Beer Sessions Radio (TM)

Jimmy kicks off his first episode of 2026 with some dear friends in the cider business: Steve Garwood of Ragged Hill Cider, Eleanor Leger of Eden Specialty Ciders, and Zachary Kaiser of Absolem Cider. This episode's discussion has us gearing up for a special dinner in March, learning about the formation of the New England Cider Association, favorite food pairings, and expanding our understanding of how Northeastern ciders ...

Jimmy's first episode of the New Year is with guest Brian Alberts, writer and beer historian. Brian teaches us about some remarkable historical events, including the introduction of lager beers in the United States, nationwide court cases, various riots, and old marketing trends claiming that beer is part of a healthy diet.

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Jimmy caps off a wonderful year of amazing guests with Tim McKirdy, co-founder of The Coaster - an independent podcast network. On this episode, the duo talk about Tim's early work as a writer/editor at VinePair, the meaning of "splitting the G", Mezcal, the negative impacts of monoculture, and the announcement of Sauced- a new show on The Coaster with HRN's own, Sother Teague!

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The Coaster

The Coaster is an independent...

Jimmy takes a call from Jeremy Benson - GM of Crave Fishbar Upper West Side in NYC and Chris DiOrio- Senior Brand Manager for Blue Point Brewing Co. Today's chat is all about oysters. We learn about the history of oysters in NY, beer pairings, oyster farming and competitive shucking! 

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Jeremy Benson is the General Manager of Crave Fishbar on the Upper West Side. He is an Oyster Master Guild Certified Specialist and cur...

Jimmy holds court with three judges of Sauce King NYC- Nick Bandouveris and brothers Paul and Anthony Ramirez. The group talk a bit about the Bronx Beer Hall (owned by Paul and Anthony), what they look for when judging, sauces that stood out over the years, making the best Coquito, and announcement of the winners of this year's Sauce King NYC!

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Jimmy takes his talents to Times Square, NYC to have some drinks at BXL Cafe. There, he is joined by BXL owner Yves Michaels, Kyler Pollick from Brewery Ommegang, and frequent guest and brand developer, James Tai. Today's chat is focused on Belgian beer, how to maintain authenticity abroad, the popularity of Duvel, and exceptional mussel preparation. 

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Jimmy returns to Bushwick, this time visiting Curious Elixirs, aka Club Curious. There, he meets with Gidon Coll of Original Sin Cider, J.W. Wiseman of Curious Elixirs, Lars and Alex of Momentum Brewery. The fellas share their reasons behind exploring non-alcoholic beer/cider, incorporating ingredients that have actual health benefits, and creating a final product that tastes as good, if not better than the real thing.&nbs...

Jimmy posts up at the Beer Table in Penn Station once more with Noah Levin, this time, with special guest Ryan James Burk from Occam Cider Co. Ryan is a longtime Cider-maker and notable legend in the scene. He shares a bit about his industry beginnings in Chicago, wild fermentation at Virtue, working internationally with Tom Oliver to make the annual "Gold Rush" Cider, joining up with Angry Orchard, and of course, starting...

Jimmy gets Josh Bernstein on the line for this week's podcast. Josh is an accomplished beer writer with numerous titles dating back to the early 2000s. The duo discuss Josh's Home Brew tours in the mid-2000s, New York's "Golden Age" of beer, the history of Can Jam at Threes Brewing, and how to get patronage back for breweries. 

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Jimmy gathers once more at Threes Brewing in Gowanus, Brooklyn. This time with Author- Peter Kaminsky and Chef/Restaurateur- Alex Raij. Our guests share with us their backgrounds and long-time friendships while dining on local tacos and discussing cooking, fly fishing, and more. 

Alex Raij is a first generation Argentine-American who grew up in the Midwest, attended culinary school, and lived in Milan and the Pacif...

Jimmy calls up to Maine for the final episode of Craft Malt Month. Here we meet Joe Rinaldo, Director of Sales at Blue Ox Malt and Katie Miller, Head Brewer of Good Fire Brewing. We learn a bit about the relationship between Blue Ox Malt and Good Fire Brewing, making grisette with "cool corns", the legal and scientific limits of using corn, and how to get creative with smoking malts.

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Jimmy gathers at the Penn Station Concourse in Manhattan with BR Rolya (Beer Consultant), Noah Levin, Phil Laurelli, and Justin Phillips of Beer Table. In this episode, we learn a bit more about the start of Beer Table, all the Belgian beers that they offer, how their beers (and tin fish) are selected, and we even get a few words from some loyal patrons.

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Jimmy invites Scott Ramsey and Adrian Luna to a gainful discussion about Cider season in the Empire State. Scott is the Executive Director, and Adrian is the Membership and Communications Coordinator for the New York Cider Association. The conversation starts with the impact of the pandemic on the small business Cider Industry, then moves to the evolution of Cider Week over the years, the diversity of ciders, Cider Feast a...

Jimmy hops a train to Gowanus, Brooklyn, to visit Josh Penney of Threes Brewing. The duo discuss Josh's new role as head brewer, the modern IPA, intentional brewing, and winning awards!

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Josh Penney, the newly appointed, award-winning Head Brewer at Threes Brewing, the beloved Brooklyn-based brewery and community space. With his extensive background in the craft beer space and his current position at the helm of one of New ...

Jimmy's second episode for Craft Malt Month has us meeting Jeff Bloem from Murphy & Rude Malting Company and longtime friend of the show, Emily Hutto, with RadCraft. Right from the get, we learn a little something about the origins of Craft Malt Month, Virginia malt farms, estate beer, and challenging the industry norms.

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Jimmy dials up Hillary Barile, farmer/maltster at Rabbit Hill Farm Malt, and Sean Towers, Co-Founder of The Seed: A Living Beer Project. With both businesses based in New Jersey, the chat begins by comparing local malts with mainstream malts, then develops into a conversation about barley malt varieties, Atlantic City's resurgence, smoked malts, and more!

This episode marks the 1st of 3 malt-focused shows for Septembe...