VIDEO: North Coast Brewing fundraiser at Churchkey

Many of us dream of a job where not only is our work personally meaningful, but also results in a product that people like and, if we’re lucky, has a tie-in that is beneficial to communities in some way. I have long been an admirer of North Coast Brewing Company‘s beer, as well as their move to partner with the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, which receives a portion of revenues from sales of the Brother Thelonious Belgian-Style Abbey Ale. So, I was thrilled with not only the event at Churchkey featuring North Coast’s beer, but the opportunity to speak with those responsible for the product and the partnership.

Shooting at Churchkey was a bit of a challenge, with its lack of light even on a sunny day. While the front looked fine, having the interview backlit means faces fade into the darkness a bit. To add to the frustration, I had come straight from DC Arts on Foot with a camera battery about to die and stubborn about charging, despite plugged into an outlet for about 20 minutes.

However, Churchkey was very accommodating about shooting, the North Coast guys gave me more than I could use, and thanks to the handheld, the audio came out great, even though the trumpet player was loud enough in my ear that at times I couldn’t really hear what my interviewees were saying. I’ve been amazed at the job that Sennheiser mic has done when called upon. Due to the battery problems, I had to shoot my b-roll footage plugged in, which severely limited what I could do. Better shots of the jazz trio would have been preferable.

Tom, the co-founder of North Coast, and a former ad exec on Madison Ave., had some thoughts about the authenticity of Madmen, which I found really interesting to hear, given how much praise that show has gotten for its authenticity. I could have talked to him about that for a full episode, but as you can see, he had a beer to work on so I tried not to waste his time.

Like Schlafly featured before, North Coast is a microbrewing success story, approaching 25 years in operation. Despite reaching that point, Tom still could crack a joke about not being into brewing for the money. It’s truly a choice born out of pleasing folks with product.

Related posts:

Tags: beer, Brother Thelonious, Chuchkey, cranberry juice, Madmen, North Coast Brewing, Ocean Spray, Old Rasputin, Scrimshaw, Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz

Category: DC Beer Doc, MOTS DC Season 1, Other, Out & About, Video