Tuck on Tap | Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder was a historian, a naturalist, an officer, a writer, and a hero. He led an epic life, and he left this world gallantly- perishing while rescuing people from the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, one of the most tragic natural disasters in the history of man kind. On top of all this, he's been credited in creating the botanical name for hops, Lupus Salictarius. Yes, Pliny was a beer's man- and is more than deserving to have an elegant beer named after him.
Pliny the Elder is a Double IPA (India Pale Ale)- best to be consumed as soon as possible. In fact, Russian River brewery emphasizes that Pliny the Elder is NOT a beer to be aged. Every bottle is dated upon bottling and eagerly awaits to be popped open.
The beer is brewed with a variety of hops enriching the liquid with a piney, bitter, pungent taste. The balance of hops and malts is perfect allowing the beer to be bitter yet refreshing. At 8% ABV this beer will get you where you need to go... so to speak. Enjoy it fresh and quickly and Pliny the Elder will take care of you with its robust taste, great aroma, and high ABV.
Behind the Beer
Based in Santa Rosa California, Russian River Brewery has a gold mine in Pliny the Elder- its flagship beer. In order to better understand the beer and re-birth of Pliny, we sought to speak with Vinnie Cilurzo, the modern brewster behind the beer's success.
Q: What inspired you to become a brewmaster?
I actually have a winemaking / grape growing background. My folks were in the wine industry in Southern California in Temecula. They planted the first vineyard there in 1968 so I was born into the whole thing. My entire life I have been working in either the cellar of a winery or brewery. Fermentation is all I know. When I started homebrewing I was 18 years old, I liked the idea of brewing as an ale could be made in three week's as opposed to wine which can take years. Almost from the start of homebrewing I knew that it was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. It is sort of ironic though as we now make all these funky, barrel beers at Russian River which take us around a year to make per batch so I'm right back to where I was when I was working at the winery.
Q: What inspires you to continue to innovate the craft beer culture?
I think it is in mine, and Natalie's blood. Craft beer is what we do and really all we know. We started making unique beers so early on in the micro/craft beer movement. First with Double IPA and IPA, than funky, sour, barrel beers along with some Belgian styles. I like the challenge of these styles because there is still so much that is unknown. Around our brewery we are very fortunate because our staff is so into beer, they sort of create their own culture around the brewery.
Q: What is next for Russian River Brewing?
We have a lot going on right now. Our brewpub is now over 10 years old and our production brewery is close to 7 years old. The production brewery brewhouse is on its last leg so we are removing it and installing a brand new one. While we are shut down Firestone Walker will be brewing Pliny the Elder for us. It has been wonderful working with my good friend Matt Brynildson and his crew at FSW. They've been amazing. I think we have a pretty dam good match on the Pliny we've brewed down there as compared to what we brew. They will be helping us for a short period but in the big picture it sure means a lot to Natalie and myself.
At our production brewery we continue to just try to improve on our processes to make even better beer. Pliny the Elder kind of drives to ship so we always trying to improve on the hop character in this beer. At our brewpub we continue to make new one-off brews or put new beers into the rotation. We have a new low alcohol hoppy session beer at 4.5% ABV called Dribble Belt. We are now making a year round hoppy German style pilsner at the pub called STS Pils. It is very hoppy as pilsner go but still staying in check. I really like the beer and hope to bottle it later this year. I've always been a closet pilsner fan and last year I finally put my best foot forward with STS Pils. It seems like I am going backwards by brewing a pilsner but they are incredibly hard to make and the world is short on good pilsners. For me I've been brewing big, over the top IPA's professionally since 1994 and sour/barrel/funky beer since 1999, I guess my palate is craving something a little milder and the STS was my answer.
Q: What advice would you give to someone who is trying to break into the brewing industry?
It is a tough industry, it is not as easy as it looks. For me it was a real struggle early on and I think this is what makes me appreciate what we have now. The first thing someone should do is look around and see if the world needs another brewery, I just heard that a new brewery is opening every 16 hours in the USA. That is an incredible number. You really have to know who your market is going to be. The days are gone when you could just open a brewery and hope that customers would come in. There is less and less taps and shelf space in the market place. This is what makes a brewpub so unique, you control your own destiny. But, you now have a restaurant and a small army of employees to deal with. Without our brewpub Russian River would not be where it is today. Overall, our brewpub drives everything. There are so many more things that I could cover, I could write a book on the topic and in fact the Brewers Association actually does have a book on the subject.
So what lesson can we take from all of this?
Finding one's passion is one of the most satisfying things in life. While Pliny experimented across many fields, Vinnie has been able to hone down his passion for the beer industry. He's been able to create and innovate new offerings throughout his career, and has enjoyed every second of it.
If you haven't yet found your inner spark- that thing that gets you up in the morning- don't fret. Continue to explore, try new things, and meet new people- that time will come. Heck, maybe crack open a bottle of Pliny, and let inspiration brew within.
