South Liquor Mart Offers Perfect Beery Gift
- December 19, 2012 -
Looking for that perfect gift for the craft beer lover on your gift list, a host/hostess gift you can grab and take with you to your holiday party? Well, if you are in the Colorado Springs area, you are in luck.
Paul Cutter, owner/operator of South Liquor Mart on South Academy in Colorado Springs has just the ticket.
He has teamed up with The Beer Drinker's Guide To Colorado to offer a screamin' deal: The Beer Drinker's Guide To Colorado map, complete with the coupon book that offers $250 worth of free beer and other great deals at breweries, restaurants, homebrew supply stores around Colorado, our Support Your Local Brewer bumper sticker, all attached to a special mixed winter 6-pack of Colorado craft beer. Look for it in the walk-in Beer Cave cooler at South Liquor Mart, 1705 S. Academy in Colorado Springs.
All Colorado Beer Festival Brings It...Again
- November 07, 2012 -
This last Saturday, Nov. 3rd, marked the 7th annual All Colorado Beer Festival in Colorado Springs. Held for the last few years at the Colorado Springs Expo Center on north Nevada, the event this year showcased nearly 40 breweries.
Two sessions were held, one afternoon and one evening, serving over 2000 attendees. Although a slightly lower attendance than last year, event organizer Randy Dipner said that revenue is up slightly from last year, thanks in part to selling more merchandise, and from people willing to pay $10 more over the general admission price of $30 to enter the VIP section of the fest. Here they could sample some beers not available out on the floor, as well as sign up to be seated for a food and beer pairing, organized by Coaltrain Wine & Spirits and the Buffalo Gals catering company. By all accounts, this was hugely popular, and the food looked fantastic.
Also new this year was a beer competition, with entries by participating breweries. There were 6 categories of beer to be judged, and Ska Brewing took home Best of Show for Modus Hoperandi. Click to see all the results.
And, of course, it's always an added plus to drink beer for a good cause.
the All Colorado Beer Festival is a non-profit that donates all proceeds to:
Theatreworks regional theatre program at UCCS
The Empty Stocking Fund, an annual holiday fundraising campaign that supports 14 Pikes Peak Area health and human service agencies that help people in crisis and assist others in attaining self-sufficiency.
Homefront Cares
The Home Front Cares is a non- profit 501(c) corporation that has helped more than 1,800 families, contributing over $1,330,000 in aid since our founding in 2003. THFC delivers assistance through a close collaboration with the Army Community Service at Fort Carson and the Family Support Centers at the United States Air Force Academy, Peterson Air Force Base, Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, and Schriever Air Force Base. The family support centers identify and verify financial needs.
National Learn To Homebrew Day Nov. 3rd
- November 01, 2012 -
The AHA (American Homebrewers Association) has dubbed Saturday, Nov. 3rd as Learn To Homebrew Day. Whether you are an experienced hombrewer, the occasional dabbler, or have never tried it and would like to, it's a great opportunity to visit a homebrew supply store in your area and get your brew on!
We have put together a short list of homebrew supply stores that are featuring everything from brewing classes to hosting big joint-brews where you can show up and observe homebrewers and join in the fun if you wish!
The Brew Hut in Aurora is hosting a big brew day this Saturday in the parking lot of the store. Anyone is welcome. Homebrewers will be bringing their own equipment and brewing outside. It’s a great chance to observe the process for novices, and even for long-time brewers, it can be good to see how others tweak their systems differently than yours.
The Bald Brewer in Longmont is presenting a free brewing demo at noon conducted by IPAler Greg Lundie. All are welcome to come and participate.
Grimm Brothers Brewhouse in Loveland will also be hosting an event. Two experienced homebrewers will be on hand to show you an extract brew as well as an all-grain brew. The fun starts at 10am.
There will be a homebrewing demonstration at High Country Homebrew in Pine, CO. Chuck Gilbert, owner of High Country Homebrew, plans to start a mash around 9am, and will demonstrate brewing and all-grain batch, probably a brown ale. Stop by and brew some beer with Chuck!
Hop To It homebrew supply in Boulder plans to be brewing at their store.
The Hops & Berries stores in Boulder don’t have a specific demo in mind, but as they point out, “We help people learn to homebrew every day”.
Juice Of The Barley is the new hombrew shop located in the same building as Crabtree Brewing in Greeley. Owner Jeremy Fusco wants to help you learn to homebrew, and will start a demonstration around 10am. Jeff Crabtree will be brewing on his pilot system. They also are encouraging current homebrewers to bring down their equipment and brew up a beer.
Kettles Homebrew Supply in Fruita will be celebrating Learn To Homebrew Day by offering a class from 2pm-3:30pm. It's easy to homebrew, especially with the tools provided by Kettles knowledgable staff member/owner, Brian Gregor, to guide you through the process!
$10 Class Fee
Discounts on equipment & ingredients for class attendees
RSVP, Limited space available, 970-858-4700
Kitchen & Homebrew in Woodland Park won't be holding a class, but they are offering 10% off all fermentation kits on Saturday to celebrate.
Stomp Them Grapes in Denver plans to have something going on to celebrate. Stomp on over to find out.
Wine Or Wort Homebrew Supply in Gypsum will be hosting a brew out in the parking lot. They will drag out extra burners and other equipment people might need, and will let them brew on the store's equipment. Sounds like a great way to brew if you're up in Gypsum!
