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

It鈥檚 a bond that has proven to be long-lasting. Since La Cumbre Brewing Company鈥檚 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.

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

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.

鈥淏ack 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,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey were obviously much colder countries, and so they competed with a lager that ended up becoming what we know today as Baltic porter.鈥�

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.

鈥淲hereas 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,鈥� Erway said.

Erway admits that Siberian Silk isn鈥檛 a 鈥渂ig mover鈥� for La Cumbre, but it is appreciated by a small demographic nonetheless.

鈥淚 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,鈥� he said.

鈥淭his is one of those styles that probably 95% of our customer base, it鈥檚 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.鈥�

PINK BOOTS: La Cumbre鈥檚 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 鈥渁ims to assist, inspire and encourage women and non-binary individuals in the fermented/alcoholic beverage industry to advance their careers through education.鈥�

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.

鈥淲e鈥檙e proud to host. More than that, I鈥檓 just proud that the ladies that work here 鈥� all get to participate with so many different women from around the industry,鈥� Erway said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 night and day compared to when Teri started the Pink Boots Society back in 2007.鈥�

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

鈥淥ur company and my business philosophy has always been rather on the conservative side. We don鈥檛 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鈥檚 served us well,鈥� he said.

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

鈥淲e鈥檝e 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,鈥� he said.

鈥淚t鈥檚 totally cliche to say I鈥檝e got the greatest job on earth, but I challenge anybody to find somebody who鈥檚 got a better job.鈥