| Brew Masters | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Documentary Reality |
| Presented by | Sam Calagione |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
| Production | |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 42 min. |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Discovery Channel |
| Original run | November 21, 2010 – December 16, 2010 |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Brew Masters is a television series that was run weekly on Discovery Channel starting on Sunday, November 21, 2010. The show focused on Sam Calagione, the founder and head of Dogfish Head Brewery, and his staff as they scoured the world for new, ancient, and imaginative inspirations for beers.
Contents |
The original idea for the series came after Discovery Channel discovered the videos of the Dogfish Head Brewery in the company's website. As Calagione explained, “They could see we take beer very seriously but we don’t take ourselves too seriously."[1] This led to the development of the series focusing on the beer creation and production process at a specific brewery (in this case, Calagione's own Dogfish Head Brewery).
Chef Anthony Bourdain who shares a production company with Brew Masters reported via Twitter that Brew Masters would be cancelled due to pressure by a large beer company who threatened to pull advertising. Beer book author Andy Crouch later confirmed that the show was cancelled, but it was due to a poor audience, not any external pressure from advertisers. These remarks were later clarified to reflect the show was not renewed rather than cancelled, the difference being that the final episode will still planning to be aired.[2]
The main plot line of each episode revolves around the creation and production of a specific beer. This is done by outlining the inspiration for creating the brew, then taking the viewer through the process of developing the recipe, testing it, and preparing it for production. Interspersed throughout each episode are various anecdotes about beer making, both in general and at the Dogfish Head Brewery.
A total of six episodes were ordered for the first season. To date, five of the six have aired. The first two episodes aired on Sunday nights at 10:00 PM EST/PST. After premiering Episode 3 on a Monday night (November 29) at 10:00 PM EST/PST, episodes 4 & 5 aired on Thursday nights at 8:00 PM EST/PST. The sixth episode was originally delayed due to its subject matter: the episode was originally to have featured the opening of Dogfish Head's new brewpub at Eataly in New York City. Delays in the brewpub's opening resulted in the episode remaining incomplete. While the brewpub has since opened, the accompanying episode has never aired in the U.S. (though it has reportedly aired in several other countries.)
The Season 1 DVD of the series was released in June 2011, and includes the previously unaired "3 Beers For Batali" episode. Amazon Instant Video also offers the first season for download, but this version does not include the unaired sixth episode.
| Episode Title | Ep. # | Original Air Date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Bitches Brew" | 01 | November 21, 2010 | ||
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In the series premiere, Sam heads to Sony Records in New York City to create a special beer commemorating the 40th anniversary release of Miles Davis's Bitches Brew album. |
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| "Chicha" | 02 | November 28, 2010 | ||
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Sam heads to Peru to learn about Chicha, an ancient corn-based beer. Using the recipes and brewing techniques he learns on this trip, the entire Dogfish Head staff is called on to create an authentic recipe for the Dogfish Head Brewpub, including chewing the corn themselves to assist with the fermentation. |
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| "Punkin & Portamarillo" | 03 | November 29, 2010 | ||
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Sam travels to New Zealand and collaborates with Epic Brewing Company to brew a special indigenous tamarillo and pohutakawa brew for Beervana, an annual craft beer competition. Meanwhile, a crisis arises at Dogfish Head Brewery when several cases of Punkin Ale are found to be bottled in the wrong type of bottles. |
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| "Grain To Glass" | 04 | December 9, 2010 | ||
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Dogfish Head Brewery is enlisted to create a beer made from cedar scraps provided by the hand-made surfboard builders Grain Surfboards [3]. When a panel of brewery taste testers rejects the latest batch of 120-Minute IPA, the brew masters rush to figure out if the beer can be salvaged. |
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| "Ancient Ale" | 05 | December 16, 2010 | ||
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Dogfish Head is about to brew a batch of "Chateau Jiahu" a 9000 year-old recipe based on pottery jars recovered from a village in Central China. Sam heads to Egypt in order to bring back to life beer from one of man's earliest civilizations. |
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| "3 Beers For Batali" | 06 | [2011] | ||
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Italian craft breweries are examined. Dogfish Head Brewery opens its newest restaurant: La Birreria, a rooftop brewpub in New York City's Eataly, and creates a series of specialty beers for the pub. [4] |
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