Breaking Brews Podcast

SESSION SUMMARY: Building a craft beer destination has many facets. Clearly, good beer is at the top of the list. But not just good beer...a wide selection of good beer to ensure there's something for everyone.

What's the food strategy? Statistics have shown that people who order food tend to order 1-2 more drinks, thus increasing their length of stay and driving their tab higher. So giving some options for grub is always a good play.

What kind of experience is your staff delivering? Are they friendly and knowledgeable? Are they making consumers feel welcome? Are they offering every guest beer to go in the form of a crowler, growler, 4-pack, and/or 6-pack? They should be...because customers are more prone to take something to go when prompted.

Across the world, many people have built craft beer destinations. All have their own unique dynamics, all seek to deliver a great experience. For this session of the Breaking Brews Podcast, we are going to the birthplace of Breaking Brews to take a deep dive into what it takes to build a kick-ass craft beer bar!

In Session 43 of the Breaking Brews Podcast, host Jason Cercone is joined by Mike Sukitch and Cassie Cormack of Mike's Beer Bar in the North Shore of Pittsburgh. Mike's is located right across the street from PNC Park and is in the heart of the highly-visited area of town that features sports (PNC and Heinz Field), concerts (Stage AE), hotels, dining, and more. Mike purchased the bar formerly known as Beerhead...and formerly known as The Beer Market before that...at the close of 2018 and has transformed the bar from a hot pre-event destination to a 7-days-a-week destination that everyone needs to check out.

Mike's upped their tap count from 50 to 80. Those beers + what's in the cooler = over 500 beers in the house at any given time! They've added pre-mixed cocktails to their menu. Local ciders and meads are also available. They recently installed a kitchen (up until September of 2019, they did not serve food) that allows them to provide grub for their patrons. They have live music on the weekends.

In brief, they've taken major strides to create a killer destination that emphasizes great beer, great people, and great times.

Throughout this session, you'll learn how Mike and Cassie train their staff to deliver exceptional experiences, how they manage the large volume of beer under their roof, how they've established great relationships with local breweries and brewery representatives, and much, much more.

Check out Mike's online and, of course, in person whenever a trip to the North Shore is in your plans.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SEASON II SPONSOR: Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast is brought to you by Drunk Swag Source. You can get all your merch needs covered by visiting www.drunkswagsource.com. Use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more!

SESSION SUMMARY: Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms on the planet. Owned by Facebook, this photo-sharing network contains much of the functionality that Facebook has and presents a tremendous opportunity for brands to showcase their wares and connect with consumers by sharing dynamic imagery and videos.

Much like any social media network, a strategy is necessary to maximize your time spent on Instagram. And in Session 35 of the Breaking Brews Podcast, we are diving deep into the various aspects and approaches you should utilize as you use Instagram to build your brand.

Returning to the podcast is Aaron Williams, Marketing Manager of Monday Night Brewing. In Season I, Jason and Aaron recorded a similar episode dissecting the many areas of Facebook that are crucial for brands looking to advertise on that space. This session takes similar principles and applies them to Instagram.

If you'd like to learn more about utilizing paid Facebook initiatives, you can jump back in the archives to Session 26 and consume what's been called one of the most actionable podcasts in the Breaking Brews portfolio.

In this session, Jason and Aaron discuss good content to post on Instagram, how to best utilize hashtags to your advantage, how to implement Instagram Stories, some common mistakes brands make on Instagram, the one thing you should NEVER do on Instagram, and much, much more.

You can catch up with Aaron and the Monday Night Brewing brand by clicking the links below:

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

RESOURCE: I mentioned a video from Sunny Lenarduzzi demonstrating why you shouldn't purchase IG followers and likes. Here's the link to said video: https://youtu.be/EaLh8mbpsPI

MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SEASON II SPONSOR: Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast is brought to you by Drunk Swag Source. You can get all your merch needs covered by visiting www.drunkswagsource.com. Use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more!

SESSION SUMMARY: No matter how the size of your taproom, managing it effectively can make or break you when it comes to delivering a quality customer experience designed to bring people back for repeat visits. There are several factors to consider - cleanliness, ambiance, ancillary offerings such as board games or TVs, food, friendly staff - plus a lot more that many owners and managers overlook.

In Session 36 of the Breaking Brews Podcast, host Jason Cercone is joined by Jackie Carlson, co-founder of Natural 20 Brewing in Spokane Valley, Washington via Skype to discuss how Jackie has maximized her taproom space to ensure customers are walking away feeling like part of the family. Jackie and her husband are going through a rebrand at their brewery coupled with construction. But through all of the craziness and unpredictability a rebrand can bring, they've pressed on and still focus on delivering a quality experience each and every visit.

