Hit me.
I thought you needed some fresh... [Chuckling] I did.
Some fresh beer in my beard.
Calms it down a little bit.
Beer is really good for your hair.
Yeah, it is. The hops are, like...
Uh-huh, a lot of people... ...exfoliating.
♪♪
My name's Meg Gill, and I love beer.
Holy shit. -Thank you so much.
That is a damn good beer.
Meg: So I'm heading on an epic beer adventure
to find out how beer is bringing people together...
Win or lose, we booze, so...
Is that a shower beer or what?
...to meet amazing homebrewers
and to give one of them a chance to brew their beer
at my brewery, Golden Road.
Everybody, cheers!
This is "Beerland."
♪♪
What's up, guys?
It's great to be back in Los Angeles
at my brewery, Golden Road.
Hey, Jefferson.
What's up, guys?
Cheers.
For the past few months,
I've been on an incredible journey,
traveling across America to see how beer
is bringing people together...
Cheers, guys.
...and meeting some outstanding homebrewers along the way.
I started my trip in New Mexico,
where I explored a trippy art museum
with a promising young homebrewer named Andy.
Brewing is a creative process.
You're trying to come up with a flavor that,
you know, entices people.
Andy created a flavorful beer
that uses a local variety of hops called neomexicanus.
Wow. Fucking kick-ass, man.
Yeah, that's all from dry hopping. Holy shit.
Next, it was off to New York City
where I drank beers with a self-described anarchist
named Dailey.
I'm so conflicted because I love beer so much.
But you hate civilization!
Dailey brewed a funky black ale,
made with a wild yeast from a magic log.
If you want to give it a whiff,
you can smell the yeast that's on it.
Yeah. That's crazy.
Then I headed to the mountains of Santa Cruz,
where two lifelong friends, Nick and Shamus,
were brewing with organic ingredients.
You guys seem to understand fresh beer, like,
better than most people.
All I do all day is talk to people about this stuff.
They created an awesome strawberry blonde
at their makeshift brewery in the woods.
We like to really do these fruit beers as fresh as possible.
In the crowded Colorado beer market,
my favorite homebrew was from Jessica,
a Latina mom infusing her own unique flavor
into a French-style Bière de Garde.
I would love to see more of a Latin influence, you know...
Yeah. ...in the craft beer industry.
We are no strangers to partying.
My final stop was in Hawaii where I met Justin and Jenn,
a military couple that really won me over
with their coconut ale.
Well done.
Well done.
Now, I'm bringing all five of these winning homebrews
to the people of L.A. for one final taste test.
♪♪
Welcome, and thank you for being here
for the finale of "Beerland"!
[ Cheers and applause ] Thanks so much!
Uh, you were all invited here to my living room,
the Golden Road pub,
because beer is about building community,
and that's why I journeyed across America
to find the best homebrewers.
You guys will judge which beer is best.
The winner will get their beer
brewed and canned at Golden Road.
So cheers!
[ Cheers and applause ]
I brought in some judges with me
who are very well-versed in beer,
and I'm gonna start with Teo.
I'm the cofounder of a brand called Dope and Dank.
And what we do is we bridge diversity,
dope culture, and craft beer.
It literally came down to me looking around
in a craft brewery one day and just saying,
"I can't be the only brother that likes craft beer!"
WOMAN: Whoo! [ Cheers and applause ]
Next up we've got Marina.
Marina's got one of the most important jobs
in the beer industry.
She is a top beer tender in L.A.
So I'm gonna give it up to the homebrewers.
They're doing something.
They're trying to make their own voice...
Yes. ...and their own name
in a very, very intimidating industry.
I give you guys nothing but respect and love.
So, good luck today.
All right!
Liam's one of our very talented brewers.
He is pretty critical on beers.
He's got a great palate.
Uh, g'day guys. I started homebrewing
about 3 1/2 years ago,
here in L.A. with another Australian friend of mine.
I actually, uh, came pretty circuitously
to the beer industry.
Um, uh, I-I actually trained, originally,
as an opera singer of all things.
So, can you sing about beer for us? Uh -- Aw, man.
Come on. Come on!
Sing, sing, sing!
Sing about home brew!
All right.
Um.
♪ Homebrew! ♪
[ Cheers and applause ]
All right, guys, you ready to taste some homebrew?
Yeah! All right. All right!
First up, Jenn and Justin from Hawaii,
here to share some aloha love and beer.
Come on up.
TEO: All right. MARINA: Yeah.
