Got Beer? Talking Beer with RI’s Brewing Brain Trust

Do you want to get to know the people who make your beer ’round here? We sent queries to local pros — and they answered them! Meet our panel of owner/brewmasters (except where noted): Nate Broomfield of Bucket Brewery; Armando DeDona of Long Live Beerworks; Josh Dunlap and Wes Staschke (co-founders/brewers) and Chris Smith (brewer) of Whaler’s Brewing; Nick Garrison, owner of Foolproof Brewing Company; Mark Hellendrung, president of Narragansett Beer; Derek Luke, co-founder and brew master at Newport Storm; Matt Richardson of Tilted Barn Brewery; Dorian Rave of Ravenous Brewing Co.; and Dave Witham, co-owner and brewmaster at Proclamation Ale Company.

What was the first great beer you ever had — your gateway brew to the World of Better Beer?

Armando: It was Newcastle Brown Ale. I liked that beer so much that I got the Newcastle Star tattoos on me. Who would have thought that years later I would be taught to brew by the old Scottish and Newcastle head brewer.

Wes: Allagash White – it created a lifelong love for wheat beers. A college buddy brought it in as they wanted to try something “fancy.”

Chris: Magic Hat. I was instantly taken by the Scotch Ale. Roasty and full of character, it was hoppy and smoky. “Lightly kissed” by a barrel and enhanced by the experience of trying it at the brewery in Vermont at Magic Hat Brewing.

Josh: Fourteen years old in the graveyard — Natural Ice.

Dave: Green Flash West Coast IPA.

Mark: I remember working at Zach’s On Main St. in college in 1988-9 when Hope Brewery launched [in Rhode Island]. They had a great Lager and a Christmas Ale. It’s funny to think about that and that many of the brewers today weren’t even born yet. I’m starting to feel old.

Matt: I went to school in Vermont, so some of my first great beers were the established brands up there at the time — Long Trail, Magic Hat, and Otter Creek (this was pre-Hill Farmstead, Alchemist, Fiddlehead, etc.). The one that really stuck with me were beers from Rock Art. At the time they were brewing out of their house about a mile down the road from me, so the beer was always pretty fresh.

Nick: I think the first craft beer I can remember drinking was a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. That beer is just as delicious today as I remember it being back in the day.

Nate: The first that was great to me was Sam Adams Boston Lager. My beers up until that one had been based on how many I could buy for $10. In comparison, the Sam Adams was absolutely bursting with amazing flavors!

Derek: Anchor Steam and Shipyard.

Dorian: After a boatload of tasteless beers, Sierra Nevada’s Pale Ale opened my eyes to the delicious beer world.

What brewer or brewery has been a big influence on your approach to beer making?

Armando: Firestone Walker has been one of my biggest influences on styles. They make the most solid IPAs, hands down. I also loved Magic Hat’s experimental beer and blends that you can get in their tasting room. I personally cannot stop experimenting.

Wes: Night Shift Brewing. My sister worked with one of the owners and went to the apartment before they opened. Watching them get started and being a part of that inclusive environment made brewing an easy passion to pursue.

Chris: Harpoon. I liked that they were able to rise up next to the huge presence of BBC. It was the first tour that worked like a more intimate session than a factory walk.

Josh: Allagash; They do everything perfectly, the way I always imagined a brewery should be.

Mark: No-brainer, it has to be Sean Larkin and the amazing work he does on Revival, Trinity before that, and with us.

Matt: I’ve always respected Shaun [Hill] at Hill Farmstead, both for the quality and variety of his beers and for his brewery in general. I can relate to brewing in a location that’s off the beaten path with no major utilities or services to speak of. Even just getting deliveries is challenging depending on the time of year (i.e., trucks getting stuck in the snow and mud). It’s something that not many breweries have to deal with. In terms of his beers, I appreciate the simplicity in many of his flavor profiles that lead to little nuances being detected. In an age where there are so many “double-this” and “imperial-that,” it’s nice to see a less-is-more approach in some styles.

