Fuhmentaboudit!

Celebrate Spring on a brand new episode of Fuhmentaboudit!. Mary Izett is chatting with Certified Cicerone Anne Becerra about spring beers and then she’ll check in with beer sommelier Hayley Jensen on designing beer and cider cocktails. She caps the episode by talking with Hayley and her brewer/chef hubby, Stephen Durley, on their big move to North Caroline to fulfill their dreams of opening their own craft beer joint. This program was brought to you by Union Beer.

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Chris Cuzme and Mary Izett are fresh off NY Beer Week and are also fresh with announcements including Mary’s book update and her new segment, “Will it Ferment?” Big Alice Brewing is in the house with Co-Founder/Brewer Kyle Hurst and Assistant Brewer Jon Kielty explaining how they came into brewing and discovered their love for craft beer. Kyle takes Chris and Mary through Big Alice Brewing’s upgraded brewing system and how the brewery has evolved in the past few years. After the break, Kyle gives a detailed rundown of their Queens Honey Brown and thoughts on using great local ingredients. Tune in for more shop talk with Big Alice Brewing on this great show! This program was brought to you by The International Culinary Center. “The Queens Honey Brown is our newest recipe. It was inspired by a trip I took with my wife. We are inspired to brew by things we do together.” [18:30] “Even prior to being a farm brewery we were always seeking out local ingredients whenever we could

Happy New York Beer Week! Fuhmentaboudit! hosts Chris Cuzme and Mary Izett are making the rounds of the momentous occasion talking to notable beer entities: Paul Leone, Executive Director of the NY State Brewers Association, Danielle Willett of BBDO, PJ Allen, brewer at Keg & Lantern, Jonathan Moxey, brewer at Perennial Artisan Ales, Chris Prout, brewer at Greenpoint Beer & Ale and Dirck The Norseman. Chatting about NY Beer Week 2015, what they’re all looking forward to, and what each has coming up this year, Chris and Mary put together a great preview of some local highlights in the beer scene. This program was brought to you by Underground Meats.

When most brewers think of an experimental beer, odd creations come to mind. This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Mary Izett and Chris Cuzme are delving into the topic with Drew Beechum and Denny Conn, authors of the book “Experimental Homebrewing: Mad Science in the Pursuit of Great Beer.” Denny and Drew explain that experimental homebrewing is about making good beer–the best beer, in fact. It’s about the tweaking process, designing solid recipes, and blind evaluations. After the break, Drew shares a great story about his guacamole saison and how he and Denny have learned from some crazy mistakes. Tune in for a great show and before you realize it, you’ll be donning a white lab coat and sharing your own thirst quenching results! This program was brought to you by GreatBrewers.com. “The fun part [of brewing] is the crazy wacky flavor thing. I used to cook all the time and I find that this act allows me to express that same kind of poetical sense you get when you’re cooking.” [10:20] “We set it up in the book

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Mary Izett and Chris Cuzme kick off the show with some upcoming beertastic events (and announce plans for their own brew!) before welcoming guests Peter Salmond and Oskar Norlander. Peter and Oskar are the recent winners of Homebrew Alley Sour Category, and actually swept first, second, and third places out of 35 entrees! Their Gueuze, American Stout, and Fruit Lambics were hits at Homebrew Alley and share with Chris and Mary that their recipes remain pretty basic though they have changed their mashes. Talking brewing details, the guys talk their techniques then relay thoughts on the results of the recent competition. Oskar and Peter also chat about how they came to decide the fruits used for their fruit lambics, like passion fruit, and take the hosts through their thoughts behind their award-winning Gueuze. Tune in for more insider details from Peter and Oskar and a great recap of Homebrew Alley! This program was brought to you by GreatBrewers.com. “We’ve done a couple o