A major theme at Natural 20 is gaming and guests are invited to partake in a large variety of board games while they enjoy their favorite beers. This is not uncommon at breweries across the country, but Natural 20 takes things to another level and you'll hear all about it on this podcast. Plus, Jackie shares some insight on Natural 20's rebrand, how they manage to get beer in select outside accounts to increase the visibility of their product, why it's important for breweries to distribute to beer destinations that take care of their lines so product remains consistent and well-represented, and much more.

If you'd like to catch up with Natural 20 online and see what they're all about, the links are below. PLUS, rumor has it Natural 20 has a killer beer cheese and Jackie is willing to share the recipe with you! Stay tuned til the end to hear how you can connect.

Website | Facebook | Instagram

MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SEASON II SPONSOR: Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast is brought to you by Drunk Swag Source. You can get all your merch needs covered by visiting www.drunkswagsource.com. Use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more!

SESSION SUMMARY: Beer and cheese. On their own, they're both awesome. Paired together? They're even more awesome. Cheese has gained worldwide acceptance as one of the best items to pair with adult beverages. Beer, wine, whiskey...it all works and it's all spectacular.

And because of that fact, it made perfect sense to keep the beer and food pairing sessions of the Breaking Brews Podcast rolling with a deep dive into the world of beer and cheese pairings!

If you listened to Season I, you most likely stumbled across Session 9 where Jason Cercone and Master Cicerone Brian Reed provided a broad commentary on food and beer pairings. Brian shared some exceptional insight on how beer enhances certain flavor profiles (and vice versa), why contrasts in flavor between the beer and food items makes for a better experience than having two flavor profiles that matchup, and much more. You can jump back in the archives and take in Session 9 at your leisure.

In Session 39, Jason and Brian are joined by Anais Saint-Andre Loughran, Co-Founder of Chantal's Cheese Shop in Pittsburgh's Bloomfield neighborhood. Anais is a cheese monger extraordinaire and knows cheese front to back, top to bottom, inside and out. She and Brian put their heads together to pair seven beer styles with seven cheese styles and all were consumed and discussed in great detail on this wildly informative, incredibly fun podcast that originated from Chantal's.

For all of our Pittsburgh listeners, Chantal's gets a 16/10, 102% on Rotten Tomatoes, would highly recommend score from the Breaking Brews Podcast. If your occasion calls for specialty cheeses, check out Chantal's. And, pro tip: DO NOT leave without some of the Saint Angel cheese. It's covered on the show. You can thank me later.

Here is how you can connect with Brian and Anais on the World Wide Web:

BRIAN: Instagram | Twitter

CHANTAL'S CHEESE SHOP: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter


MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SEASON II SPONSOR: Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast is brought to you by Drunk Swag Source. You can get all your merch needs covered by visiting www.drunkswagsource.com. Use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more!

SESSION SUMMARY: When it comes to the social media triumvirate (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram), Twitter has fallen to #3 on most people's priority lists these days. That's not a blanket statement, of course, but many people and brands prefer Facebook and Instagram over Twitter. That's OK...build your brand the way you like. That said, there's still a lot of value in Twitter and today we are going to dive into how you can get the most from this platform.

In Session 40 of the Breaking Brews Podcast, host Jason Cercone goes one on one with you in an effort to bring Twitter back to prominence. While it may not be as popular as Facebook and Instagram or have as many users, there are still enough people on the network to make it valuable. Like all social media, the best returns come when you develop a strategy that helps you attack with excellence. This session of the podcast provides some tips and strategies to help you do just that.

Throughout this session, Jason covers:

• How many daily users are on Twitter
• How Twitter has evolved over the years
• Common mistakes brands make with Twitter
• Should you tag multiple accounts on your posts?
• How to not use hashtags obnoxiously
• The biggest Twitter no-no you should adhere to always
• Where does the power lay in Twitter?
• And more

You can connect with Breaking Brews on Twitter @breakingbrewsco and with Jason directly @jasoncercone.

PAID TWITTER RESOURCES

How to Use Twitter Ads: A Complete Guide For Marketers
Twitter Ads Campaigns: A Simple Setup Guide

MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SEASON II SPONSOR: Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast is brought to you by Drunk Swag Source. You can get all your merch needs covered by visiting www.drunkswagsource.com. Use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more!

SESSION SUMMARY: We live in a world where the beer supply is seemingly endless. Over 8,000 breweries in the United States alone are producing good beer for us to enjoy...with plenty more in planning who will be joining the fray soon. This abundance of beer selection has made many people ask if beer has reached a saturation point. Is the bubble going to burst? Is there too much beer out there?

