TENNESSEE CRAFT BEER MAGAZINE - SUMMER 2018

RAILGARTEN IS #THENEWMEMPHIS

THE

LINUS HALL YAZOO BREWING COMPANY

MUSIC ISSUE

Embrace mb CARNIVAL MUSIC

YOUR INNER

FUNK

SUMMER ISSUE

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DAVE MUSTAINE CALLS TENNESSEE HOME

WHAT’S BE DRINKING

TTER THAN BEER? . . . MAKIN G I T !

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER!

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CONTENTS 18

FEATURE Dave Mustaine 30

ON TAP Good Times at Memphis Railgarten 28 Redneck Riviera 48 Harmaleighs on Mayday 44

RECIPES

28

Hefewitas at Tin Roof 22 Catching Summer Fever 25 Sugar Mama’s 50

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COVER | IN THE ROUND

Derek Hultquist and Jedd Hughes

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ubjects ranging from search for inspiration to the battle between art and commerce are among the many common-ground topics of discussion at the end of a sweaty Tennessee weekday, when the songwriters of Carnival music are joined by Yazoo Brewing Co. founder Linus Hall and Brandon Jones, head of the Nashville flagship Brewery’s sour and wild barrel aging program, for a freewheeling roundtable about the similarities between penning tunes and brewing barley pop.

“In the inspiration you’re talking about for songwriting, and the inspiration for what we try to put into beer, I always look at this sense of place and time,” Jones says, “you can make an alcoholic beverage — that’s super easy. ... But giving people a sense of place and time, that’s what I always try to convey in these beers.”

Cover and corresponding photos shot by Chris Bickford

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CONTENTS | Departments 44

COVER STORY 18 Embrace Your Inner Funk

IN THE MUSIC 22

36 34 42 40

Beer and Music at Little Harpeth The Big Bang of Country Music Make the Pilgrimage King’s of Leon Celebrate Nashville With Revelry

DEPARTMENTS 16 Beer 101 56 Homebrew 38 Travel

SOCIAL PAGES 52 Predator’s Craft Beer Festival 54 Living Local

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MAGAZINE STAFF Que Media Press, LLC. c.e.o and publisher Craig Disque president and c.o.o Didi Rainey editor-in-chief David Wingo copy editor Julie Holt west tennessee associate editor Ryan Guess south tennessee associate editor Tony Giannasi east tennessee associate editor Rob Shomaker director of art layout and design Irika Skeete contributors Andy Brantley, Chris Chamberlain, Tony Giannasi, Adam Gold, Shane Gibbs, Stephanie Gonzalez, Julie Holt, Jeff Hulett, Tony Schmitt, Kent Taylor, Nancy Vienneau, Art Whitaker, Clyde Willis, Pam Windsor photographers Jerry Atnip, Nick Bumgardner, Kati Graham, Jared Hornecker, Brandon Lunday, Bill Seymour, Erin Wilburn, Sean Von Tagen

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EDITOR’S NOTE

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rom Mountain City to Memphis, music and beer flow through the state of Tennessee like water to the Mississippi. In this issue of Tennessee Craft Beer Magazine, we journey those waters westward, through the Tennessee Valley, in search of the confluences of music and beer. Beer and music have always been a great pairing, but we wanted to look deeper into the relationships and artistry among musicians and brewers throughout our great state.

Our voyage begins in Bristol, Tennessee, the Birthplace of Country Music. Tony Schmitt recalls the legendary Bristol Sessions, which many have called “The Single Most Important Event In The History Of Country Music”.

As we venture into the Cumberland River Watershed, we stop along the banks of the Harpeth River where the Pilgrimage Music and Cultural Festival has made a lasting impact on the community. In just a few short years, Pilgrimage Festival has grown exponentially and used its success to give back to the community in many ways. I sat down with Pilgrimage founder W. Brandt Wood to discuss the Pilgrimage Foundation’s growing influence in Williamson County and beyond. Around the next bend in the river, Chris Chamberlain went out on the farm with rock god Dave Mustaine. The Megadeth frontman now calls the Franklin area home and is working on his second collaboration beer with Quebec’s legendary Unibroue brewery.

Photo by Erin Wilburn

In Music City, we hung out with Yazoo Brewing founder Linus Hall and Embrace the Funk’s Brandon Jones along with some outstanding musicians from Carnival Music on Music Row. Craft and collaboration fueled the afternoon and great music and beer were shared in this unique look into the processes that create art and beer. And on the Cumberland River, we visited with Devin Pena to discuss Little Harpeth Brewing’s evolution into a unique music venue and craft brewery combo.

This journey ends on the mighty Mississippi, where new restaurants and breweries are bringing more craft beer options to Home of the Blues and the Birthplace of Rock and Roll. Stephanie Gonzalez takes us to visit Railgarten, an exciting new restaurant and music venue in Midtown.

Cheers!

David T. Wingo Editor-in-Chief

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FEATURE | DAVE MUSTAINE

Dave Mustaine at his Tennessee horse farm

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s a founding member of Metallica and the frontman for the heavy metal band Megadeth, Dave Mustaine has definitely done his share of hard partying. But now, sitting on the back porch of his quiet Williamson County horse farm, it’s apparent that he has mellowed a bit over the years. “I didn’t drink for the taste when I was younger; I drank for the effect. Now I’ve got a new outlook. It’s more about the fact that beer is refreshing and enjoyable.” Mustaine shares this new vision of beer through his own special beer, À Tout Le Monde, a Belgian-style Saison made in collaboration with world-class Canadian craft brewery, Unibroue.

The beer has been extremely well-received, selling millions of bottles since its first release in 2016. À Tout Le Monde has earned two gold medals in the World Beer Championships, awards which Mustaine proudly displays in his office next to his Grammy for the latest Megadeth album.

Corresponding photos shot by Jerry Atnip

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BEER 101:

An Origin Story Written By: Shane Gibbs

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work and the women stayed home, it was again the women who were brewing beer. If you look at our society today, there are quite a few female brewers who absolutely kick ass in what they do.

It appears that in ancient Mesopotamia, people were making beer from fermented barley approximately 7,000 years ago. Around the same time, it is believed ancient Egyptians were fermenting an ale-like beverage as well.

Each culture obviously wasn’t using the same ingredients; the Egyptians used barley, while some used maize and others used wheat or rice.

According to historians, beer may have been brewed in Europe about 5,000 years ago and was enjoyed by the Greeks in 450 B.C. It was believed that the best diet for Greeks consisted of meats, vegetables, bread and beer which coincidentally is a lot like my diet, excluding the veggies.

When we talk about breweries, however, there are a few that have been around for quite some time and are still brewing beer today in much the same way they always have. Weihenstephan Brewery in Germany has been around since the year 1040 and is the oldest brewery in the world. In 1050, Weltenburg Abbey Brewery in Kelheim Germany opened its doors and in 2012 won a gold medal in the World Beer Cup for their Dunkel Lager. Hop on a flight over to Ireland and you can visit Smithwick’s, Ireland’s oldest brewery. They have been in business since 1710, 49 years before Guinness and if you haven’t had it yet, make sure you try their strong ale, one of their most popular beers. Moving a little closer to home, Yuengling in Pottsville, PA has been in business since 1829 and is still family owned to this day.

Yuengling may be the oldest brewery in America, but Molson takes the title for oldest brewery in North America.

Molson Brewing, in Montreal, Canada, was founded in 1786 and is still one of Canada’s most popular beers.

There are others you may have heard of like Stiegl (Austria), Grolsch (Netherlands), Victoria (Mexico) and Three Tuns (England) and many, many others that have paved the way for the incredible craft beer market we have today.

ith the huge hype revolving around superhero movies and prequels, I thought I’d take a step back and give you a different kind of origin story. This story doesn’t have mutants or visitors from other planets but instead is all about the beer. How was it made, who did it, who’s been doing it the longest? No need for 3D glasses, just sit back with a pint and read on my friends.

Since most brewing was done in the home for personal consumption, the primary brewers were women, and in 2500 B.C. it was even brewed by priestesses for religious ceremonies. In more recent times (a few decades ago), when men would leave for

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Derek Hultquist and Brandon Jones

IN THE ROUNDS

YAZOO BREWING AND CARNIVAL MUSIC FIND COMMON GROUND AT THE MUSIC ROW BEER SUMMIT WRITTEN BY: ADAM GOLD

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ne thing songwriters Marla Cannon-Goodman, Derik Hultquist, Jedd Hughes, Mando Saenz and Hailey Whitters — five of the flagship tunesmiths on the roster of the independent Nashville publishing company — can agree on is that their office is an anomaly on Music Row. With walls covered in chalkboard paint, and quirky touches like vintage episodes of Gunsmoke or Hee Haw rolling on flat screens in the background for inspiration, the office’s dedicated bar / art studio / common space, a sitcom-like incubator of lyrics and melodies, where the songwriters congregate in is anything but antiseptic.

Hultquist says having a place to go to write that isn’t his living room in his pajamas inspires a more creative mindset.

“And we’ve got a killer snack game here,” Whitters adds with a laugh, noting there’s also plenty of free booze on hand to loosen screws and help make musical water cooler moments happen.

Cannon-Goodman, the writer behind punch-drunk country radio hits the likes of Tracy Byrd’s 2002 Billboard country Number One “Ten Rounds with Jose Cuervo,” says she comes up with most of her best song ideas on the drive into the office. “I think it’s the anticipation of going in to write that sparks something in me,” she explains. It’s downright impossible to imagine where country music would be without alcohol.