So there you go folks. With a nice mild weather forecast for Saturday, there are plenty of places around the state that will help you learn to homebrew!
Oktoberfest Craziness
- September 20, 2012 -
It's Oktoberfest time in Colorado! Time to raise that stein or mug in appreciation of all the sudsy goodness we enjoy.
Here is a list of just some of the many celebrations happening around the state in the next few weeks.
Sat., Sept 22nd
Rocky Mountain Oktoberfest in Woodland Park
Bootstrap Brewing
Copper Kettle Brewing
Lonetree Brewing
42nd Annual Denver Oktoberfest
Osktoberfest at Oskar Blues Home Made Liquids and Solids in Longmont
OktoberWest in Steamboat Springs
Oktoberfest and Car Show in Brush
Fortoberfest in Fort Collins
Sept 29
Docktoberfest at Dry Dock Brewing
Grimm Brothers Brewhouse
Lowry Beer Garden
Prost Brewing in Dnever celebrates all weekend
Oct 6
Niwot, Ouray, and La Veta are celebrating Oktoberfest, among others.
Let's just say that there must be an Oktoberfest near you!
President Obama Takes Home Colorado Care Package
- September 13, 2012 -
President Obama was in Golden, CO today for a campaign rally. According to a press release from AC Golden Brewing Company, he was presented with a Colorado care package to take back with him on Air Force One. From the press release:
One of the items in that package? A six-pack of Colorado Native lager, brewed by AC Golden Brewing Company. Along with the six-pack was this note from AC Golden president Glenn Knippenberg:
September 13, 2012
Mr. President
Having Golden, Colorado beer flown to DC on Air Force One is nothing new. Both Democrat and Republican presidents have "imported" Colorado's finest for decades. We couldn't be more proud to carry on the tradition with Colorado Native Lager.
Brewed with 100% Colorado Ingredients; Colorado Native is the only lager ever brewed with Rocky Mountain water, Colorado-grown hops, Colorado grown barley from the San Luis Valley and the oldest strain of brewer’s yeast in Colorado. We support the Colorado barley growers and hop farmers by brewing an Amber Lager that is crisp, clean and unmistakably Colorado.
Colorado Native is sold only in Colorado. So when you need more...just send the jet!
Until then...All the Best!!
Glenn Knippenberg
Smoke in the Water Worries Brewers
- August 30, 2012 -
The normally-clean and pure Cache la Poudre river supplies water for over 150,000 people in Colorado, including the fine folks and breweries in Fort Collins. The river starts high along the Continental Divide, rushes through a piece of Rocky Mountain National Park and drops over 7000 feet as it flows through Ft. Collins on its way to the South Platte River near Greeley.
When 2 wildfires ravaged over 95,000 acres of Larimer County this summer, they produced conditions ripe for runoffs of ash, soil and debris into the Poudre River that at one point "temporarily turned the river black". The City of Ft. Collins shut off its raw water intake from the dirty river, and began drawing all of its supply instead from unaffected water stored in Horsetooth Reservoir and other sources.
Today Horsetooth continues to be drawn down, while the Poudre River supply has improved somewhat. (At one time, the Cache la Poudre was reputed to have the second cleanest water in North America). And as it tests treatment options, the city plans to begin drawing tap water from the Poudre River again by the end of September. Water managers promise that despite any off-taste or smell, the water will be safe to drink.
Bryan Simpson of New Belgium Brewing says in a Channel 9 news story that their own tests showed Poudre River water would destroy the taste of their beer, with a "smokey flavor that would be inherent to that water".
Like all 15 area brewers, New Belgium does not have a "special reserve" of water they can draw from. They pull water straight from the tap, courtesy of the Ft. Collins Water Dept. Using off-taste water would screw up a lot of beer, including the million-gallons-a-day of beer that's brewed at Anheuser-Busch's facility in Ft. Collins. Brewers would have little choice: use water from the Cache La Poudre, or don't brew. Area brewers big and small are planning to meet with city water officials and discuss options: perhaps delaying the tainted river water's use until it runs cleaner, or installing additional filtration.
Ft. Collins has been blessed with clean, pure, reliable water, and it is a great attraction for brewers. It's one reason why Ft. Collins is a such nice place to live, too. But if the water starts to taste funny, brewers may be forced to deal with it, or shut down until the river runs clear again. Rauchbier, anyone?
Foam Fest 2012 At Colorado State Fair
- August 27, 2012 -
Foam Fest 2012 served up the medals at the Colorado State Fair, Saturday evening, Aug. 25. This was the 9th Annual Foam Fest, which is both a competition for homebrewers and commercial Colorado craft brewers, and a beer festival featuring exclusively Colorado craft brewers pouring their suds.
The judging happens before the festival, and this year judges has their work cut out for them with 483 homebrews to judge, and 185 craft beer entries! Suffice to say that palettes were satiated.
The Homebrew competitionresults and Craft beer competition results are here to view.
The beer festival showcased 18 Colorado craft brewers pouring their beer, including many of the new breweries on the scene. The newly opened Echo Brewing Co. came home with a gold and a silver medal. Rockyard Brewing really cleaned up winning four golds, three silvers.
Tommyknocker Brewery won a whopping four gold medals, Strange Brewing did well with a gold and a silver medal, and the always popular Dry Dock Brewing took home 1 gold, 1 silver, and 2 bronze medals. Crabtree Brewing claimed 1 silver and 2 bronze medals, and Pikes Peak Brewing won Best of Show for "The Brits Are Back" in the English Brown Ale category, as well as 2 silver medals.
