Photo via [The Courier](https://www.thecourier.com.au/story/5561158/a-bakery-of-tradition-see-how-red-beard-does-it/)
I’m so glad that my first ever Australian guest is John Reid, owner and baker of Redbeard Historic Bakery in Trentham, Victoria. He’s been recommended as “someone to talk to” from several bakers across North America and as far as Ireland.
Little did I know that I’d been wanting to talk to John for a long time too!
You see, I’ve been following this really cool guy on Instagram and Twitter for a few years now. He goes by the handle @hotscotchoven. I’ve loved his pictures and his irascible tweets. My impression is that Australians have strong opinions and hotscotchoven was no exception.
However, I didn’t know that John and hotscotchoven were one and the same person until weeks after we spoke together. Go figure!
Maybe if I had known I would’ve been intimidated of speaking rubbish to John. But in the event, he was an extremely warm and interesting guest. He helped me get my head around the unique design of the Scotch oven and wowed me with stories of building ovens with Alan Scott.
And then things got really fun, as talk turned to his trip North for the 2016 Grain Gathering, travelling all over to connect with other bakers and the unique and compelling grAiNZ gathering he will be hosting at the bakery this October.
John is passionate about local grain, local economies and great bread. I’m in awe. I hope you enjoy this chat as much as I do.
You can listen to this episode from your favourite podcast app, from the Rise Up website or using the handy audio player below (here if you’re reading this in email.)
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