That, along with subjects ranging from search for inspiration to the battle between art and commerce, is among the many common-ground topics of discussion at the end of a sweaty Tennessee weekday, when these songwriters are joined by Yazoo Brewing Co. founder Linus Hall and Brandon Jones, head of the Nashville flagship Brewery’s sour and wild barrel aging program, for a freewheeling roundtable about the similarities between penning tunes and brewing barley pop. “So you started Yazoo?” Saenz, who’s landed cuts with the likes of Lee Ann Womack, Whiskey Myers and Eli Young band, says to Hall.

“That’s heavy, man.” Hall caught the brewing bug while growing up in Mississippi, after seeing a friend’s pot growing operation.

Being a more law-abiding type, he took that inspiration to the less green (but more legal) pastures of brewing beer. Later, long before brewing beer (or Nashville, for that matter) was hip, Hall found himself living in Nashville, married, working as a tire engineer for Bridgestone, and home brewing as a hobby. He gained a reputation for giving away great beer, and eventually quit his job to start selling it. Fifteen years after founding Yazoo with his wife, Lila Hall, the brewery rolls out somewhere in the neighborhood of 25,000 barrels a year.

As the hours go on, empties take up more and more real estate on the coffee table, and the talk over the sounds of popping tops and clanging Yazoo bottles only gets more real, like how when it comes to spiking lyrics with booze references, the rule is often liquor before beer. “Beer doesn’t sing as good as whiskey does,” Saenz says with a quiet, matter-of-fact Texas rasp. “Beer’s not as sad as whiskey,” offers Cannon-Goodman. “It’s hard to get in as much trouble with beer as it is with whiskey,” singer-songwriter Hultquist adds. Nevertheless, Jones relates to the musical artistic process when it comes to distilling and bottling the slices of life he sees, smells and hears in daily life for Yazoo batches big and small.

“In the inspiration you’re talking about for songwriting, and the inspiration for what we try to put into beer, I always look at this sense of place and time,” Jones says, mentioning Cannon-Goodman’s creatively productive commutes to work. “You can make an alcoholic beverage — that’s super easy. … But giving people a sense of place and time, that’s what I always try to convey in these beers.” Whitters wants to know how Hall and Jones come up with some of the more colorful names in Yazoo’s brown bottle portfolio, like Sly Rye Porter and Embrace the Funk. Much of the inspiration comes from Nineties hip-hop, Jones admits. “It’s just ridiculous stuff that I think up, and like, ‘we should do one-off kegs of these things,’ and go with it,” he explains, noting how one recent spit-balling session between himself and Hall yielded a series of beers called “Ramblings of a Madman.”

Hughes, a South Australia native who has collaborated with heavy hitters like Emmylou Harris, Rodney Crowell and Sheryl Crow, says that’s not unlike the perennial creative clambake that is the Carnival offices. “A lot of times you’ll be out of ideas and hope that somebody else has one,” he says. “And then a lot of times [one] will come from conversation and somebody will spark something.”

The organic simplicity of that process might seem demystifying for industry outsiders who’ve gotten their ideas of how the Music Row sausage is made from the hit (but soon to end) nighttime soap opera Nashville. “I’ve had one cut come out of The Bluebird [Café],” Cannon-Goodman says of the famed hole-in-the-wall writers’ haunt that’s been a fixture of the show, where the tunesmiths behind many of country music’s biggest hits now often find themselves playing for a room packed with tourists who think they’re hearing cover song performances.

Cannon-Goodman recalls one night at The Bluebird when she watched songwriter Kendell Marvel poll the crowd for tourists, asking how many were from out of town, and have seen the show Nashville, before joking, “Well just so you know, Chip Esten ain’t gonna just walk in off the street and sit at the end of the bar.” And from behind she heard the Nashville star, beloved for his role as irascible songwriter and guitarist Deacon Claiborne, turn around and say, “I’m sitting here now.” “[Nashville] is extremely competitive,” Hultquist muses, “probably even more so now than ever because of that TV show, and because of the popularity of this town and it being ‘It City’.

There’s probably 19 [songwriters] getting off the bus right now.” Jones says that while Nashville’s ever-rising profile as a cultural citadel has brought Yazoo a host of upstart local craft breweries to compete with, it’s also given the city a more sophisticated collective palate. “Nashville is growing up quite a bit in what I do,” he says. “Nashville’s definitely been in the beer scene within the past, you know, five, six, seven, eight years.

Definitely they’re embracing really bitter IPAs, really hoppy floral IPAs. Now we’ve brought them into this whole thing that’s not PBR, and we’ve got all these other amazing characters and stouts and smoked beers. Now we’re going to bring them further through the doors, to this other place where only maybe one percent of the other [cities] are.”

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“One thing that irks me is this fine balance between novelty and precedent,” Hultquist says of the Music City’s trend-chasing songwriters. they know the framework that you typically [have] — especially country, is very formulaic — the [song] structures, like ‘this is what a song should sound like,’ and you’re constantly using something that already exists as your template. Best case scenario, you’re going get a worse version of something that already exists.” Hughes says Carnival doesn’t play that game. “I think Carnival has always been driven by songs, stories and the narrative and the lyric, and not about programming the most popular beat and chasing trends,” he says. “It’s very much a curated selection of people that really care about the craft of the song.”

Hall, when asked by Whitters how often he and Jones are torn between brewing beers they want to drink and beers they think will sell, says Yazoo has a similar philosophy to Carnival in terms of prioritizing taste over the finicky nature of trendfollowing consumers. Hall explains, “we’ve kind of gotten to the scale where, the fun thing that Brandon does is there are big bottles sometimes that command a higher price — they’re [for] more of a niche audience — but if we [have] an idea we’re really thinking we want to take into our two- or three-state network, then we run into, ‘How is this going to hit Main Street?’ … How are we going to get it onto enough shelves that we can make a big batch of it without dumbing down what we love about it in the first place?”

“That’s how we feel, too!” Whitters exclaims. Jones also draws a parallel between balancing what’s topping country music charts and how trend-conscious gatekeepers in beerland determine what bottles make it onto market shelves or into bar taps. “They don’t always have the public in mind,” he explains, saying he wonders if the songwriters ever feel encumbered by the same challenge. “I don’t,” Cannon-Goodman says. “Because I want every song I write to be better than the one I wrote the day before.” “I’d be lying if I said that stuff doesn’t cross my mind all the time,” Whitters concedes. “It’s really hard to find that balance of, ‘Well, I want to get a cut because I need to get some money or I’m going to get dropped, or do I just try and write the best thing that I possibly can?’ That being said, anytime I’ve ever gotten a song cut, it was because I was doing that.”

Hall and Jones can relate. As Jones explains: “You can have a great beer, but it’s really hard to get it to a massive audience if you’re not meeting with Kroger or you’re meeting with all these buyers, and they have all this national scan data, and how do you fit in to all that? They don’t care what the beer tastes like; they care what style it is and what marketing you’re going to put behind it.”

As this hangout winds down, the five songwriters, perhaps riding high on liquid courage, start passing around guitars along with their gratis bottles of Yazoo. Saenz opts to strum and sing

Emily Schiraldi Furman, Hailey Whitters, and Brandon Jones

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his song “Pittsburgh,” an uncut nugget he played for Carnival co-founder Frank Liddell at their first meeting more than a decade ago. Hultquist brings the room to pin-prick silence, strumming on heartstrings with a new song called “Joan of Arc,” a ballad about a small town girl dying in a fiery car crash just as she was fixing to bust out.

Whitters lightens the mood with a rendition of her breezy Little Big Town cut “Happy People.” But, after watching Cannon-Goodman sing the 1997 classic she wrote for Lee Ann Womack, “The Fool,” with Hughes accompanying her on acoustic guitar, the beer-brewing interlopers in the room get a taste of the spontaneous moments of collaboration that are commonplace at Carnival, when the pair start woodshedding a beer song, inspired by the day’s summit, about how “just one always turns into one more.”

For Hall, the barely gestating song triggers memories of getting stuck in bars in his early days hawking Yazoo DIY style, trying to make the day’s last sale, with his wife and newborn baby at home. Yazoo, like Nashville and its cream-of-crop tunesmiths, have a come a long way since then.

Mando Sanz

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TIN ROOF BROADWAY:

A Live Music Joint Written By: Nancy Vienneau

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onky-Tonks abound on lower Broad, and we’re drawn to the laid-back vibe of the Tin Roof, housed in the former Hatch Show Print building. Plenty of history in those walls! More than a tourist hang, it’s home to a community of regulars— musicians and patrons alike. There’s always live music at one of the two stages, a respectable selection of brews, plenty of good eats to balance out all those brews and folks as friendly as Hunter to take care you. As stated on the website, “our stages have hosted the famous, the shoulda-been famous, and everyone in between.”

There’s a Happy Hour from 3pm-7pm every day except Saturday, featuring $5 craft drafts, which include Johnson City’s Yeehaw IPA, Yazoo Hefeweizen, and Mantra Saffron IPA. In bottles and cans, look for local favorites Blackstone Hopjack, Mantra Battleground Ale, Yazoo Pale Ale, Tn Brew Works Southern Wit, Black Abbey Rose, and Little Harpeth Chicken Scratch.

For tasty small bites, try the Dixie Biscuits. The trio of slider-sized rounds comes stuffed with brisket, bacon, cheddar and peach jam. The Texas-style grilled sausage and cheese plate is another great one to share. And, the Tin Roof kitchen turns out its own version of Nashville Hot Chicken, crispy cayenne-doused tenders with white bread and pickles. Add a side of barbecued beans and creamy mac-cheese and make a meal of it.

