In what is maybe the best example of service journalism we’ve seen in a while, the brilliant staff of The Washington Post’s Food and Weekend sections decided to answer one of the summer’s most important questions: Which low-calorie beer is the best? 

Turns out, it’s none other than Petaluma’s own Lagunitas DayTime IPA, which took home top honors from a highly competitive field.

Lagunitas DayTime IPA, clocking in at 4 percent ABV and 98 calories, was praised for its drinkability, crispness and fresh taste. The Post called the beer the clear preference among its panel of taste-testers, who sampled five beers in all.

To qualify for the taste test, the brews had to follow a set of guidelines put in place by the Post team: No light lagers (they weren’t interested in tasting beers trying to compete with Miller Lite, they explained), wide availability and close to 100 calories.

Lagunitas DayTime IPA beat out Kona Kanaha Blonde Ale (4.2 percent ABV, 99 calories), Boulevard Easy Sport Ale (4.1 percent ABV, 99 calories), Dogfish Head Slightly Mighty Lo-Cal IPA (4 percent ABV, 95 calories) and Harpoon Rec. League (3.8 percent ABV, 120 calories).

Tough competition, to be sure. Makes us wonder how they’d fare compared to some of our favorite Sonoma County summertime sippers. Click through the gallery to see what beers we can’t wait to bring to barbecues all summer long.

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There’s no denying it: Petaluma is a beer town. True, Santa Rosa has Russian River Brewing Co., but we’ve got Lagunitas, HenHouse and more. Even better, many of the town’s beer-drinking destinations are within walking distance of each other. From nationally known breweries to downtown taprooms, hops- and barley-fueled bliss is just around the corner.

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As thousands of beer-lovers from around the world descend on Sonoma County for the annual release of Pliny the Younger, there’s yet another reason to brag about our booming beer scene. Local breweries Russian River Brewing Company (Santa Rosa and Windsor) and Lagunitas (Petaluma) were just named among the top 100 breweries in the world by beer review website RateBeer, coming in at number two and 100 respectively.

The brewery ranking, released since 2001, is based on aggregated online reviews by thousands of beer enthusiasts (RateBeer receives over one million reviews annually). This marks the 12th year that Russian River Brewing Company’s (RRBC) made the top-100 list, and it’s the highest ranking yet for the brewery, beating out their number four position in 2013. Hill Farmstead Brewery in Greensboro, Vermont, took the first spot this year.

“It is a huge honor to be recognized as one of the best breweries in the world after all these years,” shares Natalie Cilzuro, Russian River Brewing Company owner and co-president.

Best known for super hoppy brews, Russian River Brewing Company is considered one of the most trendsetting and cutting edge breweries in the country. Brewmaster and co-owner Vinnie Cilzuro created one of the first commercially brewed Double and Imperial IPAs in the country, including Pliny the Elder, which was named one of the top 100 beers in the world this year by RateBeer alongside the brewery’s Consecration and Supplication ales.

Cilzuro credits RateBeer as having helped made Russian River beers among the most coveted in America, including cult favorite Pliny the Younger.

Russian River Brewing Company has been the only Sonoma County brewery to come in almost annually within the top 10 on the list, amid growing competition from an ever-expanding number of Sonoma County breweries. When the brewery was founded in 1997, there were less than a handful in the area.

“With so many young, popular breweries around,” says Cilzuro, “it is nice to know that we are still relevant to hard-core beer enthusiasts.”

Lagunitas Brewing Company, based in Petaluma and now owned by Heineken, squeezed into the list this year at number 100.

Best known for easy drinking IPA-centric session beers, Lagunitas has ranked in the top 100 every year since the RateBeer awards launched in 2001. The brewery’s highest ranking was in 2003 when they came in on number 39 and 19 in the Best North American Brewers category (now long gone due to the rise of craft beer in the United States).

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Could Santa Rosa really be the microbrew capital of the United States?

Portland has more breweries, and the highest-rated beer made in the United States currently comes from a small town in Iowa.

