ABV is our weekly series that highlights a different beer from a local Pittsburgh brewery every week. Check out our past picks here.
As we adjust to this era of social distancing, there are many things I miss about Pittsburgh beer. Here are some of them.
- Live jazz nights at Abjuration Brewing
- Spent grain chicharrones at Cinderlands
- Hearing Mikey’s stories at Hitchhiker Brewing
- Saying hello to dogs at Leaning Cask Brewing
- Saying hello to more dogs at Allegheny City Brewing
- Saying hello to LITERALLY ALL OF THE DOGS at Grist House
- Wearing my bike helmet to Dancing Gnome
- Enjoying the gorgeous view of downtown from Spring Hill Brewing
- Jake Bier’s beautiful long hair at War Streets Brewery
- The bright orange corner couch at Couch Brewery
- Scott Smith’s warm, hearty laugh at East End Brewing
- The window seats at Eleventh Hour Brewing
- Seeing all the OTHER brewers and taproom managers hanging out at Roundabout Brewery
But, alas – I’m a glass-half-full-Libra and an optimist. Through all of this, there exists an opportunity. We can finally catch up on those podcast episodes we’ve been meaning to dig into.
Crack open a can and check out these Pittsburgh-based beer podcasts we recommend for NOT drinking alone.
Oh, and if I missed your favorite beer podcast – drop me a note. Always happy to slot them in.
ABV, VOLUME LX
Pittsburgh Beer Podcasts
Drinking Partners Podcast
Drinking Partners features comedians Day Bracey and Ed Bailey literally drinking (local) beers together and having conversations about a wide range of topics: culture, politics, art, entertainment, sports, etc. Every episode features a guest (Full Disclosure: I have been a Drinking Partners guest and it was a blast).
As of publication, DP has recorded 247 episodes, making it one of the most well-known and longest-running Pittsburgh podcasts. As part of last year’s Fresh Fest Beer Festival, the Drinking Partners team did a live podcast recording with special guest Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery.
- iTunes: Drinking Partners
- Spotify: Drinking Partners
The Weekly ReCap
The Weekly ReCap is – you guessed it – a WEEKLY podcast. Run by three brothers – Nick, Jake and Alex Adams – the Weekly ReCap discusses craft beer, beer trends and beer culture. The guys review beer-related events and talk through other beer media as well. They occasionally have guests on the show too.
Side Note: I regularly run into Nick Adams (from The Weekly ReCap) at our local breweries and he’s an all-around great dude to chat and have a beer with. Shoutout to Nick. Sup dude.
- iTunes: The Weekly ReCap
Hop Nation USA
Hop Nation USA – entering its fourth year of podcasting – is hosted by two beer enthusiasts and a rotating cast of guest hosts. The show features brewery and personality interviews, history, news and more with an irreverent approach.
Bonus: Hop Nation hosts Steve and Adam ALSO host Yinz Brewin’? – an award-winning, homebrewing-focused TV show on MCA-TV. Episodes can be found on YouTube and MCA-TV.org
Full Disclosure: I have also been a Hop Nation podcast guest and it was a blast. Love seeing these guys around town, most recently at Abjuration Brewing.
- iTunes: Hop Nation USA
- Spotify: Hop Nation USA
Behind the Hops
Fueled By Hops – which we included in last week’s “Who To Follow in Pittsburgh Beer” roundup – maintains an active digital community through their Facebook presence. You can plug in to their podcast, Behind the Hops, every week where host Ryan Galiotto leads conversations with folks in the craft beer community. Guests range from influencers to brewers, to glassware designers and more.
- iTunes: Behind The Hops
- Spotify: Behind The Hops
Breaking Brews // Jason Cercone
Breaking Brews is a multi-faceted organization with offerings that include the Breaking Brews podcast, as well as timely beer industry news and marketing services. The podcast focuses on the business side of beer and things that drive the craft beer industry: sales, branding, marketing, culture, production and more.
- iTunes: Breaking Brews podcast
- Spotify: Breaking Brews podcast
- Full Archive: Breaking Brews podcast
Good, but Not the Best // Dancing Gnome
Good, but Not the Best is a fairly new, monthly podcast (3 episodes so far) and brings together Jaron Barton (formerly of Craft Beer Industry Podcast) and Andrew Witchey, founder of Dancing Gnome. The guys open each episode with beer news that’s specific to Dancing Gnome, including can releases, the Tree series and what guests might be able to expect at the brewery that month. Then they pivot and bring on a guest – usually a friend of the brewery, a beer industry professional, an artist, etc – and they close it out with shoutouts to music, movies and shows they’re enjoying outside of beer.
Full Disclosure: I have also been a guest on Good, but Not the Best. Again, it was a blast and I appreciate the guys having me on episode #2 in February.
- iTunes: Good, but not the Best
- Spotify: Good, but not the Best
https://www.instagram.com/p/B6JSjK1ByQx/
We also talk about beer on The Slaw
Very Local has a very Pittsburgh podcast. Say hello to The Slaw: Staying on Top of Pittsburgh. The Slaw is all about the things that make Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh. Here are a few of our episodes where we interview folks in the local beer industry.
- Ep. 06 – Lauren Hughes, assistant head brewer @ Penn Brewery
- Ep. 10 – Melissa Larrick, taproom manager @ Hitchhiker Brewing
Header Image courtesy of Epicast and Drinking Partners Podcast
