Barley & Me Ben Rice

Host Ben Rice travels to Sacramento, CA, to sit down with Sacramento Area Brewers Guild president Chris Keeton (head brewer at Alaro) and vice president David Weiss (brewer at Blue Note) to talk about Sacramento Beer Week 2024 (happening April 26-May 5). We discuss this year's iteration of the Rising Together guild collaboration (among other things). In past years, it's been an IPA using certain ingredients, but this year, in honor of the Sacramento Brewers Showcase happening on Saturday May 4 (at Heart Health Park), they're honoring May the 4th Be With You, by letting breweries choose the Light Side or Dark Side, allowing for a wide range of beer styles and flavors, and reminding consumers of the vast array of beers available in the beer scene and what differentiates each brewery. Plus! Taprooms and bars are back in business at Sac Beer Week 2024! Internal strife has diminished that in recent years, but those are the sins of the father, not the current administration, who is working hard to recapture the spirit of Sac Beer Week. This episode is not only a celebration of what Beer Week and the beer scene once was, but an exploration of where it's going and how it will handle a more educated and less alcohol-friendly next generation of consumers. We also shout out some people who keep the scene alive and show that, even when day-to-day excitement may be down, there's still a strong supportive and passionate base of brewers, marketers, and drinkers. David Weiss damn near gets emotional on the episode and Chris shows why he was put in charge in the first place. Sac Beer Week 2024 - it's like Sac Beer Week 2014 all over again!
Find out more about Sac Beer Week 2024 at www.sacramentobeerweek.com or on IG @sacramentobeerweek - Events will be added more and more as the date gets closer
And of course, seek out delicious food and beverages from Alaro Craft Brewery @alarobrewing and from Blue Note Brewing in Woodland @bluenotebrewing
Barley & Me can be found across social media @barleyandmepod. Check out past episodes, show dates, and more, at the newly-revamped barleyandmepod.com
Email questions/comments/concerns/guest ideas/brewery ideas to barleyandmepodcast@gmail.com or barleyandmepod@gmail.com
Ben is also posting #Chugs4Charity videos semi-regularly on Instagram (@barleyandmepod), to help raise funds for various local and national charities with goals of making our world a better place. You can Venmo Ben ($comedianbenrice) or hit his PayPal (@barleyandmepod) and all money will go to support the NAACP, ACLU, Black Lives Matter, and other civil rights helpers. Charities will change with the times and as emergencies arise. But the point is: all donations will go to help those who need it.
Intro Music: “Functional Alcoholism” by Be Brave Bold Robot (@bebraveboldrobot)
Interstitial Music: "JamRoc" by Breez (@breeztheartist)
Logo by Jessica DiMesio (@alchemistqueen)

Host Ben Rice travels to Rancho Cordova, CA, to sit down with the new owner of LogOff Brewing and longtime collaborator Kenny Terry, plus San Diego by way of Seattle by way of Uganda comedian Birungi Birungi. These three new(ish) fathers sit down to discuss parenting techniques, nearly dying while couch surfing, business ownership, and pursuing passions, while also finding time to drink an absolutely fabulous green tea Japanese rice lager and a killer new version of LogOff's Lazy Hazy Days IPA. Plus! Even more strange connections between us all, the oddities of axe throwing, beer pong, perhaps too much about the weather, Pope impersonation, and cramming cookies and cream into a fermenter. All this and so much more, on episode 180 of Barley & Me. Enjoy!
Check out the shenanigans and goings on at LogOff Brewing by following @logoffbrewing
Explore the world with Birungi Birungi on IG @birgunicomedy
Barley & Me can be found across social media @barleyandmepod. Check out past episodes, show dates, and more, at the newly-revamped barleyandmepod.com Email questions/comments/concerns/guest ideas/brewery ideas to  barleyandmepod@gmail.com
Ben is also posting #Chugs4Charity videos semi-regularly on Instagram (@barleyandmepod), to help raise funds for various local and national charities with goals of making our world a better place. You can Venmo Ben ($comedianbenrice) or hit his PayPal (@barleyandmepod) and all money will go to support the NAACP, ACLU, Black Lives Matter, and other civil rights helpers. Charities will change with the times and as emergencies arise. But the point is: all donations will go to help those who need it.
It's now been over a year since Brienne Allen's revelations about the beer industry's treatment of women and minorities. If you have stories about change (or lack thereof), please submit them (anonymously if you wish) and your story may be featured on a future episode. Simply go to https://forms.gle/2QNebCn7NHHjsEbg6
Intro Music: “Functional Alcoholism” by Be Brave Bold Robot (@bebraveboldrobot)
Interstitial Music: "JamRoc" by Breez (@breeztheartist)
Logo by Jessica DiMesio (@alchemistqueen) with interpolation by Thu (@thethumeister)

