Drink With The Wench » #gents

Featured Beer Blogger: BRADLEY STARK

Wenchie — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 04:23:54 +0000

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: BRADLEY STARK

AUTHOR OF: DR. STARKWEATHER’S MIRACLE ELIXERS

Beer Blogger Interview

Full name: Bradley Stark
Twitter handle: @DrStarkweather
Name of blog: Dr. Starkweather’s Miracle Elixers / #Gents
Current location: Chicago, IL

Background “Snapshot”

1. Where did you grow up?

Eastern Michigan, around Detroit and Ann Arbor.

2. What sports if any did you play growing up, through college and beyond?

I played Baseball and Basketball all through little league until I was old enough to play High School level, where I promptly realized I wasn’t good enough in either. I grew up a good year younger than most the kids in my class, so while I kicked ass in little league when they group you by age, I was just too small to play High School. But I did get involved with Tennis in spite of my (at the time) small frame and went on to make Varsity.

3. How old were you when you had your first beer?

I had little sips from my parents as a kid, but I stayed away of my own volition until I was 19. Canada was always a hop skip and 30 minute drive and their legal age in Windsor was 19.

4. If you can recall, what is the story of your first beer? Where did you have it? What style and brand was it?

It was Budweiser, and I just remember that I was pissed off at some things in my life and so when someone shoved a beer in my hand, I didn’t set it down like I normally did.

5. Where, if applicable, did you go to college? What did you study? What additional activities, organizations, sports did you partake in during college?

I spent 2 years studying Greek and Roman Classics at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I had a morning radio show at the campus station, was in the Honors program, and messed around a bit with car audio. Then I transferred and got a Degree in Film/Video at Columbia College in Chicago, and got really into Quake 3 and even played with some pro clans.

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:

It was Bell’s Two Hearted, and tt was a summer evening. I was at a megachurch young adults function that I had been invited to by a good friend. We snuck off at one point and drank a six pack from the back of a guy’s Jeep.

2. Have you have additional craft beer epiphanies since the first? Detail as many of them as you wish:

It happens all the time. I find I fall in love with a style until it gets too familiar and then it happens all over again.

Beer Blog Background

1. How long have you been writing your beer blog?

I started the homebrew blog back in December as a way to point people who ask on twitter what Im up to. But Iv been #gents for almost a year now, and thats probably how Im best known. Being a part of the #gents.

2. What inspired you to start writing your blog?

Andy Farley and Stephan Freshnock had homebrewing blogs and they kept telling me to start one.

3. Why did you chose the name of your blog?

Its kind of the name of my fictional brewery. If I ever had my on brewery I’d use that name. I think its a fun snake oil salesman type name.

4. What are you personal goals for your blog? What do you hope to achieve with it?

Not a lot of ambition with the homebrew blog. I want to focus not just on what I’m brewing but on specific ingredients or techniques. I think the #gents thing is a lot more ambitious, but thats because we have so many ambitious guys behind it. We started doing live events for a bit, but we didn’t nail the format and Id like us to try and go back and figure it out. There has also been talk about doing a #gents CBC event since it is in our backyard this year.

5. What is one of the coolest things that happened to you as a result of being a beer blogger?

Well I got invited to a brewery and then left with a box full of beer (Thanks Todd!). I think that makes it all worth it and the relationships I’ve made through twitter have been really awesome.

6. What are you top 3 favorite beer blogs/beer websites?

Beer Talk

1. What are your top 3 favorite beer styles?

Tripels, RIS, and Barlywines

2. What are your top 3 favorite breweries?

Surly, Avery, and Kuhnhenn

3. If you could work with or for any one brewery, which one would it be and why?

Something small like Half Acre. I would want to keep the brewing fun and with dozens of employees and a 24 hour brewing schedule I would have to believe the larger craft breweries are a little more serious than I would want.

4. Are you a homebrewer? If yes, what is the most unique and interesting beer recipes you’ve brewed as a homebrewer?

Yeah, I’ve been homebrewing since September 2009. My most interesting beer so far was a Vanilla and Oak belgian brewed with caramelized sugar and Abbey Ale yeast.

5. Do you have any beer certifications (BJCP, Cicerone, Siebel, American Brewers Guild)?? If so, what are they?

I’m currently working with a few guys doing BJCP study groups. In the future I’d like to maybe do Siebel and Cicerone if my life takes me in that direction.

6. What is your favorite beer and food pairing?

That would be Bell’s Hopslam and 7-eleven Chilidogs.

The Personal Side

1. What is your current day job?

Freelance Animator

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?

A Mythbuster. Seriously, those guys have an awesome skill set and they get to blow things up and have so much fun.

3. Are you married? Children?

No to both.

4. Outside of beer and writing, what are some of your other hobbies?

I’m a bit of a hobby collector. I tend to learn a lot about hobbies and subjects and then move on. Im also a big TV fan. I would like to someday figure out how I can turn watching TV all day into a high paying career. Ill keep you updated on that.

Off The Beaten Path

1. If you were a style of beer, what style would be an why?

Wild Ale. My brain often goes to weird places and you cant be sure what I’ll do next. Just like a Wild Ale can keep you guessing.

