Josh Bringle of Cervecera Hercules interviews Tobias Zollo, the Head Brewmaster at Weihenstephan, and the two discuss his journey and the brewery’s traditions.

From Weihenstephan’s adherence to the German Purity Law to emphasizing the importance of raw materials and traditional brewing techniques, Zollo shares his insight into the development of a new Helles, and how the brewery approaches entering international beer competitions.

He says that the brewery never makes special batches for competition or formulates recipes differently just for competitions.

“We always think every beer has to be the best beer what we can do. And hopefully every brewer stands up in the morning and says ‘Okay, today I will brew the best beer, not only for a competition or for special occasions. Today I want to brew the best beer.’ And the brewers do that. So [for competition entries] we just pick it rom normal production which goes everywhere.”

Zollo discusses the brewery’s export-oriented strategy, focusing on beers that travel well, and sheds light on various collaborations the brewer has done over the years and the one beer he enjoys most from Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Listen to the whole conversation where you download podcasts including Apple PodcastsSpotifyAmazon, and Overcast.

This episode is sponsored by:

Malteurop
Malteurop

Malteurop Malting Company (MMC) is based in North America—specializing in growing and producing quality malts for the craft beer and distilling industries. With local farms and Malthouses spread across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, MMC’s commitment to excellence is fully ingrained into every batch it produces, ensuring breweries and distilleries of any size can create the finest beverages on the planet. Visit www.malteuropmaltingco.com to learn how MMC can support your malting needs. Contact MMC at customersuccess@malteurop.com or (844) 546-MALT (6258) for questions or to place your order.

Attention brewers: registration is now open for the 2025 Best of Craft Beer Awards. This is a BJCP sanctioned competition judged by fellow brewers and industry leaders; it uses a unique set of style guidelines that champions harmonious and dynamic beers.  Held in beautiful Central Oregon, it’s the third largest professional brewing competition in North America and is an opportunity to have your hard work evaluated and rewarded. In addition to traditional and specialty beer styles, new this year is the Hop Water category.

Register your beers through January 31, 2025 by visiting https://bestofcraftbeerawards.com/. Don’t delay, learn more and get your beers signed up by visiting https://bestofcraftbeerawards.com/ 

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