• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • About Craft Brewing Business

Craft Brewing Business

Professional Insight, Unfiltered

Craft Brewing Business Craft Brewing Business
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment & Systems
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • COVID-19

Bad barley crop can’t keep Sierra Nevada down, releases DevESTATEion Ale

August 8, 2013Jason Morgan

Sierra Nevada Devistation Ale Barley
“Weather be damned: a quasi-estate, organic beer we’ll still make!” Sierra Nevada stated on its blog. “But we’ll dress this one up in black to honor our fallen grain—or is it an alter ego? Along with organic two-row pale malt from our friends at Great Western Malting, we’re using organic chocolate malt for both roastiness and remembrance.”

We’ve all seen how weather-related crop shortages can impact the hops segment of the craft beer industry. Now, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. has reported that foul weather trounced its estate barley crop this year, forcing the brewery to forgo adding its estate barely in its beers — including the aptly-named Estate Ale. But like any innovative craft brewer, that isn’t keeping Sierra Nevada down.

Wind and rain ravaging crops reminds brewers and craft beer lovers alike that beer is an agricultural product. The brewery’s blog stated the barley crop didn’t meet Sierra Nevada’s high standards. The grain will likely head to a nearby dairy that can use it as a protein-rich feed supplement.

Instead of hanging its head, the brewery is taking the lemons and making lemonade, or in this case, taking other barley and making different beer.

From the Sierra Nevada website:

It’s a shame when good barley goes bad. This spring, the combined effect of double digit sustained winds and concentrated rainfall created major stress on the normal course of our barley maturation — our crop went down for the count. Instead of crying in our beer—or lack thereof—we decided to do one better and make something new. Featuring organic malts and our estate-grown wet hops, this black IPA is the evil twin of our legendary Estate Ale. Black in color with a mild roasty flavor and moderate body, this beer has a bold citrusy and earthy hop flavor and aroma from the use of our own wet hops. We’d never let one bad harvest get in the way of a great beer, so join us in a toast to the memory of our devastating season.

DevESTATEion Ale is slated for release this September, the same time Estate Ale would have hit shelves.

barley field blue sky
The American Malting Barley Association recommends two new varieties this year (ACC Synergy, Thoroughbred)
breakside-brewery
Breakside Brewery features six maltsters in LIFE Barleywine seasonals and more beers to know this week
Sierra Nevada Cryo Fresh
Sierra Nevada delivers year-round wet hops in Cryo Fresh and more beers to know this week
Mainstem malt barley
Craft maltster Mainstem Malt seeks crowdfunding investors

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Christopher Burgess says

    August 8, 2013 at 4:59 pm

    Christopher Burgess liked this on Facebook.

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Primary Sidebar

Latest News

  • BarTrack launches The Smart Draft System, teasing real-time beverage quality analytics and automated inventory management
  • On-premise report: 2023 Thanksgiving eve insights from BeerBoard
  • Lawson’s Finest Liquids donates $76,000 in celebration of GivingTuesday
  • Enjoy this 30-second timelapse of Luminosa Hops growing in Oregon

Sign up for our newsletter

unsubscribe from list

Most Popular Today

Recent Features

  • BarTrack Smart Draft SystemBarTrack launches The Smart Draft System, teasing real-time beverage quality analytics and automated inventory management
    November 28, 2023
  • Hand of bartender pouring a large lager beer in tapOn-premise report: 2023 Thanksgiving eve insights from BeerBoard
    November 28, 2023
  • Fifty West Brewing ice skating rink family skating cbb cropPhotos! Fifty West Brewing launches upgraded ice rink in Cincinnati with a curling league
    November 27, 2023
  • nitro stout lawsons finestLawson’s Finest cans its Nitro Stout and other beers to know this week from SweetWater, Brooklyn Brewery and more
    November 16, 2023
  • DARKNESS-DAY-2023 guy breathing fireSurly Brewing’s Darkness Day was pretty metal (just watch this video)
    November 16, 2023
  • big-grove-brewery-frontCheers to 10 Years: How Big Grove Brewery has grown the Iowa craft beer scene
    November 15, 2023

Footer

  • Email Newsletter Sign Up
  • About Craft Brewing Business
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise on Craft Brewing Business
  • Media Kit Download
  • Privacy and Terms

© 2023 · CBB Media LLC