Stone Brewing brewer Steve Gonzales and Seismic Brewing Company brewer Andy Hooper are both on Brew HaHa Craft Beer Radio on the Drive today w/ Mark Carpenter and Herlinda Heras. Harry Duke is sitting in for Steve Jaxon. Steve Gonzales is up in Sonoma County from San Diego, since he also brews at the Napa Stone Brewery. Andy Hooper is the head brewer for Seismic, and also for Tremor, a brewer that won a Gold Medal at the Great American Beer Festival. Brew Ha Ha is sponsored by the Santa Rosa branch of Yoga Six located in Coddingtown Center. Herlinda attended the keg un-tapping of a special Seismic beer, that is the most local beer probably ever done in Sonoma County. Andy tells that Sonoma County grows barley and hops, and in a 12 mile radius there is also a malting facility. So they can […]

Collin McDonald joins Herlinda Heras and Harry Duke on Brew Ha Ha today with news that HenHouse Brewing Co. is acquiring Iron Springs. The last time Collin was on the Brew Ha Ha show and podcast was this episode on August 22, 2019. Collin McDonald, HenHouse Brewing Co. CEO, says that Iron Springs has been an awesome institution for 17 years and their plans are to keep all the staff and continue to grow. Iron Springs was a leader in the development of craft beer, as well as demonstrating how a brewery can make a town stronger, be a good employer and be something that every community wants. It is HenHouse’s first restaurant and they are making plans or food that matches the way they do beer, with fresh ingredients and seasonal rotations. He takes the responsibility seriously to continue to have a brewery […]

Fresh Hops are front and center today on Brew Ha Ha with Steve Jaxon and Mark Carpenter, as we welcome Vinnie and Natalie Cilurzo from Russian River Brewing Company. Vinnie and Natalie are the co-owners of Russian River Brewing Co. and they have brought a pack of fresh hops into the studio today. Now is a busy time, the hops are being harvested and there are special hoppy beers being made and enjoyed. The Russian River Brewing Co. Winds0r location and the Santa Rosa pub are both open. They have been using the parklette on 4th Street, which was done to allow social distancing for Covid precautions, and while they won’t be there forever, they are using it and enjoying it for as long as possible. They also have some longer term construction plans to expand in Santa Rosa. Vinnie says that RRBC has […]

Crooked Goat Brewing and Valley Ford Cheese make up the beer and food pairing on this week’s podcast episode of Brew Ha Ha. Brew Ha Ha today features Karen Bianchi from Valley Ford Cheese Company and Paul Vianello of Crooked Goat Brewing, who both join Herlinda Heras and Harry Duke who is sitting in for Steve Jaxon. Curtis Bedford is also in the studio, staying through from the previous segment live on The Drive on KSRO. (This podcast episode, published Sept. 30, 2021, was recorded live on the air on Sept. 23, 2021.) Vinnie and Natalie from Russian River Brewing Co. were just recently on a trip to Washington to choose hops for Russian River Brewing Company. Right now they are making two seasonal beers, Dribble Belt and Happy Hops. They will be in the studio next week with their fresh wet hopped beer and some […]

Beer and Yoga join forces today on Brew Ha Ha. Laura Letchinger from the new local branch of YogaSix joins Herlinda Heras and Harry Duke (sitting in for Steve Jaxon). Today we welcome our new sponsor YogaSix, located at Coddingtown Center in Santa Rosa. Their six yoga classes range from introductory and restorative to more physically demanding ones. YogaSix is partnering with some local breweries to promote relaxation and beer. However, the combination of beer and yoga is not completely new or unique. Some breweries have been offering yoga events. This local franchise of YogaSix will be doing some popup events in breweries and wineries. There is plenty of free parking at Coddingtown Center, as well as other shops and amenities including a nearby ice cream shop. It is a brand new studio and they have installed a high-quality air filtration system. They are hosting […]

