I’m starting the think the best brewery in the world is actually Sierra Nevada

Reads 6557 • Replies 79 • Started Sunday, August 24, 2014 12:23:30 AM CT

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Message GT P beers 10001 º places 672 º 00:23 Sun 8/24/2014 I’ve ticked way too many rare releases and expensive one-offs. I will go to extreme lengths to get special growlers from tiny nanobreweries in the middle of the forest. Then SN comes out with a release no one is talking about, their Harvest IPA series, and they have been just so good it is silly. And their beer camp Floral IPA from a few years ago. Plus, we don’t even talk about Narwhal on this site. That beer is possibly the best easily available RIS on earth. In a way it is better than Expedition because it doesn’t need to be aged at all. Their 30th anniversary RIS that no one trades for and no one talks about cellaring...news flash...it is absolutely mind blowing right now. I could go on, but seriously, these guys are in my opinion they best brewery out there because they consistently show how much they rock and they are cheap and widely distributed. They never make us queue up in the snow for a beer release. They somehow never mess up on QC. They can even make a pilsner that isn’t just good, it is one of the best I’ve ever had. So if they can make a good saison, that’s it. Game over. *disclaimer: got buzzed quick on Harvest Equinox that isn’t even that fresh and is better than essentially ever IPA I’ve had (Top 16 out of 650)
Message SSSteve beers 4006 º 00:41 Sun 8/24/2014 Yeah!...all those 30th anniversary beers were just incredible. I think the Nooner Session IPA and Kellerweis kick major butt too. Pretty sure I agree with you fully!
Message DrSilverworm beers 11383 º places 123 º 00:41 Sun 8/24/2014 I agree with you probably on every point aside from the Narwhal / Expedition comparison. Expedition is holy to me, and I don’t believe that Narwhal comes close (although it is certainly fantastic and a steal at the price). That out of the way, let me say again, I agree. Sierra Nevada is consistently underrated and not talked about enough. Their beer is consistently fantastic, which is doubly impressive because it’s brewed on a large scale and always reasonably priced. Speaking of which, the Beer Camp release this year was by far the biggest release of the year. I believe they blew away most people’s reasonable expectations. Not only were most of the beers above-expectation, but they managed to brew enough for it to be reasonably easy to find (unlike Bell’s Mars -- WTF, Bells? Way to play up the artificial scarcity factor) Case in point may have been the Beer Camp Invitation bomber. $5 for a 24oz of fantastic DIPA was an unparalleled fan-service. Sierra Nevada gets a bad rap for being the old man’s beer, but it deserves its place in the hall of fame, and unlike many classic breweries, its flagships and new releases are still hyper-competitive to this day.
Message GT P beers 10001 º places 672 º 01:14 Sun 8/24/2014 Originally posted by DrSilverworm I agree with you probably on every point aside from the Narwhal / Expedition comparison. Expedition is holy to me, and I don’t believe that Narwhal comes close (although it is certainly fantastic and a steal at the price). What I should say is that of the mass distributed in 6-packs (4-packs), pretty much nothing comes close to Expy and Narwhal on price, availability, consistency, and quality. Expy is a wicked mother of a beer that can be off sometimes and gets better with age. Narwhal to me is good to go, but still awesome aged (I have some 2012 bottles still that kick ass). So they are different, I like them both. Main point is not to compare Narwhal and Expy, but to maybe drive home at something more tangible for what really makes the "best" brewery? I think it boils down to: 1) Availability 2) Price 3) Consistency 4) Diversity 5) Quality SN have 1, 2, 3, and 5 down like no other in the industry. So then it comes to #4. What do you need to show style wise that you are a beer making master? To me, I think it is you need to make a very good if not incredible example of all below: Pilsner Session IPA APA/IPA DIPA Barleywine Stout/Porter RIS Black IPA Wit Saison Belgian Strong/Quad/Tripel Berliner Weisse Bright Sour Dark Sour For SN it is: Pilsner......................SN Pils, Torpedo Pils Session IPA...............Nooner (I like it, apparently others don’t) APA...........................SNPA IPA............................Floral IPA, Estate Harvest, Harvest Equinox, Torpedo DIPA..........................Beer Camp DIPA, Hoptimum Barleywine.................Bigfoot Stout/Porter..............Double Latte, SN Stout, SN Porter RIS.............................Narwhal, 30th Anniversary, Empire Strikes Black Black IPA....................DevESTATEtion, Blindfold Wit.............................Snow Wit IPA (they should probably market this one more) Saison........................Ovila Saison (needs some help) Belgian Strong/Quad/Tripel..Ovila series Berliner Weisse..........I don’t think they’ve ever made one Bright Sour................Do they make one? Dark Sour..................Don’t think they make one So, I’m under no illusion that other breweries can make a better example of all styles above. Possibly, one single brewery could make a better version of all the categories above like Hill Farmstead. But it really doesn’t matter if you can’t drink the beer does it? Availability and Price are prerequisites I think. Because if some monk in Bhutan is said to be the world’s best brewer, but you have to travel to Bhutan to get it, then big whoop. It might as well not even exist.

