These days, owning a beautiful home is often prohibitively expensive, while “affordable” housing too often fails to include quality craftsmanship. But there is a solution, and today, Zack Giffin reminds us of this fact and discusses the craft of designing smaller structures that address our true needs. This is a conversation where design and philosophy come together in a big way, as does the art of fostering real communities and constructing vibrant towns.

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Blister Podcast Ep.275: Zack Giffin

TOPICS & TIMES:

Zack’s background (3:48)

Why are smaller houses controversial? (9:05)

Construction & Craft (21:20)

Renting vs Owning + Rules of the Road (32:36)

Designing a Tiny Home for Jonathan (37:17)

Strangest Build Request? (58:40)

Where Should People Find Out More? (1:00:21)

Current State of Prohibitions (1:04:18)

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Blister Cinematic

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

Blister Podcast

Off The Couch

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In this episode, we get a crash course on the vinyl revival and why spinning records on a turntable is a more engaging way of listening to music. Our guest, Michael Fremer, is regarded as one of the premier experts in the audio field, and he's extremely passionate about it. Michael and Simon get into how Led Zeppelin II was made, why Howard Stern hates vinyl, how to go about buying your first turntable, the travesty of “smashed” music, turntables that cost as much as a house, and tons more.

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Records Just Sound Better (3:11)

The Vinyl Revival (7:16)

Michael’s Today Show appearance (8:08)

What’s A Pressing? (11:11)

Record Store Days (14:22)

Turntables (21:11)

Michael’s First Turntable (24:34)

A Turntable As Expensive As A House (25:46)

Quincy jones and Michael Jackson (27:34)

Turntables Are Vibrations Measuring Devices (30:16)

Phono Preamps (33:41)

Choosing Records (40:57)

“Smashing” Ruins Good Recordings (43:04)

Bob Ludwig’s Cut Of Led Zeppelin II (46:52)

How To Really Listen To Music (54:04)

Current Vinyl Sales (1:06:46)

Michael’s Two Records (1:08:09)

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Blister Cinematic

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

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Off The Couch

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One of the greatest big-mountain skiers of all time is also seriously passionate about making great pizza. So what’s the story here, and what do pizza and skiing have in common? What has Sage learned about the art of making dough and sauce? And what do you need to know to start making great pizza yourself? We cover all of this, plus Sage’s most recent trip to Alaska.

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Blister Pod #41: Sage on Skiing Spines

Blister Pod #270: Angel Collinson / Sage’s Pizza

TOPICS & TIMES:

Pizza & Skiing (5:58)

Outdoor Pizza Ovens (15:00)

Pizza Team (18:14)

Pizza & Espresso (21:08)

Outdoor Pizza Ovens, Part 2 (23:25)

Angel’s Story of Sage's Pizza (37:31)

Sage’s Most Recent Trip to AK (43:15)

Pizza 101: Getting Started (54:40)

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La Marzocco is the most iconic espresso-machine maker in the world, and last month, Jonathan went to the La Marzocco Accademia to talk with their head product designer, Stefano Della Pietra, about the history and core principles of the company; how he became the head of product design there; and the task of taking La Marzocco into the future while staying true to the brand’s storied past.

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Accademia del Caffe Espresso

Innovation (5:39)

Avoiding Fads (14:12)

How Did You Get Your Position? (16:43)

Lina Micra & Mini (20:28)

Other Areas of Design Inspiration (25:12)

Espresso Machines & Watches (27:48)

Officine Fratelli Bambi (30:08)

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Blister Cinematic

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GEAR:30

Blister Podcast

Off The Couch

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After much deliberation, we’re revealing the machine that Jonathan ended up going with on his quest to create daily doses of “hero espresso” — a phrase coined at the end of this conversation. Simon Stewart joins Jonathan for all the glorious, dorky details, and they also discuss decaf coffee & N/A beer; the price of a thing vs. the amount of joy it brings; mtn bikes vs. espresso machines; & more.

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Tea?? (4:36)

PSA: Great Coffee can be Cheap (6:15)

Origins of JE's Obsession (9:57)

E61 vs. Saturated Group Head (15:37)

JE's La Marzocco Linea Micra (26:38)

Beans (31:45)

Other Machines JE Considered (36:38)

Microfoam, Cortados, & Macchiatos (39:33)

Decaf Coffee & N/A Beer (45:16)

Manual Machines & Simon’s Quest (52:37)

Weighing Beans (1:03:52)

Cost & the Economics of this Setup (1:08:39)

Florence, Italy (1:15:31)

Hero Espresso (1:20:51)

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Blister Cinematic

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

Blister Podcast

Off The Couch

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Jonathan Ellsworth was recently at JING Tea headquarters in London for another CRAFTED conversation with JING founder, Ed Eisler. After a proper tea tasting, they sat down to discuss all things tea (and skis); agriculture as art; and the qualities of a great tea.

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CRAFTED ep. 23 w/ JING’s Ed Eisler

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Coffee, Tea, & Skis (5:12)

Curiosity (12:41)

Standards (21:47)

Buying Local (25:49)

Principles & Sourcing Tea (30:26)

Going Forward (32:13)

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Blister Cinematic

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

Blister Podcast

Off The Couch

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Today we are discussing a product that people get very passionate about — and even more opinionated about: cast-iron cookware. Jonathan is joined by Blister senior bike editor, Simon Stewart, who has been using cast-iron cookware for more than twenty years, but is now on a quest to see if the fancier, more expensive options out there are better than their cheaper counterparts. We also discuss the notion of ‘elevating the everyday’; cast-iron cookware as heirlooms; the introduction of new tech; the return of old tech; and more.

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Why are we talking about cast iron cookware (2:57)

Defining "Nicer" (9:26)

Amatuer Hour PA (13:25)

Price Ranges (15:28)

Rape Seed Oil Sanding (21:20)

Why Cast Iron and the Obsession (23:53)

Current Landscape of Cast Iron (27:57)

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Blister Cinematic

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

Blister Podcast

Off The Couch

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WNDR Alpine founder, Matt Sterbenz, aka, the ‘Sauna Shaman’, talks about how Hoji kicked off his obsession with saunas; their numerous benefits; and lays out what it takes (and costs) to build your own sauna. (On our site, you can check out a bunch of photos of the sauna that Matt built. It’s sweet.)

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TOPICS & TIMES:

Defining Terms (8:59)

The cold plunge trick (25:15)

Heart and inflammation (27:19)

hot tub vs sauna (29:42)

planning a sauna and costs (31:17)

Temperatures (43:14)

Sauna Enthusiasm and becoming a Shaman (48:30)

Infrared (51:57)

Wrap Up (55:02)

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Blister Cinematic

Bikes & Big Ideas

GEAR:30

Blister Podcast

Off The Couch

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