La Cumbre releases Baltic porter Siberian Silk

As a producer of beer, Jeff Erway’s relationship with the Baltic porter predates his position as a brewery owner.

It’s a bond that has proven to be long-lasting. Since La Cumbre Brewing Company’s inception in December 2010, Erway has made sure to brew a Baltic porter on a near-annual basis. The current iteration, Siberian Silk, released earlier this month; a 30-barrel batch was brewed and Erway estimates that it will be available until early March.

“I started brewing one that won me a World Beer Cup medal back in, I guess, 2008,” Erway said. “And then, soon after La Cumbre opened, we started producing this beer, Siberian Silk. And that’s medaled a few times for us now. Most years, we’ve released a small can run of this beer. And this one finished out north of 10% alcohol.”

That high ABV content is part of what differentiates a Baltic porter from a traditional American porter, which typically hovers around 5% ABV. Erway is something of a historian on the origin of the Baltic porter.

“Back 150, 200 years ago, the British brewers were making a lot of money shipping Russian imperial stouts to the Czarist court in St. Petersburg. And some of the Baltic countries wanted to compete for that business,” he said. “They were obviously much colder countries, and so they competed with a lager that ended up becoming what we know today as Baltic porter.”

The porter, Erway said, is a style of beer that has lost ground in terms of popularity to the stout in the United States over the years. However, Siberian Silk, while comparable to an imperial stout in terms of alcohol content, is more drinkable.

“Whereas Russian imperial stouts are really quite roasty and can be very bitter to just balance out the mouthfeel and all the sweetness, Baltic porters, and Siberian Silk in particular, are a really smooth drinking experience comparatively,” Erway said.

Erway admits that Siberian Silk isn’t a “big mover” for La Cumbre, but it is appreciated by a small demographic nonetheless.

“I feel like La Cumbre has been able to really entice some of the most ardent craft beer aficionados in New Mexico and Colorado and Arizona with unique beer styles brewed exceptionally well,” he said.

“This is one of those styles that probably 95% of our customer base, it’s not their style. But that 5% of our customer base that do really enjoy that style are absolutely fanatics for it, and they absolutely love whenever we produce something like this. So we produce it for them. We produce it for us. We like brewing beers like this.”

PINK BOOTS: La Cumbre’s Girard Boulevard location will be the site of the Pink Boots Collaboration Brew Day on Feb. 27, where female leaders in the industry will join forces to create a special release beer. A portion of proceeds from the beer will go to benefit Pink Boots Society, which “aims to assist, inspire and encourage women and non-binary individuals in the fermented/alcoholic beverage industry to advance their careers through education.”

Playing host to the event is special to Erway for a number of reasons. Pink Boots founder Teri Fahrendorf is a longtime friend, and current New Mexico chapter president Elizabeth Agosto is also the QA/QC lab manager for La Cumbre. Additionally, Erway hired Kalynn McKnight, who he said was the first female brewer in the city, as his first assistant brewer.

“We’re proud to host. More than that, I’m just proud that the ladies that work here … all get to participate with so many different women from around the industry,” Erway said. “It’s night and day compared to when Teri started the Pink Boots Society back in 2007.”

ANNIVERSARY REFLECTIONS: La Cumbre celebrated its 15th anniversary in December, and Erway used a baseball analogy to explain the brewery’s longevity.

“Our company and my business philosophy has always been rather on the conservative side. We don’t try to hit too many home runs. We try to hit a lot of singles and doubles. Luckily for me and for all of us that work here, that’s served us well,” he said.

Despite plenty of requests, Erway has resisted rapid expansion for the popular establishment.

“We’ve grown slowly and steadily over the years because I value time with my family. I know my co-workers value time with their family. We really value making exceptional beer, and that takes time,” he said.

“It’s totally cliche to say I’ve got the greatest job on earth, but I challenge anybody to find somebody who’s got a better job.”