My goal during this Year of Beer is to learn as much as I can about craft beer and home brewing.  I am reading books, going on tours, sampling beer, reading web sites, subscribing to magazines, listening to audio podcasts and watching video podcasts.  One of the best things about the craft beer hobby is the fantastic community of beer lovers that surround it.   Many of these beer lovers have taken their hobby to the next level and turned their passion into a blog or podcast which has resulted in a plethora of free and entertaining content.

I want to blog about as many of these valuable resources as I can over this year of beer so you can join in and learn along with me.  With this post I am going to identify my favorite craft beer video podcasts.  If your podcast isn’t on the list, it doesn’t mean it’s not great, this is just a list of my favorites so far.  I am sure there are plenty I haven’t even watched, especially if they aren’t on itunes.  If you have a favorite that’s not on this list, please recommend it in the comments below so I can check it out.

Here For The Beer – http://www.hereforthebeer.com

Here for the Beer is done by a husband and wife duo, Tim and Amy Brady.  They have been involved in the craft beer scene for 8 years now and although they claim they aren’t professionals, they do an amazing job.  The quality of the videos are fantastic.  Tim and Amy used to work in the corporate world in New York city but left that life behind them when they moved to Vermont and bought the Forty Putney Road Bed and Breakfast.  When they aren’t busy running their inn, they are traveling, drinking great beer and shooting video.

The videos they shoot run a variety of topics, they cover beer tasting, beer news, brewery and pub tours, interviews and more.  You can find out more about their show and check out other episodes by visiting them at HereForTheBeer.com

Beer America TV – http://www.beeramerica.tv

This show is mostly shot at the Moon River Brewing company in Savannah, GA and has 2 or 3 hosts depending on the episode.  For the episodes I have watched, Paul Leone and John Pinkerton have been in every episode with David Little joining them in a little over half.  The quality of the video is quite good and it is basically a beer review show without the rating.  They taste a beer, discuss it, discuss what elements of the beer are bringing out which flavors and give some background on the brewery that made it.  They do a great job of being objective and believe that taste is subjective so they don’t rate the beer when they are done.

I don’t know what the future of the show will be as in one of the recent episodes Paul Leone, who seems to be the main driver behind the show, has announced that he is moving to Texas.  Seems like if the show does manage to continue, it would be with a new cast of people but who knows, I am only speculating.  You can find out more about this great video podcast by going to BeerAmerica.TV

Basic Brewing Video – http://www.basicbrewing.com

I have written about BasicBrewing.com before and I just love these guys.  They have both a regular audio podcast and a video podcast  and unlike the other shows I am recommending in this blog post, their focus is on Homebrewing.  James and Steve know what they are talking about and it’s obvious that they have a real passion for the hobby.  They have that rare talent of being very knowledgable but still being able to communicate the finer points to someone like me, who is just starting out in the hobby. I also subscribe to their audio podcast and when I do my top audio podcasts post, it will certainly be included.

They put out several “How-To” DVD’s on homebrewing but I can’t speak to them as I haven’t bought any yet.  I do intend on getting their “Stepping into All-Grain” DVD soon as I want to try all-grain brewing but am finding it difficult to make that jump.  You can read more about them and subscribe to their podcasts at BasicBrewing.com

Two Guys on Beer – http://www.twoguysonbeer.com

These guys are somewhat local to me, I live in the Reading, PA area and these guys are based in Philadelphia which is only an hour away.  Every episode I have seen has been filmed at National Mechanics, a bar I haven’t been to yet but look forward to checking out.  The episodes are the perfect length.  They are just a few minutes long and give you the content you want, your in and out and have a new beer to hunt down and try.

They are a review show and review a lot of beer I have never heard of.  They do a  good job of describing the beer and the brewery that made it.  They score each beer on a scale of 1 – 100 but most beers are usually in the 80’s and 90’s.    You can check these guys out and subscribe to their podcast by going to TwoGuysOnBeer.com

1. Tim Says:
   January 17th, 2010 at 4:40 pm

   A great list – thanks so much for including us! You should come on up to Vermont some time so you can add some VT beers to your goal list

2. Brian Says:
   January 17th, 2010 at 9:24 pm

   Would love to! My wife and I were actually checking out the Forty Putney Road web site the other day