Photo by Rocco Riggio for MediaNow
Audio By Carbonatix
From accountant to brewery owner to radio host, Miami’s Johnathan Wakefield of J. Wakefield Brewing is now the voice behind SiriusXM’s first and only craft beer-focused show.
The Beer Hour With Johnathan Wakefield debuted May 27 and airs on SiriusXM’s business channel 132 every Friday at 7 p.m. (Replays take place on Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 9 p.m., and are downloadable as podcasts on Pandora).
Each hourlong episode is recorded at Wakefield’s Wynwood-based brewery taproom and features two guests: one from the brewing world and another a prominent figure in pop culture, from chefs and artists to musicians and athletes.
Wakefield and his co-host, J Wakefield head brewer and operations manager Maria Cabré, say they hope the show will give listeners a unique, behind-the-scenes look at the world of brewing – and non-beer professionals – through the common love of the craft-beer industry.
“The show is more than craft beer. It’s really about education across different segments of the business world,” Wakefield tells New Times. “Because this is the business channel, we always lead off with craft beer, but we also get into who they are, where they came from, how they’re growing, and where they see their business evolving.”
“It’s been fun and educational for us to do these shows,” Cabré adds. “We get to sit down and really vibe with someone and talk to them about where they came from, how they started, and how they got into the industry. That’s the real guts of the show – to hear these stories, to talk to your friends and colleagues and learn more about them. It’s very rewarding.”
So far, Wakefield and Cabré have discussed everything from diversity in brewing with Crowns & Hops Brewing co-founder Teo Huner to barbecue culture in Australia with Edge Steak and Bar’s executive chef Aaron Brooks. Other guests include comic-book illustrator Jeff Dekal and August Burns Red bassist Dustin Davidson.
“Coming from my background sitting behind the desk doing accounting, to a brewery owner in the craft beer world, to now a radio show host, this has been a crazy evolution,” Wakefield says. “I never thought in a million years I’d be doing this – with Maria alongside me producing – and it’s all still pretty surreal. I’m enjoying the opportunity.”
