Biotech & Breweries

In this episode of the Biotech and Breweries Podcast, Daniel Shroeder and Shannon Miller, Principal Investigator at Scripps Research, have a discussion at Bivouac Ciderworks in San Diego. Shannon shares her passion for bridging the gap between technology and diseases to make permanent cures possible. Having recently been recognized on Forbes' 30 Under 30 list, she discusses her journey from undergraduate research in synthetic organic chemistry to her graduate studies, where she applied...

In this episode of the Biotech and Breweries Podcast, James Mackey, CEO of Aristea Therapeutics, a clinical-stage drug development company focused on immunology-focused therapeutics to treat autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. James shares the origin story of Aristea and his long professional history in life sciences. He also shares how fundraising allowed Aristea to extend its development, how Aristea is contributing to the life sciences industry in San Diego, and how the company is...

In this episode of the Biotech and Breweries Podcast, Nick Marron, Director of Brewery Operations at Harland Brewing Company, shares what is next for the brewery and many of the exciting projects they have on the horizon, happening throughout Southern California. Amir Ferry is the Co-Founder of Nucleate Bio San Diego, a collaborative entrepreneurship program that facilitates the formation of life sciences ventures by bringing together scientific trainees and business students. Amir shares...

In this episode of the Biotech and Breweries Podcast, Andy Sist, Chief Operating Officer and Marketing Officer at New Motion Beverages shares three exciting beers from the San Diego based brewery. Lights & Music lager, Broken Record IPA, and Electric Feel, an 18-month Bourbon barrel aged imperial coffee stout. Andy shares how Embolden Brewing is defying the expectations of traditional brewing. Chorom Pak, CEO & Founder of Lynx Biosciences, shares her professional journey and how she formed...

In this episode of the Biotech and Breweries Podcast, Simon Lacey, Founder of New English Brewing, talks about the evolution of the brewery since its founding in 2007, including the rollercoaster of the covid lockdowns and how the brewery is using enzymes to reduce the gluten content of their beers. He shares three beers coming out of New English Brewing: the Blueberry Blonde, an American pale ale with a natural blueberry flavor, the Pure and Simple IPA, a 2016 gold medalist in the San Diego...

In this episode of the Biotech and Breweries Podcast, Tom Kiely, General Manager at Thorn Brewing talks about the process of growing hops and being mindful of the needs of local hop farmers in San Diego. He shares three beers coming out of Thorn Brewing. The Craft Michelada, similar to a Bloody Mary, but lighter in alcohol and body, the And Beyond IPA, the first west coast style IPA the brewery created, and the Orchid Hazy IPA, a bright pale ale with notes of pineapple and mango. Westbrook...

In this episode of the Biotech and Breweries Podcast, Dan Selis, Founder of Mission Brewery, shares his passion for beer making and two of the beers coming out of the San Diego based brewery, Passionfruit Gose a twist on a traditionally German-style sour wheat ale and Peanut Butter dark stout, a Russian imperial stout rich in toasted coffee and bold chocolate flavors. Eric Murphy, CEO and Co-founder of Alterome Therapeutics, shares how he and Dan Selis met shortly after Dan’s cancer...

In this episode of The Biotech and Breweries Podcast, Noah Scoville, Manager at Burgeon Brewing, shares four beers from the craft beer brewery: Invita Mexican Lager, Carlsbad Crush, Treevana IPA, and Juice Press. Dan Chevallard, COO and Chief Financial Officer of Viracta shares his journey with Viracta and their pursuit of EBV-associated cancers with a combination drug product. He discusses the evolution of Viracta as a company, their targeted approach to merging oncology with virology, and...

In this episode of The Biotech and Breweries Podcast, Chris Leguizamon, Education Program Manager at Pure Project, and one of 143 Advanced Cicerones in the world, talks about two standout beers at Pure Project: Tropical Mist and Force of Nature. Todd Harris, Chief Executive Officer of Tyra, and Dan Benson, Chief Operating Officer of Tyra, share the story of Tyra’s founding and growth as a company. They discuss the future of the life sciences ecosystem, San Diego’s biotech community, and how...

Tom Hallam is the CEO of Palisade Bio and holds a PhD in Neuroscience from UC Davis and an MBA from USC (Marshall).

Jan D'Alvise is the President & CEO at Acasti pharmaceuticals and holds a BS in Biochemistry from Michigan Technological University and an MBA from University of Michigan.

Eric Venn-Watson holds an MBA from UCSD, was a Navy Flight Surgeon and is a current US Navy reservist. Steph Venn -Watson is a veterinary epidemiologist and public health scientist who has past experience working at the National Marine Mammal Foundation, DARPA, the CDC and WHO. For this episode I spent some time talking with Eric & Steph Venn-Watson and we had a fantastic conversation while we tried a few beers from Modern Times. Our conversation led us through where Eric & Steph got their...

Andrew Rudd holds a PhD from UCSD and is the founder and CEO of Palm Therapeutics. We shared some beer from Alesmith and talked about his company Palm and their work with Lipids. We also dug into the process of applying for grants and how that has been a valuable alternative to venture capital and what the next milestones are as they continue to grow.

I recently had the chance to catch up with Scott McLaughlin and share some beers from Protector Brewing. Scott is a former counterintelligence officer of the United States Marine Corps, UCSD Rady MBA, and current Vice President of Business Development at Gene Go Cell. Our conversation covered a wide variety of topics including what the transition from the military to the life science world was like, how Gene Go Cell is trying to help breweries manage their yeast, their effort to develop a...

Kim Kamdar is a Senior Partner at Domain Associates and holds a PhD in biochemistry and genetics from Emory University. We tried a few beers from Belching Beaver and talked about the world of Venture Capital, including how Domain got it's start, what it's like to be a San Diego based VC and how fortunate timing carried them through COVID.

Ana Moreno holds a PhD in Bioengineering from UCSD and is the founder and CEO of Navega Therapeutics. Ana and I had a few hard kombuchas from June Shine while we discussed the source of her entreprenurial spirit, Navega's goal of giing people an alternative pain management solution, the mythical place known as JLabs and more.

Mark Van Oene, COO at Pacific Biosciences (PACB) joined me for a couple beers from Harland Brewing - the Sunken Isles Hazy IPA (6.8%) and the Lilikoi Sour (6.0%). While we enjoyed our beer we dug into how he got his start in genomics, why San Diego has become a genomics hotbed, how COVID has impacted the fundraising landscape and much more. For more on Harland Brewing you can visit HarlandBeer.com

For my first episode I hosted Killu Sanborn from Oxford Finance and we shared the Drink This Or the Bees Die (Golden Honey Ale, 6.5%) and Liquid Jam (Hazy IPA, 7.5%) from Duckfoot Brewing. We covered a range of topics including how Killu got her start lending to biotech companies, her take on the current funding environment, the silver linings to COVID and more. To try the beers from Duckfoot go here: www.duckfootbeer.com