This week on Fuhmentaboudit, solo host Chris Cuzme is talking to the founders of Braven Brewing Company – Eric Feldman and Marshall Thompson. Located around the corner from Heritage Radio Network in Bushwick, Brooklyn, Braven Brewing Company came about in 2013. Focused on creating crisp, perfectly balanced ales and lagers, Eric and Marshall take Chris through how they came together to establish their own brewery from the bottom up. After the break, the guys share their plans for a future taproom and bringing the brewing operation totally back to Brooklyn as well. It’s clear that Braven takes pride in being an active member of the Bushwick community and is excited to help revive Brooklyn as one of America’s top brewing capitals. Tune in for a great show! This program was brought to you by Whole Foods Market. “I think one of the coolest things about doing home brewing is that there’s the delayed gratification for it.” [8:50] “There used to be over two dozen breweries in the neighborhood and most people don’t

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Mary Izett and Chris Cuzme are talking distilling with Chris Murillo, president of the Astoria Distilling Company. Specifically talking about distilling gin, Chris shares how he got his start in distilling and how he arrived at crafting his own gin. Talking about his distillery’s original gin called Queens Courage, it is an “Old Tom” style gin, a type that was popular during the 1800s. Sweetened slightly using locally sourced honey, he explains that it can be used to craft classic cocktails or even to drink on its own. After the break, Chris shares that unlike most gins, Queens Courage’s botanicals are distilled in separate fractions. This allows the distillery to treat each botanical fraction differently to get the best individual flavor from the carefully selected botanicals. Astoria Distilling Company then marries all the components together to get the best unified flavor profile possible. Taking Chris and Mary through the gin making basics and more, tune in to learn all

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Mary Izett and Chris Cuzme kick off the show with some brewtastic events coming up in the near future before welcoming homebrewers Matt Federico and Andrew Berman. Getting the story behind how they starting brewing together, these guys were inspired from a standard homebrew kit that managed to get them into refining their techniques and flavors. Chris and Mary ask which beers they initially started with and the reasons behind their choices and how they have evolved to the point where they have put their brews up for competitions (recently placing 2nd at the Brooklyn Wort Homebrew Competition) and have becoming involved in the local brew scene. After the break, Matt and Andrew share the details behind some of their new brews and their favorite repeaters. This program was brought to you by Edwards VA Ham. “The first repeat beer we did was a rhubarb gose, that was the first beer we thought was awesome and had to do again.” [20:20] —Andrew Berman on Fuhmentaboudit!

Kicking off the new year with a brand new episode of Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Chris Cuzme and Mary Izett take us through some exciting upcoming events in the fermenting world before welcoming author Michael Dietsch to the program to talk about shrubs. What’s a drinkable shrub? The term refers to a cocktail or soft drink that was popular during America’s colonial era, made by mixing a vinegared syrup with spirits, water, or carbonated water. A shrub can also be applied to the sweetened vinegar-based syrup, from which the cocktail is made; the syrup is also known as drinking vinegar. Michael takes Chris and Mary through the history of shrubs and common ingredients, as revealed in his book “Shrubs: An Old Fashioned Drink for Modern Times,” are as fascinating as the drinks are refreshing. After the break, Michael explains a few different techniques for making shrubs at home and tips for balancing the drink. He goes on to share exactly how shrubs can be used, whether that be as a mixer or as a nonalcoholic beverage.

What’s buddy brewing? How can a beekeeper and brewer join forces to make incredible product? Find out on this week’s episode of Fuhmentaboudit!. Mary Izett is joined by beekeeper/mead maker Bob Slanzi and home brewer Chris Kulk on a show that focuses on the collaborations that take place within the brewing world. Get some insight into the worlds of brewing, beekeeping and mead making on a candid and informational conversation! This program was brought to you by Whole Foods Market. “Between the two of us – we come up with a receipt that’s a lot of fun. It steps it up!” [08:00] –Chris Kulk on Fuhmentaboudit> “Being a beekeeper changes your perspective to brewing.” [30:00] –Bob Slanzi on Fuhmentaboudit

