Today we've got beer origin stories. Fontana Jim returns.

Greg's drinking free beer and the insane truth about double hopping.

Let's go.

Honestly, how much time goes into timing that out? So much time.

More time than the show. Welcome in, everybody.

Is the craft beer republic. I am Greg and over there is big

Flexy. What's up, big fella? I am over here. You are?

Don't look at me because you can't. I thought so.

We put our little names in when we sign on.

And I thought Flex was trying to be funny, but apparently it's

just a typo. So today's fix. I was in a little bit of a hurry

today. I feel ya. Same, same. So, uh, thanks for drinking.

Thanks for joining all that. Follow us on the socials.

@CraftBeerRepublic @flex_me_a_beer underscores in

between @CraftBeerRepublic. Com all of that good stuff.

Um, shout out to our topless city of last week.

And that was Los Angeles, California. What's up hometown. City of angels.

The city of Angels, soon to be without their namesake brewery,

Angel City Brewing. What a shame. Yeah, I look, we're not in booze

news yet, but I am surprised. I think it was last week or

maybe two weeks ago. We talked about this that no one has

has tried to at least buy their IP, let alone the brewery. Whatever.

Anywho, uh, all right. Like I said, lots to get to.

And that's not one of the things we do have a voicemail from Fontana Gym.

I'm very excited. Very much looking forward to this.

He's he's not happy. That should surprise no one.

That's my favorite kind of. Fontana. Yeah.

Uh, but before we get to that, uh, I just wanted to mention that as we

record this, it is stone cold day. So happy 3/16. Happy 316 day.

The day this drops will be the day after, uh, Saint Patrick's Day.

So I hope you're all hungover as shit.

Top of the morning to you and all that good stuff.

Ladies and lasses. Right? Exactly. What is your, uh,

bigger drinking holiday is a stone cold day or Saint Patrick's Day.

Uh, regularly, I would probably say Saint Patrick's Day.

Not that I really even do much, but sure, I hope Stone Cold's

not listening. Oh, hell. Usually forget about three over

16 day til about like five in the afternoon.

It feels like a good time to remember it. Yeah, yeah.

But, uh, then I'm just like, oh man, I could have been like,

double smashing beers since noon and. Right. Uh, yeah.

Just really dropped the ball every year. That's too bad.

I, you know, it's funny, I have gotten over Saint Patrick's Day to

a certain extent, mostly because, like, I don't want to deal with

the higher prices to get stupid beers and like Ubers always extra

expensive and all that stuff. So I think I've started, uh,

celebrating Stone Cold Day more than Saint Patrick's Day at this point.

I mean, it's, uh, very economical of you. Yeah.

Stone cold's a cheap ass, and so am I.

Uh, fun fact, I've never been out for, like, a Saint Patty's Day.

Oh, like never even just to a bar or anything. Like, not.

I mean, not, like, out for Saint Patty's Day, you know?

I mean, you happen to celebrate. Saint. Patrick's. Last year.

I was out because it was a Monday. Met some friends up at epi, but it

wasn't for, like, Saint Patty's Day. It was just like, oh, hey.

Normal lunch crew. Yeah. I haven't seen you guys in a while.

Like, let's catch up. And then it just so happened to

be the 17th. And I went out once when I was.

22. 21 something. We went to downtown Milwaukee and,

uh, during like night time, like bar, right. Shindig stuff.

And it was just like being at any other bar downtown on any other

night, just dancing and just everybody was wearing green. Yeah.

I remember in my 20s, I think every year I found myself

at a bar in Saint Patrick's Day and needed an excuse to drink.

And Saint Patrick's Day was that excuse. Oh, for sure. A lot of times.

And these pop up on like my Facebook memories all the time.

And it wasn't even planned. But so many times from like early

drinking like early 20s into my, you know, early 30s, I ended up in

mammoth for Saint Patrick's Day. Usually it was like, hey,

let's go like spring break, kind of family trip, whatever.

And we'd go skiing. And I was always there for Saint

Patrick's Day, and it was always great because then I'd go have

Mammoth Brewing on Saint Patrick's Day, which we all know I love and

adore. So it worked out well. And I'm not a green beer drinker.

Like, even in my crappy beer days, I'm like, hey, you want green beer?