UP AND COMING Hunter Tynan Davis’ story begins like many Music City stories: an aspiring songwriter steps off the safe path to follow his dream in Nashville. Seven years at it, his story is still unfolding as Hunter finds himself on the brink of success. There’s considerable buzz surrounding the recent releases of his two singles:

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“God Broke the Mold” and “Two Hippies at Heart,”teasers leading up to the fall debut of his first album, produced by the eminent Ken Coomer. (A fine drummer and founding member of Wilco, Coomer has worked with greats such as Steve Earl and Emmy Lou Harris and produced Nashville’s own Will Hoge.)

In getting there, this self-proclaimed Texas singer-songrocker has learned to take the long view. “I was told it’s a ten year town,” he says, with a wry smile. “You’ve got to build equity in your endeavors.”

Hailing from Groves (near Beaumont and Port Arthur,) he first came to Nashville in 2011 to attend Tennessee State University before choosing to commit to a life of music. It wasn’t easy navigating those uncertain waters, but he found a second home at Tin Roof Broadway. Working there, first in security, then as bartender, Hunter became part of the Tin Roof family, which fostered many connections and opened many doors.

“My career would have taken a different turn had I not come here.” His music is Americana, with intuitive ballads like those of Jackson Browne, balanced by an embrace of his bluesy Texas roots and love of rock and roll.

“I was pretty much raised on Tom Petty,” he says.

When he’s not writing or performing, Hunter’s behind the Tin Roof bar, serving up brews with speed and a winning smile. We asked him to give us a recipe for his favorite summertime beer cocktail. He’s put together just the right thing to sip on the back porch and rock away a lazy afternoon.

HUNTER’S HEFEWITA

In creating this cocktail—a beer/margarita meld---Hunter likes to use Yazoo’s Hefeweizen.

The wheat-based Bavarian style brew imparts refreshing notes of citrus, banana and cloves, and smoothes out any rough Tequila edges.

And, notes Hunter, it’s foolproof.

INGREDIENTS • 1.5 ounces top-shelf Tequila (Hunter uses Casamigos Blanco) • .5 ounces Triple Sec • 2-2.5 ounces Margarita Mix (Hunter uses Tres Agaves Organic) • 2 limes, juiced; plus another lime for garnish • 2 pinches salt (plus more to line the rim), ice • 10-12 ounces Yazoo Hefeweizen

PREPARATION • •

In an ice-filled shaker, pour in tequila, triple sec, margarita mix, lime juice and salt.

Shake vigorously. Pour into a chilled glass with its rime lined with salt. Top off with Hefeweizen. Give it a swirl. Garnish with a slice of fresh lime and serve.

ALL THE SUMMER VIBES. # D RINK TRE E S

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CATCHING SUMMER FEVER FOOD AND BEER, RECIPES AND PAIRINGS Written By: Nancy Vienneau

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imberly Schlapman, co-founder of the award-winning country music band, Little Big Town, is pretty sure she’s been cooking as long as she’s been singing. Both passions rooted in her north Georgia childhood, Kimberly is as comfortable in the kitchen as she is on the stage.

Heritage and harmonies form the foundation of her recipes and the band’s songs.

In her cookbook, “Oh Gussie! Cooking and Visiting in Kimberly’s Southern Kitchen”, she shares her favorites, a wealth of Southern inspired dishes drawn from her family, friends, and music---at home and on the road.

In the spirit of Little Big Town’s latest single, “Summer Fever,” we’re sharing two of those recipes, with beer pairings, of course. We love the song’s lyrics, which speak to a nostalgia for the best of summers past: “We’re ‘bout to float that Malibu, With that barefoot attitude, With that slow jam mixtape playing…Over and over again, catching summer fever.”

Between Kimberly’s food, Little Big Town’s tunes and some cool summer brews, let’s catch it.

Her Slow Cooker Chicken Quesadillas are packed with flavor and ideal for breezy summer cooking. Start by placing everything from chicken to chilis into the slow cooker set on low and let it do the work, while keeping the kitchen cool. Hours later, you’ve got pull-apart tender meat in a rich sauce studded with diced avocado and corn. Spread over your tortillas, add shredded cheese, griddle and eat. To accompany, our friends at Bounty Bev recommend either Unfiltered Wheat or American Kolsch both by Boulevard Brewing Company. The former, Boulevard’s most popular, pours hazy as a summer afternoon, but delivers a clean citrusy taste that is wake-up refreshing. The latter is a Koln-style golden ale, distinctive for its honeyed malt sweetness, bready aromatics, all fine tuned by Magnum lemony herbal hops.

There’s nothing like the juicy nectar of Georgia peaches--it sings of summer---and Kimberly’s Georgia Peach Salsa captures that essence. You’ll want to keep it on hand all summer long. Like any salsa, it’s terrific with chips, but Kimberly recommends spooning it over a piece of grilled fish, or serving it alongside her Slow Cooker Chicken Quesadillas.

However you enjoy her zingy peach salsa, the Bounty Bev dudes are all about Dogfish Head to imbibe with it. DH’s Festina Peche, a neo-Berliner Weisse made with fermented peach juice is a natural. And we’ve just learned about Dogfish Head’s Sea Quench Ale Session Sour. The can reads “Blissfully brewed with lime juice, lime peel, black limes, sea salt.” The R&D says this is intentionally brewed to be the most thirst-quenching beer ever.

Little Big Town is all about Day Drinking (“Don’t want to wait ‘til the sun’s sinking.”) and Sea Quench is a summer day drinking contender. You can count on it to hydrate you, while you’ll relish its tartness and the lingering of sea salt on your tongue.

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RECIPES

from “Oh Gussie! Cooking and Visiting in Kimberly’s Kitchen”,

by Kimberly Schlapman

Cut the quesadillas into wedges.

Serve with salsa and sour cream.

SLOW COOKER CHICKEN QUESADILLAS

Makes 8 servings

• • • • • • • • • • • • •

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for brushing 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts 1 cup thinly sliced onion 1 14-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, crushed with your hands 1 7-ounce corn kernels, drained and rinsed (or 1 cup frozen baby corn kernels) 2 jalapenos, seeded and minced ( Want it more fiery? Add the seeds!)

1 avocado, diced small 8 ounces cream cheese 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 4 8-inch tortillas 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese Salsa and sour cream, for serving

Pour olive oil into a slow cooker. Add the chicken, onions, tomatoes and their juices, corn, jalapenos, avocado and cream cheese. Cover and cook on high setting 3-4 hours, or low setting 6-8 hours.

Remove the chicken and shred with two forks. Stir in the cilantro, mixing well to coat the chicken with the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet or griddle on medium-high heat. Sprinkle the cheese on half of the tortilla. Top with shredded chicken mixture, then more cheese. Fold over and brush olive oil on both sides. Place in the pan and cook 3-4 minutes per side, until the quesadilla is crispy and the cheese is melted.

Repeat with remaining tortillas.

GEORGIA PEACH SALSA • • • • • • •

4 ripe peaches, peeled, pitted and cut into small dice ½ cup finely diced red bell pepper ¼ cup minced red onion 1 jalapeno, seeded and minced 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro juice of one lime salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Let the salsa sit for 30 minutes to let the flavors before serving.

Makes 4 cups

Credits:

“Oh Gussie! Cooking and Visiting in Kimberly’s Southern Kitchen” by Kimberly Schlapman with Martha Foose William Morrow Cookbooks, April 2015 “Summer Fever” written by Jesse Frasure, Cary Barlowe, Sam Romans, Karen Fairchild Released June 6, 2018 “Day Drinking” written by Troy Verges, Barry Dean, Jimi Westbrook, Karen Fairchild, Phillip Sweet Released June 2014

GOOD TIMES ON TRACK AT MEMPHIS’ RAILGARTEN | Written By: Stephanie Gonzalez

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rom the street, Railgarten is unassuming, with almost a strip mall quality; the two buildings visible from the street used to house a martial arts studio and a junk store. It’s once you step through the back that you realize the breadth of this space set in the heart of Midtown Memphis.

There’s a volleyball court, an ice cream parlor, a diner, an outdoor stage, a children’s playground, a tiki bar and a large room that features not only a second music stage but also a full-service bar and ping-pong tables. These seemingly disparate components are tied together with an aesthetic that truly encompasses Memphis, sitting the old right in with the new and adding some grit for flavor.

stage. The existing environment played a huge hand in the end concept of the bar, Hample said.

Railgarten opened in Spring 2017 to a lot of curiosity about the space and what the owners had created. Although, they might have come out of curiosity the place is packed every weekend thanks to the reputation it’s earning as a Memphis live music heavy hitter. The venue books bands for the outdoor stage

The ice house became a tiki bar and influenced the creation of the ice cream parlor. The train tracks are now hidden behind shipping containers that, in addition to creating a boundary for the property, also serve as its outdoor music

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Food favorites include Cheese Curds, Duck Fat Sriracha Fries and the Korean Crispy Chicken Sandwich, topped with kimchi. Although Railgarten has a full bar, beer is the biggest drink seller, said Mary Oglesby, beverage director for Railgarten’s restaurant group. Drafts reflect solid Memphis choices, often including Memphis Made’s Fireside, a well-balanced and accessible amber, and Wiseacre’s Tiny Bomb, the go-to local pilsner in Memphis.

This might be the place to step outside of the beer comfort zone though and go for a mixed drink. After beer, Railgarten’s next biggest selling beverage category is of the frozen variety, including the perfect summer brunch “frosé.”

But why stop there when you have a whole tiki bar to explore?

