Favorite Colorado Lagers!

Von Pils is far from traditional, both are great beers in their own right. I think comparing them is a definite stretch. The only other local I would compare it to would be Cold from Trve, and I would give cold the upper hand. To me a pils of any sort is all about the base malts. I don't get the pils malt from CS like I do from Trve, and the hops pop a bit more in Cold as well.
of course the upshot to CS is it is in cans in my fridge.

 

am drinking a tasty Pug Ryan's Dunkel straight from the can...nice beer

 

I really dig their helles(bock).

 

Pug Ryan's flies under the radar, but I like their lagers. For that matter, Dillon and Backcountry used to be pretty good on that front, too.

 

I have always liked the Backcountry Pilsner and I was up there today, tasted a (not yet finished) pale lager made with a Mexican lager yeast out of the fermenter this afternoon that was pretty fucking good. I think when it's done lagering and carbed up it's going to be outstanding. I don't know if they're going to call it "El Nino Mexican Lager" like the previous pale lagers they've made with this yeast, but if I understood correctly they're entering it at GABF as an "American or International Style Pilsner," which makes sense based on what I tasted.

(The DIPA , these days, by the way, is off the hook..)

 

Was down in the Springs earlier this week and stopped by Bristol's brewpub in the Ivywild School. Really cool spot, dare I say a less hipster version of The Source with a bunch of different food options, shops etc. There's also a "Whiskey House" for those inclined, not sure if they distill their own or what the deal is (didn't go in).

Ordered the Bristol Maibock. Not being familiar with the lineup, I gotta admit I was really pleased with my choice. It complimented the food I ordered really nicely and only got better as it warmed. Tasty from the first to the last sip, like any good lager should be!

Favorite Colorado Maibocks?

Aside from this one, I really enjoyed Grimm Maiden's Kiss and the Finkel & Garf Maibock in the past.

 

Backcountry Maibock used to be fantastic. I might still be, but I haven't had it in a few years. I haven't kept up with them, so for all I know all of their beers are back to kicking major ass.
FCB used to have one of the best ones I've ever had. Can't see that returning, though.
Bierstadt's is obviously really, really good.
Comrade's May Day is good, too.
Grimm's Maiden's Kiss is definitely good.
Don't Mock Mai Bock from the B&B is another good one...but with a caveat. It isn't super popular so sometimes that keg hangs around a while. Get a taster first. When it's freshly tapped, it's really good.
Not sure if they're still making the old beers anymore, but Yak & Yeti/Spice Trade's is another good one.

 

Irish Snug has Hofbrau Dunkel on tap right now. Pretty tasty but maybe a little sweeter than I'd prefer.

 

4 Noses Perfect Drift Pilsner is really good and crushable at 4.5%.
Looking forward to Bierstadt's marzen!

 

Docktoberfest is on point again this year.

 

Not CO, but anybody know if we're gonna be getting Jack's Abby on the regular?

 

Jack's Abby seems to show up out of the blue almost like Bell's does. The Bull & Bush has randomly had kegs from them going back a couple years, but the bottle drops seem to be a new thing. I don't really get into the IPL thing, but Smoke & Dagger and House Lager are both really, really good. I've heard good things about their (more old-world) seasonals, too.
Those Framinghammer variants are killer if you dig pastry flavors. I'd take those over most of the stouts people go apeshit over.

 

Jack's Abby is just the first of many GABF drops. They are not licensed to distribute regularly in Colorado, as far as I know. I thought Bell's was, but apparently the 3-ish times they've showed up were all festival/specialty exemptions and they haven't really picked a distributor yet.

 

To me Jack's Abby is one of the more underrated breweries that is well known across most of the U.S. I've never had a bad beer from them and I'm pretty sure if Hoponius Union was available regularly here I'd go through a lot of that every month. The Framinghammers are all good too of the ones I've had.

 

That's no lie about the framminghammers. Better than most the stouts out there, and I dig the 16oz bottle.

 

Living in Salida for the summer I frequently enjoyed Elevation's great seasonal Pilsner.

 

I actually kinda like the beers from Potts. Their normal line-up is a bit boring but they're nearly as consistent as the macros. Big Red in Chicago tastes like it does in Centennial. The ones down this way have 3 rotators that are a bit more exciting. Belgian styles, bocks, new-school IPA's, etc. Haven't had their Oktoberfest in a long time, but it always used to be pretty good. Somewhat related, the one from BJ's isn't bad, either.

 

Got to try The Hunt for Red Oktoberfest from Comrade. Lagered for a full 9 weeks