Q & A with Ken Grossman (Sierra Nevada)

Back in 1980, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company brewed their first batch of beer, a pale ale. Little did Ken Grossman and co-founder Paul Camusi know that the beer they had brewed would one day be known as one of the beers that helped kick-start the US craft beer industry. 

Almost 30 years later, Sierra Nevada is still one of the industry leaders. I wanted to find out a little more about some of their new releases, their outstanding commitment to sustainability and few other things so I contacted the company.

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You can imagine my surprise and immense gratitude when I received the answers to my questions from none other then Ken Grossman himself!

Thanks Ken for all that you've done for craft brewing and for answering my questions.

Cheers!

(RHP) Sierra Nevada's been releasing some excellent new beers of late, can we look forward to some more surprises in the future? If so, any hints? 

(KG) Yes, we are starting to release some new beers, as well as distribute some beers that had only been available at our taproom in the past. Additionally we are bottling our Chico Estate Harvest Ale in August – very limited release (probably Chico only).  This will be made from hops picked from our organic estate hop field.  We should also have a few more surprises out in the next year that are still in R&D, look for them or keep in touch.   


(RHP) I've been reading about all the work Sierra Nevada has been doing when it comes to sustainability. In a nutshell, where does SN stand right now when it comes to carbon emissions, recycling, reusing etc..? 

(KG) Along with incorporating as many sustainable practices within our day to day production (recycling, optimization of water usage, cutting down on packaging materials) we have been working on many initiatives for quite a few years to reduce our operational impact on the environment.  

Here is a list of some of what we have done:

The first brewery in the country (as far as I know) to join the carbon registry to track and certify our carbon emissions. We have completed our audit for 2006 and will have 2007 completed soon.

Received the State of California WRAP award (waste reduction/recycling award)  for many years, and have been recognized as one of the top recyclers in the State for our efforts.

Installed one of the largest co-generation fuel cell plants in the world (1MW) several years ago fueling it in part with methane produced from our onsite wastewater plant. 

We are also just completing one of the largest private solar projects in the country, we have already commissioned a 400kW array, by the end of the year we will have over 9000 panels producing 1.4MW of power. We should be able to produce almost 80% of our electrical power with these two combined clean technology systems.

Put in a system a few years ago to capture clean and re-use CO2 from fermentation.    

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(RHP) I was over in Sweden recently and they had SN Pale Ale in all the government run liquor stores and I've seen it in England as well. Are there any surprising locations in the world where a person can find Sierra Nevada?

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(KG) We export very limited amounts of beer, but we here about it getting bootlegged all over the world. 


(RHP) With all this talk about hops shortages and elevated grain prices, will SN be affected in anyways that the consumer may notice? 

(KG) Ever since a similar, but less severe shortage in the early 80's we have had long term contracts in place with our suppliers. We have ample hops in storage and contracted for the next several years. We actually sold, or did not take delivery of about 150,000 lbs. of surplus hops this year to ease some of the tight industry supply. 

We also have long term supply arrangements with our malt suppliers, but costs are increasing considerably. 


(RHP) Years ago I visited the brewery and drank some incredibily fresh Pale Ale, are there any special offerings at the brewery that aren't offered anywhere else? 
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(KG) Yes, we typically have about 15 different beers on tap at our restaurant, you have to go to Chico to sample most of them.

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(RHP) I have to ask, who came up with the name for Bigfoot Ale?

(KG) My best buddy that I have known from early childhood Dave Sheetz, came up with the name one day in 1981 after a few beers while camping in the Sierra Nevada's.

Click the cap to read more about the history of Sierra Nevada

Q & A with Alan Pugsley (Shipyard Brewery)

Alan Pugsley is a name that is synonymous with beer in Maine. This is the man whose card reads Master Brewer/Owner of Shipyard Brewing Company. Not a bad gig considering its the largest brewery in the state, the largest contract brewer in New England and just landed the number 15 spot in the Brewers' Association's annual top 50 microbreweries list.

Over the years Alan has lent a hand in opening other Maine breweries/brewpubs such as Geary's (Maine's first brewery), Gritty McDuff's (Maine's first brewpub), Sea Dog, Federal Jack's to name a few. Its almost hard to find out a brewery in Maine that isn't using the famous Peter Austin Brewing System! A system Alan brought to the US from his native England over 20 years ago.

