EP-215 Chris Cohen of Old Devil Moon

There’s a case to be made that some of the most essential members of our craft beer communities aren’t brewers, or writers, or distributors. They’re publicans who influence the industry by connecting people. Chris Cohen is one such person, though he wears many more hats than that of just beer bar founder. He does indeed run a popular bar in Old Devil Moon, which opened in 2016 in San Francisco’s Bernal Heights neighborhood, but he didn’t always know he’d wind up there. He was a former IP lawyer in New York, who by chance got into beer by way of a curiosity about homebrewing. A hobby gave way to a passion, and before long, Cohen moved to the Bay Area, founded the San Francisco Homebrewers Guild, and earned the Advanced Cicerone certification. And then, realizing his meticulous Cicerone test note-taking might be of help to others, he launched Beer Scholar, a site and study guide aimed at helping prospective BJCP and Cicerone students pass their exams. But his most recent effort is a novel one, even for him: He’s an outspoken proponent for the commercial use of Nordic kveik yeast, an ingredient he says will change American craft beer due to its ability to drastically cut down fermentation time. It’s a bold argument, but he’s ready to make the case. This is Chris Cohen of San Francisco’s Old Devil Moon. Listen in.