Russian River Brewing’s Pliny the Younger event canceled in 2021

It took a global pandemic to stop the annual pilgrimage to Sonoma County for the chance to drink coveted Pliny the Younger craft beer during its limited availability.

In an unsurprising announcement Monday, Russian River Brewing Co. scrapped its 14-day February release of the triple India pale ale, one of the most sought-after brews on the planet. That means the beer that helps fuel the county’s economic engine won’t be on tap in 2021.

Waiting hours in lines outside Russian River’s Santa Rosa and Windsor brewpubs last year, travelers came from 47 states around the country and 14 different countries to drink Pliny, pumping a record $5.1 million into the local economy from their hotel and associated travel costs, according to Sonoma County Economic Development Board figures.

There were 23,525 visitors in town to belly up to the bar for the high-alcohol beer, and for the first time they could buy Younger bottles for $10 each to take home. Each visitor spent on average $194 per visit to one of the Russian River brewpubs.

“Neither of our pubs have been allowed to reopen for indoor dining since we closed in March 2020 due to the unrelenting spread of the highly contagious coronavirus,” said brewery co-owner Natalie Cilurzo, in announcing there will be no 17th annual two weeks of pouring Pliny the Younger. “At this rate, we will be lucky to be open for outdoor dining come February due to another surge in (virus) cases or bad weather, which is common that time of year.”

But Russian River will not leave its devoted beer aficionados empty-handed. It will offer a case of four bottles of Pliny the Younger as part of a mixed case of bottles that will go on sale online in late January. The cases will be available for shipping only to California residents.

“We simply cannot go a whole year without making at least some Pliny the Younger,” Cilurzo said, noting the fullblown special beer release event will return in 2022.

The brewery intends to produce at least 5,000 cases that will include four 510-milliliter Pliny the Younger bottles and eight other bottles of its craft beers. The price and the selection of other beers have not been determined yet. The brewery is working with an internet technology company to ensure it will have enough bandwidth on its website to handle the consumer rush once sales are available. Russian River officials also want to block people from using online bots to buy cases and resell them for a profit on online beer-trading forums. Last year $10 Younger bottles were offered for resale online for as much as $120 a bottle.

Also, depending on how the pandemic plays out in coming weeks, the brewery might make a small batch of Pliny the Younger for keg sales to a few loyal customer brewpubs that have carried the specialty brew in past years. For now only the bottles of the popular craft are for sure next year, Cilurzo said.

Although there will be no big annual release of Pliny the Younger to start 2021 with a deluge of big-spending visitors, local tourism officials on Monday were looking ahead to next spring’s arrival of winery visitors and outdoor enthusiasts.

“There still are wonderful opportunities for people to enjoy Sonoma County in a safe and responsible way,” said Claudia Vecchio, CEO of Sonoma County Tourism, who noted small wellness retreats are becoming popular.

County hotel occupancy reached 77% in October, a big improvement from spring levels below 50%.

Offsetting Pliny the Younger’s absence, the county tourism agency is touting a host of the winter season small group experiences, such as wine-and-food tasting at Safari West, yoga and forest bathing on the Sonoma Coast and family outings at the Charlie Brown Christmas Tree Grove on Windsor’s town green.

It’s “never been more important for people to take care of themselves,” Vecchio said.

You can reach Staff Writer Bill Swindell at 707-521-5223 or bill.swindell@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @BillSwindell.