But there is no better place in America for craft beer than Santa Rosa, according to a new interactive database that ranks local beer scenes by measuring the quality of beer produced in a community and the number of craft brewers it supports.

The conclusion, published this week by an online journal of data visualizations named The Pudding, of all things, is sure to set off arguments in pubs across the land.

“I guarantee you there are a whole lot of other cities that would argue that point,” said Natalie Cilurzo, co-owner and president of Russian River Brewing Co., which produces two of the top 20 beers in the world, according to RateBeer. “We’re not that big, we don’t have a lot of breweries, but I think it’s cool.”

The Pudding database ranked cities across the country that had at least five microbreweries and brewpubs with three beers or more reviewed by RateBeer, an online hub for craft beer enthusiasts. To calculate its total score, the interactive website based 80 percent of each city’s ranking on the quality of its beer and 20 percent of its ranking on the number of establishments, but users can adjust the quality/quantity ratio.

San Diego, Denver, Anchorage, Alaska, and Portland, Oregon, rounded out the top five beer cities in the online database, which gained widespread attention Thursday when the New York Times highlighted the website in its California Report.

“When you boil it down to a weighted blend of quality (beer ratings) and quantity (breweries in proximity), Santa Rosa tops the list,” database author Russell Goldenberg wrote.

When quality and quantity are weighted equally, San Diego is the top microbrew city in the nation and Santa Rosa drops to fourth place, behind Denver and Portland.

If quality is excluded, Santa Rosa still ranks 12th in the nation, based solely on the number of craft brew establishments clustered within a 20-mile radius.

The top five local breweries listed in the database were Russian River, Bear Republic Brewing Co., Shady Oak Barrel House, Moonlight Brewing Company — now part of Lagunitas Brewing Co. — and Cooperage Brewing Company. All are located in Santa Rosa except Bear Republic, which operates a production facility in Cloverdale and a brewpub in Healdsburg.

“It’s pretty amazing isn’t it?” Ben Stone, executive director of the Sonoma County Economic Development Board, said of the designation. “It’s gratifying to be recognized as a center for excellence in craft beer.”

Stone pointed to the economic impact that craft beer brings to Sonoma County. The two-week 2016 release of Russian River Brewing’s coveted triple IPA, Pliny the Younger, brought nearly 10,000 tourists to the county and generated $4.88 million in economic activity, according to a study by the Economic Development Board.

In 2013, the craft beer industry in the county generated $169 million in economic impact, according to the most recent study by the Economic Development Board. With the industry continuing to grow, that number is now around $225 million, Stone said.

The designation of microbrew capital of the U.S. was welcomed, yet not entirely supported by local brewers.

“I’m very excited about it,” said Steve Doty, brewer and owner of Shady Oak Barrel House, which specializes in sour ale. “At the same time I’ve seen a lot of better beer scenes, with more varieties and styles.”

For Doty, Oakland and Portland are the best beer destinations in the nation. Cilurzo’s favorite city for microbrews is Philadelphia, with Seattle and Portland also on her list.
But neither Cilurzo nor Doty reject the praise bestowed on the city where they brew their beer.

“I’m hoping it keeps momentum going,” said Doty who plans to open a taproom at 420 First St. in Santa Rosa in the coming months. “Fingers crossed.”

To view the Pudding craft beer database click here.

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With so many high-quality breweries, taprooms and beer venues to choose from in Sonoma County, a beer lover can easily get overwhelmed. To help our fellow beer geeks out, we’ve decided to pick out a few of our favorite local spots – town by town. First out is Petaluma – click through the gallery for all the sudsy details.

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Sonoma County may be a wine lover’s playground but following the emergence of a band of brewery brothers and sisters pioneering the production of artfully crafted local beers, the region has evolved into a mecca for microbrew maniacs. Pliny pilgrims now descend on Santa Rosa during the month of February and beer enthusiasts from around the world populate local brewery patios and taprooms year round.

