30th Anniversary - Grand Cru
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

30th Anniversary - Grand Cru30th Anniversary - Grand Cru
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From:
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
 
California, United States
Style:
American Strong Ale
ABV:
9.2%
Score:
94
Avg:
4.21 | pDev: 9.5%
Reviews:
465
Ratings:
810
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jan 17, 2022
Added:
Nov 04, 2010
Wants:
  35
Gots:
  187
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Pahn:
Photo of Pahn
Reviewed by Pahn from New York

3.41/5  rDev -19%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 2.5
750ml bottle into a wine glass.

Appearance: Free pour yields about 2 inches of fluffy, bone white head and 2 inches of beer. The head sticks around as long as that of Orval or Duvel, and like the beer it leaves thick, eternal walls of lacing. Pours somewhere between dark copper and translucent ruby. Really, this beer couldn't look better.

Smell: Cascade hops. A bit piny and grassy. Mild citrus. Faintly reminiscent of SNPA and celebration (and the hoppy side of fresh Bigfoot). A little danker than usual; the dry hopping did something, for sure.

Taste: Hop assault up front, wave of bitterness, then a smoky finish out of nowhere. Bigfoot shows itself in the aftertaste, but like its namesake, it doesn't stick around for long (was nice, caramely and sweet, and very mildly oaky at first, but the hops just blast it away very early on).

Tastes like a fresh Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. If I were reviewing that beer, the taste score would be higher. As a dry hopped blend of a pale ale, IPA, and oak aged barleywine, the taste leaves you asking "What was the point?" Sure, I like Cascade hops, and this mouthfeel is great... but if I wanted a SNPA I'd have bought one (or 12, for the same price).

Mouthfeel: Along with the appearance, this is where this beer shines. Medium bodied and creamy. The smoothness of oak aged Bigfoot is the star here, but the other components add some nice juiciness. Hop bitterness and kind of oily feel is strong and satisfying.

Drinkability: Pretty good pale ale that gets a little close to Lagunitas Undercover Investigation Shutdown Ale with mild sugary maltiness and large hop presence, but not as good. The answer to "What's the point?" seems to be "Beautiful ruby color, creamy feel, and eternal head." That is not a sufficient answer.

I was let down by this beer. I've repeated it twice now, but honestly the whole review could have just been summed up with "What was the point?"

I will add though, on the whole the Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary series was a success. I loved the stout, and the other two beers were solid as well. This beer is palatable enough, and I don't feel ripped off or anything. Just doesn't live up to the greatness of its three brothers.
Jan 10, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 2.48 by TMoney2591 from Illinois

Jan 17, 2022
 
Rated: 4.06 by MDDMD from Pennsylvania

Nov 22, 2019
 
Rated: 4.24 by emerge077 from Illinois

Jun 14, 2019
 
Rated: 4.11 by MutuelsMark from Kentucky

Feb 10, 2019
 
Rated: 4.25 by brittanylicious from Indiana

Jan 05, 2019
 
Rated: 4.25 by heysuz from Indiana

Jan 05, 2019
 
Rated: 4.24 by Beer21 from Florida

Jun 13, 2018
 
Rated: 4.21 by JamieDuncan from Maryland

Feb 28, 2018
 
Rated: 4.5 by Dodt from Pennsylvania

Jan 09, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by csfcmitchell from Texas

Jun 29, 2017
 
Rated: 4.34 by liquorpig from Massachusetts

Feb 13, 2017
 
Rated: 4.18 by artoolemomo from Oregon

Nov 04, 2016
 
Rated: 4.04 by Thirstygoat from Illinois

Sep 17, 2016
Photo of loubrew
Reviewed by loubrew from Wisconsin

3.98/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Haven't had this previously. Just popped it and looking great (deep copper), faint smell from the barrel, and taste has that faint barrel flavor. Has a great Old Ale taste. Doing very well after all these years.
Aug 19, 2016
 
Rated: 4.23 by pagesofphotographs from Colorado

Aug 14, 2016
 
Rated: 4 by calcnerd from Pennsylvania

Jun 03, 2016
 
Rated: 4.12 by REVZEB from Illinois

May 09, 2016
Photo of rodbeermunch
Reviewed by rodbeermunch from Nevada

4.24/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Dark orange and amber color, good 5/6" white head on it. Impressive appearance even for Sierra Nevada. Aroma was lots of that thick crystal malt and C hops giving citrus smells. Some woodsiness to that as well.

Taste had a good amount of grapefruit and caramel. As it warmed the citrus went into tropical territory with mild notes of pineapple. Its a good blend of three all time classics. Kind of surprised you almost get proprietary hop feels out of such traditional hop varieties used in this one.

It was a neat beer, and I'm gonna pop one of the bottles here this summer now that it is a 5 year old beer.
Apr 17, 2016
 
Rated: 3.75 by fosters9 from New York

Mar 22, 2016
30th Anniversary - Grand Cru from Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
Beer rating: 94 out of 100 with 810 ratings