Congratulations to all the award winners!
Watch news Channel 5 KOAA’s video that features Foam Fest 2012
Beers Made By Walking
- August 13, 2012 -
Beers Made By Walking is a program created by local beer blogger Eric Steen. He organizes hikes around the country which are attended by homebrewers, a naturalist or a botanist, and the general public. The naturalist or botanist will point out edible and medicinal plants along the way. The homebrewers then choose from these plants to incorporate into a homebrew, which is later released to the public at special tapping events.
This year Carol and I (Zenia) are excited to participate as homebrewers. The hike this year was at the Palmer Lake Reservoirs. Our botanist, Liz Klein, pointed out about 40 different edible plants as we started to ponder which of these ingredients would go well into beers. There will be eight homebrews all together. The hombrewers are: Zenia Brink and Carol White, Oren Weil and Bryan Paradisi, Scott Simmons, Scott Werner, Josh Adamski, Mike Bordick, John Landreman, and Lefty McGuckian.
Many of us brewed our beers this past Saturday, August 11th up at Pikes Peak Brewing Company. We each brought our own homebrew set-ups and brewed outside on the patio. Since Carol and I are novices, we enlisted the help of Grant Goodwiler, an very experienced and knowledgeable homebrewer who participated in last year's. It was a fantastic learning opportunity and we are anxious and excited to see how our beer turns out. And you can be on hand to let us know! All eight beers will be tapped at Pikes Peak Brewing Company on Sept. 22. All the beers look like they'll be really fantastic and innovative. Chris Wright, owner and brewer of Pikes Peak will pick one of the eight to re-brew for a larger Colorado Beers Made By Walking event that will take place in Denver during the Great American Beer Festival.
Stayed tuned to our events page and Facebook for more details about locations and timing.
2012 GABF Sells Out in 45 Minutes!
- August 02, 2012 -
Madness.
General admission tickets for the 2012 Great American Beer Festival, officially on sale today at 10am MST, sold-out in less than 45 minutes. A far-cry from the 7 days of ticket availability last year - now seemingly an epoch of time compared to this year.
Judging from comments scattered about the web - The Denver Post, the official GABF site and the corresponding Facebook page - people are not happy. Some had already booked their flight, reserved a hotel room, and packed their bags, fully prepared for another suds extravaganza in Denver, only to find that after refreshing their browser a thousand times in vain at Ticketmaster, obtaining a ticket would be like sitting in the front row at the Super Bowl - nearly impossible without shelling out a pile of cash to Ebay or StubHub.
Rumors abound regarding scalpers and Ticketmaster tomfoolery. In a Denver Post article, Eric Gorski writes:
"This will undoubtedly reignite a debate about whether the festival needs to make significant changes in light of the demand, which organizers have been reluctant to do."
"But even more pressing will be the matter of whether the tickets were snatched up by beer lovers or scalpers. With the event’s popularity soaring, did the professional devise a system for hoarding tickets to this year’s sessions, leaving beer lovers out in the cold? It’s a serious concern."
An update to the article, posted two hours later includes an interview with Barbara Fusco of the Brewers Association - the organization hosting the event. Fusco denies claims that large swaths of tickets were sold to scalpers, instead attributing the Beatles-like rush for tickets to supply-and-demand.
"Demand for tickets outstripped supply, simply put. Like a lot of large events, like the Super Bowl or big-name concerts like Phish shows, simply more people were online all at once than the quantity of tickets available."
Nonetheless, regardless of whether tickets disappeared so quickly by way of beer lust or a scalper free-for-all, some beer lovers won't make it to the GABF this year, and that's a bummer.
For those of you who found ticket acquisition impossible, keep in mind that an entire universe of beer activity surrounds the GABF in Denver. Dinners, gatherings, parties, tastings, tours, and other celebrations can be found virtually everywhere in the Mile High city during the week of the festival. We'll post these occurrences on our events page, so stay tuned!
Hurry - GABF Tickets On Sale NOW!
- July 31, 2012 -
If you're a Brewer's Association or American Homebrewer's Association member,
surf over to the GABF website and get your tickets fast during the Member Pre-sale that started today.
And if you're not a member of the BA or AHA, mark you calendar for 10AM Mountain Time, August 2, when the rest of the tickets go on sale to the general public.
Act fast, because tickets to the three-day event October 10-12 in Denver sell out quickly.
We warned you.
The Beer Community Helps Fire Victims
- July 03, 2012 -
With the tragedy of the many wildfires that have burned throughout our state a grand showing of goodwill and community support has also emerged. Many breweries and restaurants offered free beer and or food to firefighters and first responders. Others offered discounts to those who were evacuated from their homes. The Care and Share Food Bank has collected One Million pounds of food since the beginning of the Waldo Canyon Fire on June 23, 2012. And Colorado Native is donating $10,000 to the Mile High Chapter of the American Red Cross.
Help is still needed. Here are few ways you can help, while still enjoying some craft beer:
-Parry's Pizza in Highlands Ranch (9567 S. University Blvd) has partnered with Springs Rescue Mission to collect donations for those affected by the Waldo Canyon Fire. Check out their Facebook page for lists of items needed.
-Bierwerks Brewery in Woodland Park (121 E. Midland Ave) is collecting unwrapped toys and sporting goods for AMR toy drive for kids who lost items in the fire.
-Odell Brewing Co is hosting a From Ashes to Ales farm to fork dinner to raise funds for those affected by the High Park fire. The dinner will be at the brewery 800 East Lincoln Ave in Fort Collins. Tickets are $60 (100% donation for NoCo Rebuilding Network) They can be purchased at the brewery, at the Jax in Fort Collins, the Wholefoods in Fort Collins, or Fort Collins Nursery.
-Denver Beer Company is having a Fires Destroy, Beers Save the weekend of July 6- July 8 for those affected by the Waldo Canyon Fire. Bring a donation and receive $1 off your beer.
Most needed items-
Personal care items- Shampoo, shavers, shaving cream, deodorant, toothpaste, chapstick, socks (80% or higher cotton or wool for firefighters), baby powder, unused towels and wash cloths
Canned and boxed meals- Mac n' cheese, ravioli, soups, beef stew, cereal
Snack Items- Granola bars, beef jerky, protein bars
All item donations will be delivered to Care and Share, all monetary donations will be delivered to Pikes Peak United Way.
Every little bit helps! We thank you for your support
-You can also sport your support year round by buying a t-shirt from Facebook 100% of the proceeds go to benefit Colorado wildfire victims.
Here are some of the ways breweries are saying thank you to the many people who have been on the front lines of fighting these fires:
Many of the breweries in Fort Collins are hosting a We Love Firefighters night.
-In celebration of your efforts, join us for beer and snacks!
One night at each of your home-town breweries from 7-9 pm
(firefighters, forest service, national guard and their families, please have ids ready)
7pm-9pm
Monday, July 9th: Odell Brewing Company
Tuesday, July 10th: Pateros Creek
Wednesday, July 11th: Funkwerks
Thursday, July 12th: Fort Collins Brewery
Friday, July 13th: New Belgium Brewing
-Odell Brewing Co will give away 200 pints to firefighters at Jack Quinn's Irish Pub once 100% containment has been achieved.
Colorado Native Wins Frontier Airlines Poll
- May 16, 2012 -
Frontier Airlines ran a voting poll from April 4 through May 15 on facebook, asking passengers and fans to vote from among 4 Colorado craft beers for their favorite to be featured onboard each month as part of their rotating tap. The choices were between Dale's Pale Ale, Upslope Pale Ale, Colorado Native, or Crabtree Oatmeal Stout. Voting ended May 15 and the winning Colorado brew will be featured onboard starting June 1. The winner is Frontier Airlines, earning 44% of the votes.
Colorado Native is AC Golden Brewing Company's award-winning amber lager, brewed with 100% Colorado ingredients. The beer won silver at this month's Brewers Association World Beer Cup and also was awarded silver in the 2011 Great American Beer Festival. Both wins were in the American-style Amber Lager category. Congrats to Colorado Native!
GABF Ticket Sales Announced
- May 12, 2012 -
The 2012 Great American Beer Festival, the Big 3-0, will take place on October 11, 12, and 13 in Denver at the Denver Convention Center. If you missed it last year, pay attention to this notice from the Brewer's Association:
The Great American Beer Festival (GABF) Members-Only ticket pre-sale begins on Tuesday, July 31 at 10:00 AM MDT (Noon EDT, 11:00 AM CDT, 9:00 AM PDT). The general public ticket sale opens on Thursday, August 2, also at 10:00 AM MDT (Noon EDT, 11:00 AM CDT, 9:00 AM PDT).
All tickets will be available via Ticketmaster.com.
Stay tuned for details about this year's festival; the GABF website will be updated for 2012 in the coming weeks.
GABF website will be updated
Tickets last year sold out in less than a week, so if you want to go this year you'll need to mark your calendar twice: once to buy your tickets, and a second time to plan your assault on over 2000 beers. We'll see you there!
Colorado Winners at 2012 World Beer Cup
- May 07, 2012 -
This past week craft brewers from across the nation and around the world gathered in San Diego, CA for the 29th annual Craft Brewers Conference. At the close of the conference winners of the 2012 World Beer Cup were announced. The bi-annual competition is in it's ninth year and according to the Brewers Association, who puts on the Craft Brewers Conference, this year "boasted the strongest field of entrants on record, with 799 breweries from 54 countries and 45 U.S. states entering 3,921 beers in 95 beer style categories."
Colorado took home a very respectable 27 medals 13 of which were Gold. It trailed only behind California's 55 in number of medals won per state.
One of Colorado's newer breweries, Telluride Brewing Co., took home Gold in the American-Style Brown Ale category for their Face Down Brown.
Bull & Bush Brewery in Denver was the states biggest winner, taking home 4 medals.
And Rocky Mountain Brewery nearly swept the Fruit Beer Category, winning a Gold medal for Eat a Peach, and a Silver for Da Yoopers, their cherry pie beer which won Gold in 2010 in the same category.
Here are all the Colorado Winners from the 2012 World Beer Cup. Congratulations to everyone!
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Category 3: Fruit Beer, 41 Entries
Gold: Eat A Peach, Rocky Mountain Brewery, Colorado Springs, CO
Silver: Da Yoopers, Rocky Mountain Brewery, Colorado Springs, CO
Category 4: Fruit Wheat Beer, 28 Entries
Silver: Blue Moon Vintage Blonde Ale, Blue Moon Brewing Co., Golden, CO
Category 5: Field Beer or Pumpkin Beer, 19 Entries
Gold: Turnip the Beets, Bull & Bush Brewery, Denver, CO
Category 11: Specialty Honey Beer, 23 Entries
Silver: Menage a Trois Braggot, Crabtree Brewing Co., Greeley, CO
Category 13: Other Strong Beer, 35 Entries
Bronze: Double Pilsner, Odell Brewing Co., Fort Collins, CO
Category 19: American-Style Brett Ale, 28 Entries
Silver: Peche, AC Golden Brewing Co., Golden, CO
Bronze: Wild Wild Brett Rouge, Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project, Fort Collins, CO
Category 24: Aged Beer, 20 Entries
Bronze: Release the Hounds Barley Wine Vintage 1999, Bull & Bush Brewery, Denver, CO
Category 29: Baltic-Style Porter, 28 Entries
Gold: Baltic Gnome Porter, Rock Bottom Denver, Denver, CO
Category 36: German-Style Marzen, 39 Entries
Gold: Florhosen, The SandLot, Denver, CO
Category 38: German-Style Schwarzbier, 40 Entries
Gold: Art of Science Schwarzbier, Dillon DAM Brewery, Dillon, CO
Category 42: American-Style Cream Ale or Lager, 23 Entries
Bronze: Milwaukee's Best, Miller Brewing Co., Golden, CO
Category 43: American-Style Lager or Light Lager, 39 Entries
Gold: Coors Light, Coors Brewing Co., Golden, CO
Category 44: American-Style Premium Lager or Specialty Lager, 37 Entries
Gold: Steel Reserve, Miller Brewing Co., Golden, CO
Bronze: Icehouse, Miller Brewing Co., Golden, CO
Category 45: American-Style Amber Lager, 40 Entries
Silver: Colorado Native, AC Golden Brewing Co., Golden, CO
Category 50: German-Style Sour Ale, 11 Entries
Gold: Berliner Weisse, Steamworks Brewing Co., Durango, CO
Category 68: English-Style India Pale Ale, 48 Entries
Gold: Man Beer, Bull & Bush Brewery, Denver, CO
Category 70: Extra Special Bitter, 49 Entries
Bronze: The Tower E.S.B., Bull & Bush Brewery, Denver, CO
Category 71: Scottish-Style Ale, 26 Entries
Silver: Redhawk Ale, Rockyard Brewing Co., Castle Rock, CO
Category 73: English-Style Brown Ale, 30 Entries
Bronze: Sweet George's Brown, Dillon DAM Brewery, Dillon, CO
Category 76: Sweet Stout, 25 Entries
Gold: Steel Toe Stout, Ska Brewing Co., Durango, CO
Category 78: Scotch Ale, 51 Entries
Gold: Wee Heavy, Dry Dock Brewing Co., Aurora, CO
Category 87: American-Style Strong Pale Ale, 82 Entries
Silver: Odell IPA, Odell Brewing Co., Fort Collins, CO
Category 91: Imperial Red Ale, 38 Entries
Gold: G'Knight Imperial Red Ale, Oskar Blues Brewery, Longmont, CO
Category 92: American-Style Brown Ale, 47 Entries
Gold: Face Down Brown, Telluride Brewing Co., Telluride, CO
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Here's a complete list of all the 2012 winners.
American Craft Beer Week & Colorado Beer Week
- May 03, 2012 -
May 14-20 is American Craft Beer Week, a national celebration created by the Brewer's Association, recognizing American craft brewers, their beer, and the American craft beer culture. Simultaneously, American Craft Beer Week will be happening here in our state, celebrating all things associated with Colorado beer.
The mission of American Craft Beer Week (May 14-20, 2012) is to encourage beer lovers everywhere to celebrate the accomplishments of America's small and independent craft brewers. There is a Declaration of Beer Independence that craft brewers are encouraged to put up and get people to sign as an example of their support of craft beer.
Colorado Beer Week was founded by Scott Kerkman, professional brewer, beer judge, educator, and marketer. Colorado Beer Week is described as "a celebration of ales and lagers in the state that has been called "The Napa Valley of Beer". It is supported by the Colorado Brewers Guild and some Colorado craft breweries, among others. The second CBW now will be held in May 12-19 at restaurants, bars, hotels and other venues throughout Colorado. Click the link for Colorado Beer Week to find all the beer-related festivities near you.
Celebrate National Homebrew Day May 5th
- May 02, 2012 -
In 1988, May 7th was announced before Congress as National Homebrew Day. The American Homebrewers Association (AHA) createdAmerican Homebrewers Association (AHA) as an annual event to celebrate National Homebrew Day around the world. AHA Big Brew is held each year on the first Saturday in May.
According to the American Homebrewer's Association, more than 1 million americans are homebrewers, and many will use this opportunity to get together with their fellow suds enthusiasts and brew up some beer. For 11 years, homebrewers worldwide have celebrated Big Brew. Last year's event saw more than 14,000 gallons of beer brewed at 308 different celebration sites, located in eight different countries. The local celebrations are tied together by shared recipes, chosen specifically for each year's celebration. This year, the AHA has selected 2 recipes to be brewed, both of them brown ales.
According to AHA director Gary Glass, "First and foremost, National Homebrew Day is a celebration, which is why Big Brew was devised to unite homebrewers around a common recipe. In fact, it's traditional for homebrewers worldwide to pause at noon CDT (USA) on Big Brew to participate in a simultaneous toast to homebrewing."
To find an event near you, click on the Big Brew link above. The 25 plus different homebrew shops in Colorado, listed on The Beer Drinker's Guide To Colorado, will also be holding events and will have more information.
Craft Beer Volume Scores Big In 2011
- April 17, 2012 -
The Brewer's Association, the not-for-profit trade group that tabulates production statistics for U.S. breweries, released its annul lists today of the top 50 craft and overall brewing companies in the U.S., based on 2011 beer sales volume. Of the top 50 overall brewing companies, 36 are small* and independent* craft brewing companies.
According to Paul Gatza, director of the Brewer's Association, "In the last 15 years, craft brewing has gone from one percent of the overall beer market to almost six percent in 2011. We attribute a large part of that growth to the many talented brewers who are providing beer lovers with more beer style and flavor choices than ever before."
In the list of the Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies, based on 2011 beer sales volume numbers, Colorado claimed 5 spots.
3) New Belgium Brewing
28) CraftWorks Breweries & Restaurants in both Chattanooga/Louisville
29) Oskar Blues Brewery
30) Odell Brewing Co.
41) Breckenridge Brewery
49) Left Hand Brewing Co.
In the list of Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies, the top 4 spots are held by the mega- brewers, with Colorado grabbing 4 spots:
1) Anheuser-Busch Inc, headquarteres in St. Louis, MO
2) MillerCoors based in Chicago, Il
3) Pabst Brewing Co in Woodbridge Il
4) D. G. Yuengling and Son Inc in Pottsville, PA
8) New Belgium
40) CraftWorks Breweries & Restaurants
41) Oskar Blues Brewery & Tasty Weasel Tap Room
42) Odell Brewing Co.
For more details on this report, Brewer's Association
*The definition of a craft brewer as stated by the Brewers Association: An American craft brewer is small, independent, and traditional. Small: Annual production of beer less than 6 million barrels. Beer production is attributed to a brewer according to the rules of alternating proprietorships. Flavored malt beverages are not considered beer for purposes of this definition. *Independent: Less than 25% of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member who is not themselves a craft brewer.
Fort Collins Breweries To Get A Shuttle
- April 12, 2012 -
A new shuttle service starts Friday, April 12, to shuttle folks between Old Town and Fort Collins breweries on weekends. As reported in the Northern Colorado Business Report, the service, called Hops & Shops, will loop between Coopersmith's Pub & Brewing, Equinox Brewing, Black Bottle Brewery, Pateros Creek Brewing Co. and New Belgium Brewing, Odell Brewing Co., Fort Collins Brewery and Funkwerks. SuperShuttle will offer the service from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
This first weekend of operation, the shuttle is free. After that it will cost $10 for adults, and $5 for children under the age of 15. It will run from Town Pump at the top of hour and half past the hour, but won't be timed with breweries' tour schedules.
Starting May 4, the shuttle will add pickup and drop off at a few hotels.
Breckenridge Brewery Bottling Line Video
- April 11, 2012 -
Breckenridge Brewery's Todd Thiebault is featured in this video on the brewery's canning line. It's a great short piece by News Channel 4 in Denver, talking about the annual Breckenridge Spring Beer Festival up in Breckenridge this weekend. For more info on the beer festival, check out our News Channel 4 in Denver.
Mothership Shifts East 2 Fat New Digs
- April 06, 2012 -
Allow us to decipher that headline.
Colorado brewing legend New Belgium announced yesterday that it is expanding its beer operations by building a new brewery in Asheville, NC. Their second facility - and their first in another state - is planned to be partly online in 2015, and be at full capacity of 400,000 yearly barrels by 2020.
Kim Jordan, president and co-founder of the company, says Asheville is the perfect location for their second brewery. Located in Appalachian foothills, within 50 miles from at least six National Parks, Asheville sports a culture and demographic much like Ft. Collins, where New Belgium has built a comfy and productive home for itself over the past 21 years.
"After several years of searching, we are incredibly excited to have landed in Asheville," said Jordan. "From the deep sense of community to the rich natural environment and the opportunity to revitalize a brownfield site near a vibrant downtown, Asheville has everything we've been looking for in a location for our second brewery."
New Belgium sells beer in 28 states and DC. Like many other brewers, New Belgium has had to pull out of some markets to keep customers adequately supplied. The new Asheville facility, once finished, will increase combined overall output to well over a million barrels every year.
It must be the water...
Asheville, NC is attracting more than its share of beer attention. A magnet for hop heads, the city of 100,000 supports and encourages eight local craft brewers and dozens of beer-centric bars. New Belgium (#3 craft brewer nationwide) is not the first big fish to swim up the French Broad into town, either. California-based Sierra Nevada (#2) announced in January that it is building a second operation near Asheville, with plans to roll out 300,000 barrels annually.
"Today's announcement by New Belgium will enhance the craft brewery cluster that is growing in North Carolina," said a happy Gov. Bev Perdue. "The jobs and investment the company is committing will be a major boon for the region and for the state."
New Belgium may spend as much as $175 million on the new facility, to be located near downtown on the site of the former Western Carolina Livestock Market. That's a huge investment for any company, but NB is not just any company. It has established itself as a model employer, outstanding corporate citizen and charitable local business. Some micro-minded beer snobs may say the move is a grab for profits, and point to the new Shift Pale Lager as a clear sign that New Belgium is hunting for mass-market appeal in lieu of great beers.
However, the home folks in Asheville will be looking forward to kicking back a Fat at the new facility as soon as 2014, which will include tours of the facility and a tasting room. And eventually we'll all be digging more fat wherever the Ranger may roam.
Women's Only Homebrewing Competition
- March 27, 2012 -
Arvada Beer Company will be hosting a women's only homebrewing competition this June. All entries will need to follow BJCP guidelines. There will be five categories:
Category 1 Light Lagers
Category 2 Pilsners
Category 6 Light Hybrids
Category 8 English Pale
Category 9 Scottish Ale: Styles A-D ( No Strong Scottish Ales)
Drop off your entries between June 1st and June 15th. 2 bottles per entry. BJCP judges will judge the beers on June 24th or June 25th and then Kelly, Cary and Dennis will judge best of show finalists. Winner gets to brew a batch of their beer. They will announce the winner on June 30th at Colorado Craft Beer Show's live broadcast at noon. Have to design and brew the recipe yourself ladies.
Call the brewery for more details 303-467-2337
Colorado Craft Beer Radio
Colorado Craft Beer Radio
Win Opening Day Tickets At Coors Field
- March 20, 2012 -
Opening day at Coors Field is only two weeks away. The brewers at Coors Field want to see some great pictures of you and your friends enjoying a Colorado Native Lager anywhere in the beautiful state of Colorado. The brewers will pick their favorites and award a pair of tickets for the game to each of the top 2 submissions! Email your pics to info@acgolden.com or post them on their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ColoradoNativeLager) by Monday, April 2 for your chance to win! Winners will be announced on April 3rd.
All The Brews Thats Fit To Print
- March 05, 2012 -
Rocky Mountain Microbrew Symposium Recap
- February 22, 2012 -
The 17th annual Rocky Mountain Microbrewing Symposium on Feb 17th, 2012, was bigger and better than ever. The symposium was started by Dr. Jim Mattoon, then director of the Center for Biotechnology & Bioinformatics at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. Among other things, the center performs basic research in yeast genetics and fermentation science. Dr. Mattoon sadly passed away in 2010, but the conference continues to inform and bring together brewers from around the state and beyond, for a day of presentations on various aspects of brewing, shoulder rubbing and general beer swilling.
This year attendance was up, and the event was in a larger venue on campus than in previous years. The cool thing about this symposium is that it's all about experienced members of the brewing industry sharing information and discussing methods with each other. It's yet another example of how unique the brewing industry is when it comes to sharing information for the good of all. Here is a brief overview of the highlights:
Yeast Management by Jess Caudill of Wyeast. Jess shared his experiences as a brewer harvesting and managing yeast. His practices went from, as he says "slacker to pro". He talked about different strains of yeast, how to perform cell counts, determine viability, pitching rates, and harvesting.
Multiple Knockout Brewing was the subject of Eric Baumann from Oskar Blues. This comes into play for brewers as they expand their operations, using larger fermentation vessels that take several brews to fill. Knocking out multiple batches into the same fermenter presents its own issues to make sure the beer ferments properly and tastes the way it should.
Quality Assurance In Hopping was presented by Christian Holbrook from New Belgium Brewing. He talked about sourcing hops, what to look for and how drying, kilning, and pelletizing works. You could almost smell the hop resins coming through his slides. It just made me thirsty.
Lunch is always fun at the symposium, because large tables stocked with beer are opened up to the guests. Attending brewers are all encouraged to bring their beers to share, and you often find beer you won't find elsewhere. At this time Mike Bristol of Bristol Brewing Co. was honored with the (virtual) 1st Annual Mattoon Stein, presented by the Petritz Foundation and RMMS. The goal of the award is to recognize members of the brewing community for outstanding performance in community involvement, technical expertise, and all-around excellence in the industry. While we ate we watched the movie Beer Culture, presented by Tom Kolicko, the maker of the film. It's a feature length documentary about the hardworking men and women in the Colorado craft beer industry, and followed a few breweries through some trials and tribulations.
David Edgars from Mountain West Brewery Supply started off the afternoon session with a fun, interactive beer tasting, having all of us compare different glassware, and asking if the right glass enhances the enjoyment of beer. Most of us agreed that proper glassware does make a difference. We were even happier when we realized we got to take our pretty vessels home.
Steve Breezely from Avery Brewing was up next to ask the question, Could you ever afford a centrifuge? A centrifuge is a big very expensive piece of equipment that filters like nothing else, and helps squeeze more beer out of each brew. He used his own math to show how much money could be saved from reclaiming beer that would otherwise go down the drain, as well as getting more flavor out of the dry-hopping process. All this while sipping an Avery Maharaja Imperial IPA. Ahhh..., yes, centrifuges...
Lastly, was a panel discussion about customer loyalty programs for breweries. Hosts were Tony Simmons of Pagosa Brewing, Josh Goldberg from Left Hand Brewing, and Kevin Reed from Rock Bottom Brewing. They all discussed how important customer loyalty is, and the different programs they use, such as Mug Clubs. They stressed the value of knowing your customers, what they want, and that the word-of-mouth they spread is so much more valuable than advertising. The day ended with most people heading to Trinity Brewing for awesome food and beer, and some much anticipated hang time with brewin buds. A good day, to be sure.
Boston Mayor Slams Colorado Beer: Uck You!
- January 13, 2012 -
Boston Mayor Thomas "Mumbles" Menino may be a nice guy for an Easterner and a politician, but he doesn't know squat about beer.
Boston Globe reporter Johanna Kaiser wrote yesterday that Hizzonner Tom and Denver Mayor Michael Hancock were considering possible wagers on Saturday's Broncos-Patriots game.
"He wants me to do the Tebow expression. I do that every Sunday in church," said Menino, referring to Bronco quarterback Tim Tebow's habit of taking to one knee to pray after big plays. Instead, Menino was thinking about offering a sample of local beer.
"We have the best. I mean, you know, Colorado beer? It hasn't even made it east yet. Sam Adams has made it to the west and Harpoon has made it out there, but Colorado Rocky beer? Uck," Menino said.
Uck to you, too.
See what we mean? Jeez, Mayor, that's not just wrong, that's stupid, and has riled up a lot more people than your Healthy Beverage Executive Order aimed at purging Boston city hall of sugar-loaded drinks. Mayor Hancock was quick to set the record straight, Boston Globe reporter Johanna Kaiser wrote yesterday (be sure to check out the lively comments at the end of the story):
"First of all, we are the microbrew capital of the nation. Some of the best beer in the world is brewed here in Colorado," Hancock said. "The moment Sam Adams sells more beer than Coors, then he can come talk to me. Otherwise, he needs to stay in Boston and not talk about our beer."
Now, we wouldn't necessarily turn down a Sam Adams if somebody handed it to us for free, but I'd really like to know where to get this elusive Colorado Rocky beer. Maybe its only available in Massachusetts. Maybe the mayor knows more about beer than we give him credit for...
Naahh. No Ucking Way. The Post story continues, Gov. John Hickenlooper, a former brewery owner, said Menino may be one of the nation's best mayors, but "obviously he hasn't had enough time to learn about Colorado beer." Some of Colorado's brewers were less diplomatic.
Dave Chichura of Oskar Blues, which sells plenty of beer in Boston, talked a little trash of his own. "The (Boston mayor's) statement shows how little they know about beer out on the East Coast, given the fact they haven't really discovered hops yet," said Chichura, the head brewer.
The mayors eventually settled on a non-alcoholic wager. Menino pledged to feed Hancock a lobster dinner and to hang Tebow's #15 jersey around Paul Revere's statue after the New England defeat. Hancock promised Menino a steak dinner, and to wear a Patriots jersey to a public event in case the Broncos don't win over New England.
Update: Well guess who won? Hancock made good on his bet by wearing a Tom Brady jersey during halftime of a Jan. 16 Nuggets-Utah Jazz game in Denver. He also sent along 40 pounds of beef (beer not included) featuring Tebow Tenderloins cuts. That's a big steak dinner.
Oskar Blues Reports 40% Growth In 2011
- January 04, 2012 -
Oskar Blues Brewery has reported amazing growth for 2011, according to a press release sent out today. The brewery, well known for starting the Craft Beer-In-A-Can movement nearly 10 years ago continues to be a leader in the Craft Beer industry in a variety of ways.
In addition to their beery restaurant locations, in 2011 the brewery announced the opening of their sustainable Hops & Heifers Farm, began building their own bikes with REEB Cycles (www.REEBcycles.com), rolled out their own Bonewagon Food Truck and posted a 40% increase in national beer sales in 2011. The brewery grew from 42,000 barrels in 2010 to 59,000 barrels in 2011 - the 17,000 barrel increase represents nearly the equivalent of what the brewery produced in all of 2008.
That's a lot of beer. And its all been great fun, if you ask Dale Katechis, the soul-founder of Oskar Blues who was named a 2011 ColoradoBIZ magazine CEO of the year finalist. "The farm, the bikes, the music are all an extension of what this is all about; doing what you love. It's important to stay hands-on and passionate. We just hope everyone has as much fun with it as we do."
The explosive growth moved the brewery into the top 50 American Breweries list (36th Craft Brewery) according to the Brewers Association in 2010. "We've seen a lot of growth, the crew has done a great job learning how to effectively grow" says head brewer Dave Chichura who has been with the company for nearly seven years.
Oskar Blues is well into a more than $4M dollar improvement project to start the year. The project includes two new trench drains, fourteen 200 bbl. fermenters, two 400 bbl. bright beer tanks and a new can line (KHS Filler, Angelus Seamer) that will allow the brewery to double its canning speed and introduce 16oz cans to its line-up.
Deviant Dale's IPA will be the initial offering in 16 oz. cans in March of 2012. Deviant, a restaurant favorite, won a Silver Medal in the 2011 Great American Beer Festival American-Style IPA category, the most competitive category in the history of the event with 176 entries. The brewery also took home a Silver Medal for Mama's Little Yella PILS in the Bohemian Pilsener category and a Bronze Medal with Old Chub in the Scotch Ale category.
Dan Frosch of The New York Times highlighted some smaller Denver breweries in a Friday piece titled Craft Brewing Finds A Welcoming Atmosphere. Check it out. They feature Strange Brewing, Denver Beer Co., and Wit's End among others. And on the wall at Strange Brewing, a beautiful shot of our map, Craft Brewing Finds A Welcoming Atmosphere. You know they wouldn't print it if it weren't true.
