Sierra Nevada... Who's better?

Dude! You forgot their Estate Ale!!

I love SN, If your curious about a style, SN has the perfect example of it. It may not be the most mind blowing of that said style, but i guarentee you will know exactly what that style SHOULD taste like, when you try SNs version.

 

Personally I just find SN to be a better version of Sam Adams with more focus on popular styles. I rarely buy anything from SN because I can usually find a better IPA, pale ale, stout, porter, IS, etc. All of their beers are pretty good to good but personally I've never been blown away by anything they've made, although they are all very well made.

 

Ummm, all their Vertical Epics are Belgian styles.

Or was that the joke?

 

I never buy SN, I don't understand why people love there beer so much when you have brewery's like founders, bells, or even local stuff like COAST and westbrook that completely blow them out of the water. I feel like SN is a gateway beer and that is all.

 

Almost everything from Smuttynose, I like more than their SN counterpart besides SNPA and possibly Bigfoot a bit more than Smuttynose Barleywine.

Finest Kind>Torpedo
Old Brown Dog>Tumbler
Robust Porter>Porter
Smuttynose Imperial stout>Narwhal (I was crazy underwhelmed with this one).
Big A and Hoptimum are both great DIPAs and about equal.


I don't think SN puts out a single beer nearly as impressive as Smuttynose's Baltic Porter either. It's criminal the little attention this beer gets for being the best Baltic Porter in the country.

 

I have tried over 700 different beers and I picked up a 12 of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale today when I went grocery shopping. I love that beer and at 10.99 the price can't be beat

 

Yeah. I like how SN's beers often function as gateways into craft yet are still relevant and appreciated by everyone, geek and non-geek. They have a pretty wide range and do it all well.

I still buy a shitload of Pale Ale annually.

 

I agree with the OP, as far as availability, affordability, price and quality are concerned, no they cannot be beaten

 

I like SN, don't get me wrong here. All beers that they make are good, but nothing spectacular. Celebration, Bigfoot, and the Harvest Ale that came in sixers years ago are as close to spectacular as it gets. They do have sentimental value since I have been around their beers since I was a child (several family members have been drinking it as far back as I can remember and SNPA was my first craft beer). I think there are many better breweries that make many comparable styles well, are affordable, and are distributed well. Founder's and Firestone Walker come to mind. I don't get Founder's here but I have had many many of their beers and they are all at least good, some are spectacular.

 

I like Sierra Nevada. I'm not their biggest fan,but I feel that you can't go wrong with a Sierra Nevada product. I have also sucessfully impressed BMC drinkers with Kellerweiss,Glissade, and Celebration. What does that tell you?

 

SN gets a lot of my beer wallet, but i'm always curious by these threads, which pop up so frequently. Why the compulsion to sing Sierra Nevada, and not, as Red said, Bells, or Victory and some other large-scale craft brewer?

 

I dunno. I'd say Hoptimum is extremely damn good if not spectacular.

 

I understand what the OP is getting at. SN is very consistent in their beers and they are always a great, safe and reliable brewery to choose from. I've never though about it but I've never had a bad SN beer like most others here, but they are not my favorite. When I think of SN and comparable brewers, I find my self rooting more towards Lagunitas and Stone.

 

Girlfriend is better.

Sorry, listening to a sick Yonder Mountain String Band cover of the Talking Heads songs.

As far asa the post, Sierra Nevada is a brewery I take for granted. Hoptimum and celebration are excellent. And the regular Sierra Nevada pale ale is consistently at places like sporting events and concerts when no other good beers are options. I always think, well damn I guess Ill settle for a SN pale ale, and then I get it and it is delicious. Props to them.

 

I'm a huge fan of Founders, New Glarus, and Lagunitas for their quality and price point. I'd put all three before Sierra Nevada.

 

Not in my opinion, but then again I normally don't like 10%+ DIPAs, too malty and sweet. It is good, though.