Even with all of his successes, Alan remains a very humble person. I had met him years ago when I dabbled with the idea of getting into the brewing industry. A few weeks back I emailed him and asked him a few questions. He was nice enough to invite me to the brewery for a tour, that he himself would give, and answer my questions in person. Cheers Alan!

(RHP) As a young man growing up in England, what were the first beers you remember that really spurred you to consider brewing as a career?

(AP) It wasn't really beer that drew me to brewing as a career. It was my degree in biochemistry and love of traditional English pubs which helped segway a career into brewing in the UK.

(RHP) What were your first impressions of Maine?

(AP) I loved it. The way of life and the very friendly people and a State that is renowned for its quality craftsmanship. Its also a great place to live and bring up your children.

(RHP) You've designed all the Shipyard beers (and countless others I'm sure) yourself, is there a particular one that you are most proud of?

(AP) All of them! They all have a niche and all have a space to fill.

(RHP) According to the Shipyard website you've played a part in the establishment of over 65 microbreweries worldwide. That is incredible! What locations has your career taken you that you might not have expected?

(AP) South Africa and China stand out.

(RHP) What is something that most people don't know about Shipyard?

(AP) Shipyard is currently helping to set up a small brewery in an existing distillery in Romania. It will brew beers with the Shipyard name as well as some of their own craft beers.

(RHP) Are there any breweries that you've not been to that you dream of visiting?

(AP) Anchor Steam, Sierra Nevada in the US perhaps. It would most likely be a small European brewery but there are so many of them that there isn't a specific one that I have in mind.

(RHP) Its Friday evening and Alan Pugsley is thirsty for a beer, what kind of beer is in the fridge (other than Shipyard)?

(AP) I don't have beer that isn't Shipyard! But if there was going to be some, it might be a British import of some sort but nothing in particular.

(RHP) Do you still enjoy coming to work each day?

(AP) I've never been to work a day in my life!

a common sight in a lot of Maine breweries

Q & A with Rob Tod (Allagash)

Allagash has been around for 13 years and in that rather short time it has become quite renowned for its original Belgian-style beers. Rob Tod is the man behind Allagash and the brewery that is synonymous with great beer here in Maine. Rob was nice enough to take some time and answer some questions I had about how he got to where he is and where Allagash is headed.

Cheers Rob!

(RHP) You had your first job at a brewery washing kegs for Otter Creek in Middlebury, Vermont. What was it that kept you involved with the brewing industry after starting at the very bottom rung of the brewery ladder? You must have sensed something…

(RT) I stumbled into the job (the first job I could get when I moved into town), and fell in love with everything I saw at the brewery pretty quickly. I loved the mechanical end, the “art” end of recipe formulation of brewing, and of course drinking the craft beers! Did not take more than a week or so.

(RHP) The beers you produce are not your average brew, ferment, bottle, ship variety. What is the most important thing people should know when they first come across Allagash beers?

(RT) We try to do our own thing at Allagash… Brew Belgian Style beers true to the Belgian character/tradition, but with our own house character. I get asked quite often which beer we based the White on when we started… The answer is that we did not try to duplicate any beers. We have always tried to work within the style guidelines, but try to add a unique twist to each beer. Why try to brew a beer someone else is brewing? So I’d say the most important message I’d like to communicate is that when they try one of our beers it is going to be a unique experience…

(RHP) I recently had a bottle of your Allagash Black, the most recent Allagash release, and really, really enjoyed it. Is it true that the Black will become a year round beer? (Please say yes!)

(RT) Originally it was going to be a “one-off”, and maybe be repeated annually. But, we loved it so much we decided to try to make it year round. We’re at capacity now and having trouble keeping up, but we’ll try to brew the Black a few times this year.

(RHP) Allagash produces beers that can take quite a while to become retail ready, with lots of work going into each batch along with aging, what is the Allagash beer that you are most satisfied seeing leave the brewery for distribution?

(RT) I like them all for different reasons (hard to choose a favorite!), but I find myself most often drinking the White. Seems to work for a lot of occasions!

(RHP) Mainers might not know that Allagash has a pretty loyal following all over the country. How many states does Allagash distribute to and where have you found success that you might not have expected?

(RT) I believe 21 states now scattered around the country, but mostly focused in the East. California, Chicago, NC and DC have been nice surprises in how the market has taken to the White.

For more about Allagash Brewing Company go HERE!