Host Ben Rice travels to Sacramento, CA, to his favorite midtown bar, The Golden Bear, to recap 2023 over a bucket of Miller High Life (among other things) with friends and comedians Stephen Furey (@scubastevefurey), Emma Haney (@ehaneycomedy), and Alfonso Portela (@fonsitocaballito). We'll discuss the ups and downs of 2023, what we're looking forward to in 2024, and what is going on with Alfonso's head. Plus! Psoriasis, being 86'd, the closing of a hallowed comedy venue, the TikTokification of stand-up, and the worst pipelines in Sacramento. We're looking at a pretty solid 2024, y'all, so get on board. All this and so, so much more, on episode 179 of Barley & Me. Enjoy!
Barley & Me can be found across social media @barleyandmepod.
Don't forget to look for past episodes, upcoming comedy shows, and so much more at barleyandmepod.com
Email questions/comments/concerns/guest ideas/brewery ideas to barleyandmepod@gmail.com
Intro Music: “Functional Alcoholism” by Be Brave Bold Robot (@bebraveboldrobot)
Interstitial Music: "JamRoc" by Breez (@breeztheartist)
Logo by Jessica DiMesio (@alchemistqueen)

Host Ben Rice travels to Sacramento, CA, to pay yet another visit to New Helvetia Brewing. This time, he sits down with current owner Dave Gull to discuss New Helvetia's newly-announced move to a public co-operative model and their recent 11th anniversary (and Ben's secret lineup pop-up show at said anniversary party). While we do get into specifics about what the co-op model means for him, the company, its employees, the city of Sacramento, and potential members, first, we take our sweet-ass time getting there by wishing Dave a happy 50th birthday (because he was kind enough to sit down with me on his birthday), discussing a variety of topics, such as reincarnation, Carl Sagan's Cosmos, Ben's past career in music journalism, Sacramento's odd behavior toward the arts and passion projects, Sacramento history lost to time, capitalism's war on positive change, and that old bugaboo Nationalized Healthcare. Plus! Again, so much detail about what this co-operative is, how it will work, what you can expect and how you can plan for the unexpected if you wish to join the membership, its efforts at equity, hyper-focusing on improving Sacramento while getting it drunk at the same time, and its $300 lifetime membership!
Find out more about this co-op effort and how to get involved (and answers to questions we maybe didn't answer on the episode) or just to see what they've got on tap and available to devour (I WANT TO BE VERY CLEAR HERE: AFTER THIS EPISODE WAS RECORDED, I HAD THE BIRRIA BURGER FROM CHEF NATE SOTO AND IT IS THE BEST BURGER I HAVE EVER HAD AND IS IN THE TOP 10 THINGS I HAVE EATEN OF ANY KIND - TRULY, IF YOU SEE THIS ON SPECIAL, ORDER IT. ORDER IT FOR FRIENDS. BRING SOME HOME FOR LATER. YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED. BIRRIA BURGER. GET IT. GOOD GOODNESS.)
You can also learn more about host Ben Rice's other goings on and the podcast and what beers he's drinking by following him on social media @barleyandmepod or checking out the fairly-current new website, barleyandmepod.com
Email questions/comments/concerns/guest ideas/brewery ideas to barleyandmepodcast@gmail.com or barleyandmepod@gmail.com
Ben is also posting #Chugs4Charity videos semi-regularly on Instagram (@barleyandmepod), to help raise funds for various local and national charities with goals of making our world a better place. You can Venmo Ben ($comedianbenrice) or hit his PayPal (@barleyandmepod) and all money will go to support the NAACP, ACLU, Black Lives Matter, and other civil rights helpers. Charities will change with the times and as emergencies arise. But the point is: all donations will go to help those who need it.
It's now been over a year since Brienne Allen's revelations about the beer industry's treatment of women and minorities. If you have stories about change (or lack thereof), please submit them (anonymously if you wish) and your story may be featured on a future episode. Simply go to https://forms.gle/2QNebCn7NHHjsEbg6
Intro Music: “Functional Alcoholism” by Be Brave Bold Robot (@bebraveboldrobot)
Interstitial Music: "JamRoc" by Breez (@breeztheartist)
Logo by Jessica DiMesio (@alchemistqueen)

