According to the Brewers Association, self-distribution in some shape or form is allowed in 37 states and the District of Columbia. This is how growth begins for many craft brewers.
At Bierstadt Lagerhaus in Denver, Ashleigh Carter turns out the traditional German lagers she loves drinking on an Old World copper brewhouse, and asks beer drinkers to come along for the ride.
Tiffany Fixter opened Brewability Lab in Denver with head brewer Tanner Schneller to create job opportunities for adults with developmental disabilities, including autism.
Several new hotels now contain or will soon have on-site breweries, like The Source Hotel in Denver, where guests will be able to get a beer poured right at the reception desk when they check in.
Taking cues from the pub and taproom model used by smaller breweries, big players in the beer industry, from 10 Barrel to Blue Moon and Lagunitas, attempt to cash in on the convenience and sense of community of urban outposts.
For non-profit 1400 Miles’ “Big Ride,” a dozen cyclists completed a 15-day, 1,400-mile journey from Cedar Park, Texas, to Denver to raise awareness about prostate health using beer and bikes as conversation starters.
Proud of their origins, Italian brewers represent themselves with passion. While some entrepreneurs are hoping to recreate a piece of their native homeland, others are choosing to mixing it up.
In the past, including any alcohol options was enough to set a fast casual restaurant apart from competitors; now many chains are looking to customize their regional selections by offering local beers.
First Draft, a 40-tap bar in Denver, opened its doors without a single bartender. Instead, patrons pour their own drinks with iPourIt, a self-service system for serving beer (or any line-dispensed beverage) by the ounce.
Across the country, craft breweries have coffee specialists going far beyond mere coffee-beer collaborations. Taking notes from beer, coffee shops hope to increase conversation and connectivity between the parallel crafts, opening both to new customers and ideas.
Before he built a brewery in Denver, Brian Dunn built a farm in Algeria. In June, Great Divide Brewing Company celebrated 20 years of Yetis, fresh hops and apparently, squirrel traps.
The 31st annual Craft Brewers Conference brought together professionals from all parts of the industry for a packed schedule of seminars, a trade show and awards. Here are a few standout moments from the event in Denver.
The Great American Beer Festival and its sponsor, the Brewers Association, seem to have lost their way. While other long-running festivals, including the Great Taste of the Midwest and the Oregon Brewers Festival, remain true to their roots, the GABF seems unable to decide what it wants to be.
Sky Weekes was a wine geek with a culinary degree when he decided to launch his barrel-broker business out of a U-Haul garage three years ago. Today, he’s worked with nearly every brewery in Colorado.
The Great American Beer Festival (GABF) is one of the largest events of its kind, and this year’s was the biggest yet: 49,000 tickets sold, and 580 breweries pouring 2,700 beers in the massive Denver Convention Center.
While the general concept is similar to Randall the Enamel Animal, created by Dogfish Head, Peterson says the Hop Inciter 3000 is a completely different, well, animal.
It’s October 1st, and the cavernous Colorado Convention Center is packed with throngs of grinning Great American Beer Festival attendees. But beyond the buzzed masses the dull roar of the public fades into hushed utterances. It’s about 10 minutes before the GABF’s 30th annual awards ceremony begins.
The first competition, back in 1987, had 12 categories; this year, there are 83, and if you count subcategories, which don’t get awards but help further define style parameters, 135.
At least twice a month, Wynkoop Brewing loads kegs and cans of their small-batch, award-winning beer onto a wooden wagon, hitches up two Clydesdales and delivers beer to thirsty downtown denizens.
The reluctant or inexperienced traveler may need an excuse to enable them to overcome fear of the unfamiliar. As craft beer lovers, the lure of a famous beer festival might do it. Better yet, why not consider an obscure one?
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