Like, no, I'll just drink a normal Bud Light.

I don't need an even grosser looking version of it.

I did it once, I had one and I was like, yeah,

yeah. Yeah, nothing for me. Yeah, the people that get all jazzed

up and rocked up over green beer, I don't know.

Yeah, it's like, hey, you could put food color in anything you drink.

Right? Fun fact. Yeah. And it doesn't even have to be on

Saint Patrick's Day. No, it could be. Uh, yeah. November 14th. Just.

Yeah. Fucking go nuts. I bet like the Irish in Ireland,

if they saw how much green beer we produced on Saint Patrick's Day,

they'd be like, what the fuck are these guys doing?

I guarantee some of them know it. Maybe it's probably they hate

Americans. Yeah, that's. Well, I feel you. I know I do.

Um, but since it is stone cold day slash Saint Patrick's Day week,

are you missing beer with your whole lent situation?

Your non-religious giving up? Yeah, let's, uh, call it lent,

uh, with some air quotes. I've had a couple cravings now.

Not today. Last Monday, uh, it was 72 degrees.

It was a record high for March 9th or whatever day.

It was 72 degrees and I was. Pretty perfect beer drinking.

Weather. It was wonderful. I even took a chair out in the

driveway and I was just hanging out, soaking up some sun.

And it got to the point where I got too hot and was like,

lower back sweating. Oh, I had to head back in the

house to cool down a bit. But I did think to myself,

I had like a six pack of summer shandy right now. Um.

I wouldn't hate it right now. Did you consider an na beer?

Uh, I did when I went out for some lunch. Was it a few weeks ago?

And Eagle Park. I don't know if it was for lent or

just to abide by the sudden rise of people not drinking. Sure.

But they came out with a whole na line, and there's like 4 or 5

styles of beers that they're all Na, but I couldn't do it because they

still had to say like they could contain half a percent of alcohol.

Up to a half percent. Because they can't take it all out,

right? And just for like the sake of my,

you know what I'm doing the support for my friend,

I was like, you know what? A half a percent is still the

alcohol. So I held off and I had another

little wish. I had some beer today. We had a blizzard.

It was the first time in 15 years we had a blizzard because there's

a technicality for blizzards. Greg, I don't know if you know this.

You know, I don't. It's, uh, something with the the

snowfall, and it needs to be at least three hours of winds up to 30

miles an hour while it's snowing. Okay. It's, uh, like the 2.5 hours.

It's like the meteorological technicality of a blizzard.

Okay. Yeah. So when people say, oh, yeah,

it's a blizzard out, it's like, no, it's just snowing really hard.

But yeah, we had a blizzard for the first time in 15 years.

We only got about what the news said was like five inches of snow by me,

but the drifts are what was really bad.

So I had like 2 to 3 foot drifts in my driveway and like by my

garage door. So no removal was kind of a

bitch up north by us. They got like they got 25 to like

34in of snow. A lot of snow here. So it was one of those days kids got

called out of school and I just, you know, was stuck in the house

all day. It was pretty productive. Proud of myself.

And nothing hits more than like a productive ear. Yeah.

So it's about one in the afternoon, just kind of fidgeting and

thinking to myself, man, this shit would hit right now.

Like a pilsner would really do the job. Oh, yeah.

Like nothing heavy. Just. Yeah. A nice little thirst quencher.

While you're still doing your shit. Yes, yes. But Feel that.

Alas, no beer in the house. Man. And you're like.

I stayed strong, man. Yeah. You're like living by Kurt

Angle's three eyes. Uh, was it integrity,

intensity and intelligence? Yeah, yeah, but that's definitely

some integrity right there. Hey, I I'm doing my best.

It's not easy. Today is, uh, 27 days. Wow. It's without a lick of alcohol.

It's a lot. Oof! That that sounds horrible.

I did a lot of licking of alcohol this weekend. Most of it wine.

Uh, you know, it was the nephew's birthday.

I don't know if you know this. My sister had a baby.

Never knew you had a sister. I didn't even know she was pregnant.

Is there a guy? Uh, supposedly she's married.

That's crazy. And a kid. I know. Wild. Very wild.

So is his first birthday up in, you know, wine country.

So, of course, there was plenty of wine at the party. Though I wasn't.