Message ABT_S54 beers 352 º 01:59 Sun 8/24/2014 Sierra Nevada Narwhal is seriously impressive and very reasonably priced.
Message sloth P beers 3475 º places 102 º 02:09 Sun 8/24/2014 Solid beers at seriously fair prices.No other brewery comes close. The only brewery you’d ever need.
Message konstifik beers 573 º places 37 º 02:45 Sun 8/24/2014 Originally posted by DrSilverworm Their beer is consistently fantastic, which is doubly impressive because it’s brewed on a large scale and always reasonably priced. Not sure I follow why it’s doubly impressive. For a larger brewery, making consistent, cheap and tasty beer is generally easier than for a smaller brewer.
Message obguthr beers 11716 º places 22 º 03:27 Sun 8/24/2014 Sierra Nevada has definitely been vital to craft beer’s birth and continuing growth. For a lot of folks, their first exposure to a beer style has been from SN. My first pale ale and barleywine were from Sierra Nevada. Their approachable pricing and availability are great for the industry. Despite my admiration for all of these reasons, I’m not a huge fan of their liquid. <duck> Maybe it’s because I’m an east coaster, but there are other breweries doing the same thing but making better beer. </duck> Sam Adams, Long Trail, and Saranac come to mind. Yes, I said it. I like Saranac. Should I ever abandon rating, I could be content drinking beer from just these four breweries and my local brewpubs.

Message LinusStick beers 3742 º places 66 º 05:28 Sun 8/24/2014 Originally posted by obguthr Sierra Nevada has definitely been vital to craft beer’s birth and continuing growth. For a lot of folks, their first exposure to a beer style has been from SN. My first pale ale and barleywine were from Sierra Nevada. Their approachable pricing and availability are great for the industry. Despite my admiration for all of these reasons, I’m not a huge fan of their liquid. <duck> Maybe it’s because I’m an east coaster, but there are other breweries doing the same thing but making better beer. </duck> Sam Adams, Long Trail, and Saranac come to mind. Yes, I said it. I like Saranac. Should I ever abandon rating, I could be content drinking beer from just these four breweries and my local brewpubs. REALLY? Sam Adams/Long Trail/Saranac over Sierra Nevada? To each their own but I never even put them on the same lever. My personal thoughts are Bud/Miller/Coors---->Saranac/Long Trail---->Sam Adams--->Sierra Nevada. Just my personal opinion, though
Message b3shine P beers 12200 º places 372 º 05:41 Sun 8/24/2014 Founders > Sierra Nevada I understand Founders doesn’t have quite the same availability, but they are in the conversation, and are continuing to grow. I would put their IPA (Centennial) their SIPA (All Day), their DIPA (Double Trouble), their Porter, and their Imperial Stout ahead of all the categorical options offers by Sierra Nevada. I would also put their limited offerings over SN’s. But yes, Sierra Nevada does a good job.
Message Trev beers 2023 º places 24 º 05:41 Sun 8/24/2014 I had forgotten about how much I enjoyed that DevESTATEtion. Bigfoot and Celebration are two of my absolute favorite seasonal beers from any brewer. Not as huge a fan of some of their lagers, but will be looking forward to trying the vienna and oktoberfest this fall. Certainly some merit to the idea that they are an overall amazing brewery. Would like to see that Ovila series get a bit more support/distro. They could certainly improve on that.