Come and post whatever beer you’re drinking from our high-altitude region. Brewery discussion is also welcomed. Right now I’m having my first Tahoe Aleworx Tahoe Cold IPA and it’s quite tasty and true to the style. Apparently all Tahoe Aleworx beers are brewed by Alibi Ale Works in Incline Village, NV though the can lists Reno as its birthplace. I’m sure that Alibi brewed it, as the can exploded upon opening, just as every other Alibi beer I’ve tried has. Cheers to 2026 my fellow Mountain BAdvocates! Oops. Started to crush the can before taking the pic
I am definitely going to follow this thread this year! While I currently live out East and have roots here, I also have deep roots out west that quite frankly keeps me wanting to go back to Wyoming! As @Bitterbill posted earlier here in the Mountain region thread, Luminous Brewhouse of Sheridan, WY closed, and I had a very personal connection to that brewery, as a fan and also a volunteer and outside consultant. I have represented them in the 2016 World Beer Cup, and while we did not win, it was just an awesome experience to be there! I personally enjoyed the beer and believe it held its weight against many of the Wyoming breweries and even those from Colorado. I always love the beers from the mountain range and there is so many breweries to love so I appreciate this thread, @LeinenkugelDrinker !
My niece now lives in Cheyenne, WY. I have dear friends who live in Billings, and have a cabin in the Great Falls, MT area. I love the mountains. I love Cold Smoke, and will be getting a lot more if I can pull off a trip out there later this year. This is the 2nd to the last in my fridge from 2025.
...from a bit earlier today for the BA Baltic Porter Tasting: River North Brewery -- adrift on the baltic Baltic porter ABV: 9.9%; pouring temperature: 49.8 °F; bottling info: Vintage 2025 Source: local purchase ...this is a beautiful Baltic porter in looks, smell, taste and feel...my May 04th, 2025 review...this makes the 3rd or 4th bottle of this I've had since May 2025...
I used to have an Old Chicago about a mile from where I live. It closed in January of 2020. I miss it a lot. I did get my stein back after it closed. The last OC I stopped at was in Billings in 2023. I should have stopped at the one in Great Falls last year, but, because of road construction slowing me down, I didn't. I plan on going to MT this year sometime. Will I stop at an OC? I won't know till then. I also have to deal with the higher altitude. It does hit me hard a day in.
Yeah, unfortunately, a lot of Old Chicagos closed around that time period. Their food menus sure have changed. Want a steak? Yep.
The Old Chicago chain was sold a few years ago and the different locations are a bit of a crapshoot now. I believe each one gets to pick and choose what they want to serve. For food and beer. My local one's food menu is mostly the same, but dialed back to the most popular core items. The quality is a bit lacking, too. That's after their food had made a bit of a rebound pre-COVID. Someone told me that the locations up north had revamped their menus and were better. The beers are almost entirely large/regional now. New Belgium, Avery, Sam Adams, Bells, Wilding, etc. There are definitely still plenty of good options, but it's not like when you'd pop in and see exclusives or taps from smaller places. I'll never forget when Boulder's Shake was an OC exclusive as "Black Diamond."
Old Chicago was sold (again) this past July. Yeah, definitely not what they once were. I still go, though not nearly as often. Food menu not even close to what they once were and except for rotator taps, beer selection is pretty average. When Uncle Sugar brought me to CO Springs May of '92, it was OC and a roommate who'd been stationed in England that got me hooked on "micro beer". (c:
I'd actually say they're trying to get back to what made them great. Gold foils are back, the recent new beer additions have been good, they stuff they made for Prost was solid, and even the high octane beers are tasting closer to what they used to be like. It isn't like 2014 or anything, but they're trying.
This is the last of the Cold Smoke beers I bought while out in Montana last year. Thanks to @MonDak_Joe1953 I got 4 more today. I am hoping to make it out there again later this year. I do share my beers, and will make sure @Alefflicted gets another of this great beer. I will be back there.
Just finished my first ever FIRELIT Haze by Great Basin on this snowy Thursday. Canned on 11/24/25 it's my first Great Basin brew since they stopped bottling a year or two back. Have to say, I'm not really impressed at all. Solidly on the sweet side. Not cloying but also not balanced. These guys shouldn't have jumped on the haze train. Stick with Ichthyosaur if you want a solid IPA.
Just finished my first ever “elusive Rainbow Tree ‘shroom” by Revision. These haze bro bandwagoners have upped their own murky game once more. Poured at 53 degrees, this beer tastes like a bowl of Fruit Loops, of course Revision would assuredly take that as a compliment. Great powerful hop aroma but unfortunately that totally disappears when on the tongue. Cheers
Drinking my first Revision Brewing “The Bird” supposed WC-IPA. To me, it tastes like a clean, bitter citrus forward old-school IPA with a good malt finish. APA? Absolutely. “Midwest”? sure. West Coast? Not in my opinion. Still, one Revision’s best IPAs. Cheers!
It’s too nice of a day to have only one beer. Revision’s Emerald Bay IPA is a decent brew, but not tasting any better than it did when I first tried and reviewed it last year. I prefer “The Bird”.
I’m drinking my first It’s Always a Good Friday When You’re Golfing by “Electric Eye”. I bought this beer because I had never heard of Electric Eye before, but as it turns out, that’s just a brand name that Revision uses. Why not just use your own name? I don’t get it? The label makes no mention of Revision and implies that it was brewed in Carson City. The deception is irritating, but this “hoppy pale ale” is tasting pretty good. Nice balance between bitter hops and sweeter grapefruit. I added it to the database as an APA. Cheers!