I wasn't feeling wine because the party started like noon.

It was kind of warm. I was like, red wine on a hot day.

Not my jam. Also don't feel like having some

beers at the moment. The choices weren't great.

And so I DoorDash. I got hazy little thing, bro.

Yeah, actually, that would have been all right.

I like these little thing. It's a good solid, like restaurant

beer for sure. For sure. Yeah. So if you had that right, there's a

lot of blue moon. Oh, gross. Yeah. Which I found out later his

grandpa bought and was like, hey, I'll bring the beer for the party.

And I was like, oh, thanks, grandpa. No one's gonna drink this,

but bring. Some applesauce to Jesus. Right? Yeah. Mush. Carrots.

But anyways, so I doordash some champs and I just

fucking sipped on the champs most of the day and it was glorious.

I didn't even fuck around with juice. I was like champs all day.

I love how you do not care where you are.

You're like, oh, my sister's house for her son's birthday. Uh, DoorDash.

Yep. Why not? I love it. And when I ordered it, it was like

noon, and the kid was was napping, and the party started, like,

half an hour. So I even put on the notes,

like, do not come to door. We'll meet you outside.

Baby is sleeping. And then I just watch my phone.

I was like, as he got near, I just went outside and he drove up.

I was like, hey, bud. Hey, you know, ID a check,

ID check and all that. And it's good times. That's amazing.

Yeah, through the freezer. So much respect for you,

for how you live your life. One bottle of champagne at a time.

And see, I'm the cheapskate, I just go.

Ah, I really don't like wine, but I fucking hate Blue Moon.

So I'm gonna drink that white wine. Yeah. If it came to be a cheapskate.

And I was like, red wine or blue moon. I don't care how hot it is.

Red wine it is, baby. You got that. Right.

I really just needed some champs in my life and really hit the spot.

I might even have done a no no and put ice in the wine.

You know, just, uh. That is a no. No. Class it up a bit. Cool it.

Down. Yeah. So anyways, good times. Did a lot of beer or a lot of wine.

Drinking a little beer. Drinking mostly wine.

Drinking and hit a couple wineries that are classy shit

that we normally do, you know? Well, you're the classiest guy I

know. What can I say? I'm just like one monocle short

of being the classiest. You should probably get one.

I think I should just walk around all monopoly, man.

Like, just don't change the rest of your attire, though. Just no, no.

Still like shorts and a t shirt. Black t shirt, khaki shorts.

Michael walking into the winery like hello, good day, kind sir.

May we have some of your finest wines?

Get a wallet with a chain on it just to really throw them off to.

Oh yeah, maybe at some point. Tell him do not pass go.

Do not collect $200. Man. This guy came up with a monocle,

but he also had a chain wallet. What's that about? So weird.

Maybe, like, ripped up. Uh, converse or something.

Oh, yeah. Yeah. Really? Just tops. Fedora just thrown for a loop.

Full on top hat. Full on top. I think that really would send you

accentuate the ensemble. Who are you? I'm casual monopoly guy, right?

I'm so rich, I don't give a fuck. Lucky. Yeah. So anyway.

All right, but but back to the beard talk,

if you don't mind. No, I don't. Want to say about what I'm drinking.

Out of my beer. Out of my head. I Love My Beer.

As I mentioned in my perfectly timed intro, I am drinking free beer today.

Thanks to our friend listener Andrew. Oh, love me some. Andrew. Yeah.

Me too. Especially after free beer. So I'm drinking dad's strength.

IPA nice. He heard us talking about it.

He was out here from Michigan. He was.

He was visiting for work, and he's like, well, since I

have access to it and you don't. You got to try, dad. Strength.

And so here we have it. Dad. Strength beer 2.9%.

It's the IPA has 94 calories. They say name the Best Light IPA of

2025 by Men's Health and rated 92 exceptional by the beer connoisseur.

Our flagship brew is a highly crushable West Coast style IPA

brimming with assertive flavors from El Dorado and mosaic hops

with a full mouthfeel and a dynamic taste that makes you say,

hey, that's a damn good IPA. Do you love it for its bold flavor?

The mere 94 calories? Or maybe it's the Lowish 2.9%

ABV that lets you enjoy it without regret.

The choice is yours, but one thing's for sure IPA has a new daddy.

