From Maine, With Love - An Allagash Brewing Podcast

We're lucky to be living in a city with a ton, ton, ton, of amazing things to do, eat, see, and experience. That fact makes us even more grateful for our ranking on Tripadvisor, which states that visiting the Allagash Tasting Room is the #1 thing to do in Portland, Maine. In fact, our guests—our wonderful, sweet, smart, kind guests—have ranked us so highly, so consistently, that in 2023 we won a Travelers' Choice award, placing us in the top 10% of highest-rated attractions, worldwide. In this episode, you'll hear directly from Emily Wallace, our Hospitality Director, all about how we go about making sure all of our guests have the best experience possible while visiting us.

What happens at a tour or tasting here at Allagash? Much more than you might have guessed. We've got samples of deep-stash beers able to age beautifully for ten-plus years. We have pours fresh out of the barrel (shhh, don't tell). And we have passionate and extremely knowledgable people like Lindsay Bohanske, this episode's guest, to guide you through it all. Come for a behind-the-scenes look into our tour, food-pairing, and tasting program. Stay for a brief explanation on the origin of agrarian societies.

You in the mood to geek out on wine making? Well, you better be if you're here to listen to the second episode of the third season of our podcast. Liz and Brett are joined by Patrick Chavanelle, Senior R&D brewer, and potentially vintner, here at Allagash. We dive deep into the recent berry wines, berry wine/cider hybrids, and cider that we've created here at the brewery. So pull up a chair and drink deeply of the fruit wine knowledge that Patrick has to impart!

In the triumphant return of From Maine, With Love for Season 3, we dive into something all listeners of this podcast can appreciate: beer. First, we chat through two collaborations with Black-owned breweries: Cur-8 and Verb. Then, we dip into the details of our very first "seasonal" beer by having a brewery-side chat with Joe Jr., the brewer who came up with the beer's recipe. And we end by talking about our brand new, absolutely delicious house-made blueberry wine (and another secret blend you'll have to listen to the pod to hear about). If that doesn't sound interesting to you, please go on with your life in peace and happiness forevermore. If it does, give it a listen. Thanks, as always, for your support!

In this episode, we're joined by Allagash HR Director Celine Frueh to get into the nitty gritty of building positive company culture. This was a fascinating conversation that touches on all sorts of topics like: how we use a yearly employee survey to figure out the biggest spots for growth, how to preserve the things people love as the company grows, and the business case for giving employees a sabbatical. If you have even a passing interest in the ins and outs of good workplace vibes, this one is for you.

Did you know: there’s a trail head within 10 minutes of every home in Portland, Maine? That’s thanks to the great work our friends at Portland Trails have been doing to make our city more accessible and connected through outdoor space. And we’re committed to a 3-year, $30,000 partnership, called Healthier Neighborhoods for All. Its goal is to help Portland Trails reach more of Portland’s immigrant community to help them experience the benefits of their extensive trail system.

We have a bevy of homebrewers at Allagash, so when a fan suggested we host a homebrewing Q&A, we did! In this podcast, we're joined by three seasoned, professional brewers in Patrick Chavanelle, Katie Beaucage, and Corey McNutt. In it, we take fans' online questions and basically break them out into novice, intermediate, and expert-level questions. The best part? We suspect you'll learn quite a bit along the way, no matter your level. So come along and hear all about homebrewing.

Since we started in 1995, every single Allagash beer has been brewed with water that came from Sebago Lake. This pristine, and plentiful, water source is amazing in its own right: there's enough water in Sebago Lake to give every person on earth 100 gallons each, and still have water left over. And, like all good things, we need to make sure that we preserve it. In this episode, we talk with Paul Hunt of the Portland Water District and Matt Markot of Loon Echo Land Trust—both members of Sebago Clean Waters, a nonprofit partner of ours that is working to preserve Sebago Lake. You'll learn some staggering facts about our amazing water source, the strides Sebago Clean Waters is making in preserving it, and what you can do to help!

What will you find inside The Cellars at Allagash? In this episode, we're joined once again by Certified Cicerone and Hospitality Specialist Lindsay Bohanske to dive into everything involved in a Cellars experience. The types of beers you'll taste. The things you'll learn. And the fact that every visit is built to be enjoyed by beer novices, beer experts, and anyone in between.

