Let's be honest: Facebook is mostly trash. But every now and then, the algorithm does you right and you see "The Annual Icelandic Beer Festival" pop up in your feed. The name of the event alone combined three things I love (Iceland + beer + festival) so with only about 4 weeks notice we bought some plane tickets, booked some accommodations, and we were on our way.
Read MoreI was just reviewing my recap of 2016, and upon reaching the last sentence was somewhat redeemed. While 2017 was really quite marred by non-stop presidential buffoonery - which ranged from simply embarrassing to large-scale life-threatening - on a personal level, I got quite a bit done. I completed two fairly large freelance projects, almost entirely on my own. I took on several smaller, but fulfilling, side gigs.
Read MoreI stumbled upon Plan Bee Farm Brewery with a google search. We were looking for a good day-hike in the Hudson Valley region, and seeing as a cold, fresh beer is probably the best way to end a long day on the trail, the location for our trek would have to be near a brewery (naturally). I don't remember what hike we ended up doing, if we even did one at all, but I found Plan Bee in Poughkeepsie with that search, and reached out via the general email on their website, asking if I could come and do a video about them. A cold call, basically. Co-owner/co-founder Emily Watson responded quickly, quicker than many of my friends respond to my emails, to be honest, and we got a date on the calendar to go shoot.
Read MoreUp until my visit to Dogfish Head in Delaware, my visits to breweries had been entirely observational. I got to see where the magic happened and the ingredients that would be turned into delicious beer, but that was where my involvement usually ended. When I found out I’d get to participate in a brew at Dogfish Head, I was pretty excited, and when I found out I’d be doing so alongside the brewery’s founder and president, Sam Calagione, I could hardly believe it.
Read MoreIn my research of "cool Iceland foods" (very possibly my actual Google search) I came upon the Rye Bread Experience offered at Laugarvatn Fontana Spa, just about an hour outside of Reykjavik. So, I emailed them, and with a little friendly back and forth, arranged a day to come by and film. Easy! This producing stuff wasn't so hard after all.
Read MoreBefore World of Beer sent me to Kansas City, MO on assignment to get to know Boulevard beer better, I had never really been to the midwest (apart from a short weekend working trip to Chicago, which doesn't really count.) It remained a mystery to me, and I was excited to see if everything I'd heard was true - are the people that nice? The barbecue that good? The local pride that real?
Yes, yes, and yes.
Read More