That's so on brand. So on brand. And the rating on untapped is A34,

two with 772 ratings. So kind of middle of the road.

Uh, when I stick the nose buds in, I don't get a ton.

I think I'm getting a little bit of mosaic.

It's sort of dinky piney smell, but it's real light smell.

And as you can see, it's real light looking right here.

Uh, mostly clear with a little haze to it. Let's dig in.

The old Tongue-jobber. All right. It's not bad.

I was expecting worse. Okay. This reminds me a little bit of

the Firestone Walker. I forget what they call it right now.

It was their hazy, and it was like a healthy beer that

was like under 100 calories and only, you know, 3% or something.

Similar stats to this, except it was a hazy one.

This reminds me of it where it's like they call it an IPA in quotes, but

drinks more like a pale just because of the lightness of everything to it.

You know, I don't hate it at all. Honestly,

I would drink more of these. I wish it was a little less dinky,

like it's it's pretty. In terms of the pine flavour.

Pretty dank. Pretty piney. Right? Like if you're wanting that West

Coast effect, like this is the way to go.

I kind of wonder if they have like a hazy or something a

little more mid road. Um, but overall,

surprisingly not bad. I was pretty sure this was gonna

suck ass. And at least they didn't lie

about the west coast though. Yeah, it's definitely west Coast.

You know, you don't get like the, the mouthful of bread, which I'm glad.

I think that's probably why I'm enjoying it the most is because like,

it's not thick, like an old school west coast,

but it's got some good flavor to it. Real light body like you talking

about crushing while you're doing some chores like this is a

real chore crusher. See that having that around the

house would not make me feel guilty at all. Yeah, 2.9%.

I mean, take you like 24 of these to get drunk, I think. Right.

Be okay. It says 100 or 94 calories. I wonder like what the carbs and

stuff on here are as well. You know how I am with my my

weirdo carb stuff, but. I'm assuming it would be somewhere

around like the 2 to 3 range. Yeah, I was thinking sub five.

Um, let me see if I can find it. Tap tap tap tap tap.

Oh, ten grams of carbs. All right. I expect a little less,

but still not that bad. I think a regular IPA is like 30.

Yeah, not bad at all. Take it. Yeah. Thanks, listener. Andrew.

I went to a tailgate and somebody had a shit ton of that.

Yeah, sounds like I'd go pretty nuts on it.

And if they had, like, some really good IPAs, you'd have one of like

the really good IPAs and then even yourself out with one of these and

just go back and forth. Right? Like it's a like a good

in-betweener beer. Exactly. Just keep keep you buzzed,

but not hammered kind of situation. It's brilliant. Yeah.

So I got to tell you, when he, he showed up after we last recorded,

and it was that night that I had that garbage ass electric.

Something like electric limbs, beer. Yeah. Um, that it was.

Looked like your morning piss. Yeah, it was the pee beer.

Yeah, exactly. Electric limbs. That's what it was by Beechwood.

And I was like, hey, man, I don't really have anything to give you.

I was like, I got one good one. I'd happily trade you, you know,

for bringing this. I said, if you want to try a

real shit Beachwood Brewing, I'll also give you one of those.

And he's like, yeah, I'll try it. And he even texted me later.

He's like, it looks weird. The bubbles look weird.

I was like, yeah, Flex said, it looks like a morning piss.

And he goes, that's 100% what it looks like.

It looks like the morning piss. So, um. Good job.

Yeah, that made me feel good. You did send me that screenshot

and I. Was cracking up. I was like, hey,

at least I know how to describe, uh, shit beer. You nailed it.

Like 100% looked like I'm already pissed.

Uh, visually, I will say one thing about this one.

There's like no head or lacing on it. I did notice that.

It is a little weird. Uh, it is carbonated.

Like I'm not sitting here thinking like, where's all the carbonation?

That was my next question. So I answered, visually.

It doesn't look carbonated, but it is so weird. All right.

Well, thanks, Andrew. I've got one more.

I think I'll have it next week on the show that he brought me.

We'll see how that goes. It's going to be a lot higher in ABV,

so I'll need it. Hey. Hey. All right. Like I teased earlier, Fontana.

Jim has made his triumphant return. He, uh,

he left us a voicemail of the day. So here is that. What is he angry at?

