Beer Here: Sierra Goes to Germany for Oktoberfest

Oktoberfest has finally broken cover with an announcement from one of America's most respected craft breweries. Sierra Nevada Brewing Company has announced it is collaborating with a German brewer to produce an Oktoberfest for the North American market. Fittingly, the Brauhaus Riegele is also directed by a father-son team. Here is Sierra's media release:

Chico, CA-- June 29, 2015--On a trip to Germany this spring, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. finalized its inaugural partner, Augsburg's Brauhaus Riegele, for a brand new Oktoberfest beer. Released each fall starting in 2015, the collaborative seasonal will feature a different German brewery every year. The partnership blends centuries of brewing tradition with modern spirit, giving craft drinkers the ultimate Oktoberfest, a Bavarian festival beer unlike any they've experienced in the US.

Family owned like Sierra Nevada, Brauhaus Riegele has brewed excellent craft beers since 1386, and more than 600 years later, its innovation earns accolades including 2015 Craft Brewer of the Year at the Meininger
International Craft Beer Awards. Just as Sierra Nevada's Ken and Brian Grossman lead as a father-son team, Brauhaus Riegele has a father-son duo at the helm. Its 27th generation Master Brewer Dr. Sebastian Priller-Riegele works alongside his son Sebastian Priller-Riegele, a World Champion Beer Sommelier, to brew a lineup of beers that together have earned more than 200 awards and medals stateside and abroad. Their brewmaster, Frank Muller, has won the German Government's "Bundesehrenpreis" award for quality seven times--every year it's been given.

"We're honored that Brauhaus Riegele, a real cornerstone of German craft brewing, is kicking off this Oktoberfest collaboration with us," said Ken Grossman, Sierra Nevada's founder. "We're both family owned, our children are hands on, and we share a passion for great beer. We're aligned in so many ways, and we're excited about the outstanding beer that's emerged."

"For years we've followed the great development of Sierra Nevada and we are really impressed by Ken and Brian's fantastic beer culture," said Sebastian Priller-Riegele, Brauhaus Riegele's marketing manager. "We are really looking forward to sharing this outstanding beer together that shows our passion and dedication to the art of brewing. It's an honor to work with Sierra Nevada."

The Sierra Nevada and Brauhaus Riegele collaboration Oktoberfest will hit retail shelves in August. It will only be distributed in North America, although Brauhaus Riegele fans in Germany need not worry. The two breweries are collaborating on a separate barrel-aged beer to be brewed and aged on site at Brauhaus Riegele's traditional Bavarian sudhaus.