Great American Beer Fest (2014 Quick Guide)

Excellent list. I had all the names but only about half of your list were in my targets so you saved me a lot of crap to sift through. Do you know anything about liquid mechanics? A customer here said a buddy of his runs it.

 

Heard not so good of things from a few legit sources, but haven't been myself.

 

Denver: Great Divide, River North, Comrade, Station 26, Renegade, Bull & Bush, Dry Dock, TRVE, Hogshead, Crooked Stave

Outside of Denver: Avery, Upslope, Oskar Blues, Odell, Funkwerks, City Star, Verboten, Left Hand, Equinox, Grimm

But really depends on what you like, so many choices. Also might add Rickoli, Prost, Diebolt, Horse & Dragon, Strange, Wit's End, Cannonball, Mountain Sun, Bootstrap, Yak & Yeti, Rickoli, Epic, Odd 13 and Echo to the list!!!! What a great place we live in!

 

I've been - cool spot, cool crew working it - mediocre-at-best brews unfortunately (was my take....)

 

If I had one day to spend at Boulder breweries I'd hit up:
Avery first (miss the crowds), walk over to Upslope (flatirons park location), grab lunch at Fate ($$) or Twisted Pine ($) or Southern Sun ($) (all excellent), Wild Woods, Bru (right by WW), Sanitas (for the people and the games), then grab dinner at Backcountry Pizza. Afterwards head to Pearl Street for night shenanigans- don't miss the Bohemian Biergarten.

 

I posted a thread earlier today about transportation and I was thrilled to find That www.supershuttle.com has a 5% discount and it was $40 roundtrip to and from the airport, from what I hear that isn't bad. I am staying a bit north of downtown but the hotel offers a shuttle within like a 10mile radius

 

SkyRide which is public transportation is $11 each way from DIA to downtown. Did this last year and it is the way to go.

 

THIS is quality info and much appreciated. You guys have so many great spots to hit out there I'm having a hard time prioritizing.. Anyone have a "must-hit" list for Denver or Fort Collins?

 

For Denver, Crooked Stave and River North are my can't miss. I'm sure there are others though that I missed or that opened since last year.

 

Ft. Collins/Loveland
Odell, Funkwerks, Horse & Dragon, Equinox, Verboten, Grimm Brothers, Choice City, Tap & Handle, Black Bottle, New Belgium, Mayor of Old Town........

 

Also at the festival, do not forget to hit up the Pro-Am competition booth. They pour all of the Pro-Am beers at this booth, which is a lot of beers. Usually not a line for any of them, you can just go down the line and try them. Definitely some unique and interesting beers there.

 

hi! im arriving in denver at 10am on thursday, anyone interested in sharing a taxi with me to a hotel reallllly close to the convention center? all of my coworkers are arriving the day before so im going traveling alone and wouldn't mind splitting transportation

 

Ridesharing is a great idea. My friends and I are getting in Wednesday otherwise you could have definitely hitched a ride with us. There's a gabf code for $25 off your first uber if you've never used it before(not many people left who haven't) or I think the skyride from the airport is $11 and brings you relatively downtown. But that's pretty much just a public bus. Interested in doing any trades while in town? We're bringing some local bottles but could easily up our checked back to a 12 from a 6 shipper. Staying just a few blocks from the convention center.

 

I will second what I said in an earlier thread about Falling Rock (although I'm sure it will be busier later in the week)... It was not busy at all tonight for the GABF kickoff... and they had PNC, Whiskey Barrel Nitro Ten Fidy, Consecration, and many other things on tap tonight... it was a great time at the best beer bar in the city...

 

Just another quick tip for festival attending:
If you can, get in early-ish on Thursday or Friday. Some people are still at work so the crowd isn't as bad. Once you get in, head to the more popular breweries first to avoid the huge lines. Seems obvious but some people never figure it out. Once the lines get ridiculous, find some hidden gems.

As far as favorite breakfast spot, I won't say the name (because I don't want to wait behind you in line), but on 15th and Curtis, they serve up some pretty damn good food for a base before a beerfest, great bloodies too. They are also open all day and late night. Snooze is OK too, but smaller/fancier servings and the hipster vibe just aren't my thing before a fest.

Also, since I used to live in Denver, and have been to the beerfest many times, and I'm there all week, I like to take at least one trip to somewhere where I am highly unlikely to run into any beer-geeks. It's like finding a little oasis in the middle of a city gone wild with people geeking out on beer. One time we bellied up to the bar at Bubba Gumps and drank beam and coke with our buckets of fried sea bugs. I know it won't get much love on this site, but this technique is a great way to avoid beerfest burnout when you are there for the duration.

Lastly, taking a cab to Shotgun Willie's is worth it over La Boheme and Diamond Cabaret if you are into that sort of thing... or so I've heard.

 

I'd take a shuttle if you don't find someone to split the fare with. Half the price.

 

This is a wonderful compilation. Bookmarked and will be eye-spammed for the duration of my stay. Rather excited I get in a day early and can attend that Crooked Staves release on Wed.

Now I just need to figure out the best possible way to mule me back some bottles to CA. The better half and I can only carry so much.

 

Nah, do yourself a favor and grab a cab to Saturday's on eeeeeeeast Colfax in Aurora. You'll thank me later!