by Eli Raffeld Stone Brewing Co. has defined the landscape of American craft beer for the last 16 years and continues to do so. Founded in 1996, by Steve Wagner and Greg Koch, Stone’s bold brews have converted many fizzy yellow beer drinkers into hopheads worldwide. In 2011, Stone produced 150,000 barrels of beer (nearly…

The gods came together in the heavens and Yona Yona beer started flowing. No really, it did. Yona Yona began serving its now world-famous ales during Tanabata in 1997. The brewery was originally the vision of its parent company’s president, Hoshino Yoshiharu, who had traveled America and discovered the pleasures of craft beer, specifically ales.…

Jerry Brady, or “Big Jerry” as he is affectionately known, is “The Sauceror,” a bona fide chef who brings decades of experience to producing an array of sauces and spice rubs. He’s also about to launch a company specializing in such products. The even better news is that he’s got craft beer on his mind.…

(a condensed version of this interview appeared in Japan Beer Times #9) When did you become passionate about craft beer? It was a gradual process that began with German beer when I was 19. I was in college and living in a small apartment, and across the street was a small bar where the owner…

Been to a craft beer festival in Japan? You may likely have attended one organized by Oda Ryoji, the chairman of the Japan Craft Beer Association (JCBA). Oda was the first to host a large-scale craft beer festival in Japan, way back in 1998, an event that drew 800 people. Today, his organization runs festivals…