So how does a beer lover best explore Sonoma County? No doubt, it is easy to get overwhelmed. We’ve picked out a few gems, inside and outside the taproom, to help you structure a trip that will match the county’s beer ratings. And don’t forget to get on a bike, and see the coast between beers!

Click through the gallery above for all the details, and remember to bring a designated driver, or arrange for transportation – Uber and Lyft are available, as well as beer tour buses.

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Harvest time in Wine Country has traditionally meant grape picking and winemaking but with the growing popularity of craft beers, hops are becoming our region’s “other” hot crop. As hop varieties and flavor profiles proliferate in beers, brewers have begun to follow the lead of grape vintners and wine bottlers before them by planting their own hop farms to gain more control of their ingredients and finished products. And it’s no surprise that some of the brewers who are taking hop harvesting the most seriously are those who started with grapes. Here are nine Sonoma brewers who swapped wine for beer.

Barrel Brothers Brewing Company, Windsor: Wesley Deal and Daniel Weber
Brothers-in-law Wesley Deal and Daniel Weber both previously worked in wine. Deal worked as assistant winemaker for two years at a winery in Healdsburg before becoming inspired by his father-in-law’s love for home-brewing. He then decided to study brewing science at U.C Davis. Weber worked in sales and marketing in the wine industry and took an equal liking to the beer world when likewise inspired by the same father-in-law, Tom Sather.

Deal’s and Weber’s love for the brewing craft led them to take their hobby to the next level when they opened Barrel Brothers Brewing Company in Windsor. Recently they have begun working with fellow brewer Steve Doty of Shady Oak Barrel House to bring the characteristics of the Sonoma terroir to beer. On their two acre hop farm north of Windsor, the partners plan to create a spontaneously fermented lambic series to share with local beer lovers and travelers alike.

Barrel Brother’s Brewing, 399 Business Park Ct, #506, Windsor 95492, 707-696-9487, barrelbrothersbrewing.com, @BarrelBrothersBrewing

Carneros Brewing Company, Sonoma: Armando, Jesus and Pedro Ceja
Brothers Armando, Pedro and Jesus Ceja grew up in Napa Valley working for their father in the vineyards and learning the wine trade. After paying homage to their father by building a successful winery, the brothers are now tapping into beer at their Sonoma Valley microbrewery Carneros Brewing Company, located near the Ceja Family Vineyards. Head-brewmaster Jesus Ceja graduated from the brewery science program at U.C Davis, and previously worked at Coors in Golden, Colorado, AB-inBev, and Red Star Yeast Company.

The brothers have planted their own hops on the brewery property so that they can obtain nothing but the best ingredients for their beers. Guests of the brewery can enjoy views of Carneros Valley, picnic in the beer garden by the pond and sip on handcrafted ice cold beers.

Carneros Brewing, 22985 Burndale Road, Sonoma, CA 95476, 707-938-1880, carnerosbrewing.com @CarnerosBrewing

Fogbelt Brewing Company, Santa Rosa: Paul Hawley and Remy Martin
Co-owners and co-brewers Remy Martin and Paul Hawley grew up working in the wine business – Martin worked grape harvests in California and abroad; Hawley worked at his family’s winery, Hawley Wines in Dry Creek Valley. The two began brewing together during a trip to New Zealand’s wine country, where they were working the harvest. Martin then studied brewing at U.C Davis while Hawley continued to work at his family’s winery.

Four years ago, just before opening Fogbelt Brewing, Hawley planted a quarter acre of hops on his family vineyard in Healdsburg. With farming in his blood, he knew this was the best way to both understand and control the quality and variety of hops for the brewery. Fogbelt Brewing now hosts the “Wet Hop Fest,” an event that features beers brewed with locally harvested hops.

