Episode 192 - Buck, Yeah!

In this wide-ranging conversation with entrepreneur and ginger beer philosopher Kenny Richards, some of the topics we discuss include: How Kenny left behind a career in academia to resurrect one of America's most beloved, and yet also most forgotten drinks categories. What it's like to scale a brewery from a few barrels to a much more ambitious craft operation, and what implications that has on ingredients, people, and process. We taste through 4 popular (and very different) expressions of Halyard's ginger beers, beginning with Nicole's Extra, followed by Volcano Juice, The Breeze, and Mountain Aid. We talk about the best ways to use alcoholic ginger beer in cocktails, and especially the numerous opportunities there are to innovate within the buck/mule category. We discuss what it means to become, be, and remain authentic in the age of peak Hazy IPAs, glitter beer, and hard seltzer. We cover why Vermonters are constantly stuffing beers in their pockets, the aesthetics of a perfect moonrise, what to drink with Enlightenment philosopher Baruch Spinoza, And much, much more. This episode is brought to you by Near Country Provisions. If you live in the Mid-Atlantic and want to enjoy ethically raised (and delicious) meat from local farmers delivered to your door every month, then you need Near Country in your life. Head over to NearCountry.com and enter the code BARCART when you sign up for your subscription to receive 2 free pounds of bacon or ground beef in your first delivery.