Glissade used to be their spring seasonal, a 6.4% bock which would sit in the glass and glow, it was such a rich beautiful golden colour. It was hopped with Magnum, Perle and Spalt, as well as Styrian Aurora. It was smooth, clean, crisp and delicious, everything you could possibly want from a strong pale lager. I wanted it, and I enjoyed lots of it, and in some strange way it gave me hope that my lager lust would be satiated.
Obviously I am not party to the business decisions behind the ditching of Glissade, I have my suspicions but that could just be my cynicism coming through, but I do know that I am not alone in mourning the passing of this most moreish of golden drops. At work yesterday we were talking about Sierra Nevada for some reason that escapes me, I made a comment about Glissade and one of my colleagues mentioned that her boyfriend was as gutted by its demise as I am.
I guess that from my perspective, and I say this as someone that has never not enjoyed a Sierra Nevada beer, the shame is that they do lager so well. Summerfest is required drinking as far as I am concerned, especially on draft. When Beer Run did a tap takeover with them, the highlights were a Vienna Lager and a Schwarzbier, yes Sierra Nevada do lager with aplomb.
I haven't tried the usurper yet, Ruthless Rye IPA, but I will endeavour not to let my devotion to the former king of spring get in the way when I am back to drinking next week. One thing though I do hope for is that the Henderson County location will be more than just a production brewery. I would love to see a similar taproom and restaurant setup as they have in Chico, with a full complement of specialty drafts.
* I wonder who can tell me the reference in the title?
** I take no credit whatsoever for the picture, that's from Sierra Nevada's website.
* The Smiths??
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