Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., a prestigious brewery that has always led the industry

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Founded: 1980

Founder: Ken Grossman

Location: Chico, California, USA
Title

"Sierra Nevada" has consistently maintained the highest quality without ever becoming complacent, building a reputation for trust and achievement.
Its excellence is such that critics praise it as "among the highest quality compared to any beer in the world." Sierra Nevada has been, and will continue to be, a major force leading the industry.

　Ken Grossman, the founder, discovered his passion for beer in the early 1970s when a friend's father taught him the basics of homebrewing. He began brewing his own beer using homemade equipment and quickly became an expert homebrewer.

　After studying chemistry at Butte Community College in Chico and physics at California State University, he opened his own store called "The Home Brew Shop" in downtown Chico in 1976, but his dream was to open his own brewery.

　Two years later, in 1978, he gathered equipment and assembled a microbrewery. Only the highest quality ingredients were used, including a large quantity of hops, which would later become the brewery's trademark.

An avid backpacker, he named his new company Sierra Nevada, after the mountain range that was his favorite hiking spot.

Ken Grossman

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. / founder

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
The Legend Begins

　In 1980, after 10 attempts to discard beer through trial and error, on November 15, Sierra Nevada brewed "Sierra Nevada Pale Ale," a beer that would go down in American craft beer history.

 

Word quickly spread, and demand continued to grow. Although equipment was constantly being added, production capacity eventually couldn't keep up, leading to plans for a new brewery.

 

In December 1982, an old-fashioned 100-barrel copper brewery system was acquired in Germany to serve as the heart of the new brewery. This met demand for a while, but soon further expansion of the brewery became necessary.

　

Then, in 1989, they expanded and relocated to their current site on 20th Street. Even so, demand continued to increase, and through repeated expansions, the brewery's production capacity grew to over 800,000 barrels per year.


A 10-barrel brewing facility called the "Pilot Brewery" was also built, acting as a "brewery within a brewery" for research and development, such as R&D and trying new recipes. The restaurant attached to the brewery boasts excellent cuisine and award-winning beers, attracting many visitors who come specifically for the restaurant.

 Committed to thorough quality control

　They are also famous for never being satisfied with the status quo. Even as they have become a giant in the industry, they continue to pursue quality maintenance so that all their beers have the same aroma and taste, insisting that customers can enjoy the same taste no matter when or where they drink it.

 

As a symbol of this commitment, if it takes several hours or more for the beer to arrive at the warehouse after being shipped from the brewery, it is transported under full refrigeration, and upon arrival, it is, of course, strictly stored under refrigeration.

Contribute to the growth and improvement of the industry

　Sierra Nevada is also known for its generosity in sharing the knowledge they have cultivated over the years.

 

As part of this, the ultimate beer brewing experience, "Beer Camp," is held at their Chico brewery.

 

Various individuals such as restaurant and bar owners, salespeople, and chefs are invited to the brewery to delve deep into the facilities and learn about beer through a hands-on, two-day camp format where they can see, touch, and experience it firsthand.
 

The "Beer Camp Contest" is also held, allowing the general public to participate if they win the contest. A mixed pack featuring four beers created through the camp is released, and subsequent releases have continued annually in various forms.

Always offering new beers
with innovative brewing

In 2009, with its 30th anniversary fast approaching, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. added Torpedo Extra IPA and Kellerweis to its core lineup, which had previously consisted of only three types: Pale Ale, Stout, and Porter.

 

Later, Pale Ale and Torpedo Extra IPA also became available in cans, and in 2013, the company opened its directly managed beer bar, "Sierra Nevada Torpedo Room," in Berkeley, a university town in the San Francisco Bay Area, California. The concept was a showroom that connected all elements of craft beer, such as its scientific aspects, flavors, and culture.

 

It always offers 16 kinds of fresh draft beer, and it is a space not only for drinking beer but also for education and new discoveries related to craft beer. Based on this concept, all beers are served in tasting-sized glasses.

 

Its momentum continued unabated, and in 2015, Hop Hunter IPA and Nooner Pilsner were added to its regular product lineup. Hop Hunter IPA was the industry's first "year-round IPA using wet hops," and Sierra Nevada, which has always led the industry for over 30 years since its founding, will continue to drive the craft beer scene.

 

 

Nagano Trading's motto is "Fresh From The Brewery," and we maintain thorough quality control from the brewery to the moment of drinking, using 100% fully refrigerated transportation.

 

Please try the "Sierra Nevada" items, which have finally been officially imported to Japan after five long years.

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