Denali Brewing Company: Turning Fermentation Data Into Capacity Gains

Real-time fermentation intelligence helped Denali Brewing unlock efficiency, consistency, and confidence—without adding staff

Customer Snapshot

Brewery: Denali Brewing Company (Talkeetna, Alaska)

Production: ~ 20,000 barrels of beer annually, plus spirits, wine, and RTD beverages

Brewery Type: Regional craft brewery with multi-beverage production

Nestled in the Upper Susitna Valley near Denali National Park, Denali Brewing Company has grown from a small, community-driven brewery into one of Alaska’s most recognized beverage producers. Since co-founding the brewery in 2009, Sassan Mossanen and his team have remained focused on quality, creativity, and thoughtful growth—expanding beyond beer into spirits, wine, and ready-to-drink cocktails.

As production scaled, Denali Brewing faced a challenge familiar to many growing craft breweries: how to maintain consistency and throughput without adding complexity or headcount.

The Challenge: Growth Without Visibility

Denali Brewing operates roughly 20 fermentation vessels across multiple beverage types. As volume increased, the brewery relied on a part-time lab technician to manually collect fermentation samples several days per week.

“We were only getting data on about half of our tanks, and usually just once a day,” said Mossanen. “We had no visibility on weekends, and the accuracy and frequency just weren’t enough.”

This lack of real-time fermentation insight created several downstream problems:

• Manual sampling delays slowed decision-making
  

• Fermentation uncertainty forced tanks to stay occupied longer than necessary
  

• Limited off-hours visibility led to conservative production choices

Even a one-day delay compounded across the year had a measurable impact.

“When you add it up, a one- or two-day delay per month meant we were missing a full tank turn each year,” Mossanen explained. “Across 20 tanks, that’s 8–9% of our total capacity sitting idle.”

For a brewery already struggling to keep up with demand, the cost of waiting for data was real.

The Solution: From Tank Guesswork to Tank Intelligence

To regain control of fermentation timing and quality, Denali Brewing implemented the Sennosystem, combining:

• SennosM3 – in-tank, multi-sensor fermentation monitoring hardware
  

• Sennoslink – the operational interface for real-time visibility and alerts
  

• SennosIQ – fermentation intelligence for benchmarking, analytics, and proactive alerts

Each SennosM3 device installs directly into a standard 1.5” tri-clamp port and continuously monitors critical fermentation parameters, including:

• Gravity (density)
  

• pH
  

• Temperature
  

• Pressure

Data streams automatically to Sennoslink, where the brewing team can monitor fermentations from any device—on the cellar floor, in the office, or offsite.

“Fermentation is a science,” said Mossanen. “Understanding what’s happening inside the tank—at all times—is the only way to improve quality and efficiency at the same time.”

How Daily Brewing Changed

With Sennos in place, Denali Brewing fundamentally changed how fermentation data fit into daily operations.

Fewer Manual Checks, More Confidence

Instead of relying on periodic sampling, the team now sees live fermentation curves across every active tank.

We’re getting thousands of accurate data points automatically, Mossanen said. From my desk, I can see exactly where each fermentation is—and I trust the data.

Alerts Replace Guesswork

Using SennosIQ, Denali set intelligent alerts tied to gravity, pH, and temperature behavior. If a fermentation deviates from its expected profile, the team knows immediately.

Knowing Sennos will alert us if something’s trending the wrong way is a huge relief, Mossanen noted. It lets us act early instead of reacting late.

Remote Visibility, Even on Weekends

Sennoslink eliminated blind spots during nights and weekends, allowing the brewery to make timely decisions without unnecessary check-ins.

“We’re no longer holding tanks just because we don’t have information,” said Mossanen.

Results: Measurable Operational Gains

By turning every fermentation vessel into a real-time data source, Denali Brewing unlocked meaningful improvements across production and quality.

Key Outcomes:

• 8–9% increase in effective fermentation capacity by eliminating avoidable tank delays
  

• Up to 70% reduction in manual sampling time, freeing staff for higher-value work
  

• Faster tank turns driven by confidence in fermentation endpoints
  

• Improved batch consistency through continuous monitoring and early deviation detection
  

• Higher production confidence during periods of peak demand
  
  

With labor, energy, and ingredient costs rising, we’ve had to be selective about where we invest, Mossanen said. We chose to invest more in Sennos because the value was clear.

Denali Brewing expanded its deployment over time, adding additional SennosM3 sensors as production needs grew.

“The return on investment was fast,” Mossanen added. “Anything that makes us operationally better and pays for itself quickly is low-hanging fruit.”

Takeaway

For Denali Brewing, Sennos didn’t just replace manual sampling—it reshaped how fermentation decisions are made.

By combining continuous sensing (SennosM3), real-time visibility (Sennoslink), and fermentation intelligence (SennosIQ), the brewery gained the clarity needed to scale production without sacrificing quality or adding staff.

It’s given us complete process visibility and control,” said Mossanen. “And that’s something we’re not willing to give up.

Discover how Sennos helps breweries brew with confidence, consistency, and control.

Schedule a free demo with a real Sennos human.