Mybeerbuzz .com Highlights Firestone Walker / Russian River 2025 STiVO (Review)

You pretty much can’t put together two better California breweries to do a collaboration than today’s beer, and while I think there are plenty of amazing breweries in California, these two are among my favorites.

I’m talking about Firestone Walker Brewing in Paso Robles, CA and Russian River Brewing in Santa Rosa, CA… and the beer is ironically enough a lager! Today we sampling STiVO and if you’re not familiar, this beer is a returning Keller Pilsner lager that has not been brewed in three years. This Small Batch beer is actually a “mashup” of Firestone Walker’s Pivo and Russian Rivers STS Pils.

First Brewed in 2016, STiVO went on to win 2018 World Beer Cup Gold and will now be brewed again at the Firestone Walker Propagator R&D Brewhouse in Venice, CA. This 2025 version will will use 50% Dingemans pilsner malt rather than the 100% German Weyerman Pilsner malt, and the hops will now feature German Saphir hops (like Pivo) and French Aramis hops / Aramis Quantum Brite hops (like STS & custom made for Russian River) and the resulting Keller Pilsner will hit a sessionable 5.3%-AbV.

For 2025, STiVO will be packaged in new 16oz cans and of course I can’t wait to enjoy one, so off we go…

Firestone Walker / Russian River STiVO

Brewery Description:

The mashup of two iconic California pilsners, STiVO is an unfiltered and dry hopped Keller style pilsner brewed with our friends at Russian River.

Our highly acclaimed collaborative keller pils brewed with Russian River returns! Stivo was originally conceived in 2016 as a mashup of Pivo Pils with Russian River’s STS Pils and was the 2016 FWIBF welcome beer. We re-brewed Stivo one more time in Paso before moving the collaboration down to Venice in 2022 and putting it in cans for the first time. This latest batch of Stivo continues with the spirit of the original collaboration but adds a few new tweaks to reflect changes in Russian River’s approach to STS in recent years. While former Stivo batches were brewed exclusively with Weyermann Pilsner malt, this batch blends in Dingemans Pilsen malt from Belgium, which Russian River now uses for their lagers. We also played around with the dry hop, adding Abstrax Aramis Quantum Brite hop extract which Russian River had custom made for them by Abstrax. These changes are subtle, and the beer will still be familiar for those who had it in the past, but the collaborative tradition of exchanging ideas continues to push us in new directions.

ABV:  5.3%
Style:  Keller Pilsner Lager
Packaging:  16oz cans
Appearance:  Light Straw
Aroma:   Biscuit, floral and herbal
Mouthfeel:   Light
Taste:   Mild lemon, biscuit & herbal hops.
Overall:  Firestone Walker STiVO brings together two of the more successful Pilsner brewers and breweries on the west coast for one amazing mashup Keller Pilsner. This classic collaboration checks a lot of boxes like “crushable", “drinkable” and “refreshing” but it’s more than just that. The beer is infinitely enjoyable, loaded with classic pilsner flavors and overall I think this is a really good craft beer that just happens to be a pilsner.

Firestone Walker / Russian River STiVO is available now in 16oz cans ONLY at Firestone Walker taprooms, so get out there and try one for yourself before they’re gone. And when you do try one, be sure to let us know what YOU think.  zzubreebym