I'm moving from East Denver to Edgewater, and I was curious if there are any hidden gem bars or breweries for Belgian beers, specifically non-sour types (Trappist, biere de garde, sasions, etc). Really going to miss being a short walk from Bruz (super under-appreciated). I did see Barquentine is going to be close to us. I've kind of avoided them just because the European food hall/markets aren't really my jam but would love to hear if they're worth a visit. If only we could bring back Cheeky Monk, Thirsty Monk & Goed Zuur (mostly sours I know). Thanks in advance!
The original Bruz Beers over at I-76 and Pecos isn't too far from Edgewater. Other than that I can't really think of any in the area (I'm in Wheat Ridge) that focus on Belgian Beers. Good news is your going to be really close to Hogshead and Seedstock.
Hogshead and Seedstock will certainly be on the list of go-tos not to mention CtA. Also stumbling distance from Joyride. I'll certainly be more than spoiled from a beer perspective German, English, and American styles are all ticked. If I have to drive up to the OG Bruz for my Belgian fix still first-world problems, but I try to bike/walk more often than not to my beer spots. Might have to just fire up the homebrew for my stumbling Belgians.
I definitely miss the days when Belgian imports and local Belgian-style beers were more common. Bruz has pretty much taken that mantle upon themselves. Other places (Baere, Reverence, TRVE, etc.) make 'em occasionally, but they aren't necessarily the core concept. Even New Belgium has shifted gears. Thinking about the last dozen or so Belgian beers I've had, they were either at Walter's 303 (great pizza + beer) or purchased from the store. Monkless up in Oregon make some damn good Abbey-style beers and they're pretty cheap, too.
Interesting, thanks, @Domingo ! I will have to check out Monkless. I'm surprised I missed them when I lived in Oregon. Also, just to report back. Barquentine might not supplant Bruz anytime soon as my favorite Belgian-style brewery in Denver, but they are well worth a visit. Solid saison and pulled off a nice golden strong that wasn't too boozy. I'll certainly be back.
I believe we've talked about it but Outer Range has great Belgians as well for local. Their saisons are amazing and a tier above the ones I've had from TRVE and Bruz.
They definitely do have good ones...but they also never seem to want to package them. My wife was recently joking about that. She always looks through the OR section at the store and it's pretty much 10 hazy IPA's and 2 lagers every time. When it's a saison or (God forbid) an abbey-style beer, look out! Thing is, we haven't seen either in a hot minute. Probably 8-9 months. With TRVE I always look through the cans since I never quite know what might be out. With Outer Range, we're getting to the point where I'll probably stop even looking. With Bruz, that's kinda all they do, so when I see those cans I feel some level of comfort. They're kinda pricey though. They're really good, but I feel like Monkless is comparable and their cans are like 40% cheaper. In some cases, I can even just buy actual Belgian imports cheaper.
I'll have to give OR Saisons another shot. I remember having a couple of good ones at the brewery when they first opened, but then having some that had the weirdest phenolic/mercaptin off flavors later. I assumed it was because they'd shifted their focus to hazies, so maybe they've dialed them back in. On a side-note, I miss the days of Funkwerks being everywhere. Their Nelson Saison was such a good beer.
A couple years back they were packaging a new saison weekly it seemed, and you're right, I haven't seen one in about a year. I had one at the source this summer and it was fantastic.
"On a side-note, I miss the days of Funkwerks being everywhere. Their Nelson Saison was such a good beer." Yeah what's up with that? I don't see them around as much as I used to down here in Denver. The OG saison was a favorite of mine...
Must just not sell as well anymore? Super under appreciated, if so. I’m always happy to find anything Funkwerks when I’m out to eat and the tap list is small/geared towards macros.
I actually bought a 6-pack of Funkwerks saison in cans the other day. I had a pour of Tropic King at Walter's 303 and that made me want more. Their 6-packs are nondescript and they look more like a seltzer or cider than a beer. I bet I've walked past them dozens of times without even noticing. Hell, they might even get miscategorized if the stores aren't paying attention. On the positive side, their beers are as good as ever and they haven't really changed much. I have fond memories of doing the Ft. Collins beer crawl in the summer and that saison (or white) tasting like the best thing ever after walking all the way out there on a 100 degree day.
