Basic Brewing Radio
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About
Basic Brewing Radio is a weekly show about craft beverages and brewing them in your own home. We take the mystery and fear out of brewing the best beer in the world. Look for our podcast in the iTunes Music Store - it's free!
Episodes
- 05-07-26 - CBC 2026 Wrapup
Adam Ross from Twin Span Brewing and James Bardeen from Far Field Beer Company share details about their trip to Philadelphia for the Craft Beer Conference.
- 04-23-26 - Dry Hop Hop Sampler
On Basic Brewing Radio, the hosts sample a small batch Hop Sampler, focusing on different outcomes from post-fermentation dry hopping.
- 04-09-26 - Deconstructing Partigyles
Author Peter Symons shares his experience using artificial intelligence to decipher a homebrew recipe for a vintage beer.
- 03-26-26 - Savvy Blanket
Scott Housel presents his "Savvy Blanket" beer, an amber sour designed for the Mash Your Luck challenge. It features a low alcohol by volume, balanced bitterness, and Australasian influences.
- 03-12-26 - Taari Baked Mash Beer
Author Mika Laitinen joins James and Adam Ross of Twin Span Brewing to discuss Taari, a Nordic beer characterized by its baked and fermented mash.
- 02-26-26 - Rocky Mountain Beers
Matt Giovanisci of Brew Cabin and Swim University shares three beers, one with a bunch of homegrown hops and two brewed with basic techniques.
- 02-12-26 - Cask Beer Care with CAMRA
John O'Donnell and Tim Webb from the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) answer homebrewer Omar Al-Nidawi's cask serving questions.
- 01-29-26 - Hop Sampler, Azacca, Idaho 7, El Dorado
The gang samples beers made with three delicious and juicy American hops.
- 01-15-26 - Rhubarb Wine
Homebrewer Ron Miller shares a delicious country wine made with rhubarb. Steve Wilkes helps taste and adds his experience.
- 01-01-26 - Annual Disaster Show 2025
Most of the usual suspects gather to read brewing disaster stories from listeners and to sample Scott Housel's homebrew.
- 12-18-25 - Archived Brews and Artificial Intelligence
Author Peter Symons joins us to talk about his fifth book of brewing history and homebrew recipes and his use of AI to help put it together.
- 12-04-25 - Brewing Wild and High
Matt Giovanisci of Brew Cabin heads to the mountains to go back to his roots of home brewing.
- 11-27-25 - Hop Sampler, NZ Pacific Sunrise, Strata, Comet
For the 27th Hop Sampler, the usual suspects compare three deliciously fruity hops: NZ Pacific Sunrise, Strata, and Comet.
- 11-13-25 - German Lager Quest
Homebrewer Detlef Koertge is inspired to brew German lager style beers after a visit with a professional lager brewer in his home country.
- 10-30-25 - Save the Purrgils
Josh Secaur of Gambit Brewing in St. Paul, Minnesota, answers the Mash Your Luck challenge with a Black IPA nod to the Star Wars universe.
- 10-16-25 - The Dark Flower
Homebrewer Scott Housel answers the Mash Your Luck challenge with a Graf, a cider/beer hybrid inspired by author Stephen King.
- 10-02-25 - Broken Rice Japanese Lager
Dr. Scott Lafontaine from the University of Arkansas joins James along with Adam Ross of Twin Span Brewing and author Chris Colby to sample James' rice lager and talk about the role of rice in brewing and its future.
- 09-18-25 - Big and Complex
Adam Ross of Twin Span Brewing shares the second half of a tasting round featuring beers that are big and flavorful.
- 09-04-25 - Light and Fast
Adam Ross of Twin Span Brewing shares a flight of three beers that are light in character and quick to produce.
- 08-21-25 - Hop Sampler 26
Homebrewer Mitchel Jensen shares some of his hop freezer bounty as we compare Zappa, Bergamot, and Experimental 25.
- 08-07-25 - Remembering Jack McAuliffe
We dig into the archives to find excerpts of shows that featured Jack McAuliffe, the founder of modern craft beer, who passed away this past month.
- 07-17-25 - FOAM Mash Your Luck Tasting
James heads to Tulsa to taste the results of the Mash Your Luck challenge with members of the Fellowship of Oklahoma Ale Makers.
- 07-10-25 - Doctor Bishop 12 Percent Lager
Homebrewer Scott Housel answers the Mash Your Luck challenge with three beers that share common ingredients - two share the same yeast, and two share the same mash.
- 06-26-25 - Hop Sampler - Crystal, US Delta, Zythos
The usual suspects sample single-hop beers brewed with Crystal, US Delta, and Zythos hops.
- 06-19-25 - Tasting Maple Lager and Triple IPL
The cast of characters from this past week sticks around to sample James' Canada Maple Lager and his Mash Your Luck UK Triple IPL.