So I'll say let's start with this.
[ Singsong voice ] Aloha!
ALL: Aloha! -All right.
Um, this is a coconut Belgian blonde.
The main idea of this beer was getting something
that was coconut flavored
that was not dark, that was not heavy,
and that would be easy to drink on a beach in Hawaii.
We want to transport all of you there.
[ Chuckles ] To you guys. You got us here. Cheers.
All right. Anybody need a beer?
ALL: Whoo!
Cheers, guys.
All right. We're gonna hear from our judges now.
I have a-a special surprise.
-Uh-oh. -May I have a surprise?
♪♪
MEG: It's super hard as a homebrewer to get your beer
in store shelves, between start-up costs
and the sheer size of equipment needed to meet demand.
But after today, one of these homebrewers
will have their beer canned and distributed
by Golden Road.
All right, guys, who's ready for some Coco Island Blonde?
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪♪
[ Indistinct conversations ]
-Very roasty, it's earthy. -Yeah.
WOMAN: It smells good.
Little bit of an aftertaste though.
All right, what did everybody think of the Aloha Beer?
[ Cheers and applause ]
I thought it was very good.
Um, I love the aroma.
I wish it had a little more pop at the end,
but other than that, I thought it was amazing.
Now we're gonna move on to the judges.
This is so smooth.
I could drink this on the beach, like you were saying.
I think that you guys are onto the start of something great.
Thank you.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Liam, you ready?
So, I definitely did get roasted coconut.
It's not, like, eye-poppingly coconut-y,
but it's -- it's a gentle coconut that -- that gets in there.
Really nice clarity to it, as well,
um, and a -- and a really great aroma.
Um, one of things that I'll say is also, um,
I was surprised by how complex it was.
Um, and I-I tasted that -- that -- that, uh,
that island, uh, when I had it, so thank you.
I think you did a phenomenal job.
Well done. Yeah, nice job.
MARINA: Yeah. Good job, guys. Thank you.
[ Applause ]
Hey, give them a hand!
[ Cheers and applause ]
Mr. New York City is about to come talk to us.
Let me tell you a little bit about Dailey, okay?
Dailey is a lover of wild yeast, okay?
Love that shit. Loves wild yeast, right?
Right here.
[ Laughter ]
Let's bring out the beer!
[ Cheers and applause ]
This beer has been fermented with a log.
I found the log in the park.
So, I hope you all enjoy it.
[ Cheers and applause ]
[ Indistinct conversations ]
It literally tastes like a shot of liquor.
It's very strong. Just like coffee. Very strong.
All right, what did everybody think of, uh, Dailey's log beer?
[ Cheers and applause ]
I enjoyed it. I thought it was a dark, rich beer.
Um...it wasn't too heavy on my stomach.
Would you order a full pint of that beer?
I would. I definitely would, yeah.
Cool. Awesome. Awesome.
All right. We're gonna move on to the judges.
It's a pretty strong -- strong little beasty. It is. Keeps on rocking.
Um, obviously, you had your magic log. Yes.
And all praise to the log. Mm-hmm.
Did you put anything else other than grain into this,
or does it have any adjuncts or anything like that?
No, it's just grain, uh, hops,
and the -- and the log, and water.
Wow. Nice job.
-Thank you. -Nice job.
Teo?
It -- Th-This is a beer
that I would bring to a bottle share,
and -- and I would -- I would impress my friends with.
You know. This is a beer-nerd, uh, beer.
This is -- this is a beer-nerd beer. This is a beer --
a nerdy craft-beer-lover's beer. Yeah.
This is a beautiful fermented beast
that you've made for us. [ Chuckling ] Thank you.
Thank you very much.
-Thank you. -Cheers.
I have a-a special surprise.
Uh-oh. May I have a surprise?
Oohhhhhh!
Um, I, too, am an opera singer.
-Ohhhh! -Whaaat?
Challenge!
[ Cheers and applause ]
Thank you.
Yeah, let's hear some Dailey opera.
♪ La donna è mobile ♪
♪ Qual piuma al vento ♪
♪ Muta d'accento e di pensier ♪
La donna è mobile
♪ Qual piuma al vento ♪
♪ Muta d'accento! ♪
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪ E di pensier ♪
[ Cheers and applause continues ]
Nice job.
Hey, cheers.
Yay, guys. Way to go.
MAN: Bravissimo!
Colorado is known as the Napa Valley of beer.
Give it up to Jessica.
She's gonna talk about her beer.