The restaurant group that started Railgarten is behind two other spaces in Memphis—Rec Room and Loflin Yard.

Like Railgarten, both are built around the bones of old, unwanted and nearly forgotten, industrial space.

“Our business model is to identify blighted properties with potential to be transformed into new urban entertainment venues,” said Martha Hample, one of the group’s partners. “In some cases, the site informs the idea. In the case of Railgarten, we knew we wanted to use industrial materials to complement the existing buildings, one of which was an operating ice house at one time, and to fit in with the operating train tracks right behind the property.”

a multi-faceted venue to bring the community together. That comes through in the selection of bands—everything from rap to bluegrass to rock, including local and touring bands—as well as the food and drink menus.

when weather permits, setting up fire pits in the winter. The idea of a storage container stage might seem strange, but it just works, said Kevin Cubbins, Railgarten’s music supervisor.

“Just by sheer dumb luck, the stage happens to sound great. It really projects, so bands are able to play at a low volume and fill up the yard,” he said. “In most cases, you’re fighting acoustics but not here, and it has great vibe. It’s a great place to see a show.”

Hample said they created Railgarten as

Oglesby worked in a tiki bar in Milwaukee for several years and was excited when the Railgarten owners said they wanted to try the concept in Memphis. She “loves classic tiki everything,” and it shows. The small tiki bar packs a big punch in both ambience and tropical flavors, with classics like Mai Tai, Singapore Sling, Blue Hawaiian, and a house original called the Carnivale Cooler that is made with Cachaca.

“We continue to add to the property, adapt our space, food, cocktail and entertainment options,” Hample said of the bar’s future. “We intend to continue to adapt and change as does our city and our clientele to give everyone the most engaging experience possible.”

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DAVE MUSTAINE Written By: Chris Chamberlain

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s a founding member of Metallica and the frontman for the heavy metal band Megadeth, Dave Mustaine has definitely done his share of hard partying. But now, sitting on the back porch of his quiet Williamson County horse farm, it’s apparent that he has mellowed a bit over the years. “I didn’t drink for the taste when I was younger; I drank for the effect. Now I’ve got a new outlook. It’s more about the fact that beer is refreshing and enjoyable.” Mustaine shares this new vision of beer through his own special beer, À Tout Le Monde, a Belgian-style Saison made in collaboration with world-class Canadian craft brewery, Unibroue.

Mustaine has come to Tennessee many times through the years to record and write with local musicians, but now he officially calls Franklin home. He moved his family here when his daughter decided to pursue a country music career. Even

though she has changed her mind and moved LA to sing pop music, the rest of the Mustaine clan has taken to the country life. “I’m glad she made up her mind and is following her heart.

The rest of the family fly back and forth from California, but I prefer to stay here when I’m not on tour. I like the pace of life here; it’s good for my blood pressure. I especially love the weekends when people stay home. It’s obvious that family matters around here, because there’s no one out on the road.”

The manor life fits Mustaine quite nicely. “I don’t drink much anymore. When I do, it’s usually beer or sweet tea.” He hosts a weekly internet radio show on Gimme Radio where he interacts with his fans via chat rooms while he spins music. “I always have two beers during the show. I can tell when I don’t because I don’t have the same energy. And if I had more than two beers, I couldn’t keep up with the typing when I chat with the listeners.” À Tout Le Monde isn’t Mustaine’s first foray into the world of alcohol. A few years back, he played a show with the San Diego Symphony. “I wondered how to get to the classical music fans, how to loosen them up a little bit. We needed some social lubricant in a bottle, so I had a special cabernet sauvignon made for the show, and we sold out in 48 hours.” He followed that up with a release of syrah, and has expanded his line of wines to several award-winning varieties sourced from around the globe and from his own Southern California vineyard.

“But during the day, I don’t want wine,” he explains. “I want a beer!” During a concert stop in Quebec, his management arranged a visit with some of the brewers from Unibroue. He had considered using another small brewery to produce his first beer, but decided he needed access to distribution with a global reach. “These guys in Quebec knew my family had a French origin and that we had immigrated from Ontario to Ohio.

I asked them to stick around after the show, and we started to taste through some of their beers.”

The tasting proved a bit frustrating for Mustaine at first. “I’d try one and say that I liked it and they’d say, ‘You can’t have that one.’ Then I’d try another, and they would say the same thing. When I tried what would become À Tout Le Monde, it was a no-brainer. I didn’t even know what a Saison was, but I picked it strictly on the palate.”

Even though it was Mustaine that chose the beer, he wasn’t just thinking of himself. “I wanted something that our fans would like. I still believe in being responsible about drinking, so I wanted something with less alcohol. Saison has an ABV wheelhouse where it tastes best, so it worked out great that it has a little less alcohol (4.5%) To me, it’s refreshing, not overbearing. It’s what the monks brewed during the winter so they’d have something to drink in the summer.”

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Dave Mustaine photographed at his Tennessee home by Jerry Atnip

Mustaine isn’t big on flowery descriptions of his beer. “All those tasting notes, they’re like leading the witness. Somebody said it has notes of mango, and that really worried me because I’m allergic to mangoes! I don’t obsess over descriptors. I just like that I can drink a couple of beers and not get hammered!”

Then there was the matter of the beer’s name. “À Tout Le Monde” is the title of a popular song of the Megadeth album Youthanasia, and literally means “to all the world.” Mustaine wrote it after a dream where his late mother came to him to say some things she’d been meaning to tell him. “If my mom could say one more thing, I hope it would be ‘I loved you all.’ It’s the perfect message for our fans.”

The beer has been extremely well-received, selling millions of bottles since its first release in 2016. À Tout Le Monde has earned two gold medals in the World Beer Championships, awards which Mustaine proudly displays in his office next to his Grammy for the latest Megadeth album. “I love seeing my partners succeed. It seems we were meant to be friends because we just get together and drink beer. I’ve visited the brewery during brewing, and I had a remote conference with the to thank the employees for the success. I’m not lacking in gratitude.”

Mustaine and Unibroue already have plans for a second collaboration sometime in the next year, and the recipe has already been chosen. Now about the name… “We thought we had a good name picked out for the next beer. One of the prerequisites is that it has to be in French, and that it has to translate to the same name in English. It turns out all the good beer names are already gone. I have other songs with lyrics in French, and even those were taken! It needs to be as strong as À Tout Le Monde, but I won’t title a new song just to have a good beer name.”

Other future products on the horizon include plans for a craft beer and heavy metal music festival, and Mustaine’s first crack at the world of alcoholic spirits. “I like YeeHaw beer and I met the folks at Ole Smokey through them, so we’re planning to do some sort of project together. I don’t drink a lot of whiskey or know much about the spirits industry, but I wouldn’t mind trying a bottle of that Paddy Winklestein or whatever it is.”

Mustaine is always writing and recording music and is planning to head out on tour with Megadeth again soon, but in the meantime he’s enjoying the restaurant scene around Franklin.

“Red Pony has a great steak, and I really like Cork & Cow, but it’s hard to get in there. Puckett’s is one of my favorites, and their double cheeseburger is one of the best in the world. I just wish they sold my damned beer!”

In good time, Mr. Mustaine. With the success of À Tout Le Monde and the anticipation of the next release, maybe they will soon.

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THE BIG BANG OF COUNTRY MUSIC Written By: Tony Schmitt

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f you had picked up the Sunday paper in Bristol, Tennessee on July 24th, 1927, you might have noticed this advertisement:

“The Victor company will have a recording machine in Bristol for ten days beginning Monday, to record records.

Inquire at our store.”

The musicians who responded to that advertisement would take part in a now world-famous recording known as the Bristol Sessions. Johnny Cash would later refer to those recordings as “the single most important event in the history of Country Music”.

In the summer of 1927, a record producer by the name of Ralph Peer came to East Tennessee looking to record some of the musicians of the region. A few years earlier, The RCA Okeh Record Company had pioneered the recording of old-time music with Fiddlin’ John Carson of Georgia. The Victor record company was looking to enhance their catalog with more Appalachian sounds, and lured Peer away from Okeh to work

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with them. He would end up recording 19 performers and performing groups for a total of 75 songs. Bristol was a key location for Peer as it provided a central mountain city close to five states (Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Kentucky, and West Virginia) and the musicians within them. The songs recorded reflected the cultures of the area and would be collectively referred to as “hillbilly music”, much to the chagrin of the local population. The Appalachian folk songs and religious inspired music of the area would eventually develop into bluegrass and country music genres.

The Bristol sessions featured the first recordings of Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family. The sessions initiated the careers of these musicians and brought country music to the mainstream. Jimmie Rodgers, also known as the “Father of Country Music” became a household name, and the Carter Family followed suit, known as “The First Family of Country Music” In 1998 the United States Congress officially designated Bristol TN/VA as the

“Birthplace of Country Music”. On August 1, 2014 the Birthplace of Country Music Museum opened in Bristol. The museum is an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, spanning two floors in the Goodpasture building, which was built in 1927. Besides the main exhibits, the Museum also houses a large space for rotating special exhibits, a 100-seat performance theatre, and a radio station.

The core exhibits focus on interactive experiences, and contain various artifacts related to the 1927 Bristol Sessions.

Several attributes of the museum illustrate its thoroughness and attention to detail. For instance, the wooden floors in the gift shop are sourced from the same curly maple wood used to make Gibson guitars. Although most museums use Helvetica or Times Roman, neither of those fonts had been developed by 1927. The designers settled on Century Schoolbook, inspired by the Victor Talking Machine Company and labels from the 1927 records. They also use the Futura font, which was designed in 1927. The paint and color scheme for the exhibits were both inspired by

the colors and textures of American quilt making, which often included clothes and blankets of the makers family, in addition to flour sacks with labels. All these details make the museum more than just a collection of events and items. You’re literally walking through the history of the area.

