Stories

When our brewers sat down to determine the focus of each drop, elements like hops, yeast, and malt were given. But there's one element that matters just as much—even if you can't hold it in your hands.

Malt is what gives beer its body and mouthful, its color and feel. It provides the sugars for fermentation and can contribute greatly to beer flavor. Malt can come in many varieties, impacting all of the above, but without some form of malt, there is no beer.

At Sierra Nevada, we’ve always loved hops. In fact, our love of hops was what set us apart from the mainstream beer of the 1980s. Back then, with fewer than fifty American breweries in existence, beer was dominated by light, low-flavor domestic lagers.

Yeast is one of the few organisms on the face of the Earth that can exist and thrive in either an aerobic environment or an anaerobic environment,” he explains. “We can’t do that; most bacteria can’t do that. Plants don’t do that—no animals do that. But yeast does that.

Created exclusively for Friends of the Family, Barrel-Aged Ruthless Rye IPA is the next chapter in this deep and lasting friendship.  

Our Narwhal Imperial Stout stands up to the barrel with its black-as-night flavors of espresso and baker’s cocoa; and Bigfoot Barleywine-Style Ale’s massive malt and hop character make it a beast of a beer for aging.

Become a Friend of the Family and join our new exclusive beer club.