Every beer drinker has that one beer they turn to time and time again, an old faithful that never lets them down. For many, this beer is usually a staple of sorts or at least what one might call a “shelfie” in that it is readily and widely available. In some cases, this is the beer that started it all for you. Perhaps it was a pioneering craft brew that enlightened you to the world of beer that actually tastes good, or perhaps it is a beer that made you completely rethink what you thought you knew about a particular style. Whatever it may be, this is a beer that made an impact on you and is burned into your taste buds forever. In our monthly column The Beers That Made Us, we talk with brewers about the beers that have made the biggest impact on them in terms of their personal taste and love of craft beer, as well as how it inspired their personal approach to brewing. 

Tom Riley first joined Anchor Brewing in the summer of 1984 at age 21 as a member of the packaging line. During his thirty-six years with the legendary San Francisco brewery, Riley took on nearly every role – including tour guide - before eventually landing the Assistant Brewmaster position and ultimately being appointed Brewmaster in 2020. While Riley has been a big part of brewing now classics like Anchor Steam, Liberty, Porter, Foghorn, and Christmas Ale, he has also been involved with some of the brewery’s more experimental and less-known offerings alongside Pilot Brewer Dane Volek. Many of these beers require a visit to the actual brewery. As Brewmaster, Riley has the unique challenge of preserving the legacy of Anchor in its 125th year while keeping its output fresh and exciting for the ever-changing tastes of today’s craft beer drinkers. With this in mind, it makes sense that the beer Riley chose to highlight for this edition of The Beers That Made Us is a newer beer that keeps him excited and forward-thinking. 

Beer: 

Fieldwork Brewing PULP Hazy IPA

Tom Riley (TR): Fieldwork Brewing Company’s Pulp hazy New England style IPA (NEIPA). Some purist brewers don't view this as a true IPA, but I'm confident it's a category that's here to stay.

Your first time:

TR: About five years ago I went into my local taproom and was intrigued by a beer on the menu called "Pulp" made by Fieldwork Brewing in Berkeley (we recently did a collaboration with them). It was my first hazy NEIPA, and had a weird, cloudy, but nice orange color. The taste was smooth, and the mouthfeel was so soft and a little sweet. Then came the hops, like you had just pulled them off the vine. So fresh, so clean, and very little bitterness. And the flavor from the hops was different; it was tropical and fruity, but still a little piney. This beer was completely different than anything I`d had and it was amazing. I'm now a fan of this NEIPA style and seek it out whenever I can.

What makes it special:

TR: Pulp, like all hazys, employs a completely different approach to the brewing and dry hopping process. The intention is to make a cloudy beer so the brewhouse method is very different from a traditional beer. The dry hopping happens before, during, and after the fermentation [in order] to produce aromas and flavors from hops that were previously underutilized. Pulp did this perfectly.

Why this beer is influential:

TR: Beer has been around a long time and beer drinkers are passionate about the ones they love, so when a completely new style comes along that's really good, it gets a lot of attention. Malt and hop growers are taking notice and developing raw materials specifically for hazy IPAs, most notably hop varieties that produce the fruity, tropical flavors. Pulp is just a good example of the style, and it`s only available in the local Bay Area market at Fieldwork’s taprooms.

Why beer drinkers should pay attention:

TR: It's really a (semi) new expression of grain and hops and once you take an interest and acquire a taste for the style, it will become your new go-to when visiting a pub or brewery. 

How this beer inspired your brewery:

TR: In the spring of 2021, we came out with our version of a hazy called the Tropical Hazy IPA. Our pilot brewer Dane Volek had been making hazy beers for our taproom in San Francisco, Public Taps, and we learned from his experiences making them on a small 7 bbl system to bring it over to our main brewery. It was a bit of a challenge as the main brewery was set up to make traditional lager beer, but we got creative with the equipment and have made a great version of the style that has been really well received by our community.

Follow The Beers That Made Us series for more interviews with the founders of Russian River Brewing, Cloudburst Brewing, De Garde, Chuckanut, Firestone Walker and others on the beers that inspired them.