No one is available to take your. Strap. In, buddy.

Please leave a message after the tone. Hey, guys. Fontana.

Jim's still alive. Damn it. Flex, listen,

you're such a fucking Nancy. You hear someone giving out an

ID and you're like, oh, gee, that sounds like a good idea.

Somehow. He's a really good customer. I'm not gonna drink beer for the

rest of lent. Maybe that sounds like a good idea.

Listen, you fucking nugget. Now, listen.

I don't know how many religions give up things for lent.

I've been a Catholic dozens of years, so I'm going to guess it just a

Catholic, but I don't know for certain. Having said that, you.

Nancy. Now listen up. You give up something for 40 days and

40 nights if you take Ash Wednesday. And for you non religions,

that's the day after Fat Tuesday and you stretch that all the way over

to Easter. Take out your calendar. Count up your numbers.

How many weeks is it? It's four. It's. It's 46 days. God damn it.

That means that doesn't count Sunday. Sundays are not part of giving

shit up. So, listen, you want to be a nugget?

You want to be a soft, skull headed knucklehead and give

up beer for a whole fucking mic. Dude, you do you, homey.

But I'm just telling you, you're making up rules that

don't exist. That's right. I'm still here,

and I'm still fired up about stuff. And I need you to stop making

excuses. Flex. You're here for my entertainment,

goddamnit! Montana. Jim. Checking in. Oh, man.

I forgot to mention. Hey, @Necknosh. I'll be up in Sacramento working

up there, uh, in April. Maybe we can meet at guy's house

or something. And, uh. Hi, Vanessa. Vanessa.

He's not angry about @Necknosh, but he's very, very angry with me.

Yes, you. Nugget. I did appreciate that as well.

Made me think of Owen Hart. Oh, yeah? Yeah. I am not a nugget.

I'm a Black Hart. Damn it. Whew. I guess I don't know,

is the Sunday thing. Is that real? So I'm googling as he's talking about

this. I'm finding mixed results here. I think it depends which version

of the religion you're following, but I'm. Not following any.

Well, there's part of your problem. Yeah.

Overall, it seems like maybe Sunday is a free day. Okay.

During lent, uh, if anybody else could corroborate this.

I don't know if that changes your dedication to no alcohol, but.

No, I think I'm gonna just keep going strong.

Now, hopefully I can be entertaining without drinking.

Sorry, I fell asleep. What were you saying? Oh. That hurts.

Uh, so, yeah, I think I'm just gonna keep going.

And, uh, just, you know, tell myself I can do it.

Prove to myself I can do it kind of thing. Okay.

You know, I don't think there's anything wrong with that.

No, you'll probably lose a bunch of weight, and.

Yeah, I mean, liver will thank you for it. I look great right now.

Yeah. Looking tight. I'm sleeping wonderfully.

That's the one thing my sleep could use. Some alcohol free days. Yeah.

Uh, digestion, you know, TMI, but, uh, has been insanely healthy. Oh.

All time high? Yes, all time high. So, you know, it might not be be a

bad thing to do every now and then, uh, just to, I don't know,

calibrate the body. Sure. Maybe I don't know, but yeah,

I'm feeling pretty good right now. It's kind of hoping you'd say

like you're hating it and. Well, no, I hate it,

because I do want. Sure. The beers, they sound good.

They taste good. You know, on a, like I said, a 70

degree day, random 70 degree day. You know, nothing wrong with

having a couple. Yeah. I mean, you know,

these dad beers have been perfect for all your housework today, right?

I gotta get some of that to Wisconsin, apparently. Mhm. Andrew.

Yeah. Stop. Stop. Over here. No. Yeah. On your way back.

Uh, anyways, thanks for proving that you're still alive.

Call us anytime. 805538. Beer 2337. All you people call us as well.

And if anybody knows the real answer on whether Flex should be

drinking on Sundays, let us know. Everybody's gonna say, yeah,

I know they are. That's true. I mean, no matter what.

Yes is the answer, I believe. Fontana. Yeah.

We should make sure it's, I believe. Fontana Jim.

What would Fontana Jim do? I like that. That'd be a good one.

We got a lot of questions. WW was that WWF Jade? Yeah. Yep.