The answer is no. And on this session, we are going to discuss why.

On Session 44 of the Breaking Brews Podcast, host Jason Cercone is joined by David Sheets, partner at Sixty Four West Brewery Consultants. David has years of experience in the beer industry and has built AND sold five different successful operations. Through Sixty Four West, he and his partners help breweries plan smarter, execute their plans, and operate a more efficient, profitable business.

David's expertise regarding the beer bubble goes well beneath the surface of what many feel is too much liquid in the market. There is a lot to consider: How tightly are you running your operation? Are you producing quality product? What sort of experience are you delivering consumers? Is education a major part of your operations? How do you market your product? Have you exhausted your outside sales efforts?

This is just the tip of the iceberg. Throughout this session, David will be dropping a series of knowledge bombs that all brewery personnel, from ownership to servers to brewers to sales staff, need to hear.

If you'd like to learn more about how David and his company can help your brand, you can connect with him here:

Website | Facebook | Email


MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SEASON II SPONSOR: Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast is brought to you by Drunk Swag Source. You can get all your merch needs covered by visiting www.drunkswagsource.com. Use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more!

SESSION SUMMARY: Beer and cheese. On their own, they're both awesome. Paired together? They're even more awesome. Cheese has gained worldwide acceptance as one of the best items to pair with adult beverages. Beer, wine, whiskey...it all works and it's all spectacular.

And because of that fact, it made perfect sense to keep the beer and food pairing sessions of the Breaking Brews Podcast rolling with a deep dive into the world of beer and cheese pairings!

If you listened to Season I, you most likely stumbled across Session 9 where Jason Cercone and Master Cicerone Brian Reed provided a broad commentary on food and beer pairings. Brian shared some exceptional insight on how beer enhances certain flavor profiles (and vice versa), why contrasts in flavor between the beer and food items makes for a better experience than having two flavor profiles that matchup, and much more. You can jump back in the archives and take in Session 9 at your leisure.

In Session 39, Jason and Brian are joined by Anais Saint-Andre Loughran, Co-Founder of Chantal's Cheese Shop in Pittsburgh's Bloomfield neighborhood. Anais is a cheese monger extraordinaire and knows cheese front to back, top to bottom, inside and out. She and Brian put their heads together to pair seven beer styles with seven cheese styles and all were consumed and discussed in great detail on this wildly informative, incredibly fun podcast that originated from Chantal's.

For all of our Pittsburgh listeners, Chantal's gets a 16/10, 102% on Rotten Tomatoes, would highly recommend score from the Breaking Brews Podcast. If your occasion calls for specialty cheeses, check out Chantal's. And, pro tip: DO NOT leave without some of the Saint Angel cheese. It's covered on the show. You can thank me later.

Here is how you can connect with Brian and Anais on the World Wide Web:

BRIAN: Instagram | Twitter

CHANTAL'S CHEESE SHOP: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter


MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SEASON II SPONSOR: Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast is brought to you by Drunk Swag Source. You can get all your merch needs covered by visiting www.drunkswagsource.com. Use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more!

SESSION SUMMARY: While beer traveling all over the world isn't always a possibility, t-shirts, hats, sweatshirts, and other pieces of merch adorning your logo certainly is. Many times, I've seen someone on vacation halfway around the world from home proudly donning the t-shirt of their favorite brewery, thus taking their brand recognition from their own little corner of the world to parts never thought imagined.

Solid merchandise can be a big coup for your brand and having the right items with a quality aesthetic appeal will make fans of your company happy to wear them when they're out and about, giving you a piece of advertising that costs little and speaks volumes.

In Session 37 of the Breaking Brews Podcast, host Jason Cercone is joined by Leslie Tate, Co-Founder of Drunk Swag Source - a company she and her husband Stephen, the Head Brewer at Crosstown Brewing Company, run to help all businesses in the libations industry get set up with proper swag for their customers.

In this session, Leslie shares why having a sound merchandise strategy is so important to your brand. In addition, she talks about effective logo design and ensuring the logo you land on (or secondary logo in some cases) looks good when shrunken down for print on a piece of merchandise. Leslie also shares why it's beneficial to have giveaways with your logo at events and festivals.

If you've listened to any of the other sessions in Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast, you've learned that Drunk Swag Source is this season's sponsor. In this episode, Leslie tells you how she can help you and your company get set up with anything you need from a merchandise perspective - hats, t-shirts, scarves, socks, keg rings, tents - pretty much anything you can think of!

Everything can be found at www.drunkswagsource.com. AND, use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more! If you have any questions or need further assistance, please do not hesitate to reach out to Leslie and Stephen at [email protected].


MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SESSION SUMMARY: Building a craft beer destination has many facets. Clearly, good beer is at the top of the list. But not just good beer...a wide selection of good beer to ensure there's something for everyone.

What's the food strategy? Statistics have shown that people who order food tend to order 1-2 more drinks, thus increasing their length of stay and driving their tab higher. So giving some options for grub is always a good play.

What kind of experience is your staff delivering? Are they friendly and knowledgeable? Are they making consumers feel welcome? Are they offering every guest beer to go in the form of a crowler, growler, 4-pack, and/or 6-pack? They should be...because customers are more prone to take something to go when prompted.

Across the world, many people have built craft beer destinations. All have their own unique dynamics, all seek to deliver a great experience. For this session of the Breaking Brews Podcast, we are going to the birthplace of Breaking Brews to take a deep dive into what it takes to build a kick-ass craft beer bar!

In Session 43 of the Breaking Brews Podcast, host Jason Cercone is joined by Mike Sukitch and Cassie Cormack of Mike's Beer Bar in the North Shore of Pittsburgh. Mike's is located right across the street from PNC Park and is in the heart of the highly-visited area of town that features sports (PNC and Heinz Field), concerts (Stage AE), hotels, dining, and more. Mike purchased the bar formerly known as Beerhead...and formerly known as The Beer Market before that...at the close of 2018 and has transformed the bar from a hot pre-event destination to a 7-days-a-week destination that everyone needs to check out.

Mike's upped their tap count from 50 to 80. Those beers + what's in the cooler = over 500 beers in the house at any given time! They've added pre-mixed cocktails to their menu. Local ciders and meads are also available. They recently installed a kitchen (up until September of 2019, they did not serve food) that allows them to provide grub for their patrons. They have live music on the weekends.

In brief, they've taken major strides to create a killer destination that emphasizes great beer, great people, and great times.

Throughout this session, you'll learn how Mike and Cassie train their staff to deliver exceptional experiences, how they manage the large volume of beer under their roof, how they've established great relationships with local breweries and brewery representatives, and much, much more.

Check out Mike's online and, of course, in person whenever a trip to the North Shore is in your plans.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SEASON II SPONSOR: Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast is brought to you by Drunk Swag Source. You can get all your merch needs covered by visiting www.drunkswagsource.com. Use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more!

SESSION SUMMARY: Home delivery is all the rage. Thanks to Amazon, pretty much anything you can imagine can land on your doorstep in 1-2 days of pressing a button. Grocery stores and major convenience stores have also entered the home delivery realm, giving customers an opportunity to place their orders via the World Wide Web and get everything brought right to the house, no questions asked. Food services and subscription boxes like First Sip Brew Box bring everything to your front porch, too.

In other words, you don't even need to put on your bathrobe to get everything you need anymore. But...you know...we wish you would.

With seemingly everything now available via delivery, the question must be asked: What about beer? Can I get my favorite beers brought right to the house without having to visit my local bottle shop or distributor?

The answer is yes.

In Session 33 of the Breaking Brews Podcast, host Jason Cercone is joined by Michelle Arnoni, Founder of Beverages2U, a new service that delivers beer to your home for all residents of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Michelle is 4th generation in the beer business and has applied her years of experience to this new venture which is set up to be a groundbreaking platform in the world of home beverage delivery.

While beer delivery can only be utilized within the borders of Pennsylvania (for now), beer enthusiasts nationwide can get their hands on the new beer swag that Michelle is offering through Beverages2U. And, as a special bonus to the loyal listeners of the Breaking Brews Podcast, you can use the promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 5% on your order of beer and/or swag!

With home delivery solidifying itself as the most convenient way for consumers to shop, will delivery of beer be something that takes off nationwide? Michelle discusses this, as well as how delivering beer direct to consumers is bringing back a personal touch to the sales process that hasn't been seen for decades. All this and much more in Session 33 of the Breaking Brews Podcast!

You can catch up with Michelle online at Beverages2U AND her other business, Brewed2Burn Candles. All the links can be found below.

BEVERAGES2U: Website | Facebook | Instagram

BREWED 2 BURN CANDLES: Website | Facebook | Instagram

MUSIC CREDIT: Theme music and music clips for the Breaking Brews Podcast - Hellfire by Adam Drake and Tom Jenkins, licensed via www.audionetwork.com

SEASON II SPONSOR: Season II of the Breaking Brews Podcast is brought to you by Drunk Swag Source. You can get all your merch needs covered by visiting www.drunkswagsource.com. Use promo code BREAKINGBREWS at checkout and save 10% on any order of $200 or more!