cuVer Brewery co-founders Hendrick Verspecht and Nico Silva have brought their new beers to Herlinda Heras and Mark Carpenter on Brew Ha Ha today. Harry Duke is sitting in for Steve Jaxon. cuVer Brewery is the first Belgian-style brewery in Sonoma County. Building and opening the brewery has been a long process. Hendrick tells how his family moved here from Belgium in 2012. His father was used to drinking local craft Belgian beers and he wanted the same beers in California, so he started home brewing. The brewery is located at 7704 Bell Road in Windsor, near Tilted Shed and Barley and Vine (in the former St. Florian location) in the Windsor beverage district. They have a tap room coming on line, the grand opening is Oct. 2. Hendrick studied Plant Biotechnology at the University of Ghent in Belgium at the university, after attending high […]

Lost Coast Brewery’s master brewer Jack Van Stone is our guest on Brew Ha Ha with Steve Jaxon and Mark Carpenter. Herlinda Heras is also in the studio today and Harry Duke is sitting in for Steve Jaxon. Lost Coast Brewery is located on the northern California coast, in a remote section that is directly served by neither Highway 1 nor Highway 101. The CBC Craft Brewers Conference is this week in Denver, also the World Beer Cup is there. Herlinda will miss this event for the first time in years. Tara Nurin is there promoting her new book and she will report on the winner of the World Beer Cup and more, including local winners for us, in an upcoming episode. Jack Van Stone has been a friend of Herlinda Heras for fifteen years. The Lost Coast brewery owner is in Tara Nurin’s book on […]

Anikó Lehtinen is our guest on Brew Ha Ha with Steve Jaxon and Mark Carpenter today. We will talk about Sahti, the ancient Finnish national home brew style with Herlinda Heras in studio and with Anikó Lehtinen on the phone from Helsinki. But first, today’s show has a couple of Preludes. Prelude No. 1: Chris DiMatteo has brought the audio of two old TV ads from the 1960s, for Italian Swiss Colony Wines, just to remind us of how awful the early tv commercials could be. There are plenty of cringe-worthy old beer ads too, and we will hear some of those soon. Prelude No. 2 Steve Jaxon remembers Tom T. Hall, who passed away just a few days before this episode was recorded. He wrote the song “I Like Beer” one of our unofficial anthems on Brew Ha Ha, and he also wrote […]

It’s a busy show today, as Meagan Anderson and Tara Nurin both join Herlinda Heras, who is back from a three-week trip to Estonia and Finland. Tara Nurin writes about the business of beverages and spirits for Forbes magazine, from her home base in Camden, New Jersey. Meagan Anderson is the representative of New Zealand hops growers. Here is her Twitter page. Herlinda was in Finland judging the national beer competition and the national Sahti competition. She was the first American judge in either competition. Sahti is the Finnish national home brew. Herlinda describes the Finnish habit of taking a sauna (which they pronounce “SOW-na” not “SAW-na” as English speakers tend to say) and then plunging into the cold lake and going back and forth between the sauna and the lake. Steve says, “No, thank you!” Herlinda says it got rid of her jet lag pretty quickly. […]

This week Brew Ha Ha is 2 parts. Mark Carpenter tells about his career with Anchor Brewing in San Francisco. Then Herlinda Heras is in Finland and calls us from Helsinki. Mark Carpenter begins his story with his quest for a more interesting career as a young man in San Francisco in 1971, and proceeds through his first encounter with owner Fritz Maytag, his fortuitous hiring, a description of the facilities, their brewing process, the success of Anchor Steam Beer and several other cool stories from those years. It’s a great 9=minute summary of a very interesting story. At the 9-minute mark, Herlinda Heras joins Steve Jaxon and Mark Carpenter on the telephone from Helsinki, Finland. As Herlinda Heras calls in from Helsinki, Finland, it is the late afternoon California time so it is the middle of the night in Helsinki. Herlinda is there […]