Sierra Nevada Celebration 2019

Picked it up in San Luis Obispo, CA today. Bottled 10/02/19

 

Picked up a 12 last night, dated 9/27, as good, if not better than it usually is. Will be purchasing a few cases over the season.

 

I was told by my local retailer, that the distribution company that handled Sierre Nevada in San Diego county was sold to AB/Inbev and they dropped SN and so there was not existing distribution to get Celebration in SD county. Does anyone with better insider knowlege know if this is in fact true? Will I have to drive to Orange county to get it?

 

Try using their beer finder, shows a couple of locations, a Ralphs and a Von's that have it. It hasn't made it to Houston yet, so I am still waiting.

 

Just found some at the local Harris Teeter. I know it changes a little bit from year to year (and so do I). But I sm enjoying this year's version quite a bit.

 

Hopefully @SierraTerence can provide you with the latest information here.

It is true that an AB InBev Wholly Owned Distributor (WOD) has purchased Markstein Beverage Co. Below is an extract from an article published 9/30/19 with details concerning Sierra Nevada:

“Asked if Sierra Nevada’s distribution rights would transfer to the A-B WOD, chief commercial officer Joe Whitney told Brewbound that the Chico, California-headquartered craft brewery is “working through that now but it seems unlikely.”

https://www.brewbound.com/news/anheuser-busch-inbev-acquires-markstein-beverage-co-in-san-marcos

Cheers!

 

Can you expound on this answer a little? Those slight adjustments are to compensate for different year's ingredients just to keep the beer consistent to the expected recipe, correct? It's not changes to flavor, but more changes to keep the flavors the same as past years.

In other words, Celebration really doesn't "change" from year to year, at least not perceptibly.

 

Canna wait to see what the spices are like this year !

 

Too much nutmeg

 

I'm pretty sure SN dipped into that big bag of pine needles this year!

 

I'm still looking for it in my area. Didn't find it this past weekend and the next time I'll be able to check will be tomorrow. If so, then I'll be finishing up the last couple pumpkin beers I have by Halloween and come the 1st of November, I'll be cracking my first Celebration of the Season! I've had my fair share of Oktoberfest's and pumpkin ales this year. Bring on Celebration!

 

No it does.

They like to "spice" things up.

 

I will not drink Celebration until Black Friday. Then, and only then, do I feel like I am in Christmas Celebration mode.

 

You know there are 6 less days between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year compared to last year? May want to adjust your rule!

 

I might. Then again....

 

November 9 was my first sighting last year, also drank same day. I did go through 3-4 cases.

2015,16,17 mynotes show I was underwhelmed. I think my taste was out of whack. I was drinking tons of IPA and looking back many highly rated IPA I was not impressed with. I have since cut back on IPA and they taste much better, like the first time I had one and went wow.

Been drinking this beer since the late 90’s. I had no idea it was seasonal. Case law ruled here and cases sat all year. I knew zero about fresh IPA so to me this beer was always a different animal because I might get fresh, year old, kept cooled(1 in a million shot), warm, and any variation of age and freshness. Even the older ones were amazing compared to what was out there. SN hoppy beers stay good for quite a while.

Enjoy

 

I have been drinking Celebration Ale for decades and I find the flavor profiles vary from year to year. I had a BA thread discussion with Bill Manley (formerly of Sierra Nevada) in the distant past and he confirmed that since this beer's beer profile is heavily dependent on fresh hops and the hop crop will vary from year to year there will be changes accordingly.

I was very much a fan of the 2013 version of Celebration. Below is how Bill discussed that year's version:

“For whatever reason, the Centennial hop harvest this year was one of the best we've seen in over a decade. The hops are incredibly oily and have a distinct, strong floral/rose-like character this time around.”

Cheers!

 

Hops vary in their aroma year to year, field to field, and even by time of harvest measured in days.

Ask yourself why breweries find it worthwhile to send the brewer(s) to Yakima WA (or the farms in OR and ID) to select lots of hops based on their sensory evaluation of the hops?

 

Cheap joke, I expect better from you.

 

i just picked up a 6 pack of this from the store i had some last year and really enjoyed it hope it will be worth it