Exactly. Yeah. Not a real good ring to it,

but I think we could work with it. We'll get there.

Weird hashtag, but we'll make it happen. All right. Little news.

Former Sycamore Brewing has been sold and reopened over the

weekend as Club West. Club West,

formerly known as Sycamore Brewing, is in the process of being sold

and has reopened over the weekend, according to multiple reports.

Sycamore co-founder and owner Sarah Taylor is reportedly selling the

business to VP of Operations Brad Bergman, who has spent more than

eight years with the company. Sycamore faced boycotts late last

year, early this year following the arrest of co-founder Justin Brigham

on charges of statutory rape of a child by an adult and first degree

burglary and indecent liberties. He's an asshole, basically,

and should rot. But Club West reopened

March 14th with 84 employees. Bergman told Axios that 69 of

those employees remain with the company during the initial closure.

So, uh, you know, we talked about this a lot. Yes we did.

Um, I never want people to lose their jobs.

I'm glad they immediately cut that asshole out of the business.

Yeah, they did what they did, what needed to get done,

and now they're just trying to rebrand and move forward.

So I saw some of the pictures. It looks good. Yeah.

You gotta respect it. Yeah. So hopefully, um.

It's not their fault that he's a schmuck, you know.

Horrible human being. Right? Uh, we talked about BrewDog

being bought by Tilray. Yeah. Crazy. Uh, yeah. It's nuts.

BrewDog acquisition to accelerate Tilray's beverage

alcohol strategy by years, and nearly 500 UK jobs will be lost.

Nearly 500 workers will lose their jobs with the closure of 38

BrewDog owned pubs across the UK. I didn't know they owned that

many locations. I didn't realize they were that big.

Yeah. It's crazy. Following Tilray's acquisition of

parts of the Scottish Craft Brewery, a consultant firm, Alixpartners

shared in a press release, Alixpartners wrote no offer was

made at any stage of the sales process from any prospective bidder,

which would have preserved BrewDog in its entirety.

Regrettably, a total of 38 bars in the UK will close with immediate

effect, leading to 484 redundancies. Tilray's acquisition acquisition

of Brewdog's Ellon Brewery, Motherwell Distribution Centre and 11

pubs represents the preservation of 733 jobs, they noted. Oh.

Another brewery merger collective thing happening. Merger. Merger.

This time, half Acre and Maplewood merged to form Chicago beverage

platform. Oh, interesting. Yeah. That that they say won't become

a collection of brands. Chicago's Half Acre Brewing

Company and Maplewood Brewing and Distillery have merged into what

the brand leaders are calling a long term commitment to Chicago

as a great beverage city. The company's announced the news

in a press release last Tuesday. The combined portfolio of features

craft beer, spirits, hot water and THC infused Na seltzers.

The merger is expected to close in May.

Maplewood CFO and co-founder Paul Miguel.s told Brew Bound.

The vision for the future is showcasing vibrant and

interesting brands that have their own place in the world.

CEO Kevin McClelland told rebound, we are setting the framework to be

Chicago's premier beverage company. That could include other brands,

but this will not be a collection of brands, he added.

And I want to know, Shouldn't they call this half wood?

Dam. Half acre. It's right there. Yeah. Half wood beverages.

We don't get you hard. No one will. Something. That's good, that's good.

I was just gonna say that half acre is pretty large.

Yeah, this is a pretty, surprisingly big deal. Yeah. So I.

See them out here every now. Be happening. That's a big deal.

Yeah. So unless they're just trying to,

I don't know, get ahead of the game. Just like, hey, if we put two

successful companies together and plow forward, I don't know,

hopefully it's good for them. Yeah, we shall see.

Only time will tell. Uh, Michigan House votes to hike

alcohol limits for canned cocktails sold like beer and wine.

The alcohol content in canned, ready to drink Mixed spirits distributed

by beer and wine wholesalers would increase significantly

under legislation approved this week by the Michigan House.

The lower chamber voted 82 to 22 on Thursday.

22 fucking lame O's in favor of a bill that would increase

alcohol content in canned, mixed spirit beverages distributed

by beer and wine wholesalers from 13.5% to 21% ABV.

