and tasting room.  Russian River is the brewery that has been the biggest inspiration to us.  Their commitment to quality over quantity is something we really admire.

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7. Single hop beer - which hops are you using?

Mosaic has been a favorite of ours lately.  We love Simcoe and Amarillo as well.  We're looking forward to experimenting with some of the newer varieties this year though. 

8. Where is your favorite place to get a beer after work and why?

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Pair O' Dice, we've built this amazing community of friends and family at out little tasting room.  It feels like our home away from home which is a good thing because it is.

9. What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone who thinks they want to get into the craft beer industry?

Building this business is definitely the hardest and most rewarding thing Ken and I have ever done together.  It's not for the faint of heart.  If you're willing to risk everything for the chance to won and operate a successful brewery then go for it. If you just want to brew beer for a living then I recommend that oyu go work for another brewery.

10. Dogs or cats?

Dogs.  Did I mention that our brewery dog is named Simcoe?

Jay Goodwin - Co-Founder and Director of Blending & Brewing The Rare Barrel

1. Where is your brewery?

Berkeley, California.

Credit: The Rare Barrel

2. What was the first beer you had that made you realize craft beer was going to be a bigger part of your life?  

Natty Ice.  Once I had that I realized something had to change.

3. What is your favorite style to brew and why?

IPA. No, but seriously folks.  Sour beer of course!  Brewing this style means working without a net.  By that I mean not a lot of research and best practices are published in this area.  That's tough, but it also means we're on the forefront of learning a lot more about what may be the most complex alcoholic beverage fermentation out there.

4. If you were stranded on an island (with a working refrigerator that automatically replenished itself) and you could only have one beer for the rest of your life in that fridge, which would it be?

I guess in this scenario it pretty much has to be a Pilsner.  A great island beer!  How about an outstanding local option: Faction Pils from Alameda's Faction Brewing?  Come to think of it... they're already on an island, so if I get my choice of island, I'd pick that one!

Credit: The Rare Barrel

5. What is your favorite music to listen to in the brewery?

Whoever's doing the most monotonous job gets to pick the music, but if it's me, I'll choose The Black Keys... Or 90's boy bands on Fridays.

Credit: The Rare Barrel

6. Which other brewery has inspired you the most?  Why?

Hard not to pick The Bruery here since I worked there for 4 years.  I don't think we'd be making sour beer today without that experience.  They continue to make world class beers!  I also love my fellow California brewers: Cellarmaker, Societe, Russian River, and Firestone Walker, along with the Belgian Geuze blenders.

7. Single hop beer - which hops are you using?

We do a dry-hopped sour beer called Egregious that has 5 lbs. of Amarillo per 59 gallon oak barrel.  The idea of hops in a sour sounds egregious, but dry-hopping doesn't impact much bitterness so the fruit can shine through on top of the acidic beer.

8. Where is your favorite place to get a beer after work and why?

Credit: The Rare Barrel

The promotion of one CA ABC permanent license (favorite place to drink beer) by another permanent licensee (Jay of The Rare Barrel), on social media or otherwise, is the giving of "something of value" (i.e., advertising).  That is a violation of tied-house restrictions and a technical licensing violation ... according to the law in California.  That being said, Berkeley is home to many great food/beer spots people should check out after they visit The Rare Barrel.

9. What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone who thinks they want to get into the craft beer industry?

Getting into the craft beer industry is a great idea if you love beer and hate money.  Do it for the love of the game, but just be sure you're really in love.  Being an accountant an a homebrewer sounds nice most days, too.

10. Dogs or cats?

I'm reading this question and I don't get it.  "Dogs or"?  What does that mean?  Usually there are two viable options in an either/or question and I'm not seeing that here.  Sorry.

Megan O'Boyle - Brewer Cigar City Brewing

1. Where is your brewery?

Tampa, Florida

2. What was the first beer you had that made you realize craft beer was going to be a bigger part of your life?  

Someone once handed me a Deschutes Black Butte Porter and I never looked back.

3. What is your favorite style to brew and why?

Saison: it's such a diverse style category.  You can do just about anything with a saison!  Dry it out for a light and refreshing beer, use seasonal ingredients such as herbs, fruits, and vegetables, make it hoppy... Get creative and have fun.

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4. If you were stranded on an island (with a working refrigerator that automatically replenished itself) and you could only have one beer for the rest of your life in that fridge, which would it be?

I could drink Zombie Dust from Three Floyds all day, every day, and that's a no brainer.

5. What is your favorite music to listen to in the brewery?

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I'm guilty of listening to a LOT of My Morning Jacket.

6. Which other brewery has inspired you the most?  Why?

Definitely 7venth Sun.  The owners Justin and Devon taught me so pretty much everything I know about brewing and I will forever be grateful to them for that.

