Minnesota's Great Lake, Superior, provides the base for the straightforward and masterfully made brews at Hoops Brewing in Duluth. Head brewer Dave Hoops joins host Scott Blankenship in this episode of Hop Notes, with music from Jean Sibelius accompanying beers made from the "best brewing water on Earth."

Playlist

This episode of Hop Notes includes selections from the following works and recordings:

Jean Sibelius: Karelia Suite, Finlandia, Valse Triste
CSR Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Kenneth Schermerhorn

Violin Concerto Dong-Suk Kang, violin
CSR Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Adrian Leaper

Note: Footage from this episode was filmed prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the latest episode of Hop Notes, we're savoring the beers of St. Paul's Urban Growler, the first woman-owned microbrewery in Minnesota, with co-founders Deb Loch and Jill Pavlak. Add connections to the music of composers Amy Beach and Rachel Grimes, and you have a can't-miss episode of our classical-beer video series.

Playlist

This episode of Hop Notes includes excerpts from the following works:

Amy Beach: Gaelic Symphony
Nashville Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Kenneth Schermerhorn

Courtesy of Naxos of America Inc.

Rachel Grimes: "Dix River Doxology"
from the album The Way Forth (2019)
Courtesy of Temporary Residence Ltd.
Mossgrove Music/Rough Trade Publishing/BMI

Rachel Grimes: "Earthly Heaven"
from the album Marion County 1938 (2011)
Mossgrove Music/Rough Trade Publishing/BMI

Two of Germany's best exports are music and beer. Explore both for Oktoberfest in this episode of Hop Notes, with Yoerg Brewing Co. in St. Paul, Minn., and works by Mozart and Richard Strauss.

Playlist

This episode of Hop Notes includes excerpts from the following works:

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Idomeneo Overture
Orchestra of the San Carlo Theatre, Naples, conducted by Marco Guidarini

Oboe Quartet
Salzburg Soloists

Piano Sonata No. 4
Siegfried Mauser

Richard Strauss: Also Sprach Zarathustra
Seattle Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Gerard Schwarz

Der Rosenkavalier
Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Herbert Von Karajan

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Kevin Welch has always been the sort to toot his own horn, literally. In 2011, he left the professional world of classical music to follow his passion for Belgian-style beers by opening Boom Island Brewing in Minneapolis. He has brewed a cornucopia of flavorful beers ever since.

In this episode of Hop Notes, the music of Belgium's most popular composer, Cesar Franck, is paired with Welch's popular Brimstone Belgian Tripel.

Join Scott Blankenship us as we sample Belgian brews and the music of Franck.

Playlist

Franck: Symphony in D Minor
Moscow Symphony Orchestra, Antonio de Almeda, conductor

Franck: Prelude, Chorale and Fugue
Royal Flanders Philharmonic, Guenter Neuhold, conductor

Courtesy of Naxos of America Inc.

Did you know Antonin Dvorak had a pail of Pilsner beer delivered to his house every day? Many of your favorite composers were among the first beer geeks, and many of the same beer styles you enjoy today were around when Dvorak and your other favorite composers were busy writing their best music.

Hop Notes explores the connections between beer and classical music. In this first installment, Scott Blankenship explores the works of Czech composer Dvorak and tastes a Bohemian-style Pilsner with its roots in the past, updated to satisfy today's beer geeks, from Bauhaus Brew Labs in Minneapolis.

Playlist

Dvorak: String Quartet No. 12, American, 1st mvmt.
Pannon Quartet

Dvorak: Slavonic Dance No. 1
CSR Symphony

Dvorak: Slavonic Dance No. 2
CSR Symphony

Dvorak: String Quartet No. 12, American, 2nd mvmt.
Pannon Quartet

Courtesy of Naxos of America Inc.