Sierra Nevada, Glissade

Grade: A-
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Sierra Nevada is another brewery who isn’t afraid to change something when it’s not working. The beer that held the previous Spring seasonal spot, the ESB (Early Spring Beer, and yes, I think it was a cop-out too), just wasn’t up to Sierra Nevada standards. An obvious weak spot, the brewery decided to swap it out with a tried and true recipe from the olden German brewing days, a golden bock. While not exactly what beer snobs might call a traditional “bock,” Glissade is certainly an easy drinkin,’ balanced brew, and I for one am damn glad they made the change.


A nice white head tops off a perfectly clear, golden beer and falls to a layer of foam on the surface. Sulfur aromas come out after swirling a little, followed by bread and cereal. Mouthfeel is medium, with a good amount of tingling carbonation on the tongue. Flavors of bread, honey, toast, and some caramel/toffee mix and mingle on the palate. Earth and black pepper are in play as well, perhaps a result of Sierra Nevada’s famous hops? There is good hop bitterness, the flavors of herbal, bitter hops linger on the back of the tongue. Hops don’t make their way into the flavor much, but the spicy sting of the bitterness carries into the beer as a nice counter to the bread and honey sweetness.

This beer finishes dry and crisp, yet with a good amount of residual flavor. Not only are you left wanting another sip, there is enough flavor left on your tongue to remind you exactly why you want another sip. The lager elements of crisp dryness, relatively light body, and toasty grain flavors all make this an easily quaffable beer. I can easily see myself ordering more than a few pints of this.