The canning line at Sierra Nevada Brewery in Chico. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Earlier this month I combined my thirst for beer and learning into one activity—a tour of Sierra Nevada Brewery which is now 45 years old. This was an OLLI class through Chico State.

Years ago I had taken the self-guided tour at Sierra Nevada. This one was much more extensive. Along the hallways are old photos showing various aspects of the last four decades.

I knew the property was large, but until I walked the quarter mile from the front to the packaging area while listening to Byron regale us with facts, figures and stories, I had no idea the acreage was so extensive. It’s about 50 acres.

Ken Grossman, who started the brewery in his garage, is still very much involved in the business. In fact, he was having a beer with workers while some of us were imbibing post-tour.

Byron talks about hops at Sierra Nevada Brewery. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

It was obvious the brewery was constructed in stages instead of being laid out from scratch to be the facility it is today. In fact, there are doors that don’t go anywhere. Plus, the bottling area should be much closer to where the actual beer is produced.

Cans whir in a blur as they circle around being filled with the flavor of the day. Eight hundred cans are filled and sealed every minute. Byron is adamant cans are better for beer than bottles.

The North Carolina facility started making beer in 2014 after capacity was met in Chico.

Today, Sierra Nevada produces one-half of 1 percent of the beer made in the United States.

The company has been a leader in sustainability. This includes 10,500 solar panels on the property. The tour leader said this is one of the largest private solar arrays in the U.S. About 70 percent of the electricity used on site is produced on site.

A door we didn’t get to go in was the Quality Insurance Lab. While all beer has water, yeast, barley and hops, it’s the brewmaster and others who work their magic to make the various styles of beer and ensure each bottle or can or keg tastes the same year after year.

The tour ends in the innovation bar area where beers not available elsewhere, even in the main brewery, are being poured. I recommend the Dusk Runner, a Cascadia dark ale. They even have a hand cranked canning gizmo so you can take some to go.