Dorian: The folks at Trinity Brewhouse have always been great to us. It started back when Sean Larkin was there and he took some time to sit with me and answer the endless amount of questions I had. Today our relationship with Sean is still as strong as ever and Tommy [Tainsh] at Trinity still looks out for us like a big brother.

Nick: I’ve always been inspired by Dogfish Head’s story, philosophy and approach to brewing and innovation. I can’t say Foolproof tries to mimic any particular brewer or brewery with our beers, however.

Beer names are fun! Which of your brewery’s beer names is your favorite?

Armando: My favorite beer name is ’Lil Sippy. It’s fun to say and keeps the seriousness of the business very low.

Josh: Olneyville Megazord. I love Olneyville wieners, I grew up in Providence, and when I was 5 years old I was really into Power Rangers.

Dave: The Amazing Adventures of the Alpaca Magi.

Mark: I love the Town Beach IPA that we release in the summer. I feel like all of us brewers sometimes try to be super-creative or really different, and Town Beach is one of those names that makes sense and just feels right.

Matt: Naming the beer is usually the last thing we do for a new recipe. We’re literally choosing a name on the day we’re debuting it sometimes. The first time we brewed Peeptoad was late one warm night in the spring. We were trying to think of a name while cleaning up and all you could hear in the background were the peeptoads peeping in the farm pond. It’s almost deafening at its peak. It seemed like a fitting name at the time and always reminds of springtime on the farm and late-night brew sessions.

Nick: Augtoberfest, hands down. It’s such a ridiculous name, but when people hear it, they know exactly why we chose it. It also gets me pumped for the actual festival, which is a special day here at Foolproof.

Derek: Smoke RIng. Sooooo fitting.

Let’s say that The Food Network signs you up to do a show about your brewery. What would you call the series?

Armando: “This Is the Life You Chose.” It’s a show about a bricklayer who decided to complicate his life by opening up a brewery. Hilarity ensues.

Josh: “Uncharted Waters” – the story of three friends and their trained bear as they navigate the murky depths of business and beer in Rhode Island.

Dave: “Frosted Tips and Button Down Flame Shirts.”

Mark: “It’s About Time.” It speaks to the obvious notion that it took us a long time to get this brewery rolling, but also captures the heritage of what we’ve been doing longer than almost any other brewery since 1890.

Matt: As long as we get some royalties, they could call it whatever they want!

Nick: Knowing the networks, the show would probably end up with some terrible pun based on an existing popular show … something like “Game of Fools.”

Nate: “Filet Mignon Beer on a Minute Steak (TM) Budget.”

Tell us about a beer you have in the pipeline that readers can look forward to sipping soon.

Armando: Wyld Cat Pale Ale — a tropical fruit-flavored pale ale fermented with a wild yeast.

Dave: The Infinite Ascension of the Alpaca Magi — a blonde sour with raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and cherries. I’m more psyched to see how the new artwork comes out, as it will have the Alpaca Magi but pay tribute to some recent things that happened this year.

Mark: We’re working on a couple new year-round styles for the brewery opening, but we’re also going to bring back some of the favorites that we put on the shelf for a bit. So we’ll be re-releasing our popular Fest, the Märzen lager that won so many awards.

Matt: We’re about to start working on some farmhouse-style saisons. This is one style that is obviously fitting for our farm brewery, but we haven’t brewed yet. We plan to do some variations with fermenting on fresh fruit, both locally grown (peaches, berries, etc.) and tropical varieties (mango, apricot, etc.).

Derek: Our second batch of InfeRIority complex. It’s been sitting in barrels with brettanomyces for four months already and has like eight months to go!

Nate: Leroy! The Million Dollar IPA. Bucket is finally adding an IPA to the regular lineup. It has a great tropical fruit and citrus nose and some good bitterness. It is named after the Leroy Theater (aka, the Million Dollar Theater), which was a longtime landmark in downtown Pawtucket. Look for it on draft very soon and in cans shortly thereafter.