Tuesday Brewsday - Sierra Nevada

Sierra Nevada Brewing Company is the second largest craft brewery in the country. It was founded by Ken Grossman and Paul Casumi in 1979. They developed one of the cornerstones of the craft brewery movement along with Sam Koch's Samuel Adams. Their flagship beer, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale was first brewed in late 1980 and is considered by the Beer Judging Certification Program (BJCP) Guidelines to be the best commercially available example of American Pale Ale. According to  Sierra Nevada's website, "It has a deep amber color and an exceptionally full-bodied, complex character. Generous quantities of premium Cascade hops give the Pale Ale its fragrant bouquet and spicy flavor." If you've never tasted a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, I highly suggest you run down to your local liquor store and buy one. It is likely one of the few craft beers available in all 50 states.

However wonderful their pale ale may be, they brew many other styles excellently as well. In fact it was recently announced that they were teaming up with the hottest craft brewery at the moment, Dogfish Head of Milton, Delware. They will brew two beers in "Life & Limb" series, called 'Life & Limb' and 'Limb & Life'. The description of both beers from the press release is here:

Life & Limb is a 10% ABV strong beer that defies style characteristics—brewed with pure maple syrup from the Calagione family farm in Massachusetts and estate barley grown on the Grossman “farm” at the brewery in Chico. The beer is alive with yeast—a blend of both breweries’ house strains—bottle conditioned for added complexity and shelf life, and naturally carbonated with birch syrup fresh from Alaska; it is the first beer we know of ever to use birch syrup in the brew. If stored under good conditions, this rich, full-bodied beer should age well for years.  Life & Limb will be available in 24-oz. bottles and limited draft starting this November.

Limb & Life is a companion to the big beer—an acorn off the larger tree. It is a 5% ABV small beer—a low-gravity beer made using the residual sugar as “second runnings” from the first larger brew, fortified with American hops.  This is a session beer. Its big brother is a sipper. Limb & Life will be a limited draft-only product, a prelude to the bigger beer, available in select bars and restaurants this October. 

The two beers will be brewed at the Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., in Chico, CA and released through the Sierra Nevada distribution network.

Since 1998 Ken Grossman has been the sole head of Sierra Nevada and continues to one of the key persons in the world of craft beer. There have been rumors of their corporate buyout, but to this day they are independently owned and operated. So keep a look out at your local beer freezer for the Sierra Nevada family of beers including their all new beer with Dogfish Head Brewery.

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