Bristol also hosts an award winning annual music festival. Beginning in 2001, The Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion has been a part of the Birthplace of Country Music organization since 2012. The third weekend in September, the festival hosts over 130 bands on 20 stages in downtown Bristol. Approximately 45,000 people attend each year, bringing in $16.1 million in tourism revenue.

Mom’s on the Road Again... ...this time she’s got bling

It’s not often you can see such a specific example of the beginning of an art form. A trip to Bristol can be just that with a visit to the Birthplace of Country Music. Bristol is a thriving community, and there’s even more to visit, including some great breweries (see side bars), the Bristol Speedway, and the Tennessee Virginia state line, which runs right down the middle of Main Street!

The Birthplace of Country Music Museum is located at 520 Birthplace of Country Music Way Bristol, VA 24201 www.Birthplaceofcountrymusic.org They are closed on Mondays.

Breweries to Visit: Studio Brew:

Located across from Cumberland square park in Bristol, Virginia, Studio Brew boasts and amazing two-story location, robust menu and award-winning beers, including a silver at the renowned great American beer festival.

With beers ranging from light lagers to intense Belgian inspired brews, you’ll find something you love and a great dish to pair it with. Live music is often common occurrence here.

They’ve got it all!

Holston River Brewing Co:

In Bristol, Tennessee we find Holston River Brewing company. Voted Bristol’s best brewery in 2016, they showcase 12 taps of their own craft beer. This brewery doubles as a camp site, sitting on 138 acres of beautiful landscape. They feature a full restaurant, and every weekend they have live music. Looking to find out how beer is made? Friday and Saturday from 5-7pm they offer brewery tours.

Say When Resinator Series: IPA Sin Tax Imp. PB Stout Boo Koo Mosaic IPA Cali Creamin’ Vanilla Cream Ale

Award-winning beers, now available in Middle and Eastern Tennessee.

Visit findmotherearthbrewing.com to find it near you.

LITTLE HARPETH BREWING TRANSFORMS INTO A LIVE MUSIC VENUE Written By: Mark Crowe

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usic City, the adopted moniker for Nashville, says it all and Little Harpeth is doing their part to create a connection between their taproom at the 30 Oldham Street facility to Nashville’s oft used nickname.

We sat down with Devin Pena, the booking and special events manager at LHB. Devin was hired to turn Little Harpeth Brewing into a top notch event space. We asked Devin to talk about their current and future vision for the taproom. Yep, That’s right! Brewery and Music Event Space!! Devin’s first words were “we have a bigger space than many other music venues in town that draw national acts but we can offer hand crafted beer brewed right here”. ‘Our goal with Little Harpeth was to get the taproom known for its music offerings as well as our beer, and once that gets legs (Or I’d like to think BIGGER legs), expand our offerings and shoot for the moon.” The Taproom already offers music most nights and every weekend.

So Let’s re-wind: Brewery: Check; Taproom: Check; Event Space: Check; Outdoor Event Space: Check! What Little Harpeth has done is taken the music aspect of the taproom to new levels. While many taprooms incorporate music into their space as an accessory to the beer and the taproom, Little

Harpeth took the approach to make the music a highlight of the taproom to work in harmony with the beer offerings, so the customer can enjoy both at the same time.

Little Harpeth is exposing their products to an ever-growing audience with each passing concert, event, or festival. So as the exposure to both the music events and to the different varieties of beer grows… so do their fans and so do the list of artists Devin wants to bring in, so hold on tight this is gonna get fun! Be sure to check the ever-changing event page at www. littleharpethbrewing.com.

So here we are again talking about Music and Beer, Beer and Music, together they are one hell of a combo. Get that brain working, find your favorite beer drinking shirt that pairs well with your best dancing shoes and head to Little Harpeth Brewing. Grab a great beer, sit back, (or dance like there is no tomorrow) and enjoy the synergy between the two.

Kinda makes you go Hmmmm, doesn’t it? Well in our case is more like Mmmmm!

Cheers and play another tune!

Photographed by Kati Graham

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Pilsner beer originated in the town of Plzen (Pilsen) in 1842. By the end of the 19th century, the popularity of Czech pilsner beer spread throughout Europe and to the U.S. In 1897, pilsner was the beer of choice at the TN Centennial Exposition, celebrating the state’s 100th anniversary.

1897 Pilsner is a traditional Czech pilsner brewed in the traditional Bohemian fashion using pilsner malt and Saaz hops.

ABV: 5% IBU: 32

1897 PILSNER

This 1897 painting of Nashville’s Parthenon was used to advertise the TN Centennial Exposition (now Centennial Park)

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YOU’LL FIND SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY AT LIQUOR EXPRESS | Written By: Helen W. Brown

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pen for an impressive 25 years, Liquor Express is “the largest beer, wine, and spirits store in Alabama,” and certainly makes the community of Huntsville very proud.

Since moving to Huntsville three years ago, I have observed the city’s rapid growth. It is quite special to see growth of not only the city, but also the various styles of craft beer filling glasses and warming hearts. Liquor Express has certainly welcomed a growing community with a growing beer (and wine, and liquor) selection. There are around 105 kegs of craft beer and approximately 1800 beers to choose from in total. In addition to the many craft beer choices, there are also wine racks stocked with prestige wines that can be popped, poured and corked on site.

Indeed, something for everyone!

Liquor Express is on the Downtown Huntsville Craft Beer Trail, a series of restaurants and tasting rooms where you can taste a variety of beer and wines. Other establishments on the Trail include Church Street Wine Shoppe, Old Town Beer Exchange (OTBX), and Wish You Were Beer. Each location has something unique, and it is inevitable that you will find which establishment has something just for you, perhaps something special that will keep you endorsing the Downtown, Huntsville brew movement. It is a must see on the agenda for the weekend and has something for everyone.

For More Information Please Visit:

“In addition to the great breweries on the Trail, the craft beer store segment includes four of the most unique craft beer retailers in Alabama. From a wine shop focusing on high gravity craft beers to 3 stores with nearly 200 taps between them, the Trail’s Craft Beer Store segment is a permanent beer-fest just waiting to be experienced in Downtown Huntsville,” says Chad Emerson, CEO of Downtown Huntsville, Inc. A great beer pairs best with great company, and I was not disappointed in either during my first visit to Liquor Express, where my initial impression of the craft beer selection and knowledge far surpassed my expectations. As you walk in, to the left is the spirits section, such as in a traditional liquor store.

But on the right side, which includes the beer tasting room, cooler and retail, is where the magic happens.

While I typically avoid fruited beer, I settled on the Fairhope Hurricane S’Wheat Home, an American Wheat beer from Fairhope, Alabama. “Bringing all the Belgian flavors you could look for, this beer offers a refreshing experience that pairs well with warm, summer weather in Lower Alabama.” Since summer is indeed upon us, and as watermelon is a southern staple, I felt I was drinking the essence of summer.

Facebook.com/CraftBeerTrail 28

I returned to Liquor Express for another visit to buy a four pack of Hap and Harry’s Tennessee Lager. I noticed the quote above the taps that states, “There is an ancient Celtic axiom that says ‘Good people drink good beer.’” In fact, when sitting and talking with a few loyal regulars, I knew I was among friends, all of whom think that the “spirit” one enjoys is a true reflection of what defines them as a human being.

Whether it be sours, India pale ales, wheat beers, mead, or wine, the camaraderie and knowledge oozing from the tasting room is something everyone should share. Liquor Express is also a dog friendly bar where you can leave behind the guilt and enjoy a night out with your beloved canine.

Bill Johnston’s vision for “the love of anything craft,” is opening doors, not just in Huntsville, but throughout Alabama, with its wake providing more progressive cultural and business opportunities that ultimately benefit the craft beer consumer.

With more seasonal activities popping up downtown, there is nothing better on a hot, humid, Alabama evening than enjoying a glass of cool suds. Whether it’s Liquor Express, The Craft Beer Trail, or other locations that offer craft beer options from the retail side, I hope to see you there. www.liquorexpress.net.

Besides offering fine spirits to enjoy at home and promoting fellowship in the barroom, there are glass glazing classes. You can create or purchase your own plates, bowls, and growlers that are brightly colored and truly stunning. The glazed growlers can be made and used to take home any beer on tap. All of these items showcase Alabama pottery at its finest that is both functional and a personal work of art! You can purchase beer and wine they offer, including sparkling, white, red, and rose, while creating your personalized pottery alongside your family and friends.

Bill Johnston, the owner of Liquor Express, and I shared a SweetWater Blue, and I asked what his original vision was for opening an establishment of this type. “I wanted to bring art and the love of everything craft. I wanted to provide a fun, eclectic environment that is appealing to all walks of life, to introduce craft beverages of all kinds; I wanted it to be nice, but not ostentatious.” Johnston will soon open another location called The Open Bottle in Madison, located at Highway 72 and Jeff Road.

For More Information Please Visit:

Facebook.com/CraftBeerTrail 43

Nic Donahue, Nathan Followill, and Caleb Followill

KINGS OF LEON CELEBRATE NASHVILLE WITH REVELRY Written By: Chris Chamberlain

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ost people are aware that Nashville is known as Music City, USA, but the common assumption is that the name refers to the country music scene that has flourished in town over the past century.

