Sierra Nevada

Did the Sierra Nevada brew tour today; that place is freaking heaven on earth! 99.5% reuse of waste, nearly self sufficient energy-wise. I can’t believe how good their employee benefits are. Makes me want to quit my job and join their ranks, even if I had to scrub toilets there I’d be happy!

edit: typos (had one too many samples on the tour!)

I was there for 3 days for Beer Camp and was similarly impressed. Beer Camp was the experience of a lifetime.

Had you asked me a few months ago, I would have said Sierra was my favorite brewery in the USA. Since having beers from Founders and Russian River, I can no longer say this. But the price can’t be beat, sometimes. A $9 six pack of torpedo hits the spot quite often.

Sierra Nevada was kinda my introduction to craft beer. Their Torpedo is always a good go to for me. I have recently tried Founders aswell and I am loving their IPA and Reds Rye pa. Hoptimum was so so this time around. I actually like Bells Hopslam better.

When is it held? Is it an annual camp?

When is it held? Is it an annual camp?[/quote]

It’s held about 25 times a year. Almost always invitation only, although there’s a video contest you can enter to win a trip. Go to sierrabeercamp.com for info.

I also went there this summer. It was a cool place. I am not a huge fan of their beer, but it was fantastic at the brewery. I bought quite a bit it to bring home and share with friends.

Anchor would not even let me in the door since I did not get a reservation 2 months in advance. Their beer was great at a pub down the street, but I did not buy much of their beer because of the brewery experience. They were very friendly about it, but still said “no.” It just seems like a bad PR move on their part. I went to the gift shop, and their were about 5 employees working the end of the tour for just a few people.

Wow, prices or taxes are high in Vermont. I’m in Maryland. 6 packs are normally 7.99 here but they ran a special on 12 pack bottles for 12.99 a couple months back… boy was I dumb not to buy more than I did. I should have at least got 100 bucks worth of Torpedo!

Wow, prices or taxes are high in Vermont. I’m in Maryland. 6 packs are normally 7.99 here but they ran a special on 12 pack bottles for 12.99 a couple months back… boy was I dumb not to buy more than I did. I should have at least got 100 bucks worth of Torpedo![/quote]

No kidding! I usually pay $13 - $14 for a 12-pack here in Oregon. I did pay $9.50 for 16 oz Torpedos at the Mayhem Fest, though. More than one. :oops:
Haven’t been to SN in about 10 years, but I remember it being a beautiful setting, more like a winery.

6 packs of beer at Sierra Nevada were $7.10 + tax. They confirmed that they are building a new brewery in North Carolina (I think). This should cut down on shipping costs which is why it probably costs more in Vermont.

Even my wife fell in love with Chico. She took the kids to the park while I went to the brewery and then we met for lunch at the brewery. It was a really nice day. Sierra Nevada was a class act and well worth the drive.

[/quote] I usually pay $13 - $14 for a 12-pack here in Oregon.[/quote]

Two weeks ago I brewed a three gallon batch of pale ale for that much. :cheers:

Am i the only one that doesnt like sierra nevada pale ale? I’ve drank it and i’d drink it again if it was the only thing there. but i’d chooose pretty much any pale ale Ipa over it, It always seems to be ranked at such a high level i dont get it

Yes. Yes you are. J/k, everyone has their own taste for beer, and much like religion it’s impossible to convince anybody that their’s is wrong. My taste for beer tends to change with the seasons. Last fall I would have told you that IPA’s are gross, but right now I can’t get enough of the hoppy goodness!

Does anyoen know what type of hops Sierra nevada aple ale uses?

It’s on their website. Pearl for bitter, cascade for flavor.

The problem I have with their pale ale and quite a few others is they, at least to me, go way overboard with the cascades. Last year I had a pale ale made with cenntenial and cascades that was great. I didn’t recognize it as cascades at first. The hoppyness was extremely well balanced with the malt aspect of the beer.

Sierra Nevada pale ale is not my favorite, but it was really good at the brewery. I could taste malt and hops. It often has a sulfur aroma that reminds me of a ladies home perm when I buy it in Texas.

The hops have been revised a little bit. They now use Perle and Magnum for bittering and Cascade for flavor and aroma in the pale ale. This was on some of the literature I saw when I was at the brewery in June.