By Daniela Blei
The images crowded my Instagram feed during last year’s SF Beer Week: long lines of bearded men waiting for a pint of Pliny the Younger. I couldn’t resist. Not yet noon on a Wednesday and there I was line-sitting for my triple IPA alongside hundreds of other beer nerds — more proof that no one in this town really works.
In case you missed the memo, Pliny the Younger by Russian River Brewing will be available on draft at select locations during this year’s Beer Week, an ever-expanding, liver-busting roster of events. If you’re also a poor soul trekking to the beer store on a Wednesday afternoon to fill your bottle quota of freshly-delivered Pliny the Elder (a relative of Younger, but less potent and easier to encounter), then strap on your waiting shoes.
Chasing down a 10-ounce pour of the elusive Pliny the Younger isn’t like spotting the truffle guy in Dolores Park. When and where to find it is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. Many drinking establishments won’t even know until delivery trucks hit the streets. Lucky recipients will keep it a secret until tweets roll and lines form, usually long before opening hours. Last February, at Russian River Brew Pub in Santa Rosa, thirsty crowds lingered under rainy skies awaiting the release of Pliny the Younger for 12 freezing hours. Every day. For two full weeks.
Experts call the Pliny phenomenon “a case study in scarcity marketing.” Instead of cashing in on one of the most coveted beers in the country by selling out to some mega brew-corp, Vinnie Cilurzo and his wife Natalie, the duo behind the brew, prefer to keep supplies lean and mean. “This has always been a lifestyle venture for us,” Natalie told NPR’s Marketplace last fall. For the Cilurzos, increasing Pliny production would be a recipe for stress, debt, and longer hours. Scarcity breeds demand, but it hasn’t been by design.
Sipping Pliny confers beer cred, but it’s also actually delicious. “It’s quality over quantity,” says my friend Matt, who has his own beer-sharing social network. There are no secret ingredients — just high-quality hops. Pliny is velvety smooth, clean-smelling, and bright. It’s also bitter and sweet, like a whiff of grated orange zest. By capping production at a quality controllable level, Russian River Brewing Company virtually guarantees we’re drinking it fresh.
By the way, what’s the deal with the name? Gaius Plinius Secundus (street name: Pliny the Elder) was a lawyer, philosopher, writer, and nature-lover — basically a jack-of-all-trades in ancient Rome — who is credited with discovering hops. He raised and educated his nephew, the younger Pliny, who was a prolific letter writer. The rest is history.
There are only two official tappings of Pliny the Younger at SF Beer Week:
Opening Gala / February 6 / 6 p.m. — 10 p.m. / Fort Mason Herbst Pavilion, 2 Marina Blvd.
Pliny the Younger Charity Event / February 11 / 11 a.m.-2 p.m. / The Monk’s Kettle, 3141 16th St.
Purveyors of Russian River Brewing beers might serve it at unannounced times, so keep your eyes glued to the Book of Face and the Twitverse for updates. Tip: Russian River Brew Pub in Santa Rosa will serve it from February 6–19.
Image via Flickr.
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