But Nashville nourishes songwriters and musicians from multiple genres, and many stars have moved to town to call Music City and the surrounding area home. From the bichromatic pair of the White Stripes and the Black Keys to young rockers like Paramore or elder statespeople of rock n’ roll such as Michael McDonald, Sheryl Crow, Kid Rock, Robert Plant, Peter Frampton, Steven Tyler and Bon Jovi, all sorts of musicians have moved here permanently or for extended stays to soak in the creativity of Nashville. When it comes to homegrown talent, Kings of Leon have to be near the absolute top of the list when it comes to success in the music industry. Growing up primarily in Oklahoma and Tennessee, the three Followill brothers and their cousin that make up the Kings settled in Nashville just before the turn of the last century, and their creative heart and home as a band has always been in Middle Tennessee.

Fierce advocates for their adopted hometown, Nathan and Caleb Followill often volunteer their time to promote events and businesses in Nashville, particularly those related to the food and beverage industry. As some of the founders of the successful Music City Food + Wine Festival, Kings of Leon are always front and center at the fest and curate the music for the special Harvest Night performance every year.

When the miss a little “WALLS,” in a hankering

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Kings are on the road, though, they sometimes taste of home. While recording their album Los Angeles in 2016, the Followills developed for one of their favorite Nashville beers, Hap &

Harry’s Lager. Since H&H didn’t have distribution in California, the Kings called the brewery behind the brand to request a few cases.

“It was cool that the band thought to reach out to us,” recalls Nic Donahue, son-in-law of Robert Lipman who created Hap & Harry’s Tennessee Beers in honor of the friendship between his grandfather, Harry Lipman and Hap Motlow, of the legendary Jack Daniel family. “I got to meet the Kings at the Music City Food + Wine Festival. We discovered we have a lot in common: kids the same age, a passion for food and music, our families live here in Nashville. Add to that we all appreciate the opportunity to enjoy great beer with great friends. ”Lipman went a big step further than just shipping the band a couple of 24-packs; they offered to collaborate on a whole new beer together. In advance of the annual food festival and the Kings’ big concert at First Tennessee Park last fall, Lipman developed a new session ale named Hap & Harry’s Kings of Leon Revelry Amber Ale. Easy-drinking with a nice touch of chocolatey malt on the finish, Revelry was released in kegs for those two events as sort of a gift to their fans and then later in cans for retail. The name for the beer comes from a song from the 2008 Kings of Leon album “Only by the Night.” Committed to adding a charitable aspect to the roll-out, the brewery and the band donated $5000 of the first few months proceeds from Revelry to the Arthritis Foundation to fund research and treatment of Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. Even when they are far away, Kings of Leon keeps Music City in their hearts (and beer cooler).

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Brandt Wood, Michael Whelan, and Kevin Griffin

PILGRIMAGE FOUNDATION RESONATES YEAR ROUND THROUGHOUT WILLIAMSON COUNTY Written By: David T. Wingo

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ilgrimage Music and Cultural Festival has brought good vibes, world class music, and big crowds to Franklin’s Harlinsdale Park since 2015. But of all the festival’s accolades and accomplishments, co-founder W. Brandt Wood is most proud of The Pilgrimage Foundation, Pilgrimage’s non-profit entity dedicated to supporting Franklin parks, education, and artists.

Since Pilgrimage’s inception, New Orleans Jazz Fest has been an inspiration for the festival. So Jazz Fest’s charitable foundation, Jazz and Heritage Foundation, was a natural influence for the Pilgrimage Foundation. Brandt said that “noticing the sort of year round influence that a non profit arm of a festival can have inspired us to create the foundation.” Wood described Jazz and Heritage Foundation as a “big, impactful organization in New Orleans for education, for artist support, for preservation. These goals drive the Pilgrimage Foundation as well, and allow the festival “a chance to deepen roots and spread influence in a positive way.”

In just a few short years, the Pilgrimage Foundation has spread that influence throughout Franklin, Williamson County, Tennessee, and the country. They work closely with Dark Horse Institute, an audio engineering and music business school located in The Factory, providing internship opportunities for Dark Horse students to gain real world experience at Pilgrimage Festival. Student interns work alongside Pilgrimage’s engineers during the two day event. Pilgrimage Foundation was also able to provide their first student, 24 year old Haylie Sampsel, with a $15,000 scholarship to Black Horse Studio in 2017.

Pilgrimage Foundation is an active supporter of MusiCares, the Grammys’ charity which “provides a safety net of critical assistance for music people in times of need.” In the last three years, they have given almost $23,000 to MusiCares. MusiCares has an activation backstage at Pilgrimage to provide support to artists with integrity and confidentiality. They also focus on hearing protection and provide ear plugs to artists backstage at Pilgrimage Festival.

During last year’s Pilgrimage Festival, Brandt took the stage on behalf of the Pilgrimage Foundation to ask for donations for Hurricane Harvey relief in the Houston area. As always, Tennesseans stepped up to the plate and made an impact on those lives affected by Harvey. This is just one example of the Pilgrimage Foundation’s regional and national efforts.

As the Foundation expands its reach, the Foundation remains focused on improving the quality of life in Williamson County.

A portion of each ticket has gone to Friends of Franklin Parks, since day one of the event. Friends of Franklin Parks is the lead preservation group at Harlinsdale and “exists to cultivate stewardship within our community to preserve our cultural and natural resources, enhance the park experience and expand its legacy for future generations.” They led the project to build the multipurpose arena at Harlinsdale and continue to improve infrastructure with support and input from the Pilgrimage Foundation.

Among other projects, Pilgrimage Foundation is working with the City of Franklin and Friends of Franklin Parks to plan sidewalks along Franklin Pike and a bridge over the Harpeth River.

According to Wood, “we are eager to be more than observers in these processes. To donate resources and time, and to testify about these things to aid in the normal flow of business and life in Franklin during the festival.” These improvements will of course benefit all those who live, work, and play in Franklin throughout the year. Pilgrimage wants “to achieve the highest level of balance integration” in order to not impede on the lives of those not attending the festival.

For those who are interested attending, Pilgrimage Music and Cultural Festival will take place from 10AM to 8:30PM on September 22 & 23, 2018. Comstock, Michigan’s Bell’s Brewery will once again be the official beer partner of Pilgrimage Festival.

Many of Bell’s offerings will be available on draft and in package throughout the festival grounds. The Bell’s Beer Hall returns in 2018 with over 30 taps, a full bar, and wine by the glass. In the beer hall area, drafts from breweries such as Jackalope, Good People and Wiseacre will be available alongside a plethora of Bell’s drafts.

With headliners Jack White, Chris Stapleton and Lionel Richie, there is something for everyone at Pilgrimage Festival this year. Brandt Wood is particularly excited about some of the young artists who will be moving up to bigger stages after being introduced on the ASCAP stage in the past. Those include: Jillian Jacqueline, Devon Gilfillian, Bishop Gunn and Aaron Lee Tasjan. Wood said these artists “personify the effort of our band development and cultivation. We want to do our part in helping young artists’ careers.” These are just a few of the exciting acts that fill out the bill with heavy hitters like Hozier, Keb Mo, Dawes, Amos Lee, and Dave Matthews. 2018’s line up promises to deliver one of the best Pilgrimage Festivals to date. Will you make the pilgrimage?

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HARMALEIGHS ON MAYDAY Written By: Adam Gold

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hen touring the country, Nashville folk-rock duo The Harmaleighs request local craft beer on their backstage rider.

“I love that about being able to play music in a bunch of different places, trying beer all over the country, and seeing how, like, the water can affect the beer,” bassist and co-singer Kaylee Jasperson says.

But in 2012, soon after forming and long before The Harmaleighs had artist riders and a national following, Jasperson and bandmate Haley Grant played one of their earliest gigs at Mayday Brewery, which had just opened that same year about 30 miles southeast of Nashville in nearby Murfreesboro.

Six years later, the duo returns to Mayday and sits down with brewer Carson Smith and Tennessee Craft Beer to talk music, beer and the passion and dedication it takes to make both.

So the band’s been around for six years. Coincidentally, that’s how long Mayday’s been around. Are you a musician as well, Carson?

CS: I am.

Have you been in bands? Are you currently?

CS: I have, but my schedule at the moment doesn’t really allow it. I still get some time to play at home though. I play banjo, guitar, drums, like to sing.

What are some of the similarities between working as a brewer and being in a band?

CS: Since you work so closely together and there’s not a lot of you, you have to be on good terms most of the time. … You just have to be able to work well [together].

How do the two of you, Kaylee and Haley, relate to that?

KJ: If we ever have our moments where we’re butting heads, we have to give it a minute, cool off, collect ourselves, then come back and talk about it, “how can we resolve this?” Our common ground is, of course we love each other as people and care about each other, but we’re also working on something we care about so much, that we don’t want anything personally to affect the business.

ber the first time I had the Boro Blonde, and was like “this is the first craft beer that I like.”

Is that similar in the creative process of brewing? Are there debates on what direction to go?

KJ: Yeah. And now after drinking it for six years my tastes vary based on the season.

CS: Definitely with small batches, whenever we’re trying out a new style, different adjuncts —it helps to have fresh ideas. If one person’s making all the beer you kind of run out of ideas sometimes.

Is that common?

Is making small batches almost like demoing songs?

Lately, are you finding the customer base demographic is broadening?

And does that allow you to try more wild ideas?

CS: Yeah, kind of. It gives us creative freedom, allows us to experiment.

‘Cause we can either make 15 gallons or a thousand gallons, so ... you’re not going to go in the studio and just make it up. You’re going to want to really practice it, make sure it’s perfect before you give it to the people.