Welcome to a brand-new episode of Barley & Me Presents: Leonard Malting, host Ben Rice's beer-centric movie podcast with co-hosts Paulina Olivares & Corky McDonnell.
On this episode, we discuss the new beer documentary One Pint at a Time, with director Aaron Hose and producer Brigitte Hose.
Unfortunately, Corky could not attend the recording due to a family event and Ben had to miss the documentary screening for similar reasons, so Paulina handles this one almost entirely on her own. And does an EXCELLENT job.
One Pint at a Time is a beer documentary focusing on Black beer history, from the invention of beer, early brewing, up to the modern day, where many still see it as odd if a Black person likes, let alone makes, beer. Through discussions with Black brewers and brewery owners, and trips to breweries throughout the world, regardless of ownership, the Hoses try to provide proof to everyone that if you have a dream or a passion, it is worth pursuing.
"We" also discuss energy vampires, correcting ignorance, the documentary festival circuit, the founding of the NB2A (National Black Brewers Association), 25+ years of documentary filmmaking, the first-ever Black beer festival FreshFest, and so much more.
If you have a beer-centric or heavily-beer-involved movie recommendation, let us know and maybe we’ll do this again!
Learn more about One Pint at a Time's scheduling on IG @onepintfilm or at www.onepintfilm.com
Find out more about PBS Sacramento at @pinkbootssacramento on Instagram
Check out Corky’s bad movie podcast on social media @daredanielpod, or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
Barley & Me can be found across social media @barleyandmepod. Be sure to follow us for more info on future Barley & Me Presents! Editions, as we try to tackle music, movies, sports, and more!
Email questions/comments/concerns/Dream Teams to barleyandmepodcast@gmail.com or barleyandmepod@gmail.com
Intro Music: “Functional Alcoholism” by Be Brave Bold Robot (@bebraveboldrobot)
Interstitial Music (not featured in this episode): “JamRoc” by Breez (@breeztheartist)
Logo by Jessica DiMesio (@alchemistqueen)
Thanks so much for listening.

Host Ben Rice travels to Elk Grove, CA, to discuss Sacramento Beer Enthusiasts co-found Steve Hayer's fundraising campaign F Cancer, with Flatland Brewing owner Andrew Mohsenzadegan. Over pints of delicious Flatland beers, we discuss the reason Hayer started this campaign, how you can support it now and in the future, and the 4 F*** Cancer beer collaborations coming to the Sacramento area in October. This campaign goes to support local cancer-fighting charity Albie Aware. You can support by grabbing a collaboration pint at Urban Roots on October 7, at Flatland on October 14, at Claimstake on October 21, and/or at Crooked Lane October 28. Steve will be selling special nucleated glassware at each location as well. We also catch up with Andrew, discussing his COVID-forced expansion, his leading man good looks and charm, and his constant pursuit of perfection. Oh yeah, and did you know if you buy a pint of each beer and a F*** Cancer glass at each location, you will be entered to win a brew day AT Flatland WITH Andrew? Wowowow! What an absolute dream. So sit back and enjoy as we brainstorm ways to fund cancer research and treatment while Ben overexplains pretty much everything, on episode 177 of Barley & Me. FUCK CANCER, now and forever. Enjoy!
Funds from Steve's F*** Cancer event go to Albie Aware - go to albieaware.org to donate or for more information
Check out Steve's beer group, Sacramento Beer Enthusiasts, on Facebook
Find out all about Flatland beers and their new(ish) food program @flatlandbrewing
Barley & Me can be found across social media @barleyandmepod. Check out past episodes, show dates, and more, at the newly-revamped barleyandmepod.com
Email questions/comments/concerns/guest ideas/brewery ideas to barleyandmepodcast@gmail.com or barleyandmepod@gmail.com
Ben is also posting #Chugs4Charity videos semi-regularly on Instagram (@barleyandmepod), to help raise funds for various local and national charities with goals of making our world a better place. You can Venmo Ben ($comedianbenrice) or hit his PayPal (@barleyandmepod) and all money will go to support the NAACP, ACLU, Black Lives Matter, and other civil rights helpers. Charities will change with the times and as emergencies arise. But the point is: all donations will go to help those who need it.
It's now been over a year since Brienne Allen's revelations about the beer industry's treatment of women and minorities. If you have stories about change (or lack thereof), please submit them (anonymously if you wish) and your story may be featured on a future episode. Simply go to https://forms.gle/2QNebCn7NHHjsEbg6
Intro Music: “Functional Alcoholism” by Be Brave Bold Robot (@bebraveboldrobot)
Interstitial Music: "JamRoc" by Breez (@breeztheartist)
Logo by Jessica DiMesio (@alchemistqueen)