Hood River, OR – March 3, 2026 – Full Sail Brewing Company, the award-winning Hood River brewery founded in 1987, is marking the 21st anniversary of its beloved Session Lager by rolling out a bold retro-inspired packaging update for the classic and introducing two brand-new lager styles to the lineup this spring.
The flagship Session Classic Lager—a 30-time gold medal-winning American craft lager known for its perfect balance and consistency—returns with its original 2005-era bold, retro design. This nostalgic refresh honors the beer’s legacy as the ultimate “anywhere” session beer while giving it fresh appeal for today’s drinkers.
Joining it are two exciting new additions to the Session family:
Session Japanese Rice Lager (5.0% ABV): Brewed with rice for a lighter body and ultra-clean, dry finish. Hopped primarily with Sorachi Ace for bright lemon zest and delicate herbal spice notes, plus Tettnang for soft noble character. Crisp, refined, and effortlessly refreshing—perfect for precision brewing fans.
Session West Coast Lager: An all-malt, hop-forward take on classic PNW style. Featuring Anchovy and Mosaic hops for vibrant citrus, tropical aromatics (think sharp white grape, guava, lemongrass, and ruby red grapefruit peel), firm clean bitterness, and a snappy finish. It captures West Coast IPA brightness in a light, highly drinkable lager format.
“Session is 21 years strong, and we’re not standing still,” said Pat Tiernan, CEO of Full Sail Brewing Company. “The new lagers show exactly where we’re headed—bold flavor, easy drinking, lower ABV, and built for real-life occasions from the backyard BBQ to the weekend outdoors—all within a new look that honors our history and reminds people why they fell in love with it in the first place. Whether you’re in a lawn chair or on a mountain peak, it’s the perfect beer for the experience.”
“Lager brewing is a technical discipline—fermentation control, raw material selection, and balance are everything,” added Garrett Meier, VP of Operations at Full Sail Brewing Company. “For the Japanese Rice Lager, we used the Japanese hop Sorachi Ace to bring defined lemon zest and fresh herbal character over a lean, rice-driven body and dry finish. The West Coast Lager takes a different approach: all-malt structure layered with loads of Anchovy and Mosaic hops to deliver bright citrus and tropical aromatics, all supported by a balanced bitterness. The right way to mark Session’s 21st anniversary was to lean into what we do best: clean, flavorful, highly drinkable beer.”
The revamped Session Classic Lager, along with the new Japanese Rice Lager and West Coast Lager, will be available starting this spring in draft and 12 oz. cans (6-packs and 15-packs) across the Pacific Northwest and Colorado.
Find them at retailers, bars, and Full Sail’s Hood River Brew Pub—open daily with stunning Gorge views, dine-in, takeout, and outdoor seating.
About Full Sail Brewing
Full Sail Brewing Company, one of the pioneering forces in Oregon’s craft beer scene, was founded in 1987 in Hood River, Oregon, initially operating as Hood River Brewing Company. Co-founders Irene Firmat (who served as CEO for many years) and brewmaster Jamie Emmerson transformed an abandoned fruit cannery into a small brewery with a vision of creating high-quality, Northwest-style ales and lagers that emphasized creativity, consistency, and sustainability. In its early years, production was modest—starting with just around 2,000 barrels of Golden Ale—but the brewery quickly made history by becoming the first commercially successful craft operation in the Pacific Northwest to bottle beer for retail sale. A major milestone came in 1989 with the release of Full Sail Amber, the region’s first amber ale and a gold-medal winner that helped establish the brand’s reputation.
Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Full Sail grew steadily, expanding its portfolio with popular beers like IPA, Pale Ale, and the iconic Session Premium Lager (launched in 2005). In the late 1990s, when some partners sought to sell the company, Firmat and others orchestrated an employee buyout, leading to the creation of an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) that made Full Sail employee-owned—a structure that fostered a strong company culture and earned it repeated recognition as one of Oregon’s best places to work. The brewery became known for its commitment to environmental responsibility, including sustainable practices, local ingredient sourcing, and community involvement, while racking up hundreds of awards, including Beverage World’s “Craft Brewer of the Year.”
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