KJ: I feel that way about distribution of beer. The beer you guys distribute throughout the area, versus what you have right here, is like what we might play at local live shows, versus what we’re going to put on a record, testing the waters before it hits the [public].

Are the two of you beer enthusiasts?

HG: Totally.

KJ: I love beer.

Is there ever a positive aspect when there’s tension like that, in terms of the creative process, editing each other’s ideas, being sounding boards for each other?

I don’t know anything about the process, but I do love it. Big fan.

KJ: Yeah. If you were always happy-go-

44

lucky and everything was wonderful, you wouldn’t be able to make as good of art.

You have to have those ups and downs, pits and peaks, to feel all of those emotions to create music people can relate to when they’re going through similar [things] in their own lives.

What kind of beers are your favorites?

KJ: When we first played here, we were freshly 21, six years ago. And I remem-

HG: “Oh. There’s not just Budweiser.”

A palate-enlightening experience.

CS: If you’re drinking Budweiser, you don’t taste an IPA for the first time and like it whatsoever.

CS: Yeah, the more craft beer people have the more open they are to ideas.

We’re expanding to 24 taps... we’ve done a couple of things, Kelsey [Nelson, Mayday’s head brewer and daughter of owner and founder Ozzy Nelson] made a blue beer, she used a butterfly pea flower to color the beer so when it pours out, it’s a nice blue. We made a thyme IPA with thyme in it, it’s really earthy, really full.

As the band progresses and you play together more, for longer, do you find the spate of ideas is also broadening, going into more experimental territory?

KJ: When we started, we were very folk and bluegrass influenced. I played upright [bass], she played acoustic [guitar] and we had a mandolin player. As we found out more about who we were as people, discovered what we actually wanted to do ... music is imitation first until you find out what you want to be,

Haley Grant and Kaylee Jasperson and I think you could say the same about beer.

CS: Yeah, I’ve only been brewing for less than a year so I’m still sort of a “cover song” brewer. Kelsey’s more of a solo artist, a songwriter, for sure.

I overheard you saying earlier for your next record you’re going away from the straight folk style. Could you talk a little bit about that, what direction the band is going in?

KJ: We’re always evolving as people.

Right now we’re drawn to a more full, rocking experience, while still staying true to lyrical storytelling, which is essentially the most important part of our band. … I think we like to write about our own experiences because that’s what we know best, what we can most accurately portray, versus fairytale stories, stories about someone else. It’s more internalized, in that aspect.

Kaylee, earlier I also overheard you saying you grew up Mormon? Proba-

bly not a lot of beer drinking then?

and Kelsey seems similar.

KJ: None. Zero. Though I do remember, before my family started going to church, my dad mixing Budweiser and V8 juice.

CS: Yeah, she’s the writer. And if she ever hits a little snag, she’ll ask me what she thinks we could do with it. That happened with the thyme beer... I knew for a fact honey goes really well with it, so we did that to cut the herbal-ness down.

I really like that she values my opinion, it makes our relationship better.

That’s a strange concoction. And you Haley, you grew up Mormon too or ... ?

HG: No. I’m from Chicago. Not Mormon.

My parents drank. Typical suburban upbringing.

What’s the hardest part about the creative process, in your cases?

How does the juxtaposition of those two experiences inform the songwriting chemistry?

HG: Your own mind. Writing something, being excited about it for a couple days, then looking back and beating yourself up, being your own critic.

KJ: I think even moreso than where we came from, it’s our personalities. Haley’s much more of the storyteller and can lay out a whole song top to bottom. I’m more the person that can come in and say what we might want to change, do differently, and that relationship works well for us.

And Carson, the dynamic between you

CS: Same. Especially if you have an idea of what you wanted and it doesn’t turn out that way, the most important thing to do is value other peoples’ opinion so you don’t beat yourself up too much.

Do you ever have times where you’d been second-guessing a song, but then that’s the one that gets the best

45

audience reaction?

HG and KJ: Yes. And with beers as well? Any examples?

CS: One of the first small batches I made, my own recipe, was an American hefeweizen, and I have no idea how it happened but my gravity just came out really, really high and the hefeweizen yeast wouldn’t get it dry enough so it was super sweet. I repitched it with another type of yeast which kind of gave it this funky flavor. It was not a hefeweizen at this point. I didn’t really know what to call it. So I called it the Heavy-weizen because it was like 7.6% [ABV]. I was really nervous about putting it on tap.

But people loved it. I was really confused why!

Is there a song in particular that stands out as one that you didn’t expect to be popular?

HG: Yeah, actually our most successful song, “I Keep Ticking On.” I remember, when I wrote it, I called Kaylee right afterwards and I was like, “I don’t know, I just wrote this song and it’s kind of crappy, but I’ll let you listen to it.” Still, to this day, it’s our most successful tune.”

KJ: I remember her calling me and she said, “I either wrote the best song ever, or the worst song ever.” … And I was like, I think this is a “bop.” Turns out it was a bop.

A bop?

KJ: It’s when you bop your head, you know?

Is that a term you coined?

KJ: Uh, I feel like I’ve heard it around …

HG: I’ve heard it.

What’s the pressure like on the commercial end, in terms of putting something out there that’s going to sell?

CS: So we recently went to Ashville [North Carolina], and there’s so many breweries there, and we would tell people that we worked in a brewery

28 46

and they’d be like, “What’s your style?

What’s your strong point? What do you specialize in?” Because there’s so many breweries there, you almost have to specialize in one certain style of beer to draw in a crowd. Here in Murfreesboro, we’re the only one, as of now, and we really have to make sure to have a beer for everybody. So we have fruity beers, we have dark beers, we have IPAs. …

We’re about to have a bunch of eclectic small batches.

So a Swiss Army knife kind of mentality …

CS: Yeah. But you also have to make sure to hit those trends in the beer industry. Right now the hazy IPAs are the rage, and sours, and fruity beers, which, I’m not really into fruity beers, I’m not going to ask for one at a bar, but you’ve got to make them.

you are still selling product that you want to reach as many people as you can. So I feel like for us in music, we definitely started more thinking about other people and what people wanted receive from music, or from our band specifically, and slowly were chipping away at that and finding our audience that is true to who we are and likes us for us, not because we’re trying to sell them music. But you definitely have to think about that.

I mean, there’s a reason why a song that’s popular is popular. There’s a form, and I feel like that’s the same with beer.

There’s a reason there are beers that are really popular.

How far is the reach for Mayday outside of Murfreesboro?

CS: We’re in Nashville, Knoxville Johnson City — most of the major cities.

We’re not in Memphis yet, but we’re not outside of [Tennessee] either.

There are so many breweries in Middle Tennessee now. Do you ever get together and trade notes? How friendly is the competition?

CS: It’s actually really friendly competition. We like to go to Nashville as much as we can and hit up other breweries. …

You know, the best we to get some information out of somebody is to sit down and drink a beer.

Ask them a question and they’ll spill their heart out (laughs).

KJ: I feel like that’s super common with music, Ozzy Nelson and Carson Smith too. … We’re all doing the same thing in so many different ways, it’s unnecessary to have that, like, cut-throat aspect to it.

How long do trends last in beer CS: Most of the time if we go to a world? new brewery, if we mention that we’re brewers and we work in a brewery, CS: I think the hazy IPA thing will probathen they’ll be like, “Hey, do you want bly drop off in about a year or two, which to check out the back? Do you want to would really suck for the breweries that see what we do back there? See our specialize in them. But for us, all we’d system? See our equipment?” And it’s have to do is pull one beer. like, “Yes!” With music, what are your commercial KJ: And that’s like talking gear! “Oh, did aspirations with The Harmaleighs? Do you see my bass amp? I just got this. Or you pay a lot of attention to what’s check out this new Gretsch bass I got, popular? what do you think?” It’s the same thing!

You just geek out.

KJ: I mean, I think it’s always important to be authentic and true to yourself, but

M A Y D A Y B R E W E R Y . C O M

REDNECK RIVIERA Written By: Shane Gibbs

John Rich and Jaime Ronmaker

W

hen most people think about the good ol’ U.S. of A, they think about baseball and mom’s fresh apple pie, but there are others, like me, who think about beer and country music and for that we are “unapologetically patriotic”. Josh Romaker of Star Spangled Brewing Company out of Clarksville, Tennessee, Tennessee’s smallest brewery has partnered with John Rich of Big and Rich. Together, they created a beer which everyone can enjoy while hitting up Rich’s newest endeavor in Nashville, the Redneck Riviera, a three-story country bar located on lower Broadway playing live music and showcasing an amazing rooftop patio experience.

Featuring 10 beer taps on each floor, the Blue Collar Beer will be the first tap on the far left on all three floors and can be easily identified by the Gibson guitar tap handle. The Blue Collar Beer is a clean and refreshing 5.5% ABV pilsner brewed with 100% American grains out of Wisconsin and yeast from California.

The fragrance and mouthfeel are pleasant and make a welcoming introduction that leaves your palate wanting more.

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One great thing about this beer, aside from the taste, is that craft beer lovers and those that prefer those other

beers can all enjoy this one together. In addition to some great local beer choices and the standard ones that you’ll find along Broadway, Redneck Riviera also features a full bar and food menu specializing in BBQ. From the Redneck Nachos to the Loaded Mac n’ Cheese, you cannot go wrong when choosing this locale for your dining experience. If you are looking for a space to throw a bachelorette party or celebrate a birthday, you can reserve an area to hold a group party.

The ground ffloor (also known as the Heroes Bar) features a main stage, merchandise and a ticketing booth for the Honky Tonk Party Express Bus. The second floor has a large stage, long bar and the room can hold a group up to about 150 people. The rooftop bar is partially indoors and partially a patio.