[ Cheers and applause ]
So, this one that we're trying today
is actually a tamarind beer.
I named it after my grandmother, Donaneta.
She used to sell these candies,
and they're little tamarind balls,
and you'll taste that little bit of tartness that's in there.
-Whoo! -Let's taste away.
Cheers to all of you. -Salut.
Cheers to Jessica. -Salut!
Being a Mexican, I would think, you know, "¿tamarindo?"
but once you try it... Right.
...it's totally -- It's not overbearing.
WOMAN: I liked it.
All right. What did everybody think of Jessica's beer?
[ Cheers and applause ]
It had the little, like, taste in the end, like,
the little lime taste, that tart.
I mean, the tart was a little too strong,
but it was, like, good, though, like, to enjoy after a good meal.
All right, let's hear what the judges have to say.
Um, great fruit flavors.
Ester's peppery, spicy, so nice job.
Thank you.
TEO: Well, f-first -- first and foremost,
um, Bière de Garde is a style that you don't often see,
you know... You don't.
i-in general, let alone homebrewing.
So, um, I had to remind myself that this was a beer made
from a Latina homebrewer in Colorado.
Hey. [ Chuckles ]
[ Cheers and applause ]
I mean, that -- that's -- that's what I represent,
and, um, y-you have done this beer justice.
Um, it's -- it's a Latina in a glass, and I love it.
Hey. [ Chuckles ] I love it!
I'll drink to that. [ Chuckles ]
MEG: All right.
I know I'm sure you've heard about craft beer
as making the American Dream come true,
and this guy, Andy -- he exhibits that.
Andy left behind his home state with his dream
to open a brewery one day,
and he's done everything he can to get there.
Let's see Andy's beer. Where is Andy's beer?
[ Cheers and applause ]
MAN: Let's raise our glasses, Andy.
It's, like, grassy. It's like drinking a pine drink.
♪♪
All right, I'll hand it off to Andy.
He can talk to you about his beer.
Let's go, Andy.
[ Applause ]
I named this beer Quatro Brujas.
Basically, that's Spanish for four witches.
It's made with neomexicanus hops.
This beer specifically kind of emphasizes that hop,
and it's a -- it's a hop that you won't see anywhere else.
-Whoo! -Thank you.
Cheers. Taste away. Bottoms up.
♪♪
[ Indistinct conversations ]
It's got a light, earthy taste to it. Mm-hmm.
It's, like, grassy. It's like drinking a pine tree.
What did everybody think of Andy's beer?
[ Cheers and applause ] Andy.
All right.
All right. MAN: I liked the beer.
It was really clean, really smooth, like, very soothing.
I just wish it had a bit more of the hop, a bit more of the bite.
Like, hearing about this cool strand of New Mexico hop,
I wish I would have tasted a little bit more now.
So, you, like, didn't have bitter-beer face.
You wanted more of a bitter-beer face. I wanted more of the bitter-beer face.
You wanted more bite. You wanted more bitter bite. Yeah. Just a little bite.
All right. We're gonna hear from our judges now.
There's no, like... You got pepper notes.
You got wheat notes.
You got these really interesting notes
that you don't get in a lot of session IPAs.
The one issue I do have is with the smell.
It's a little skunky,
but that's the only criticism I have.
Yeah. Thank you.
Liam, as a brewer,
what did you think of the neomexicanus hops?
I mean, it's... Would you want to use them?
Yeah, absolutely.
If we can get our hands on enough of it.
Yeah. Um...
I do get the skunk that they were talking about.
And I was afraid that the beer had been skunked,
but, you know, after it sits and breathes for a while,
it's gone. Thank you.
All right, Andy, you're bringing something, um,
to craft beer that none of us
have really had a lot of experience with,
and it forced me to, uh, reconsider
what initially, in the nose, I thought was -- was bad.
This beer is dank as fuck.
Like, straight up. Like, I mean, it just is.
Hold on. One sec. Since I beat Andy up so much,
I'm gonna actually ask
our number-one regular on the planet
to please step up.
This guy is here every day.
[ Cheers and applause ]
What did you think of it?
Um, I am not a huge hop-beer fan.
But for my palate,
I could probably drink that all day.
[ Cheers and applause ] Thank you.
Next up, we've got Nick and Shamus.
They've brought their beer from the Santa Cruz mountains.
It doesn't get any fresher than that, okay?
I'm telling you, this is awesome beer.
Let's bring them up, give them a round of applause.
