Favorite Colorado Lagers!

Neat!

 

Does DD have a crowler machine these days?

 

Hmmmm. I think so, but that might only be North Dock? I'm close enough where I've never thought about it. They definitely do normal growlers.
@biking4beer ?

 

Both Comrade and Dry Dock can be "on my way home" if I need. I can hit Comrade tonight and DD tomorrow if i can remember to bring my growler.

 

Yes, both crowlers and growlers at South Dock.

 

So, I really want to learn more about traditional lagers and was wondering what beers I should pick up that are easily available in the Denver area from Germany or anywhere else that sets the standard for these styles. Weinstephaner Original is probably the only German beer that I buy regularly. What do you guys recommend as the best of the best available around here?

 

Andechs bottles make it here semi-regularly. They're the best of the best when they're in good shape. Even when it's a year-old their doppeblock is still fantastic.
Ayinger is up there, too. Their weissbier isn't all that great (in my opinion), but the rest of the line-up is strong. Their dunkel is one of the best around.
Anything from Weihenstephaner is good. Their hell is probably their weakest offering and it's still really good.
From up in Bamberg, Mahr's beers are all top notch. Their flagship ungespundetes (just called "U"), hell, and pils are all worth hunting down. They tend to sell pretty well and are somewhat limited, so they're typically pretty fresh.
While not for everyone, Schlenkerla's rauchbiers are A+ stuff. Supposedly if you don't care for it, don't write 'em off until you've had 3.
Those newer Schonramer bottles that just showed up are really good. The pils especially. The dunkels were a little old tasting IMO.
For common stuff, there's nothing wrong with Paulaner and H-P. They're freshness dated, too. I heard Hofbrau is using brown bottles now. If that's the case, their beers are fantastic.
Not a lager, but the punchier Schneider weissbiers are really tasty. Aventinus is super common but is still in my all time top 10.

 

Thanks so much for the info!

 

If you haven't tried Aventinus Weizen-Eisbock at least once, you are really missing a great experience. Possibly my favorite "sip slowly" beer and pretty unique in the beer world, and fairly easy to find in Denver. The bonus is that just like doppelbocks this ages well so you don't have to sweat reading esoteric bottle date codes.

Also stronly agree with Domingo that all of the Andechs beers are world class along with any dark Ayinger. H-P hefe in my opinion is a very underrated choice and is one of my favs for this time of year.

 

One cautionary tale I'll tell is of Augustiner.

In Germany it's a beloved brand. Maybe even the most beloved brand in all of Bavaria. It's no lower than #2 at the very least.
They export their Edelstoff (an export hell) and the Maximator doppelbock to us in 12oz bottles. Maximator is never great, but Edelstoff absolutely is. Trick is, they're not freshness dated, they don't age well, and our stock is often ancient. Some of the worst beers I've ever bought have been old Augustiner bottles. Beers that I think the world of when they're fresh. If you can somehow verify the batch is fresh - buy them. However if there is any doubt at all, avoid them like the plague.

 

You can look at the clarity through the bottle. If it starting to exhibit a light haze or some sediment at the bottom of the bottle, it probably has a decent amount of age on it. If it's mostly clear, you're probably good to go.

 

I know about folks' longstanding aversion to Prost and its inconsistency... but I stopped in their on Friday for a Maibock and both that and the Vienna Lager were worth stopping in for if you're nearby and craving a rich but drinkable lager.

 

When Prost is at their best, their beers are top notch. They've just had trouble maintaining that for any length of time and they've gone through quite a few brewers along the way.
Hopefully they're righting the ship again.

 

Is Prost worth a visit? I may well be passing next week but unless it is something non-helles / lager then I may give it a miss. Not a great lager fan and there may be other bars / breweries I could spend my beer capacity on.

 

I wouldn't. Bierstadt Lagerhaus is a better option than Prost and it's just across the highway. All of their beers (helles, dunkel, pils, + 1-2 seasonals) are as good as Prost at their absolute best. In fact, probably better than that. Prost's one advantage is that it's a nicer facility. That area has a boatload of good beer in just about every style you can think of, so I'd put Prost pretty far down that list.

 

Sorry, should have said in Fort Collins

 

Try Zwei Bruder. Top notch beers to be had there.

 

In before @ManBearPat on zwei love? Whoa.