Skip to main content

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

Sierra Nevada’s Pale Ale for Trails Aims to Clean Up America’s Trail Systems

Sierra Nevada Brewing is all about its community and nature, which is why the California brewery is launching Pale Ale for Trails.

The program is meant to help conserve “America’s underfunded trail and river systems” while also paying homage to the iconic labels of the near-ubiquitous Sierra Nevada Pale Ale that helped build the craft beer industry into what it is today.

“Spending time in the wild is good for the body, mind, and soul,” said Sierra Nevada founder Ken Grossman. “We have an obligation to enjoy these places in the least impactful way, and to protect them for generations to come.”

Pale Ale for Trails

To start the Pale Ale for Trails program, Sierra Nevada is partnering with the American Hiking Society for more than 1,200 events on June 1, National Trails Day. Interested parties can also support the brewery’s initiatives to support local trails by donating to the recently launched trail clean-up pledge program.

The program system gives volunteers the ability to clean up a pledged distance in their desired region. Sierra Nevada has made a company annual pledge of 1,000 miles. While cleaning up a trail or river area, photos can be shared for a chance to win a trail kit with gear, snacks, and more. Three winners will be selected each month, April to June, who post a picture to Instagram, tag Sierra Nevada and use #PaleAleforTrails.

Beyond the American Hiking Association collaboration, Sierra Nevada’s Pale Ale for Trails projects will occur across the U.S. all summer. On National Trails Day, Sierra Nevada will also host parties following the volunteer efforts at both its Chico, California, and Mills River, North Carolina, taprooms. The program falls under the supervision of Sierra Grossman, who leads the brewery’s new Corporate and Social Responsibility division.

The need for the program stems from a systematic decrease in funding for the U.S. trail system despite a rapid uptick in foot traffic. Sierra Nevada has been a champion of solid causes, most notably in its support of its neighboring community during last year’s Camp Fire wildfire. The brewery launched the Resilience IPA, which involved thousands of U.S. breweries brewing the same IPA to support the victims of and recovery from the wildfire. The brewery donated 100 percent of the beer sales to the Camp Fire Relief Fund.

Editors' Recommendations

Pat Evans
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Pat Evans is a writer based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, focusing on food and beer, spirits, business, and sports. His full…
Forget wine — Beer and cheese is an unbeatable combination
Put the corkscrew away and crack open a cold one
Beer and cheese

When one hears the term cheese pairings, wine is the beverage that most often comes to mind, we'd wager. Because, of course, it is. The pairing of wine and cheese is as classic a coupling as peanut butter and jelly, bacon and eggs, or chocolate and strawberries. They're meant to be together. But that certainly doesn't mean that wine is the only adult beverage that can dance an alluring tango alongside everyone's favorite dairy product. Beer, as humble as its reputation can be, is also a beautiful balance to cheese's immense offering of flavors. While some may think of beer as not being as multi-dimensional and varied in its palate-pleasing capabilities as wine, this is not the case - especially now that we live in a world with so many exquisite craft beers, stouts, and lagers.
Of course, another classic accompaniment to cheese is bread or crackers. Why might that be, one might ask. Is it because we're simply in need of a starchy vessel to usher the cheese into our mouths? The answer is actually a bit deeper than that. Starches like bread and crackers are made from the same yeasty ingredients as beer, so their pairing makes perfect culinary sense.
This isn't to say, though, that one can simply pick up a hunk of cheddar and crack open a Budweiser and expect culinary artistry. The science is a bit more nuanced than that, so we're here to help you find the best pairings for your favorite beers and cheeses.

How to pair beer and cheese

Read more
Mijenta has a new cristalino tequila — here’s why bourbon fans will love it
Mijenta has a cristalino tequila perfect for bourbon drinkers
Mijenta Cristalino

If you’re new to tequila, you might not know all the terms. Even if you’re just a beginner, you probably know all about blanco, reposado, añejo, and maybe even joven. But chances are, you’re not familiar with Cristalino tequila. This reasonably contemporary style is simply añejo tequila that’s been charcoal filtered to remove its natural caramel color and various impurities.

The style is more than just a little popular. It’s actually the fastest growing style of tequila according to Nielsen data. The newest brand to get in on the Cristalino trend is Mijenta.

Read more
You may not dislike IPAs as much as you think — you’ve just tried the wrong type
There's much more to the IPA than bitter hop bombs
Beer

The IPA has been described as the cilantro of the beer world. It’s assumed by some novice drinkers that you either love it or hate it. On one hand, it’s one of the most popular beer styles in the American craft world. It’s loved by many drinkers for its liberal use of hops and fresh, crushable flavor profile.

But haters of the style dislike it because they have an assumption that all IPA beers are aggressively hopped and uncomfortably bitter. While there are IPAs that fit that criterion (and fans of that style can’t get enough of them), there are also a handful of other types of IPAs to fit any palate.
The IPA stigma

Read more