Featured Beer Blogger: MATT WANN
DRINK WITH THE WENCH PRESENTS:
The Beer Blogger Interview Series
Curious what goes on in the minds of your favorite beer bloggers? Well, The Beer Wench is and she has embarked upon a mission to interview as many beer bloggers that she can — from all over the world. Are you a beer blogger? Do you want to share your story? Send me an email!
INTRODUCING: MATT WANN
AUTHOR OF: BRANDON BOURBON AND BEER CLUB
Beer Blogger Interview
Full name: Matt Wann
Twitter handle: @Matiswann
Name of blog: Brandon Bourbon and Beer Club
Current location: Beer Hell, MS aka Jackson, Mississippi
Background “Snapshot”
1. Where did you grow up?
Jackson, MS
2. What sports if any did you play growing up, through college and beyond?
Soccer, Baseball, Football
3. How old were you when you had your first beer?
15
4. If you can recall, what is the story of your first beer? Where did you have it? What style and brand was it?
The first beer I had was a natural light. My parents were out of town and my older sister had a party. It was a horrible beer.
5. Where, if applicable, did you go to college? What did you study? What additional activities, organizations, sports did you partake in during college?
Undergrad: University of Southern Mississippi, Planning and Economic Development. My activities consisted of drinking beer and playing Playstation.
Craft Beer Epiphany
Every craft beer enthusiast has at least one pinnacle craft beer experience that completely changes ones perspective on beer. I refer to this mind-blowing moment as a “craft beer epiphany.”
1. What was your first craft beer epiphany? Recall as many details about it as you can:
I bought a 6pack of Sierra Nevada. I was on vacation in Kauai. I remember drinking it and it getting better and better with every sip. I haven’t been the same since then. My growth was fostered by Brad Tarver who also blogs on BBBC.
2. Have you have additional craft beer epiphanies since the first? Detail as many of them as you wish:
This is perhaps where I had my biggest “craft beer epiphany,” I was on vacation again. This time in San Diego, I had my first IPA. It was on Coronado Island on the boardwalk. It was from the Karl Strauss Brewing Company and was a Stargazer IPA. I later sought out their Brewery and drank a pitcher of that beer. They said I couldn’t order a pitcher for myself, so I had them bring 2 pints glasses – someone was coming to meet me. It was a lie.
Beer Blog Background
1. How long have you been writing your beer blog?
About 2 years
2. What inspired you to start writing your blog?
Boredom and to advance the beer culture in Mississippi.
3. Why did you chose the name of your blog?
I’m from Brandon, I drink Bourbon and Beer. Also, someone had BBC so we needed another B. The news agency wasn’t coming off that acronym.
4. What are you personal goals for your blog? What do you hope to achieve with it?
Trying to change the Beer Culture in MS and to establish contacts in the brewing community.
What is one of the coolest things that happened to you as a result of being a beer blogger? Meeting some cool ass people around here and other places that I otherwise would have never come across. We all get together and bring bootlegged beers from out of state to share. We have a good time trying beers we can’t get here, yet.
5. What are you top 3 favorite beer blogs/beer websites?
Beer Talk
1. What are your top 3 favorite beer styles?
IPA, Imperial IPA, Red Ale. I’m a hophead.
2. What are your top 3 favorite breweries?
Stone, Yazoo, and Snake River. Yazoo is a brewey that is out of Nashville, TN and I feel certain you will be hearing about around the rest of the U.S. very soon. Linus is doing a really good job up there in TN. I always bring back a growler and some 4 packs of Hop project. We have a very limited beer selection in MS.
3. If you could work with or for any one brewery, which one would it be and why?
Stone. I would love to see the process for brewing Ruination IPA.
4. Are you a homebrewer? If yes, what is the most unique and interesting beer recipes you’ve brewed as a homebrewer?
Yes, I started brewing about a year ago. It is technically illegal to homebrew beer in the state of MS but, not wine. Go figure, our archaic laws. I brew kits, because we don’t have a brew shop in our entire state. I usually double the amount of hops that the recipe calls for. Also, our ABV is 6% in MS, so it really limits our selection.
Raise Your Pints in a grass roots organization that is fighting hard to change the Homebrewing laws as well as ABV%. We also only have one brewery in the state of Mississippi, The Lazy Magnolia Brewery. They do a really good job and have recently celebrated their 5th anniversary.
The Beer culture is very slow here. We are working to change that and I am hoping that by this time next year we will have a new beer law. Keep up the good work Butch, Craig, Todd and Katie. And all of the other members that are doing their part to advance the beer culture of MS.
5. Do you have any beer certifications (BJCP, Cicerone, Siebel, American Brewers Guild)?? If so, what are they?
No
6. What is your favorite beer and food pairing?
Ribeye and IPA
The Personal Side
1. What is your current day job?
I am back in school.
2. If you could change your career at this very moment, without any restrictions on what you could do, what would you want to do and why?
I am changing it as we speak. I am in nursing school. One day I would also love to have a microbrewery and pub.
3. Are you married? Children?
Married Yes, Children No.
4. Outside of beer and writing, what are some of your other hobbies?
Mainly studying these days. I like sports and traveling.
Off The Beaten Path
1. If you were a style of beer, what style would be and why?
2IPA, I am aggressive and in your face just like this style of beer.
2. You were caught smuggling beer illegally, which has now been made punishable by death. Right before you are sent to the executioner, you are offered one last beer. What beer would you chose and why?
Ruination IPA, because it is soooo good.
3. If I contracted you to brew a beer (or design a beer recipe) called “The Beer Wench” — what style would you chose and what, if any, extra ingredients would you add?
It would have to be an IPA, and I would add some seeds of paradise.
4. If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?
To Fly.
5. What is one of the craziest things you have ever done and lived to tell the story?
Short version, woke up in another state on the end of a pier.
6. What are your thoughts on bacon?
The more the better.