Previously, those sales had been reserved for the jurisdiction of the

Michigan Liquor Control Commission. This is just allowing for innovations

in the market, said state Rep Joe Aragona. Yeah, there's yeah, sure.

There's really not a lot of these products at this point.

The alcohol industry has evolved over the last few years, he added.

Now we have ready to drink mixed drinks that weren't even a thing

five, ten years ago. He's not wrong. No he's not.

No, I still really don't, you know, even when I am drinking.

Fontana Jim. Uh,

I really don't reach for the rtds. Mhm. Ever the occasional scelzi.

You know, I went on a real scelzi kick for a few months.

Samesies. Like, just huge. And I've backed off, and I'm wine

and beer right now is my jam. Uh, I feel like that's just,

like, classic wheelhouse. Mhm. It's like you try to, you know,

explore out with the Celsius because you're like, oh, you know,

less calories or you just feel better drinking the alcoholic water.

I feel less, less bloaty like if we're out swimming all day.

You know, you feel a little less bloaty when you're sipping.

That's a big thing too with with those.

For me, that was a reason. Yeah. Like my gut sticks in a little or out

a little less slightly. Slightly. Um, Scott sent over a list that

I thought was kind of funny. It was like beers with gross

origin stories. Okay. And I thought I would turn into

maybe a recurring segment. We'll see how this goes.

If people hate it, they can tell us to stop.

But I figured I'd start each one of these with a question for Flex.

Oh, okay. So here is our first ever gross

origin stories. Flex question for you.

Would you drink a beer made with bull testicles? Yeah, yeah, I would.

Okay. Yeah for sure. Rocky Mountain oysters, right?

Yeah, exactly. For sure. No hesitation. No.

People eat them all the time. Rubyr with them. Why not?

Have you had them before? Uh, I have not. Okay.

I've only seen pictures. Uh, Andrew Zimmern, he did a little

Bizarre Foods episode in Colorado, and he had them. They look weird.

They do look weird. You know, I. I don't know if somebody bought

them for me. I'd try them. I I'll remember that first of all.

Oh, what do you do? Somebody put puts bowl balls in

front of you. Like, what do you do? Like, oh, no, I'm not gonna eat them.

It's like, no. Buck up. Just eat the balls.

There's a quote of the night. Yeah. Just eat the balls. Yeah.

So if somebody bought me a beer, you know, bull balls in it. It's like.

Yeah, drink the balls. All right. So, uh, well, there's a brewery

in Denver called Wynkoop Brewing, which I've been to, uh,

that made a beer called Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout.

If you're not familiar with Rocky Mountain oysters, which you are now,

they're deep fried bull testicles, which are apparently a regional

delicacy in Colorado. Back in 2012, the brewery joked

about making a stout brewed with them for April Fool's Day.

But people were so curious they actually went ahead and did it.

The recipe uses about £25 of sliced roasted bull testicles in the mash

for every batch. It's a lot of balls. It's a lot of balls.

In this beer. £25 of balls. That should be like the slogan

this beer has balls. The beer itself is a dark stout with

chocolate and espresso flavors. But yes,

it technically contains bull balls. And it was so popular when they

debuted it at the Great American Beer Festival that they kept brewing it.

Okay. Yeah, I don't know. I think I'd have to have a few

beers before I was going to have bull balls in my mouth.

First beer of the day. Give it to me. You're a stand up kind of guy.

Bull balls in my mouth. Grab em by the sack.

Put em right in your mouth. All on my tongue. Dancing around.

Do do do do do do do do. I wish people could see this visual.

Like the sound of it was great, but the visual of him pointing

at his tongue as he went was. Oh God, I'm so raw right now.

Sorry, J. Yeah. Oh, well, with that, I think

successful. gross origin story. We're gonna wrap things up.

Yeah, that was fun. Yeah. So we'll keep it going until

people get tired of it. Until I run out of gross origin

stories. All right. Gotta hit some music.

And I say follow us all. @CraftBeerRepublic @flex_me_a_beer

underscores in between @CraftBeerRepublic dot com. 805538.

Beer. That is the number to call. Flex is jamming. How can you not?

It's God damn, it's still good. Thanks to Andrew for the free

beer and thanks to Fontana Gym for calling in.

I hope everyone is staying very well hydrated. And on that note.

Good night everybody.

Fontana Gym was so angry.