The Anglo-culture invasion exemplified by the Beatles U.S. tour in 1964 could also be felt in American brewing. Culture from abroad, appreciated by a willing American palate was then manipulated into a whole new identity. The new breweries developing in the 1960s through the 1980s may not have been interested in Britpop or Mini Coopers, but they revived a long tradition of English ale production. Anchor Brewing did so in grand fashion with the development of the hoppy and bitter Liberty Ale, and their dark and malty Anchor Porter. New Albion Brewing took pride in using a legendary English ship as the symbol of their traditional English ales. Sierra Nevada Brewing embodied both the move to British styles of beer and the DIY spirit of counterculture of California. Before constructing their brewery from recycled and repurposed equipment, current CEO and founder Ken Grossman operated a small farm with his wife Katie. Their pursuits in animal husbandry and cooperative farming with fellow Chico residents was in the spirit of what Brand and his Catalog supported. Further, the first Sierra Nevada recipes brewed for sale were an English styled stout and pale ale, albeit with an American interpretation. While there is no evidence that Grossman or other prominent California brewers used the Whole Earth Catalog, the spirit of the era gave brewers faith enough to pursue their passion into a business.
Eric Ortega, “The Golden State of Brewing; California’s Economic and Cultural Influence in the American Brewing Industry” (Master’s thesis, California State University, Fullerton, 2015), 81-82.