I’ve always thought a TV show on brewing would be a winner. Turns out Discovery channel agree with the release of their new show Brew Masters on the 21st of this month.
The new show fits the mold carved by American Chopper and American Hotrod. If you haven’t seen these shows they are basically testosterone driven motor porn. My favourite one, American Hotrod, is set in the late Boyd Coddington’s famous Hotrod shop. Each series follows the team as they make a hotrod from scratch. It’s a simple format which makes for great bloke watching.
There is something very relaxing about watching these guys put together awesome pieces of vehicle art out of raw steel. I love the master class skills they use to do things like machine custom wheels, create custom body work and do one off upholstery. Of cause they do all this while swearing at each other and falling out with one another, because this is TV after all.
In a similar vein, Brew Masters follows the brewers of Dogfish Head and their founder Sam Calagione. These guys are to beer what Orange County Choppers is to motor bikes. Dogfish Head started off as a brewpub in Delaware and grew into a craft brewing empire, shipping their beer across the states. Similar to Boyd and Orange County they push the limits, breaking ground with new innovative beers. Some of their special brew creations include peaches, coffee and even pumpkin.
During the show Sam travels around the world experiencing local beers and searching for new ingredients. As part of the journey he travels to New Zealand to collaborate with our own Epic Brewing Company to brew the Epic Portamarillo, a Porter made with tamarillos smoked over Pohutakawa wood.
There is of cause plenty of footage from within the Dogfish brewery, as it’s brewers ham it up for the camera while brewing some good looking beer. There is also time spent on the history of beer, looking at the role it has taken in creating civilisation as we know it. Sam even creates ancient beers using traditional ingredients.
The first episode screened a couple of days ago and the craft brewing community is going nuts for it. If American Hotrod and Chopper are anything to go by this is going to be sensational for anyone with a love of craft beer and micro-brewerys.
Could be a while till the show makes it’s way down to New Zealand, but like the other shows, it will get here eventually and I’m sure in the meantime plenty of people will download it.
