Favorite CO Tap Room

Hops and Pie followed by Avery

 

While his beers aren't the best in town (they ARE good, though), Scott at Wit's End will make anyone feel welcome. It's hard to have a bad time there.
Both Kristens at Copper Kettle, Steve at Hogshead, and Danny/Betty at Caution do the same. Dry Dock is always a festive sort of place.
Depending on what you think of the heavier varieties of metal, TRVE could be a love/hate kind of place.
Those are the ones that stand out to me.

 

As some who enjoys some good metal, I definitely am a big fan of TRVE. Been there a couple times and got to listen to some High on Fire and Graveyard in the playing album's entirety, which was more than I could ever ask for or expect. That said, if I didn't like metal the only thing I would probably recommend about the place is the beer.

Denver Beer Company was an awesome taproom. I really dug most the beers I tried, though respect that I probably got somewhat lucky with my tries (based on this site's feedback on the place).

I am no hippy, but I do really enjoy Equinox's taproom. One of the more laid back and relaxed spots around Fort Collins, IMO.

 

avery. it's now a well oiled machine that still has a ton of personality.

i say this as just someone who frequently visits and still needs to visit a lot more places out there...still haven't really had a bad experience at any of the 20 or so i've visited

 

Not sure if hippy is the most accurate description for the place. It has some hippie or bohemian aspect to it (as would be expected from a place that names beer after the Grateful Dead), but using that term as the umbrella adjective for the place was probably a bit off. My bad.

 

I am NOT a metal guy but the greatest rest room sign ever is in the TRVE men's room: "Employees must carve 'SLAYER' into forearm before returning to work"

My favorite tap room is Renegade for vibe and staff, Wit's End for the beer and brewer as Domingo mentions, Denver Beer Company for the scenery (human female) and Prost for the scenery (view of downtown Denver), and finally Crooked Stave for the Crooked Stave. Oh and Great Divide for the best big brewery expression of all these things, within walking distance of my house and my office. For "best big brewery tap room I have to drive to," has to be Avery.

 

Really enjoy Oskar Blues Tasty Weasel Tap Room because of the vibe, the Oskar Blues in Lyons because of the video games and food. Equinox, Great Divide and Prost all have fun tap rooms.

 

I agree with above, Wit's End is great for feeling welcome. Went this past Friday and had an excellent experience. I thought the beers were great and Pat made us feel right at home. Scott came out of the back and spoke with everyone at the bar, sticking around longer than he probably wanted to, answering questions.

For some West side love, Mountain Toad has very good beers and the outdoor set-up is excellent. The food trucks pull right into the beer garden, so it feels as if they are very much a part of the scene.

Lastly, I like Colorado Plus strictly on their beer offerings. They have 3-4 of their own beers (Dead Series) and another 50+ Colorado only beers on tap.

 

Equinox always feels like a coffee shop to me. Very low key and relaxing, but I have friends that call it boring. There's an unusual vibe, but when I think of hippy breweries it's hard not to think of the Mountain Sun spots. Still, even as bohemian as those places are - they have one of the most diverse crowds I've ever seen.

 

Totally agree with the coffee shop vibe....think I even made that same exact remark in my review for the spot on this site.

 

There certainly is a lot of hipster in it.

I don't know, I'm not really in that subset of people, is there a difference between hipster and hippy?

 

Pagosa Brewing, OMF and Prost

 

Being on the south side I gotta pull for Trinity and Pikes Peak Brewing. I don't get out to either much, but have had great experiences at both.

 

High Hops. I don't know why, but it seems like every time I go there, I stay for like 6 hours. It's just relaxing.

 

Great Divide, Denver Beer Co., Dry Dock, Avery you can always count on a vibrant atmosphere and great tasting rooms in general, although Great Divide & Avery can be loud.

Vine Street / Mountain Sun for best brewpub atmosphere, although I really dig the new Renegade Publik House too.

Tap room (if it doesn't have to be a brewery) would definitely be Hops & Pie

Renegade and Black Shirt for best look/feel of tap room. I feel like Wit's End, Strange, River North, Crooked Stave just skimped on the whole tasting room experience feel. Prost is pretty well themed, needs a little tighter integration like a real biergarden, not just picnic tables spread out. Granted, Crooked Stave is getting a new one at The Source (under construction now) so understandably they didn't invest in a nicer one at the barrel room / warehouse. TRVE is well done atmosphere speaking, but not a fan of heavy metal either and is kind of a detractor.

We'll see, as an architect this is one aspect I'd like to see done much better in breweries, particularly Denver where we have a high occupation in our tap rooms.

 

Hard to beat Golden City's beer garden, even though it's some dude's backyard...probably what makes it cozy. Cannonball Creek has patio furniture now! So there's that.
Backcountry (more of a restaurant I s'pose) has some nice deck views. Prost is open, welcoming, great view with a new window. Denver Beer Co. is great in Spring and Autumn...no AC can leave that place hot. Odells is always nice....
....I guess I visit Prost, C.Stave and Denver BeerCo the most b/c of proximity.

 

Yeah, should only get better with their current expansion.

Odell's is probably my favorite taproom to visit, especially when the weather allows me to sit outside. Also, a big fan of Funkwerks when I can sit outside and drink. I should have mentioned both Odell and Funkwerks initially but got caught on the"missing gem" component of the initial post, and overlooked that AlexIPA asked for our favorite taprooms in general.

Grimm Brothers has been a regular taproom stop for me this summer too.

 

Gotta agree with Wit's End. Scott is just the nicest guy, always welcoming, just a cool dude. Doesn't hurt that this is probably the closest brewery to my house (until Caution: opens their new spot).

I also really like taking out-of-towners to The Rackhouse - always seems to impress with the atmosphere. They always have a decent line-up on draught and the food is pretty damn good.

A new-ish place that I haven't really seen anyone mention yet in this forum is Teller's out in Applewood. Very decent line-up on draught and good food as well, very comparable to The Rackhouse in look, feel, and menu.

Another cool place is Bootstrap if you can make it to Niwot. Really great beer, a very neighborly atmosphere, and Steve is super nice and accomodating.

Unique Tap Room Awards go to: Oskar Blues in Lyons and Yak & Yeti in Arvada.