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?

Surly Darkness. So that the transition to hell isn’t as severe.

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?

I’d do a spontaneously fermented blonde ale recipe. Aggressively hopped for taste and aroma.

4. If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?

Master of Time and Space.

5. What is one of the craziest things you have ever done and lived to tell the story?

I’ve wrapped myself up from head to tow in plastic wrap and hurled myself down a snow covered mountain. It was a spectacle thing, my friends wanted to see me do it.

6. What are your thoughts on bacon?

I have always loved the stuff, but my eyes have only been recently opened to all the things you can do to bacon to make it better!

SPECIAL THANKS TO BRAD FOR AN AWESOME INTERVIEW!

CHEERS!

Most Compelling BEER Personalities on TWITTER

Wenchie — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:52:30 +0000

Several bloggers and other internet sources have written posts about the “most influential” or “top” people to follow on Twitter — in specific topics of interest (such as food, wine, social media, etc…)

However, everyone seems to be over looking the beer community. Pssshhhaw. How rude. Us beer geeks can be influential and important too, ya know!

So I thought I’d take the liberty to make my own (COMPLETELY SUBJECTIVE) list of the “Top 20 Most Compelling Beer Personalities on Twitter”. What exactly is my credential for creating the lists? Well let us start by defining the word compelling:

com⋅pel⋅ling [kuhm-pel-ing]
–adjective
1. tending to compel; overpowering: compelling reasons.
2. having a powerful and irresistible effect; requiring acute admiration, attention, or respect: (a man of compelling integrity; a compelling drama)

THE BEER WENCH’S CRITERIA FOR THE TOP 20 MOST COMPELLING BEER PERSONALTIES ON TWITTER:

COMPELLING ENOUGH TO FOLLOW: I must follow this person. Unfortunately, this rules out the people I do not follow — which means this list has potential to change in the future.
COMPELLING CONTENT: Tweets contain information of value in relation to the craft beer industry. (i.e.: news updates, events, announcements, beer reviews, links to beer related information, etc…)
COMPELLING PERSONALITY: Twitter personality is interesting and captivating. There is a person behind the twitter handle — they are more than just a “brand” or a “blog”.
COMPELLING CONVERSATION: Community engagers — people who are constantly engaging in conversations with the twitter community (whether it be through retweeting or replies). People who constantly have one way conversations, in my opinion, are not compelling. Talk to me. And I will follow you.
COMPELLING FOLLOWER RATIO: Good follower to following ratio. This does not mean they necessarily need to have a huge followership — number of followers is NOT criteria for this particular list. But they need to have at least an equal amount of followers as they are following.

At first, I was going to rank the top twenty followers — based on how well they execute the basic 5 criteria listed above. But, the metrics on that is too complicated for me to deal with at this time — and besides, it would be entirely way to subjective and open for debate. Instead, I’m going to list my TOP TWENTY MOST COMPELLING BEER PERSONALITIES ON TWITTER in a random order. There is no method in my madness (although, it be but madness). The numbers have no relevance to rankings. IGNORE THE NUMBERS.