[ Cheers and applause ]
We, uh -- We did a strawberry honey blonde ale,
all organic ingredients, basically.
We freeze the fruit first, which we realized
actually breaks all the cell walls
and gives you all that aroma, that juice, that flavor.
It's a good beer. It's a good day-drinker.
All right, bring out the beers.
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪♪
Cheers, guys.
I think it's fresh.
-I know it is. It's sweet. -It's refreshing.
♪♪
All right, guys.
What did everybody think about the beer?
[ Cheers and applause ] Yeah? Yeah? Yeah?
All right.
I-I liked it, but it was, like, a girly beer.
And I was kind of surprised...
What?! ...that two guys made a girly beer.
But look how se-- Look how -- look how sensitive they look.
I'm in touch with my feminine side.
[ Laughter ]
All right, we're gonna hear from our judges now.
Um, Teo, you're -- you're up first.
I think one of the things that I-I look for
when I'm tasting a beer,
um, is can I share it with my mama?
[ Chuckles ] Would my mom enjoy this beer?
And she would love this. The aroma is nostalgic.
Um, It reminds me of, like, spring, summer. Well done, gentlemen.
Marina, what do you think?
I really enjoyed the fruity esters,
but it didn't take away from the yeast
and the wheat and the honey.
Well done.
All right.
Liam, what do you think?
Great aroma.
Smells like fresh strawberries
straight off the bat.
Lovely color, um, great clarity, you know,
from a homebrew standpoint, that's really difficult to do.
We don't filter.
No, that's fantastic.
You know, I-I really applaud you on that.
Thanks so much, guys. Round of applause.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Cheers.
-Good job, guys. -Yeah.
♪♪
Okay, guys, so, I thought all the beers were great,
but we got to make a decision.
♪♪
MEG: We've tasted all five home brews.
Now it's time to decide which winner
is gonna have their beer canned and distributed
by Golden Road.
Okay, guys, so, I thought all the beers were great,
uh, but we got to make a decision.
So, Marina, I'll start with you.
What are you thinking on the top of your list?
I would do the Bière de Garde --
really cool, interesting beer.
Love the history behind it.
Awesome. Liam?
Um, I would -- I'd go with
the New Mexico session IPA for number one.
Um, you know, it's really great, really complex.
Teo? Um, I-I think when I'm tasting these beers, I'm thinking,
"What would I buy another pint of?"
Yeah. I'd probably go with, uh, the nerdy beer.
This is the standard beast. Yeah.
It forces you to think and talk about the beer,
and I think that's what craft beer
and the craft community is about.
So, for me, to be honest with you, you know, it-it's tough.
I-I love all of them.
What do we think of our home-brewed beers, today?
[ Cheers and applause ]
-Community! -Whoo!
This was a super-tough decision.
You all created amazing beers.
You brought your philosophies about life,
about community into your beers.
Your personality is embedded in every sip
that we've taken today.
Um...
but, Jessica, I'm giving you the opportunity
to -- to brew here at Golden Road.
[ Cheers and applause ]
MARINA: Yes! Good job. Great.
Oh, my God.
Every time somebody tried a sip of Jessica's beer,
their fucking face flew off, you know?
It's like, "Whoa. What is that?"
And -- And to me, your heart and soul was in the liquid.
-Yeah. -And it showed.
WOMAN: Whoo!
Jessica, your beer is gonna be canned and distributed
by Golden Road.
Your name's gonna be on the label.
you're gonna work with us.
I'm making sure you're in love with it,
and then it's gonna be available for your family,
your friends, all the folks out here,
so congratulations.
-Yeah! -Yeah!
-Whoo! -Whoo-whoo-whoo!
[ Cheers and applause ]
-Aw! -Yeah!
[ Cheers and applause continues ]
[ Speaks indistinctly ]
Yeah!
DAILEY: I mean, who the hell doesn't want to win?
But, uh, Jessica brewed a really kick-ass beer.
And, like, how the hell the fuck did I get here
picking a log out of the park and putting it in some wort?
It don't make no sense, but here I am.
It was pretty kick-ass.
[ Cheers and applause ]
NICK: Our beer's a little sweet.
If that's the only thing they can find wrong with it,
we should have brought one of our other beers.
[ Both chuckle ]
JESSICA: As a homebrewer, to scale my beer and have it distributed,
it's fricking priceless, you know?
This is -- this is what homebrewers dream.
This is what we do it for.
[ Cheers and applause ]
MAN: To Jessica.
To Jessica!
[ Cheers and applause ]
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