The New Yorker's Gift to Craft Brewing

Explicit content warning

09/26/23 • 56 min

The year: 2008. The magazine: The New Yorker. The story: “A Better Brew: The Rise of Extreme Beer.” Was it the most important magazine piece ever written about craft brewing? Those who know of what they speak, like Tom Acitelli, author of 2013's The Audacity of Hops, certainly thought so. Today we're joined by the author of that seminal New Yorker feature, Burkhard Bilger, to discuss the the idea, the execution, and the legacy of “A Better Brew.” This one is for the media heads, the history heads, and the Bilger heads, too. Don't forget to like, review, and subscribe!

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Previous Episode

Writing the PBR Brand Bible

This is the second installment of a Taplines two-parter about the early days of PBR’s cultural and commercial renaissance after the turn of the 21st century. Our guest for these back-to-back episodes is Neal Stewart, a former Pabst Brewing Company marketer who spent the first half of the Aughts working on the firm’s flagship beer. In this episode, we'll discuss how early signs of life for the nearly defunct brand gave way to a full-blown national phenomenon — and how Stewart and co. carefully fanned the flames from Pabst Brewing Co.'s headquarters in San Antonio. Don't forget to like, review, and subscribe!

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Next Episode

The Yuppie-fication of Heineken

For most of the 20th century, Heineken was the country's top imported beer by far, and by the 80s, thanks to decades of empire-building effort by its third-party American importer, New York's Leo Van Munching and Company, the Dutch brand commanded prestige and premium pricing Stateside. When Philip Van Munching joined the family firm in the 80s, his challenge was figuring out a way to market Heineken's mystique to modern drinkers without cheapening the brand by pandering to the era's prominent mainstream trendsetters ("yuppies," young urban professionals) all while challengers like Corona and Samuel Adams began to complicate the narrative. (This is Part 1 of a Taplines two-parter. Part 2 will appear directly after this in your feed.) Don't forget to like, review, and subscribe!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.