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Chris Cuzme and Mary Izett kick off their 101st episode with some festive brew announcements before playing an interview done earlier in the year with Jenni Lyons of Happy Leaf Kombucha in Denver, CO. The hosts talk to Jenni about how she got started fermenting her own kombucha, tips for making kombucha at home, and all the interesting details behind starting the business from the ground up. After the break, Chris and Mary do a comprehensive recap of 2014 featuring some show highlights and what to look forward to in the new year! Finishing off the show, the duo talk their current experiences making sourdough bread and cultured butter. Tune in for some great tips and tricks along the way. This program was brought to you by Whole Foods Market. “Ferment simply! And have fun with the flavors.” [9:40] —Jenni Lyons on Fuhmentaboudit! “I love it that I can use my brewing equipment to make bread. I think it’s a fantastic fermentation crossover!” [29:15] —Mary Izett on Fuhmentabou

This week on Fuhmentaboudit, hosts Chris Cuzme and Mary Izett are celebrating their 100th episode! Kicking off the show with some upcoming events, the duo then officially welcomes Dave Kyrejko of Industry City Distillery. Talking about how he got into the business, he shares that Industry City Distillery is the most recent venture of The City Foundry, a Brooklyn-based research, design, and engineering group focused on improving small-scale manufacturing processes by blending science and art. After building the distillery from scratch, Dave and his cohorts started transforming beet sugar into a flavorful and delicate vodka. Dave goes on to give Chris and Mary the inside scoop on his use of encapsulated yeast and why it’s benefitted his alcohol production. Tune in to hear more about his facility and processes – it’s definitely a candid and informative discussion! This program was brought to you by The International Culinary Center. “The idea of the city foundry was to use science blend that with a healthy qua

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Chris Cuzme and Mary Izett are throwing back to cider week and sharing their interview conducted last month at the Franklin County CiderDays in Massachusetts with Paul Correnty. Paul is a founder of CiderDays and tells the hosts how the celebration came about in response to apple growers not fully profiting off their product. In the second half of the show, the topic of homemade cider is discussed and how the popularity of the beverage is on the rise. Tune in to hear some great information about cider and CiderDays, plus what’s in store for the future of the event. This program was brought to you by GreatBrewers.com. “Generations of Americans have put up their own food, have fermented their own alcohol, have done what they can to be as self-sufficient, especially when it comes to food… there’s a benefit to making it yourself.” [22:45] —Paul Correnty on Fuhmentaboudit!

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Chris Cuzme and Mary Izett are talking brewing for the holidays and the winter as well with guest Bahiyyih Comeau of Brooklyn Homebrew and The Boilover. Bahiyyih shares her thoughts on brews that she has recently tried and chats about the successes as well as things that she might change in the future. She also gives details about using different techniques and holiday ingredients. After the break, Chris and Mary welcome Sean Paxton, The Homebrew Chef, to the show via phone to chat about beer brining turkey. According to Sean, the perfect time to put together the ideal beer brine is now! At the tail end of the show, Chris proclaims that it’s also not too late to put together a special brew for Thanksgiving with a few recipe suggestions. This program has been brought to you by Edwards VA Ham. “I just did a Gose using the German ale yeast, and that is totally happy to ferment down to 55 degrees, and it’s a nice, clean yeast with a lot of different applications.” [3:48] —Bah

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Chris Cuzme and Mary Izett kick off the show recapping their exciting weekend before welcoming guest Leda Meredith to talk about her new book “Preserving Everything.” How many ways can you preserve a strawberry? You can freeze it, dry it, pickle it, or can it. Milk gets cultured, or fermented, and is preserved as cheese or yogurt. Fish can be smoked, salted, dehydrated, and preserved in oil. Pork becomes jerky. Cucumbers become pickles. There is no end to the magic of food preservation and Leda joins the episode to provide information on various preservation techniques while demystifying everything in the process. After the break, Leda also talks about her family background and how foraging became a notable part of her life. This program was brought to you by Consider Bardwell.

