BALTIMORE — What happens when award-winning leaders in craft beer and craft whiskey get together? The result became deliciously evident today with the release of Sierra Nevada Rye Ale, a limited-edition beer brewed with Maryland-grown rye and aged for six months in rye whiskey barrels from Sagamore Spirit.
That time in the barrel graces Sierra Nevada’s legendary red ale with distinct notes from Sagamore Spirit’s signature rye whiskey, like clove, nutmeg and hints of walnut and brown sugar. The result is a crisp yet round red ale that delivers an herbal and spicy jolt at 10% ABV.
“We know the magic that happens when our whiskey ages in freshly charred oak, so we couldn’t wait to see what amazingly crafted beer that met our barrels would taste like. It was love at first sip,” said Brian Treacy, President of Sagamore Spirit. “Our team is always looking to bring the taste of Maryland-style rye whiskey to more people, and thanks to this collaboration with Sierra Nevada, we’ve found a whole new way to do that. We couldn’t wait to taste this beer, aged in our charred oak and then barrel-aged at Sierra Nevada.”
The collaboration produced Sierra Nevada’s first-ever beer in aged rye whiskey barrels. Sagamore Spirit has worked with wineries to create limited edition whiskies and with local Maryland brewers to donate their used barrels.
Sierra Nevada Rye Ale is available at select off-premise accounts, including Total Wine stores and on-premise accounts throughout Maryland for a limited time only. To learn more about this collaboration and find out where you can purchase Sierra Nevada Rye Ale, visit sierranevada.com.
For those interested in exploring Maryland-style rye, Sagamore Spirit’s award-winning selection of whiskies include Signature 83-proof and Cask Strength rye whiskey, and a Port Finish limited time offering that was recently named “Best Rye Whiskey” at the 2019 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
About Sagamore Spirit
Sagamore Spirit opened its award-winning five-acre waterfront distillery campus in Baltimore in April 2017. Since then, nearly 60,000 guests have visited the campus and tasted the brand’s 30-time award-winning rye whiskies. Each batch of whiskey is made with pure spring-fed Maryland water. The distillation team blends two different rye mash bills – a high rye and a low rye – and then adds limestone-filtered spring water transported 22 miles from Sagamore Farm, to create an 83 proof Maryland-style rye whiskey. 100percent of Sagamore Rye is cut to proof with this distinct water. Sagamore Spirit also offers a Cask Strength whiskey that is 112 – 114 proof. Sagamore Spirit is committed to inspiring a global passion for Maryland Rye Whiskey.
About Sierra Nevada
Founded in 1980, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. is one of America’s premier craft breweries, highly regarded for using only the finest quality ingredients. The pioneering spirit that launched Sierra Nevada now spans both coasts with breweries in Chico, California and Mills River, North Carolina. Sierra Nevada has set the standard for craft brewers worldwide with innovation in the brewhouse as well as advances in sustainability. It is famous for its extensive line of beers including Pale Ale, Sidecar Orange Pale Ale, Torpedo, Tropical Torpedo, Hop Hunter IPA, Nooner Pilsner, Otra Vez, Kellerweis, Porter, Stout and a host of seasonal, specialty and limited release beers. Learn more at https://www.sierranevada.com/.