Pint-sized chats: New Irish craft beer podcast explores the community behind craft brewing
‘Craft Community, a local Irish beer podcast’ is available now
@irishbeer.ie | #CraftCommunityPodcast
Today, the Independent Craft Brewers of Ireland (ICBI), supported by Bord Bia, has launched a new limited edition podcast series: ‘Craft Community, the local Irish beer podcast’. Hosted by beer sommelier and award-winning drinks writer, Susan Boyle, the series aims to raise awareness of the Irish craft brewing sector and to encourage people in Ireland to find out more about the local craft beers being produced. The first episode of ‘Craft Community, a local Irish beer podcast’ has been released today and is available on all major podcast streaming apps.
‘Craft Community, a local Irish beer podcast’
Over six episodes, host Susan Boyle will be joined by some of Ireland’s leading craft breweries on themes including sustainability, branding, craft production, and business development. The weekly episodes will highlight the diverse community of crafters and entrepreneurs behind some of the most popular Irish craft brews, and the topics include:
1. The business of beer featuring Rye River Brewing Company, Carlow Brewing, Connemara Brewing and Dead Centre Brewing. This episode explores business development, how to entice new consumers to try craft beer, and comments on the changing drinking habits in Ireland.
2. Community roots featuring Brehon Brewhouse, West Kerry Brewery and Tom Crean Brewery. This episode explores how a sense of place influences a brewery, and its craft beers.
3. Crafting a strong brand featuring Rascals Brewing, Porterhouse Brewing Company and Lineman. This wide-ranging episode captures the importance of building a unique, authentic brand and tone of voice.
4. The art of craft beer featuring Black Donkey Brewing, Bridewell Brewery and Canvas Brewing. The creative inspiration behind, and process of producing craft beers is examined in this episode.
5. Food pairings & beer styles featuring Dungarvan Brewery, The Roadside Tavern & Whitefield Brewery. This episode looks at the art of pairing food & craft beer to suit every palette.
6. Sustainable brewing featuring Ballykilcavan Brewery, Hope Beer and Kinnegar. This episode hears from three breweries with different sustainable business practices in place; from both a social and environmental perspective.
Speaking about the podcast, host Susan Boyle said, “There is so much more to craft beer than hops, yeast, malts and water! It’s a dazzling combination of place and time, the ingredients used, how they’ve been layered, and the story of those who have brewed it. We hope that this podcast lifts the lid on this thriving industry and gets people thinking differently about our vibrant craft community”.
Michael Jacob, Drinks Sector Manager, Bord Bia said, “We know that consumer awareness of the quality and variety of styles of craft beer being produced in Ireland is lower than that of wine or spirits. Craft beer, remains a niche product in the overall Irish beer market, representing 3.5% of total beer sales. However, given the high calibre and quality of microbreweries in Ireland we believe there are opportunities to grow the market and make craft beer more accessible to a wider consumer audience."
About the campaign
The podcast series builds on the success of the 2021 ‘Irish Beer Map’ campaign, in which the ICBI, supported by Bord Bia developed a new database to map craft breweries in Ireland and to promote the craft brewing industry to existing and new consumers alike. In total, 66 breweries participated in the initiative demonstrating the breadth and expertise of craft brewing within Ireland.
‘Craft Community, the local Irish beer podcast’ launches this week, with new episodes released weekly.
For more information visit irishbeer.ie