The Farm Report
Growing Beer: Regional Grains and Hops
Welcome to the final installment of The Farm Report's "Growing Beer" series. Today, Erin Fairbanks is talking local and regional ingredients with a wealth of New York state beer and agriculture guests. Carrie Blackmore from Good Nature Brewing calls in to talk about the locally-sourced grains and hops used in Good Nature's brews. Hear why local and regional sourcing works for small-small scale breweries, but why the state industry needs to grow to accommodate larger productions. Next, Erin chats with Paul Dlugokencky of Blind Bat Brewery to talk about making beer out on Long Island with some strange ingredients. Hear why Paul believes that a farm brewery model may be the future for Blind Bat. Erin checks in with June Russell of Greenmarket to talk regional grains, and why the industry needs to target producers of all types in order to grow. Hear from Liz Carollo with the GrowNYC Greenmarket update! Check out the variety of beans and fresh broccoli rabe that should be hitting Greenmarket stands soon! This episode has been brought to you by Fairway Market.
"Generally, I don't think that most brewers have any connection to their farmers. It's almost impossible." -- Carrie Blackmore on The Farm Report
"If you're going to rebuild the grain market in the Northeast, you need to have multiple markets for the grains." -- June Russell on The Farm Report