Ambitious Ales started when five friends decided to leave their careers behind and take their homebrewing hobby to the professional level. I sat down with Garrett to learn about their journey from winning a couple of brewing awards to opening their doors on Atlantic Avenue in a local landmark. We chatted about their goal of being a community hub, their plans for the future, and their latest lineup of craft beers.
Darren Nicholson joins me from iPourit, headquartered in Santa Ana, CA.
As breweries, restaurants, and now bars reopen in Long Beach and LA County, I wonder what permanent changes we’ll see to the food and beverage scene.
They started off as the garage project of founder Brett Jones in 2012 and were growing steadily through 2019. The pandemic created an opportunity for them to take the self-serve model even further and introduce a touchless tap system.
Beer educator Proper Josh joins us from San Diego, CA. Proper Josh is a self-educated beer and wine aficionado. He posts craft beer reviews daily, highlighting the craftsmanship required to make a truly great brew. We sat down to talk about how he got into craft beer, how he judges what he drinks, staying healthy while imbibing, and his holiday beer recommendations.
Peter Kim joins us on behalf of Kizakura USA. Peter shares the unique beer and sake offerings from Kizakura Brewery in Kyoto with retailers across the United States. He joined us to share the history of this unusual dual brewery, along with their line of flavored sake, and the Kyoto and Lucky craft beer series.
Brendan Megowan, Founder of Whale Face Beer in Long Beach, California, joins Frank on the podcast to talk about all things craft beer. Brendan shares his stories of personal and entrepreneurial struggle in Palo Verdes, Sacramento, and Long Beach, and gives insight into what it takes to run a successful craft brewery.
In our very first episode of The Drinking Buddy Show, our founder Frank Rodgers shares his background, starting with his very first trip to Japan as an exchange student in 2004.