7. Single hop beer - which hops are you using?

Galaxy, hands down.  I love the intense passion fruit aroma.

8. Where is your favorite place to get a beer after work and why?

If I'm not sticking around the Cigar City tasting room, you can probably find me at Pour House.  It's close to home and they always have a great selection of craft beer on draft and in cans.

9. What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone who thinks they want to get into the craft beer industry?

Do your research.  Know what you want to get out of it before you take a job and be willing to do plenty of grunt work.  Make sure you love to clean!

10. Dogs or cats?

I love my cat, but she's a jerk (see: cat).  I'll go with dogs on this one.

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T.L. Adkisson - Head Brewer at Foothills Brewing Co.

1. Where is your brewery?

Winston-Salem, NC

2. What was the first beer you tried that made you realize craft beer was going to be a bigger part of your life?

I always had an inclination toward English-style pale ales, was a big fan of Bass Ale and Sierra Nevada Pale Ale back in the day.  I've always love spicy foods, so when I home-brewed my first batch beer I decided to dial up on the hops a little bit - that was a honey IPA, back in 1998.  Turned out pretty good and I was on my way from home.

3. What is your favorite style to brew and why?

IPA, no question.  My love of spices has inspired to love of hops.  It's a fascinating beer style with regards to how you can take a basic malt body and tweak it with hop and make so many different flavors and layers with minor adjustments.  It's fun. 

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4. If you were on a stranded island (with a working refrigerator that automatically replenished itself) and you could only have one beer for the rest of your life in that fridge, which would it be?

I'd have to say our May IPA of the Month from earlier this year.  The azacca and simcoe hops partnered extremely well with the unfiltered medium malt body.  It had enough flavor for cold weather but was also very refreshing in warm weather.  Which is what we'd have on an island right?  The pineapple and tropical fruit notes of that beer would also fit in well on a desert island.

5. What is your favorite music to listen to in the brewery?

I like listening to WNCW, its this eclectic little NPR station in Spindale, NC.  They play everything from blues to jazz to the Dead, plus a lot of local artists.

6. Which other brewery has inspired you the most and why?

Odell Brewing in Ft. Collins, Colorado.  I really like their business model - distribution in a limited number of states, limited but very solid portfolio of beers, great tap room.  They're also very open with knowledge and willing to share things they've learned.

7. Single hop beer - which hops are you using?

I don't think that way.  Besides I don't want the other hops to get jealous.

8. Where is your favorite place to get a beer after work and why?

Our pub, because the beer quality is good, customer feedback, you know everybody.

9. What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone who thinks they want to get into the craft beer industry?

Don't.  Just kidding.  Make sure you're well-funded and have a good plan.

10. Dogs or cats? 

Dogs. Definitely dogs.

Gabriel Magliaro - Founder of Half Acre Beer Co.

1. Where is your brewery?

Sunny Chicago, IL

2. What was the first beer you had that made you realize craft beer was going to be a bigger part of your life ?

I don't know what that beer was.  It was more about visiting Avery in CO where I used to live.  I saw a bunch of dudes making beer and enjoying themselves.  That impressive was lasting.  For me, beer is second to that culture.

3. What is your favorite style to brew and why?

Hops still reign king at our brewery.

4. If you were stranded on an island (with a working refrigerator that automatically replenished itself) and you could only have one beer for the rest of your life in that fridge, which would it be?

Right now I'd say Heyoka IPA - a winter IPA we're brewing.

5. What is your favorite music to listen to in the brewery?

The brewery gets a lot of music run through it.  My favorite part about that is that it's very varied.  The Growlers to Ween to Bongripper to Huey Lewis.

6. Which other brewery has inspired you the most? Why?

Rather than one being the biggest inspiration, it's more about pieces of many.  Our favorite breweries are ones that are most sincere and typically strange.

7. Single hop beer - which hops are you using?

One of the classics - Chinook, Simcoe, Amarillo

8. Where is your favorite place to get a beer after work and why?

Our tap room is the easy dunk on that one.  Peeling out of work more and walking through a door into your tap room and selection of the beers your brewery is working through is about as tasty as it gets.

9. What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone who thinks they want to get into the craft beer industry?

Today, I’d say our industry is feeling the weight of more.  I’d tell anyone to think hard about great ideas.  If you believe you have some, then seek out your favorite brewery and approach the owner/founder/president/head brewer regarding your ability and willingness to fuel their brewery.  If you hit obstacles, then worm your way through the back door like so many before you.  Always be ready to do shit work for a long time.

10. Dogs or cats? 

If we’re talking about your garden variety family pet, then I’ve always been partial to dogs.  I’ve always had them. I like cats, too, but cats in the city means litter boxes, and I’m against litter boxes.