THE BEER WENCH’S TOP TWENTY MOST COMPELLING BEER PERSONALITIES ON TWITTER

@dogfishbeer – Dogfish Head has (hands down) the best brewery brand presence on Twitter. Why? 1. She has a personality. AND a name. In fact, the Dogfish Head Twitter account is Mariah Calagione — aka Sam’s wife. She is constantly retweeting her followers and engaging in conversations. If you send her a question or mention her brand, she responds. Mariah kicks ass.
@TheArtofBeer — Tay Shaw is one of the biggest craft beer evangelists on Twitter. She has been known to send (coveted) craft beer all around the country to her followers. She is extremely active in the twitter community and also very entertaining.
@Cicerone_Org — Ray Daniels is one of the foremost educators on the subject of beer. He is one of the most brilliant men I have ever had the pleasure of meeting in real life. If you need to know something about beer — he is the man to talk to.
#gents – AKA @kenoftheyear @DrStarkWeather @SlovakBrewer @hopcast @beerad – These dudes are hiliariously entertaining, but also a wealth of information. They get together on a frequent basis to homebrew and taste beers … and then share all of their experiences on Twitter. They also create entertaining video blogs at Hop-Cast.com Following the hashtag #gents can get addicting …
@beerbabe — Besides having a super cool name and really hot avatar, Carla defies the common misperception that women hate beer. She is a huge advocate of females in the beer industry and uses both Twitter and her blog as a platform for expressing her passion.
@hookedonwinter – PJ is one of my favorite people to banter with back and forth about beer. He is an awesome homebrewer (I know this for a fact) who is aspiring to turn his passion into a career. Through both Twitter and his blog, PJ encourages others to join his adventure in starting a brewery.
@bruisinales – This woman must be a robot, because I swear she never sleeps. Julie can be found on Twitter just about every minute of every day. No really. Her tweets are very entertaining and she provides a lot of great content regarding beer releases, beer events and beer news.
@beerandnosh — Even though I only just started following Jesse, he has provided me with a wealth of beer knowledge via Twitter. Jesse is by far one of the best beer photographers out there and I love living vicariously through his photos and tasting notes.
@TimWeber & @StephWeber – Rockstar homebrewing couple in the process of getting certified through the American Brewers Guild. They have aspirations to start their own brewpub in the next 5 years. They are very engaging and informative on Twitter. And well, ADORABLE.
@ChipperDave — I’ve been following Dave’s blog for some time now. He is well-connected in the beer world and extremely knowledgeable about all things beer. I was lucky enough to meet him in person at GABF.
@beerinator – This dude is super talented. Jonathan is a key member of the Beer Mapping Project as well as DRAFT magazine’s Web Director. He is located in Chicago — beer hub — and is extremely engaging and fun to follower.
@olllllo – Very talented homebrewer (LOVED his Pro-AM beer at GABF). Works for a brewery in Arizona. Like me, he travels in the name of beer. Great beer knowledge resource.
@StoneGreg — Another “brand” that utilizes social media very well. Greg is the owner of Stone Brewing Co. (you know … that small unknown craft brewery …) Although he travels a lot, Greg does a great job of responding to tweets as well as retweeting others.
@beersage — Currently runs one of THE best beer news sites out there — beernews.org. He is always tweeting out the most cutting edge beer news … whether it be new releases or beer events, this guy is definitely one of the best beer sources on the web!
@newbrewthursday — A collaborative team of (4) funny & cute beer geeks. All dudes. They are hilarious, supportive and very engaging on Twitter. Excited to meet them at San Diego Beer Week.
@HomeBrewChef — Chef, brewer, writer, photographer. Sean knows his beer. And on top of that, he makes amazing food — with beer as an ingredient. I’ve had his cookies — trust me, he’s good.
@SudsyMaggie — Another femme fatale in the beer industry. Beer blogger, homebrewer & huge beer evangelist, Maggie is freaking ADORABLE. Regardless of whether or not you’ve met her (I have), she is too cute not to love.
@BlatzLiquor — Joe runs Blatz Liquor, a super awesome liquor store that has a kickass beer selection. Joe constantly tweets about new releases and specials that his store is featuring … unfortunately for me, I do not live near Milwaukee … otherwise I’d be there everyday.
@TeeCycleTim — Contributing author to DRAFT magazine (online). Tim is THE Beer Runner. He writes about staying physically fit while living the life of a beer enthusiast. He is also a big environmentalist and entrepreneur.
@brewed4thought — EXTREMELY well-connected beer “geek”… always ahead of the trend. Great blogger, beer event planner and resource for all things beer. Also, THE editorof the “soon-to-be-released” online beer publication on RATEBEER.COM site (where I will be a featured publisher)… stay tuned.

Runners Up and the “Up and Coming” Beer Tweeters):

@BeerinBaltimore – Don’t let his avatar fool you. Brad does not limit himself to just tweeting about beer in Baltimore. However, he is THE best resource in Baltimore for beer events & beer news.
@odiedog52 — Brian is absolutely ADORABLE! Super beer geek … just getting into the whole swing of things with Twitter. Currently imprisoned by the Army, but soon to be released. Brian is also the beer editor for Mutineer Magazine.
@tattoodbrew — Jon is a talented graphic designer by trade, which explains why he has one of the coolest avatars on Twitter. He offsets his beer “geek” image with his badass tattoo obsession and passion for all things music.
@jchristie — Josh definitely puts the geek in “beer geek.” Where as most people are pairing their beers with food, Josh pairs his with books. He is probably the most adorable book nerd-beer geek on Twitter.
@bisonbrew — Emerging brewery brand on Twitter. Daniel is dedicated to all things organic and sustainble. Produces awesome beer … and has a down to earth personality.
@misohungry — Jenni bakes with beer. Her treats are F*ing phenomenal … and I would know. She has baked with me. Great recipes for beer geeks who want to bake with beer!
@ruinationpress – Tattoo obsessed beer geek and fellow beer blogger. Really engaging on Twitter. Good friend. Knows his shit.
@beertodd — Brewer of some awesome and unique beers at Copper Canyon in Southfield, Michigan. Super beer activist … and recently released a great viral video in support of the Rock Art Brewery movement.
@Beervangelist — Owner of New Holland Brewing Co. in Michigan. Only just started following Fred, but already … he is providing me with lots of compelling and valuable content. Fred is on my list of “brands to watch.”
@sarahhuska — Voted (in a secret ballot) as one of THE hottest beer lovers on Twitter. Many of my guy beer geek friends have a crush on her … and for good reason. She is hot. And she knows her shit about beer.

NOW … before all you Twitter beer connoisseurs out there start crying about not making this list — just remember, this is a subjective list. My list is based on the people I follow, how often I interact with them and the value of their tweets. As far as I know … this list can change over night.

The two best tips I can give to beer personalities on Twitter is 1. BE HUMAN (don’t talk AT my … talk WITH me) … and 2. BE COMPELLING.

CHEERS!