The Award-Winning Smoked Beer Behind Sketchbook’s Rise to Craft Beer Sustainability Leader

Hear how an award-winning Polish Grodziskie helped elevate Sketchbook from brewing in an alley to becoming an industry leader in sustainability.

Sketchbook Brewing Company Managing Partner and Head Brewer Cesar Marron discusses his brewery's journey from humble alleyway origins to becoming an award-winning establishment with a strong emphasis on sustainability. He shares the exciting but stressful story of how he won the Sam Adams LongShot American Homebrew Contest before discussing the challenges of brewing traditional Polish Grodziskie beer, their innovative Community Supported Brewery program, and the impact of the temperance movement on beer laws and brewery culture in Evanston. Cesar also provides insights on Sketchbook’s sustainability initiatives, including water conservation and eco-friendly packaging, and offers easy tips for how you can make your craft beer drinking habits more environmentally friendly.

After the beer break, Cesar highlights a few of Sketchbook's beers, including their Grodziskie, a light and refreshing Polish-style smoked wheat beer; Snowy Owl Red Ale, featuring a combination of caramel malts with spicy notes from the rye, balanced with the citrus flavor of American Cascade and Amarillo hops; and Coastal West Coast IPA, their Midwestern homage to the West Coast, featuring Lake Michigan water, Midwest Cascade and Centennial hops, and barley grown and malted in Wisconsin. The discussion includes how they achieve smoky flavors in their beers and what makes the Snowy Owl Red Ale unique with its rye bitterness. 

About Sketchbook Brewing Co: Sketchbook Brewing Co. is a microbrewery located in Skokie, IL, with taprooms in Skokie and Evanston. Learn more on their website at https://www.sketchbookbrewing.com/ 

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You can learn more about Crafty Brewers and get in touch with us on our official website, https://craftybrewerspod.com 

Crafty Brewers is a production of Quantum Podcasts, LLC. Is your brewery or business looking to capture a loyal audience to drive business results with the power of podcasting? Then visit https://quantum-podcasts.com/ to learn more.

Our executive producer and editor is award-winning podcaster Cody Gough. He insists that we tell you that in this episode, you’ll learn about: brewing techniques, smoked beers, modern ales, eco-friendly brewing, homebrewing, oak-smoked malts, award-winning brewery, beer competitions, traditional brewing methods, environmental responsibility, craft IPAs, Pack Techs, beer packaging, digital printing technology, beer production, Centennial hops, Cascade hops, amber ales, wheat beers, American Light Lagers, milkshake IPA, diacetyl testing, sensory evaluation, smoked wheat beer, and modern brewing equipment. #CraftBeer