Jeffers Richardson - Director of Firestone Walker Barrelworks

When you think about breweries who exemplify quality, consistency, complexity, and balance, few meet the standard set by Firestone Walker. From Brewmaster Matt Brynaldson on down, the team is committed to achieving the perfect beer every single time.  While Firestone Walker certainly made a name for itself in Paso Robles and around the world for its clean, straightforward approach to saccharomyces fermented ales (and maybe some of you have heard of Pivo Pils), Barrelworks, about 90 miles South in Buellton is bringing Firestone back to its original location to brew old world wild ales.  That project, which in a few short years has already become a major success, is led by Jeffers Richardson, its Director, who was hand-picked to come back and lead the charge on this new venture.  Along with his team, including master blender Jim Crooks "Sour Jim", Barrelworks is producing some of the most complex and balanced wild ales in the country, if not the world.  

Jeffers was Firestone Walker's first brewmaster, Barrelworks is located in Firestone's original location, and the emphasis for the project is on going back in time to recreate and expand upon old world wild beers - everything is coming full circle.  As the program continues to grow, a coolship and more foeders are in the works.  And guess what?  That merger with Duvel isn't changing things for the brewery, at least not in a bad way.  Duvel brings a like-minded approach to beer and affords the team the ability to continue to grow and serve you more of this incredibly high-quality beer.  So quit the trolling.  Things are looking up.  Barrelworks is leading Firestone in to a new era.  Sit back and enjoy it.

Cheers, 

Craft Commander

Daniel Heisler - Head Brewer Blackberry Farm Brewery

Fresh off the silver medal at the 2015 Great American Beer Festival, Blackberry is only looking forward. Paying respect to the past while pushing the boundaries into the future.  Up to now, a beautiful Belgian inspired saison has been king at Blackberry, with variations available for each season.  The Summer variant being the recent GABF winner.  Inspired by Belgium but ultimately inspired by the brewery's home in the mountains of Tennessee. 

To call the farm beautiful is an understatement.  One look at the green fields tucked in below wooded mountain sides and you're taken away to another time.  A simpler time.  Only, at Blackberry, the farmhouses are home to James Beard award winning restaurants, and now a brewery that produces beers rooted in that simplicity and beauty that make Blackberry such a wonderful place.  Daniel became the head brewer at Blackberry after spending time brewing in Utah and Michigan and brought a wealth of knowledge with him to Tennessee to brew Belgian inspired beers in a brewery custom made to mimic the Belgian breweries the team at Blackberry admires.

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Beer is an experience.  Your surroundings often times influencing your impression of the liquid in the glass.  At Blackberry, the surroundings are a great start to that initial impression.  Fortunately, the beers follow through from start to finish.  Beautiful in the glass - complex yet approachable on your palate - wonderful with food.  We hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did.  

Cheers,

Craft Commander

Matt Weintraub & Moh Saade - The Tank Brewing Co.

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I've known these guys for years.  I've had an opportunity to taste through their beers since before The Tank was even a thought.  I've watched them meticulously work through technique and recipe composition, test glassware's effect on their recipes, experiment with pH levels, test temperature's effect on hops, and other things nobody cares to hear about.  My point is, these guys have worked hard on every aspect of their brewing for years - they're ready for this.  After chatting about what's in store, the future looks good for Florida beer.  After tasting what's in store, the future looks even better. 

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I love a brewery that leads with a saison.  "La Finca Miami", which translates to "The Farm Miami" saison is the flagship for the brewery and sets the standard for what you can expect from the rest of their offerings.  Dry, slightly tart, yeast forward, citrus, and a nice foamy head, a beautiful beer from start to finish.  It's also a great representation of what you can expect to find in most, if not all of The Tank's offerings, a clean, dry, crisp finish - achieving complexity and drinkability.  That dryness is their calling card and it allows their flavors to shine.  Flavors achieved through quality ingredients treated with care.  Like other great breweries, a no nonsense and straight forward approach leads to fantastic beers, no matter what the name of the hop used in their IPA is.  Flavor is flavor.  Quality is quality.  That's exactly what they're after. 

We hope you enjoy the chat. 

Cheers,

Craft Commander

Khristopher Johnson - Brewer/Owner Green Bench Brewing

"Complex without being overly aggressive."

It's the motto Khris and Green Bench strive to live up to - and they do.  Balanced, delicate beers that scream complexity and big flavors with intent at the forefront of every stage in the development of the beer.  Green Bench, while producing some of the cleanest and brightest sour beers Florida has to offer, somehow flies under the radar in its own home State.  That, my friends, is a shame.  Please do yourself the favor of finding your way over to the tap room the next time you find yourself in Tampa or St. Pete.  They're producing beers that us here in Florida should be proud to show off - and we here at Craft Commander are proud to show off to the world.

Not only is Green Bench using foeders and other creative and unusual fermentation techniques not typically used in Florida, but they are currently developing a koelschip for spontaneous fermentation and are planning a Florida terroir spontaneously fermented beer. A "traditional" Florida Geuze!  Lofty goals for a dedicated and creative brewer in Khris that has the attention to detail and quality control to achieve them.  

Stay tuned for the future of this great up and coming Florida brewery.  We're excited to see what the future holds and are proud to say Green Bench is pushing the boundaries of what Florida has to offer.  We hope you enjoy the conversation and we hope you do yourself the favor of trying the fantastic beers Green Bench is producing.  To learn more, go visit the brewery, say hi to Khris, and grab a beer on the lawn!  

Cheers,

Craft Commander