Sierra Nevada is stealing the show

Well I just meant cheap for craft. I can get a case of Torpedo for $29.99. No other good IPAs like that I know of.

 

Oh, OK. And agree.

 

I'll say that Sierra is the most consistent brewer. They almost never have a miss. That being said, none of their beers make my top 5 list, but SNPA is the best PA I have had. All of their IPA offerings are top notch, but just miss being the best in category.

 

I could agree with this. All except until the other day when I first had FFF Zombie Dust. That's more like an IPA, though, anyway.

 

The "they're big and their beer is not rare so everyone hates them" is the worst strawman argument floating around beer circles right now.

There are plenty of SN threads, they are a respected brewery and have lots of fans in the general population as well as on BA. There might not be a lot of "ISO" or "where can I find" threads for SN but the reason for that should be obvious.

 

Sierra Nevada rules indeed . Celebration is my go to holiday beer... Bigfoot is highly anticipated every year. I will admit the Ovila series was sort of lackluster. Great beer but not what I envisioned when I heard about the series. The one and only total tap takeover I went to was @ Tap and Mallet in Rochester .. All Sierra Nevada and WOW talk about some rarities. Oak Aged Life and Limb to start. Flights of Bigfoot 09-10-11 ,Ghidorah, Kellerwiess, Oak aged Scotch ale..ALL the 40th Anniversary Ales !!! It was an amazing afternoon to say the least

 

You forgot Hoptimum. I had some on tap today and it was the bees knees.

 

I was in the "Sierra Nevada... meh" school of thought until I had Ruthless Rye IPA for the first time a couple months back. It is the sh!t.

 

There is irony in that...at least for me, half the time after all is said and done if I could go back in time I'd have a 6-pack of SNPA or Torpedo instead of the bomber I got in the mail. Sometimes the beer you can go to a gas station and buy is better than the beer you got in the mail from some obscure micro brewery you've never heard of. A recent example that comes to mind, size 7 from steeltoe I think was the name of the MN brewery.

 

Sierra Nevada is consistent in their year round brews although some of them are pretty overlooked. I am glad to see that they are branching out with new beers and the new Ovila line.

 

Umm, yes they do. Good luck finding Barrel Aged Fritz and Ken's, or the Trippel aged in Pappy barrels. Their rare stuff doesn't get BOTTLED, but they have plenty of things that only make it out in a few kegs. I think the Sierra rep posted in a thread that the BA F&K's had like 3 kegs total. That's pretty damn rare, but because it's not bottled (or put into growlers) you don't hear about it. If you want to say "They don't make rare bottles" then fine, but what you actually said is completely false.

And for the record, I like SN. I just drank a Bigfoot, and it was tasty. I know they make good products so I get them, like basically all beer geeks (as this thread attests to).

 

Sierra Nevada is my favorite brewery. Every IPA they make is killer. I just tried Ruthless Rye for the first time a few days ago and I was surprised by how prominent the rye is in the flavor profile. Much moreso than other hoppy ryes I've had. Too soon to say if it can stand up to Torpedo, Celebration, etc.
I need to drink one right now.

And look what I just found. Fuck yes.

http://beerstreetjournal.com/sierra-nevada-hoptimum-ready-to-ship/

The second release of Sierra Nevada Hoptimum is ready to leave Chico, California. The imperial IPA Hoptimum was first released last year and was an instant hit. It’s a whole cone hop IPA that is as aggressive as it is tasty.
New in 2012 – Hoptimum returns in 12oz 4 packs.
Style: Imperial IPA
Hops: Bitter – German Magnum. Aroma/Dry – Simcoe & new secret strain.
Malts: 2 Row Pale, Golden Promise, Munich & Wheat
Yeast: Ale
Availability: New 12 oz bottles. Draft. Limited release.
10.4% ABV, 100 IBUs

 

One of my two favorite go to Pale Ales are SNPA and Deschutes Mirror Pond. Both of these breweries crank out a lot of excellent beers. I usually buy which ever is on sale or the freshest. I have been looking forward to finding the SNPA in the cans but haven't seen them as yet. I hope Deschutes will start canning Mirror Pond one of these days.

 

i'm really anticipating that russian river/sierra nevada collab...how awesome

calling them underrated or whatever is kind of silly only because pretty much everyone likes them.

 

Sorry to say this again but..
Beer. Its not a competition.
If there's only one winner then I'm happy to scoop up all the beautiful losers.

 

I agree with OP, especially on the sad state of beer trends and such. I was having similar thoughts recently as I picked up yet another pack of Ruthless Rye and enjoyed the small dent in my wallet compared to alternatives.

 

love sierra nevada, hate this thread.

 

I like me some Sierra Nevada Tumbler and Celebration. Sierra Nevada widely distributes with great prices and great beer!

 

Love me a torpedo!

 

Yep, SN rules. I don't think any of their beers is necessarily the pinnacle of its style, but their balancing act of quality/consistency/value simply cannot be beat. The only brewery I'd put on a similar level is New Glarus, but SN manages to do nationwide what NG can only do within a single state.