When Has Sierra Nevada Ever Let You Down?

I didn’t like it either.

 

The only time I've really been let down was visiting their spot in Chico and they didn't have anything on tap I couldn't get packaged easily. Had my hopes up that they might have some interesting/un packaged/tap room only type stuff.
Not the worst thing someone's ever done to me

 

Was going to ask if you'd tried the estate farmhouse ale from the spring and when I went to look it up to link to I saw you added it
That was a great beer and a great reminder of just how talented the folks at SN are

 

Yes, they’re solid on their styles, but I’m completely let down that they no longer send their porter or stout to Texas.

 

Raul, thanks for starting the thread....

I think SN is one of the most consistently high quality breweries out there. They have grown sensibly, and whatever they produce is done well. As others have said, there may be a style I don't care for (Otra Vez comes to mind), but whatever I drink from them is well brewed. I've had 82 of their offerings, and I am always confident when I buy or order something from them that it will be well made.

Oh, and as my pic indicates, the first appearance of Celebration on the shelves means we've entered the holiday season! My guiding principle regarding the first spotting of Celebration is "see it for the first time, buy it!"

 

Those 2 are beers that I really do miss. When I first posted in this thread (post #3) I was thinking of beers I did not enjoy not of beers they no longer brew. Glissade was replaced by a Rye IPA. A nice enough beer but not as good as Glissade.

 

I like SN quite a bit but the following were below average for the style:

Otra Vez
Sidecar
Brut IPA
Southern Gothic
the lager from last winters mixed 12

 

I love 'em and my visit to the Henderson facility is one of my favorite brewery experiences (out of 100's).

However, I do have a gripe. Connecticut seems to always get new SN product much later than most states judging by the posts I see on this site. Maybe the local distributor is to blame.

 

It says a lot about SN that most people's let down is that they no longer make something or they want variety pack beers to be 6 packs. So, in other words, they want MORE of something, and are not let down by what they actually drink.

My gripes are similar to others - Coffee Stout 6 packs, Vienna Lager 6 packs, and the access to some of their harder to find beers like the original Stout.

 

Not sure what they were attempting with that recipe. But, it was nowhere near what I came to have expected from a Brut, according to everything I had read, brewed at home, nor tasted commercially.
Weird.

 

@FBarber @JackHorzempa etc.

I'm sure that SN makes production and distribution decisions based primarily on calculations related to short-term profits and long-term profit sustainability.

I see a lot of posts in this thread similar to my earlier posts of missing certain readily available beers and wishing for certain favorite one-offs or previously discontinued beers, etc.

My previous posts are obviously subjective rants of personal preference. The bottom line is that SN and any brewery concerned about staying in business is going to produce and sell what sells. If there were a lot of other people than me buying stout, kellerweis, etc. I'm sure you could continue to find them readily available. Unfortunately, from my perspective, the overall craft beer market has changed and SN has had some tough decisions to make and I do not blame them for making them. I cross my fingers and hope they have made the right decisions moving forward (including the balance of keeping old loyalists happy vs. appealing to a changing craft beer demographic) to keep them in a position to continue brewing a lot of beers that I continue to love.

Speaking personally from the old loyalist position, I do not buy as much SN as I used too. I could list the reasons but they are mainly listed by a lot of posters above. Perhaps the lost revenue from customers like me is made up from newer craft beer drinkers? I do not know but wish a business with a lot of integrity good luck moving forward.

 

It's also worth noting, re: discontinued or hard to find brands, that if all those who pine for kellerweisse or glissade or whatever other missed brand lived in one market it would be a whole lot more feasible to produce and distribute smaller batches of those. But I gotta believe a manufacturer of their size doesn't relish the idea of sending a couple cases here, a couple cases there.
If anyone really needs some stout or Porter though just let me know. One of our local shops seems to pretty much always have them (the current date on the porter is from may)

 

Is this referencing an actual event or just a joke playing off the thread title?

 

Of 68 reviewed SN beers of theirs, my lowest reviewed was Boomerang IPA at 3.08. So a lot of quality beers over the years.

But overall I wouldn't hesitate to buy anything they brew.

 

10 cases of each about every two months go to our Amarillo Distributor.

 

Hmmm, I wonder where they go from there? I’ve checked the Sierra Nevada beer finder, but it always shows no results near me. I’m curious who is carrying it then.

 

This one is easy. SN has let me down by not bringing back Glissade golden bock yet constantly brings back that average brown ale (Tumbler). It’s like a slap in the face; Tumbler comes back like every other season but Glissade never received the same treatment.

Having said that, I don't blame Sierra Nevada as much as I blame everyone who didn't buy enough when it was around. Lame!

 

How dare you...