Hawley continues to help out at the family winery. He is constantly reminded that the two industries, wine and beer, have different challenges, “With wine, the main production period is once a year during harvest. With beer, we are always in production-mode, allowing for more experimentation and perfecting of the process and beers, but a lot more scrubbing tanks. After a while, brewing twice a day, you wish you could just have a couple months of heavy production and make enough to last a year. Beer has a shelf life though and wine just gets better with age. I love making barrel-aged sour beers because it feels more like wine-making than brewing…”

Fogbelt Brewing, 1305 Cleveland Ave, Santa Rosa 95401, (707) 978-3400, fogbeltbrewing.com, @FogbeltBrewing

Russian River Brewing Company, Santa Rosa: Vinnie Cilurzo
Russian River Brewing Company co-owner, brewmaster and Pliny creator Vinnie Cilurzo grew up in Temecula, CA, working in the barrel room at his family’s winery, Cilurzo Family Cellars. After realizing he had more passion for hops than grapes, Cilurzo made the leap to beer and, after acquiring investors, opened Blind Pig Brewing in Temecula, in 1994. It was at this time that he perfected the original recipe for what was to become the famous Blind Pig IPA.

Cilurzo then moved to Northern California where he became head brewer at Korbel Cellars’s Russian River Brewing Company. When Korbel bowed out of the brewing business, Cilurzo accepted rights to the Russian River Brewing Company (RRBC) name and all of the recipes in lieu of a severance package. In 2004, Vinnie and his wife Natalie opened the RRBC brewpub on 4th Street in downtown Santa Rosa. Natalie, who left a job in the wine industry after the pub’s opening, now oversees the business side of the brewery and brewpub while Vinnie oversees brewing and distribution. A new brewery in Windsor is slated to open in the fall of 2018.

Russian River Brewing Co., 725 4th St, Santa Rosa, CA 95404, (707) 545-2337, russianriverbrewing.com, @RussianRiverOfficial

Seismic Brewing Company, Santa Rosa: Christopher Jackson
Christopher Jackson, son of philanthropist Barbara Banke and the late Jess Jackson (founder of Kendall Jackson), has adopted his parents’s love for a grape-to-glass approach in wine and applied the concept to his grain-to-glass philosophy at Seismic Brewing.

In partnership with friends Patrick Delves and Andy Hooper, Jackson’s dream to build a sustainable brewery, operating on a clean and green scale to produce the highest quality beers, has come to fruition. Jackson’s custom-brew house is built with energy efficiency and a “clean to can” approach. The brewery emphasizes the three “P’s” of sustainability: “people” (by paying and treating employees fairly while providing a healthy work environment), “planet” (by maximizing energy and water efficiency), and “prosperity” (by adopting a policy to partner with the community and local businesses). While the brewery does not currently have a taproom, Seismic beers can be found on draft at Confluence Taproom in Santa Rosa, Brewsters Beer Garden in Petaluma, and other establishments throughout the Bay Area.

Seismic Brewing, 2870 Duke Court, Santa Rosa, California, CA 95407, 707-230-5014, seismicbrewingco.com, @SeismicBrewingCo

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As the long hot Sonoma summer begins, have a cold one in the shade. Click through the gallery for nine of the best brewery patios around.

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For as long as people have been drinking beer and wine, beer has been regarded the inferior beverage. Wine is “classy,” it takes time to craft and age, a refined palate to appreciate, and is often paired with fine food. Beer is less expensive, often comes in a can, and you can find it anywhere. But, with craft beer now taking the center stage – even in Wine Country – many connoisseurs are heading out to explore hoppy drinks. However, there are still a few wine lovers who aren’t quite ready to make the leap to beer – it’s not fruity or oaky enough, it’s too bitter. If you happen to be one of those people, we’re here to change your mind. Click through the gallery above for five Sonoma breweries that will leave wine lovers begging for more. 

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Father’s Day can be a tough gift-buying holiday. What do you get for the dad who has everything – from all the power tools he’ll ever need to the perfect “man’s” grill? A fine leather wallet or gift card might suffice, but nothing says “I love you Dad” like a day spent with family – beer in hand. Click through the gallery above for Sonoma beer venues to take your Dad for some barbecue, live music and – of course – great beer this Sunday.

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