EP-228 Rob and Keely Landerman of Woodland Empire
What\u2019s the balance between being a bit \u201cpunk\u201d and also being a responsible business owner? You can probably find examples from a variety of companies in beer that straddle this line. In this podcast, you\u2019re hearing from the owners of one of them.
At Boise, Idaho\u2019s Woodland Empire Ale Craft, founders Rob and Keely Landerman have long been said to produce some of the best beer in town. Online references started popping up not long after the brewery opened in 2014 ,and have picked up steam in recent years. But for this husband-and-wife duo, the focus behind the scenes hasn\u2019t been about chasing trends or finding ways to get high scores on rating platforms. As you\u2019ll hear in this conversation, a lot of it has to do with finding balance between pursuing their own passions and appreciations for beer alongside ways to address what drinkers are into at a certain moment.
In one example, these factors can be seen by way of their Ada County Stout, a barrel-aged Imperial Stout created to specifically mimic Goose Island's Bourbon County Brand Stout in name and visuals. You'll hear the reasoning behind these decisions\u2014and a variety of legal considerations that came along the way. There\u2019s also talk about how and why a need for certain hazy kinds of IPA came to be, and finding the right balance between brewing what you want and giving customers what they want, too.
The pair share their path toward beer, which winds through the country\u2019s music scene, and how they ended up choosing Idaho as a place to base their entrepreneurial project. Their company hasn\u2019t been around for a long time, but it has played a part in helping to shape the next wave of Boise beer.
This is Rob and Keely Landerman of Woodland Empire Ale Craft. Listen in.