Casey Brewing and Blending

Let's have beers! Probably check out the other brewery too, Roaring Fork.

 

I just hope we haven't already hit that point where the beer vanishes in 30 minutes and we all wax nostalgic of those first two releases where the saison flowed like wine. Good for Troy, but damn that was fast. Something tells me that will happen in October, when all those low bottle count fruity beers get released.

 

For camping- I think there may be some off of the exits on i70 in glenwood canyon (I want to say No Name).

I do know for sure that there's primitive camping on Prince Creek Road right under Mt. Sopris. This is on GREAT biking terrain, fun singletrack, and only 10 min from Roaring Fork Beer Company. Grab a couple growlers, bike, and sleep under Sopris

If you're coming through Independence Pass there's plenty of camping over there near Elbert's trailhead, Difficult Campground, etc.

I'm betting the next release will be much more packed with GABF tourists around. Still looking forward to next weekend!

 

I keep hearing the term batches, but aren't these "blends"? When most breweries that specialize in farmhouse/wild ales use the term blend, its from the same batch just different amounts from different barrels. In the end you are drinking the exact same saison batch brewed. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

Solid

I don't think that will be the case for this release, but next month, like mentioned, will probably be crazy with all those fruit versions and the GABF crowd around. I showed up to last month's release at like 3pm and it was perfect, not crowded, but still plenty of beer to be enjoyed and much better environment to chat.

In this case it's actually both; there actually have been multiple batches brewed so far and then each release has been a different blend from different barrels. Of note, Blend Three comes from only two different barrels from my understanding.

On a side note, there were still a few bottles of Blend Two at Small Batch in Denver on Friday.

 

Game day. I'm about to get on the road for the ~3.5 hour drive. See you guys there!

 

Great to see a lot of you at the release today! Was such a great time. Beautiful brewery. Loved talking with Troy's mom while we were there. What did everyone think of the latest beers? I thought the blend three was SOLID. One of the best saisons I've had in a while.

 

Sweet cherry was my favorite but all 3 released today were outstanding. Well worth the trip.

 

Glad I got there early that's for sure! Blend 3 was delicious as expected, definitely a close call with blend 2 on my favorite. Sour Cherry has evolved quiet a bit since the preview last month as well. Sweet Cherry was gone before I could try it but k did bring home 3 bottles so later this week I can chime in.

 

I think he could have set the limit at maybe 3 bottles and if more left later great. Glenwood Springs is a bit out of the way for many. We drove 3 1/2 hours , arrived about 15 minutes early. Easily less than 50 in front of us and when we got to the bar 45 minutes later they were out of the Sweet Cherry. I guess if you don't bottle a large batch, maybe a smaller max? Otherwise fun and sure they will learn from each release. A few folding tables to set beers on would have been nice too. Otherwise great hospitality and excited to see what the future brings for the brewery!

 

I think everyone was a bit surprised at this month's turn out, patrons and Troy alike. I did get a bit nervous when I saw a FB post at 10am saying the line had started but managed to arrive about 25 minutes before they opened and got the bottles I wanted (3 of each - Sweet, Sour, and Blend 3). It's pretty much to be expected that anyone driving out there is going to buy bottles, but it didn't look like the majority of people were "limiting out" so to speak. I am sure next month's release will see some changes in limits after yesterday's turn out and the fact that it's GABF week so the crowd is a wild card. At the end of the day, I say congrats to Troy for creating a stellar product that people clearly enjoy!

 

Troy and his staff were indeed completely shocked that everything sold out as quickly as it did. He even sold his personal case he was saving for himself, what a guy!

As for the limit - I know some of the small batch hype high breweries (like Side Project) tend to not to decide upon a bottle limit until moments before the release. They'll go out, take a headcount just before opening the doors and decide what's the most fair limit. The hype is obviously there now for Troy so maybe we'll see something like this in the future. Super humble guy and totally deserves all the praise.

 

I hope he doesn't set limits when he sees how many people are in line. I don't care if it's a smaller limit but driving at least 2.5 hours each way to find out the bottle limit is 1 bottle would piss me off. I'd rather know if the limit is low before I leave so I can decide if it's worth spending the majority of a day to drive out.

 

That is true, quiet a lot of effort for just a bottle or two. The other possibility is getting there an hour early and you walk away with zero bottles. Who knows if that'll ever happen, but it's a possibility. The truth is there isn't a way to make everyone happy. I can guarantee a smaller bottle limit on these smaller batches in the future though.

 

Which is what I expect. 6 bottle limit for each variant when there is only 20 cases of each was a bit off to begin with in my opinion

 

Talking with Troy on the way out, it seems that there will likely be a 3 bottle limit for the October release. This means he can sell a full case with all four variants to make it an easier process. Either way I'll be lined up earlier, probably 9am, in October. For those camping, we stayed at the BLM campground in Gypsum and it was a nice and easy 30 minute drive into Glenwood in the morning.

I was extremely excited to hear about a reserve society though...

 

Posted on Casey's Facebook page:

 

I think it's one of those situations like the WWBV release when they honestly have no idea what the crowd will be like. It usually takes one (usually minor) mishap to figure it out.

 

The members plan cannot come fast enough for me.

It seems obvious that Saturday was the final "day trip" bottle release. No more leaving the Front Range early AM for Glenwood, have a few beers, grab some bottles to go, and be back home by dinner time. Going forward, you must camp/hotel it Friday night and line up at the crack of dawn.

Even if a Casey Reserve Society costs upwards of $400 annually, I will gladly pay it to avoid that.

 

I'm definitely game for the reserve thing. While I love that area, it's a bit of a hassle for my schedule. I'd love to be able to lock some stuff down and pick it every few months.