Podcast Episode 278: Sweetwater’s Ryan Joy is Dialing in Iconic Alpine and Green Flash Brands… in Colorado

Ryan Joy, head brewer at Sweetwater’s operation in Fort Collins, Colorado, details the process of dialing in Alpine Nelson, Alpine Duet, and Green Flash West Coast IPA as their company takes over the brewing of these influential brands.

Jamie Bogner Dec 9, 2022 - 5 min read

Podcast Episode 278: Sweetwater’s Ryan Joy is Dialing in Iconic Alpine and Green Flash Brands… in Colorado Primary Image

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Green Flash’s 2018 bankruptcy rocked the beer world and threw the future of their iconic brands into doubt. Earlier this year, Georgia-based Sweetwater acquired those brands. At its Fort Collins brewery, the company tasked head brewer Ryan Joy with figuring out how to brew them on a different system, with vastly different water, and for an audience with a much different context for beer.

In this episode, Joy discusses:

  • matching the unique, salt-heavy water of San Diego
  • using unusual chlorides in large amounts
  • changing up the yeast to achieve greater haze stability
  • adjusting for the efficiencies and increased utilization of the new brewhouse
  • shifting hops from the boil to the whirlpool for more aroma expression
  • working with crystal malt in West Coast IPA to maintain the classic appeal
  • the classic-to-modern spectrum of West Coast IPA
  • using terpenes to build unique flavors and aromas in hop-forward beer

And more.

This episode is brought to you by:

G&D
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Jamie Bogner is the Cofounder and Editorial Director of Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine®. Email him at [email protected].

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