A Sneak Peek Inside Russian River Brewing Company, Makers Of Pliny The Younger
SANTA ROSA (KPIX 5) – On Friday, the Russian River Brewing Company will offer its annual release of Pliny the Younger. KPIX 5 was able to get a rare sneak peek inside the brewery that makes one of the world's most sought-after beers.
It's the eve of the most sacred day for craft beer lovers, the day before the Russian River Brewing Company releases Pliny the Younger.
The beer with a cult following was born in 2005, brainchild of husband and wife owners Vinnie and Natalie Cilurzo.
"We've had people from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, you know, all over Europe, Chile, everywhere. It really surprises me that people will travel this far and plan their vacation around one of our beers," Vinnie Cilurzo told KPIX 5.
Pliny the Younger began as an experiment in hops, and has turned into liquid gold for the Cilurzos
"Most India Pale Ales or IPA's will get dry hopped once, maybe twice. With the Younger, we hop it four times," Vinnie said.
That makes Pliny the Younger more expensive to make and with only a 200 barrel run, at the brew house more rare, leading to insane waits for a pint.
"The wait was up to 12 hours in the pouring rain. And that lasted pretty much the whole first weekend," Natalie said.
The fervor for the suds has forced daily rationing during the two week run.
"We'll start planning for this back probably in September, October," Vinnie said.
A secret formula that even Russian River's employees can't crack.
"Each day, we have a pre-determined allocation for the pub, and it's a different allocation for each day. On the weekends, it tends to be a little bit busier, so we'll have a higher allocation. That number is actually a number only Natalie and I know," Vinnie said.
With a final keg steam and fill, the beer with its own birthday party is ready to be sipped. Bottoms up.