What's the difference between wild and sour beer? What makes a wild beer wild? And how do bacteria like lactobacillus and pediococcus make beer taste deliciously tart? We cover all of this and more with the help of two seasoned beer experts: Jason Perkins, our Brewmaster, and Zach Bodah, our Quality Program Manager.

Claudette Ndayininahaze came to America as an executive with 15 years of experience in the brewing industry back in her home of Burundi. When she arrived in Maine, she could only find work in housekeeping. So, she decided to lift herself by lifting others. By starting In Her Presence, an organization built around English language learning, Claudette and her team is helping immigrant women in Maine not just find their footing, but thrive—for the betterment of themselves and our community as a whole. In this episode, Jeff Pillet-Shore, our Marketing Director, and Zoe Malia, our Sustainability Coordinator, chat with Claudette and Mary of In Her Presence about their mission, their journeys, and how we’ve created a durable, and fruitful, relationship between our organizations.

In this episode, Rob Tod, our founder, and Brett, our hopefully enjoyable host, chat with Beny Ashburn and Teo Hunter, co-founders of Crowns & Hops Brewing. What's bringing us together? The chance to dive deep into our recent collaboration, a crisp and curiously tasty beer called Cur-8. In this episode, you’ll learn how we met in the first place, how the beer came to be, and how its proceeds help promote racial equity in the craft beer industry.

In the first episode of our second season of From Maine, With Love, your faithful hosts Liz and Brett celebrate the series’ continuation! First, we run though our Report Series of beers, containing: Wildlife Report, Beach Report, and Snow Report. Then, we share some happenings in and around the brewery that have us excited. For a brief update of everything exciting happening at Allagash right now, there’s no better episode than this one.

We did it! With our first season finished, we look back at some of the notable numbers, moments, and memories that made this year of podcasting so special. Plus, we give you a sneak preview of what you can expect from our next season. Spoiler: it's going to be fun.

So we knew we wanted to brew a delicious IPA, but what to call it? And, for that matter, what should the packaging look like? And then what should we sell it in: bottles or cans? In this episode, we’re joined by Naomi Neville, our Sales Director, and Jeff Pillet-Shore, our Marketing Director, to talk through the thought process, absolutely humongous number of options, and crucial decisions that led us to the name, and brand, of Hop Reach.

In this final episode covering our upcoming IPA, Hop Reach, we answer the question on everyone’s mind: what does it taste like? To help us answer that question in delicious depth, we have Corey McNutt, a senior brewer who was on the team that created Hop Reach, and Lindsay Bohanske, our resident tour & tasting aficionado and Certified Cicerone. Keep a beer nearby, because this one might make you thirsty.

The task was clear: brew an IPA that is exactly what we’d want to reach for. But with so many options for hops, malt, and everything else, how did our brewers land on that perfect recipe? That’s the question we’re tackling on this podcast with the help of Jason, our Brewmaster, and Patrick, our technical R&D brewer. In this episode you’ll hear all about the various versions, the company-wide feedback, and the many, many tasty beers that eventually led us to the recipe for Hop Reach IPA. This is part one of a three-part podcast series that’s all about our upcoming IPA, Hop Reach, which we’ll be releasing in January of 2023.

Beer sensory is a fancy way of saying "tasting beer." It's also a fancy way of tasting beer, because it aims to break down why beer tastes the way it does, and how we can go about making beer taste consistently delicious, every single brew. If that sounds interesting, it's because it is! And, in this episode, we dive deep into our sensory program with Karl, our beer-tasting guru here at Allagash.

In which we talk about secret ingredients and techniques for the perfect chocolate chip cookie, the broad strokes of a decadent béchamel, and what it's like to sell craft beer. Seriously, we had so much fun recording this episode with Suzy and Mike of our sales team, talking through basically everything you'd want to know about selling craft beer. How does beer selling work? What's the Allagash selling philosophy? And, most importantly, what are those cookie secrets?!

To make beer, you need stuff. And our friends at the Allagash warehouse know a lot about sourcing and storing all of that stuff. In this episode, you’ll hear from Dave, Mitch, and Pete about: the oddest things we happen to store in our warehouse, how we check and maintain the quality of all of our ingredients, how we unload big old barrels from a truck, and so much more.