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Mary Izett and Chris Cuzme kick off the episode with some upcoming events in the fermentation world before welcoming author Leda Scheintaub. Leda’s new book, “Cultured Foods for Your Kitchen,” notably features creative ways to incorporate fermented foods into your everyday cooking. Sharing with Mary and Chris some great ways for the fermentation beginner to start up with the technique, Leda suggests that kefir be a first try. Kefir is a fermented milk drink made with kefir “grains”, a yeast/bacterial fermentation starter. Leda also shares that certain fermented recipes can be paired seasonally. After the break, the group discusses the importance of starter cultures that can be used to make kefir and yogurt. Chris makes it known how big of a fan he is of beet kvass, a fermented beverage made from black or regular rye bread, which Leda provides recipes for in her book. Tune in to hear great highlights from “Cultured Foods For Your Kitchen.” This program was brought to you by

Hear from the man who literally wrote the book on homebrewing on a very special episode of Fuhmentaboudit. Charlie Papazian is the author of The Complete Joy of Homebrewing, the founder of the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) and the Association of Brewers and the current president of the Brewers Association. The creator of the Great American Beer Festival and the World Beer Cup, he is the founding publisher of the magazines Zymurgy (for homebrewers) and The New Brewer (for professional craftbrewers). Tune in as he tells his story and paints a picture of the world before home brewing and craft beers became popular. This program was brought to you by GreatBrewers.com. “It’s not just about the beer but the people you meet and the things you do in your life.” [02:00] “We were depicted as these crazy hippies in Boulder who wanted to start an organization for home brewers.” [09:00] “Home brewing is a hobby, beer is fun and you should enjoy it.” [17:00] “There’s a whole renaissance of people wanti

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Chris Cuzme and Mary Izett are in a full on celebration of Cider Week! Welcoming Devin Britton of Bad Seed Cider, he tells Christ and Mary how he and his business partner Albert Wilklow became involved in the cider business. As it turns out, Devin was always interested in home brewing and relays that before he turned 21 it was easier to try to make alcohol rather than buy it. Initially making homemade beer, the pair found their calling by making cider for friends that demanded they go into production. Recently opening a tap room, the hosts implore how many ciders that they offer and find out that they offer other brands of cider as well. Devin explains that Bad Seed intends to make customers cider fans, not just Bad Seed Cider fans. After the break, Chris and Mary get all the details behind the opening of the tap room, how the apple harvest has gone, as well as his insight regarding designing recipes. Tune in to hear what’s on tap for Bad Seed Cider’s future! This program w

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Mary Izett and Chris Cuzme open up with some exciting events coming up, including New York Cider Week, before welcoming guests Elena Balletta and Shamus Jones in this first ever pickle themed episode. The operations manager and executive briner of Brooklyn Brine respectively, the duo shares with Mary and Chris how they got their start pickling and expand on the process of brining their pickles. After the break, the group talks about their ties with Dogfish Head Brewery as well as Brooklyn Brine’s trials and tribulations exploring various ingredients. This small business operation is on the rise both nationally and internationally, so tune in to find out where you can get Brooklyn Brine products of your very own! This program was brought to you by Whole Foods Market. “The idea of preserving seasonal and microseasonal produce really kinda of tied all that together: you can have all those elements in a jarred item and share it with the world.” [6:39] “If we can’t make it our

This week on Fuhmentaboudit!, hosts Mary Izett and Chris Cuzme are back from the Great American Beer Festival and kick off the show with an interview with Jim Koch, founder of Samuel Adams Beer. Talking about Jim’s background and how he came to build the beer empire, he also goes on to share the details of the Samuel Adam’s Longshot American Homebrew Competition. Mary and Chris highlight their experiences at the GABF, complete with some of the tastiest brews and trends that include cucumber, mushroom, beet, and passionfruit beers. Coming back from Denver inspired to try new ingredients and techniques, the hosts share what’s next for their own brews. After the break, Mary and Chris welcome Chris Spradley who is the host of What’s on Tap Radio. He shares that his show is mostly about beer and the culture around it, but is known for a segment called 3 Blind Beers where the guest is blindfolded and asked to name the beer tasted. Chris goes on to state what else he’s up to, including some serious beer and food pai