Joe Stange
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thirstypilgrim.bsky.social
Joe Stange
@thirstypilgrim.bsky.social
Executive editor, Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine, Brewing Industry Guide, and Spirits & Distilling. Based in Seoul, for now. Digital nomad, kinda, and since before that was even a thing, but it’s not my fault.
Best in Beer 2025 issue drop! This is kinda like our Christmas. Go dive in over at beerandbrewing.com.
November 14, 2025 at 12:59 AM
Reposted by Joe Stange
House just passed the bill, which as expected still contains the de facto ban on THC, to take place 365 days from enactment. Government is soon to reopen; the $28-billion hemp-derived THC business is on the clock and fighting for its life.
November 13, 2025 at 1:27 AM
Granted, lots going on in the news. But the deal to end the shutdown includes a provision that would ban (close the loophole on) hemp-derived THC—a rather popular $30 billion industry—and the mainstream news outlets have barely caught a whiff of it.
November 13, 2025 at 12:46 AM
Reposted by Joe Stange
Irish whiskey is in a weird place — and new US tariffs sure don’t help. For @vinepair.com, I talked to distillers, fans & insiders about Irish whiskey’s path forward. That includes growing sales in places like Poland, now the #2 market for Irish whiskey after the US.
vinepair.com/articles/iri...
The U.S. Put Irish Whiskey Back on the Map. Now the Category Has to Evolve.
The next time you’re ordering a cocktail in Warsaw, Berlin, or Lagos, consider making it a Tipperary or an Irish Coffee: Recently, exports from Ireland to Poland, Germany, Nigeria, and other emerging whiskey scenes have soared. Those new(ish) markets represent a much-needed spot of good news for Irish whiskey — and an example of how the country’s distillers are finding workable solutions in a difficult era.
vinepair.com
November 4, 2025 at 8:16 AM
One of the very few times I look down my beer-dude nose at wine people is when they're trying to pair it with spicy wings.
November 3, 2025 at 11:49 PM
Fellas, seems like a good day to remind y'all to NOT burn any witches. Magic's not real. Those are just ladies!
October 30, 2025 at 10:11 PM
all this for gold-plated shitters, wild
Construction workers ripped the face off the East Wing to begin building President Trump’s 90,000-square-foot ballroom. nyti.ms/43oS9T1
October 21, 2025 at 3:37 AM
Reposted by Joe Stange
What are the names of the U.S. Navy officers carrying out these orders to serially bomb civilian boats that pose no threat to their own vessels, killing everyone aboard? Surely they’ll want to take personal credit for this honorable service and perhaps wear a little campaign medal on their chest.
September 22, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Lush export India porter, on cask, at Machine House in Seattle
September 23, 2025 at 4:04 AM
This is a fantastic beer with a mental yeast blend. So, definitely check it out if you’re into stuff like fantastic beers and mental yeast blends. beerandbrewing.com/recipe-halfw...
Recipe: Halfway Crooks Sanguine
From Shawn Cooper and Joran Van Gingerachter of Atlanta’s Halfway Crooks, here’s a recipe for their own “brewer’s beer”—a dry, bitter, quenching pale ale packed with Belgian-grown hops and accentuated...
beerandbrewing.com
September 4, 2025 at 7:12 AM
Constitutional amendment to require all states to adopt data-driven, nonpartisan redistricting process. AI spits out maps; technocrats and/or judges narrow it down to maybe 5. Each political party rank-orders their preferences, high score wins. In a tie, flip a coin. Stuck with it for a decade.
August 20, 2025 at 5:25 AM
Reposted by Joe Stange
Beer in Art #1614

The Guitarist, by Hermann Kern, c. late 19th century (Austria, Slovakia)
August 20, 2025 at 4:36 AM
TIL that Korean has its own portmanteau for the combo of fried chicken and beer—chimaek (치맥), for chikin + maekju.

Now ready to die for these people.
August 20, 2025 at 5:11 AM
Interesting tidbit from Gallup (via Mark Brown newsletter) on the drop in self-reported alcohol consumption.
August 18, 2025 at 5:11 AM
🎶 won't you take me to ...
August 17, 2025 at 6:16 AM
Reposted by Joe Stange
Yesterday was an absolute bucket list day, when I got to visit Brauerei Zehendner in Mönchsambach 30 min south-west from Bamberg together with @louisekrennmair.bsky.social, @johnzee7.bsky.social, @silentdan.bsky.social, @thirstypilgrim.bsky.social and the rest of our Stammtisch crew.
July 27, 2025 at 12:11 PM
Why should I trust AI with anything when autocorrect continues to insert apostrophes into my possessive “its”?
July 30, 2025 at 1:08 PM
If I try to look something up on Instagram—like, actually try to find a specific photo or piece of information from there—there’s maybe a 90% chance I'll completely forget what I was looking for.
July 16, 2025 at 8:39 PM
I like to see craft beer as a global conversation—vectors of influence shooting everywhere, like a mess o’ spaghetti. Anyway, please enjoy this article by Lucy Corne on how Ghana’s brewers are using local starches and winning international medals for their beers: beerandbrewing.com/grown-in-gha...
Grown in Ghana: How Brewers in West Africa Are Embracing Local Grains
It’s not always a simple process, but independent brewers in Ghana are favoring locally grown starches such as rice and cassava over imported malt, forging an identity for Ghanaian craft—oh, and they’...
beerandbrewing.com
July 16, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Longtime pet peeve: Wikipedia redirecting “radler” to “shandy.” I don’t live in England. Most people don’t.
July 9, 2025 at 5:19 AM
Greenstar Bateman Bier. GABF gold for American amber lager last year, and the nearest brewery to Wrigley. But you know I'm going michelada next.
July 4, 2025 at 4:32 PM
My father-in-law’s favorite beer is La Chouffe, and he’ll be delighted to hear that it’s currently a local Missouri craft beer: www.brusselstimes.com/1632421/duve...
Duvel brewing Chouffe in the US since late 2024
The decision to relocate some production was influenced by uncertainties surrounding tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.
www.brusselstimes.com
June 24, 2025 at 6:38 AM
Rice in beer is flavorless and kind of a PITA to brew with, right? WRONG, NO, and the answer is always NO when people pose dumb questions like that. Fun going down this rabbit hole for our Spring 2025 issue, and I'll have more reporting on this topic pretty soon.
beerandbrewing.com/brewing-ingr...
Malted Rice Is on the Rise
New research points toward much greater potential for rice malt in brewing—with varieties that provide color, character, and brewing specs that aren’t so different from barley.
beerandbrewing.com
June 23, 2025 at 6:44 AM