Both spaces have their own bar so that you can still get your Blue Collar Beer along with the many other great choices.

So, I ask you, what is more patriotic than country music, beer and BBQ? Let me tell you. A big part of Redneck Riviera and Star Spangled Brewing Company is remembering to say thank you to all of the brave men and women of the military who provide the blanket of security which we all sleep under.

One way that John Rich says thank you is by offering all veterans and active duty military, as well as well as all first responders 2 for 1 beer wine, and cocktails from opening until 10pm plus half price Redneck Riviera Jerky. Josh Romaker of Star Spangled is an active duty military member himself and one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met. He and his team are responsible for raising funds and helping out numerous charities in the Clarksville area, and the brewery has become a gathering place for many active duty personnel and families.

The partnership that these two have developed may have started through a chance encounter revolving around beer and patriotism, but in the end everybody everybody comes out on top.

The next time you find yourself in downtown Nashville or want to take friends and family Honky Tonkin’, make sure to pop into Redneck Riviera where they like to work hard and play even harder. And don’t forget to ask for a pint of the Blue Collar Beer, because you’re going to love it.

Liquor and beer infused cupcakes GROOM PARTIES / WEDDINGS /OCCASIONS /musiccitypubcakes @ music_city_pubcakes

SUGAR MAMA’S—KNOXVILLE’S CRAFT BEER KITCHEN | Written By: Andy Brantley

T

hirty-two taps of Knoxville area beer featuring 20 different styles and a candied bacon recipe made with local beer… What?

Sugar Mama’s owners Mike and Hannah McConnell had my attention by just mentioning 32 local taps. They had my undivided attention when they shared that the taps included 20 different styles and that they always strive to feature as many different styles as possible.

And when they told me that they had created a candied bacon recipe using a local beer, I thought I was going to lose my mind!

Sugar Mama’s is very well known in the Knoxville area as the “official all-local tap wall and craft beer kitchen of the Knoxville Areas Brewers Association.” Mike and Hannah have created a casual, low-key environment that is as comfortable and inviting as your mom’s kitchen. This assumes that your mom has a tap wall of 32 local beers and that she serves breakfast, lunch and dinner dishes as yummy as Hannah and Mike’s creative, fresh,

Candied Bacon

Ingredients: • 12 Strips bacon • 1/2 cup Jameson Whiskey • 1/2 cup Elkmont Exchange Baltic Porter (or other beer of your choice) • 1 1/4 cups brown sugar, divided • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper Note, you can eliminate the whiskey and double the amount of beer.

The recipe works well with all porters and stouts (they’ve also used Hexagon Brewing’s Chocolate Jesus Coffee porter), but it could work well with other styles. For obvious reasons, Hannah does not recommend using a sour!

Preheat oven to 350F

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made from scratch locally-sourced options. This also assumes that your mom’s menu includes recommended local beer pairings!

The Knoxville beer scene has so many incredible brewery options with more breweries coming online monthly. This is a great thing, but it also creates a challenge! Mike and Hannah suggest that people start their Knoxville beer journey at Sugar Mama’s to experience the best of the best that Knoxville has to offer. Beer travelers can then either hang out at Sugar Mama’s and continue to try different Knoxville beers or trek to the local source of the great beer they found on the tap wall at Sugar Mama’s.

Mike and Hannah are also local tv stars! Well, maybe not stars (yet), but they are frequent guests on local tv station WBIR. During these monthly segments, they share recipes they have created using local beer.

Speaking of recipes, let’s talk about bacon.

Here is Hannah’s recipe:

Mix whiskey, beer, 1 cup of the brown sugar, and cayenne pepper together in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool slightly.

Dip each strip of bacon in beer mixture to coat. Place on a sheet pan, leaving a little room between each strip. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup of brown sugar, pressing to stick.

Bake 15-20 minutes, checking frequently to prevent burning.

Remove from oven and enjoy!

Thanks to Mike and Hannah for creating a great, comfortable destination with an incredible variety of great local beer and delicious, creative food.

PASSES ON SALE NOW!

SOCIAL PAGES

Predators Beer Festival Photographed By: Kati Graham and Jared Hornecker

Nicknamed the “Coolest Beer Fest in Town”, the Predators Beer Festival at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena was a day filled with amazing beer and great comradery. This year the different breweries were more evenly spread throughout the concourse and it was much easier to find local favorites. Drinking beer where the Nashville Predators play was a memorable experience.

This year, Hop Roundtable discussions allowed brewery owners, brewers and reps to discuss their beers and history.

Memphis Made Brewing Cans New Beer For Loving Local Photographed By: Stephanie Gonzalez

Memphis Made Brewing teamed up with Clean Memphis and Project Green Fork for a delicious way to raise money for a great non-profit. Memphis Made brewed a Pineapple Wheat Ale for Loving Local, a fundraiser for Clean Memphis and Project Green Fork. Drew Barton, head brewer, designed this beer with locally sourced raw wheat from the Agricenter. Barton says, “It’s light and refreshing with a slight tart finish, I’m looking forward to enjoying some in the backyard this summer.”

Loving Local Pineapple Wheat will made its debut at Loving Local, June 14 from at Ballet Memphis. After the Loving Local fundraiser, the beer will be available on draft and six-packs to-go at Memphis Made’s tap room.

Drew Barton (left) and Andy Ashby, owners of Memphis Made Brewing

Q Shakur (left) and Cristina Mccarter

Melodie Griffin Barton and Drew Barton

Ben and Amanda Ricketts

Janique C. Byrd (left) and Danielle Aldridge

Garrett Metts (left) and Andy Ashby

Chet Jackson (left) and Roshun Austin

SOCIAL PAGES

Matthew Berry (left) and Cynthia Brewer

Ruth Herndon (left) and Jennifer Sheffield

Caolinn Golden (left) and Hannah Glenn

y t i C c i MusRHYTHM &RIDES Music City Rhythm & Rides is the #1 Party Bus in Nashville, complete with lights, music and a pole for dancing.

Water, coolers and ice provided!

Bring your own beer, wine and spirits for an incredible night out with your friends and family!

Transportation-only services available for $30/person.

3-hour minimum for parties at $175/hour.

www.mcityrr.com

LET US MAKE IT A NIGHT YOU WILL NEVER FORGET!

REPEAT Written By: Art Whitaker

T

his issue’s article took root in the lab at Bootleg Biology in Nashville this spring. I was interviewing and recording videos for the magazine during that crazy, unbelievable week that was the Craft Brewers Conference. There were events scattered everywhere around the city and after another long day of chatting, interviewing and recording, I was ready to head home. The problem is my home is in Murfreesboro, and I just was not ready to challenge the gauntlet of I-24 around the rush hour time. I decided to stop by Jeff Mello’s yeast lab, the aforementioned Bootleg Biology. I was hosting an event the next evening for the Milk the Funk** Facebook group at Bootleg Biology and was stopping by to make sure we had everything ready.

I also knew that Jeff and fellow homebrewer and friend Chris Allen were hosting a book signing for a new homebrew book that both of them were featured in. It was a fortuitous stop as I got to meet and listen to acclaimed beer journalist Joshua Bernstein talk about his new book, “Homebrew World”.

The book features stories and recipes of acclaimed homebrewers from around the World. The author does a fantastic job of bringing these homebrewers to life, as they explain how they started

homebrewing, giving away their secrets to making fantastic beer and a recipe from each one. I especially like that each segment about a homebrewer has an advice section and a brewers spotlight.

I was delighted to see that many of my friends in the brewing industry were mentioned in the spotlights. If

English Barleywine (5 gallons) (OG-1.165, FG-1.034)

Grain

29 lbs 1 lb 6 oz

Maris Otter Biscuit Special B

Hops

0.8 oz Magnum (14.1% A.A,) @120 minutes 1.7 oz East Kent Goldings (6.1% A.A.) @20 minutes 1.7 oz Fuggles (5% A.A.) @20 minutes Yeast

56

8 packs Wyeast 1968 London ESB Ale

Mash-in at 152F for 90 minutes, Mashout at 168F for

you are looking for a book that will expand your homebrewing horizons and is just plain fun to read, I strongly suggest you pick up “Homebrew World”.

Nashvillian Chris Allen is one of the homebrewers featured in this book.

In 2017, Chris repeated his title of both Tennessee Homebrewer of the Year, and Mid-South Homebrewer of the Year. He has also medaled at the National Homebrew Competition and was featured in this column last year. “2016 and ’17 were big competition years for me, and I’ve decided to make 2018 very different. Ive decided to not compete this year and enjoy crafting and sharing my beer with friends and family.”

In early January, Chris did a photoshoot for Imbibe Magazine’s February feature story with several other homebrewers from across the country that happen to also be friends of mine. The article was a teaser for Homebrew World and his story and his raspberry lambic are right there in the middle of the book starting at page 164. Chris was excited that two Tennesseans and Nashvillians made it into the book and enjoyed serving his English Barleywine next to several commercial beers at the book signing. Below is the recipe for his English Barleywine.

10 minutes, Sparge at 168F Boil for 300 minutes(5 hours) Primary Fermentation 64F for 30 days, transfer to secondary and age as long as possible. ** Milk the Funk is a Facebook group for brewers who want to learn and share about brewing with alternative yeasts and bacteria.

To learn more about homebrewing in Tennessee follow the Tennessee Homebrewers Guild on Facebook, join your local homebrew club and “Relax and drink a homebrew.”

TTER THAN BEER? . . . MAKIN G I T !

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER!