New Breweries and Beers Now Available in the Valley

The competition for shelf space in the beer cooler has gotten considerably tighter over the past few months. While we all know that Colorado is a hot bed for craft breweries, it seems like most of the action is on the front range. The mountain communities have been a little bit like the red haired step-child of the state. We see the major brands, but often times their special releases and offerings from the smaller up and coming breweries do not make it up here. But things are beginning to change. Many of the larger breweries are hiring sales reps specifically for the mountain region, and we have seen an increase in the number of smaller breweries who are venturing west of the foothills with their distribution.
The award winning Dry Dock Brewery from Aurora began distributing up here a few months ago with a solid lineup of both 6 pack cans and bombers. Their Hefeweizen, IPA and Amber are all quality beers, but their Apricot Blonde has been the most popular flavor, and is poised to take off as one of our top warm weather sippers. Also check out their Vanilla Porter, Double IPA and new Tripel, currently in our bomber section.
Paradox Brewing Project out of Woodland Park, Colorado has begun distributing here in the mountains. Instead of mass producing packs of beer, Paradox focuses on one or two beers a month that come out in 750ml bottles with flip tops (great for re-use in home brewing!) The styles they brew run the gamut, but the common thread throughout is that their beers are barrel aged, mostly in wine barrels. So no matter what the style, you can be sure their will be some kind of wild twist to it. Each month brings a new offering!
Grimm Brothers Brewing, out of Loveland is also new to our area. Using the motto "fabled fermentation" the brewery focuses on styles from the area in Europe where the tales of the Grimm Brothers originated, mainly Germany. They offer a nice change of pace to the ubiquitous Ambers, IPAs and fruity summer wheat beers. Expect instead to find a traditional Alt Style, Dunkel, Gratzer and Hefeweizen, all with a nod toward good old American innovation. The beers come in 22oz bombers.
Hall Brewing Company, out of Parker, Colorado is also just beginning to expand distribution to our area. Based out of hand built farmhouse built with beetle killed pine, Hall is proud to offer hand built beers that are big and bold in a country farmhouse sort of way. Brewmaster Aubrey Hall takes traditional styles such as Pilsner, Saison, Stout and IPA, and lovingly hand crafts them with meticulous detail. These beers also come in 22oz bombers.
Trinity Brewing, out of Colorado Springs, is also rather new to our valley. The folks at Trinity fall into the "artisanal brewing" category. They generally don't brew straight up traditional styles. Instead, they offer a wide variety of beers that are 'tweaked' in one way or another, either through barrel aging, blending non-traditional ingredients or adding wild yeasts. They are also very environmentally conscious about the way they go about their business. Look for them in our bomber doors in 750ml bottles.
Tivoli Brewing. The Tivoli Brewery originally opened in Denver as Sigi's Brewery in 1864, and when John Good purchased the brewery and changed the name to Tivoli in 1900. It was able to stay open throughout prohibition by producing a very low alcohol "cereal" beer. By the 1950's it was one of the largest breweries in the country, distributing everywhere west of the Mississippi. John Good's descendents continued to operate the brewery until 1965, and the brewery was forced to close in 1969 when the new owners were set back by flooding. When it closed it was the 2nd oldest continually operating brewery in the U.S. (Yuengling was and is still the oldest.) The original brewery building is a historical landmark, and part of the Auraria campus. Some enterprising new brewers are now recreating the original recipe, and the beer will be available soon in the mountains.
Prost Brewing. Perhaps the most unusual of the new breweries to open recently in Denver, Prost Brewing is recreating traditional German beers. They brewery itself is an 80 barrel all copper system that was built in 1963. It was first used by Bucher Brau in Grafenau, Germany, and later by Brauerei Hummer in Breitenggussbach, Germany until 2011. The equipment, including the original German control panel with cool old knobs and buttons, was transported to Denver, and the Prost Brewery was born. Coming soon, look for traditional German beer, brewed with authentic German equipment!
Finally, while the Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project is not brand new, nor do they distribute in the mountains, we are fortunate to be able to offer some of their beers here at the shop. Thanks to our associate Dean, we have brought in a couple of their flavors, and hope to be able to continue to do so as the commuting allows. Known for their amazing wild and sour beers, Crooked Stave is truly on the cutting edge. Look for the Hop Savant and Vieille Saison in our bomber doors in 375ml bottles.

Chip Bartsch
Beer Buyer