- 06-12-25 - Hop Sampler - Nugget, Harlequin, Cryo Pop
After a long hiatus, James and Steve share a Hop Sampler (Nugget, Harlequin, Cryo Pop) with regulars from the Recipe Development and Mash Your Luck shows.
- 05-29-25 - Detlef Helles Experiment, Part 2
Steve Wilkes joins Detlef Koertge and James to evaluate the results of their experiment comparing different equipment and mash schedules to brew a Helles.
- 05-22-25 - CBC 2025 Wrapup
James is joined by Greig McGill of Brewaucracy and Adam Ross of Twin Span Brewing as they share their thoughts about the Craft Brewers Conference.
- 05-15-25 - FOAM Mash Your Luck
James heads to Tulsa for a meeting of the Fellowship of Oklahoma Ale Makers (FOAM) as they spin the wheel for Mash Your Luck.
- 05-08-25 - Detlef Helles Experiment, Part 1
Homebrewer Detlef Koertge enlists James' help to design an experiment testing whether his elaborate step mashes are worth the effort.
- 05-01-25 - Space Church Amber Ale
Scott Housel meets the Mash Your Luck challenge with a big, hoppy American Amber Ale. He also rolls the dice again for another round.
- 04-24-25 - 2025 American Craft Sake Festival
James heads to his hometown of Hot Springs, Arkansas, to sample sake at a national gathering of sake brewers.
- 04-10-25 - Maple Sap Beer and Low-Tech Brewing Up North
Homebrewer Allan Debertin talks to us about brewing a beer with maple sap and how he uses low-tech brewing techniques to deal with the chilly Canadian temps.
- 04-03-25 - Springtime Beer Styles
Chris Colby joins James to suggest some deliciously drinkable beer styles to take us into warmer weather.
- 03-27-25 - Recipe Development, UK Triple IPA
James seeks help from Matt Giovanisci of Brew Cabin and Swim University and Josh Secaur from Gambit Brewing to formulate two lagers - one small and refreshing, the other giant and hoppy.
- 03-20-25 - Rice and Koji with NA Beers
Dr. Scott Lafontaine and Dr. Christian Schubert from the University of Arkansas talk about their research using rice to improve the character and efficiency of non-alcohol beers.
- 03-13-25 - Springtime Bock
James is joined by Adam Ross of Twin Span Brewing and author Chris Colby as they taste a delicious bock and roll the next Mash Your Luck challenge.
- 03-06-25 - Supermoon Beer Company
Rob Brennan from Supermoon Beer Company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, joins James and Adam Ross of Twin Span Brewing to talk about mixed fermentation in barrels.
- 02-27-25 - Gary Glass on Left Hand and the AHA
Gary Glass returns to talk about his job as head brewer at Left Hand Brewing in Longmont, Colorado, and founding board member of the newly-independent American Homebrewers Association.
- 02-20-25 - Dancing Skeleton Meadery
Our good friend, Desiree Knott, introduces us to her new boss – Alex Long of Dancing Skeleton Meadery in Sapulpa, Oklahoma. We sample two of their delicious traditional meads.
- 02-13-25 - A Prairie Homebrewer Companion
Scott Housel shares his dark, tart, rhubarb and cherry beer with a bit of something extra. He also takes the Mash Your Luck challenge for another round.
- 02-06-25 - Brown Forest and Malty Bock
James, Adam Ross from Twin Span, homebrewer Scott Housel, and author Chris Colby taste a tart Brown Forest Light and formulate the recipe for a big, malty Bock.
- 01-30-25 - Two Mile Brewing Brand New Key
James and Steve finally get to sample delicious beers from Two Mile Brewing in Leadville, Colorado, with brewer Sean Terrill - including his Mash Your Luck challenge.
- 01-23-25 - Catching Up with Bob
Our good friend, Bob Stempski, has a spirited conversation with James about taking his brewing to the next level.
- 01-16-25 - Brian Brennfoerder of West Mountain
James and Steve share beers and conversation with brewer Brian Brennfoerder, who comes to professional brewing having only started homebrewing less than a year ago.
- 01-09-25 - Recipe Development, Brown Forest Light
Chris Colby helps James formulate the recipe for a small, brown beer with German influences.
- 01-02-25 - Dark Beers for New Years
Matt Giovanisci of Brew Cabin shares two dark and delicious beers on opposite ends of the ABV scale.
- 12-19-24 - Annual Disaster Show
James and Steve read letters of brewing gone wrong by listeners from around the world.
- 12-12-24 - Tasting Grape Ales
Homebrewer Scott Housel shares a series of tart and tasty hybrid beers made with wine kit must as an ingredient.
- 12-05-24 - American Weiss Beer
Adam Ross of Twin Span Brewing shares a tart historical American beer style as his response to the Mash Your Luck challenge.