Heading to CO, looking for recommendations

That's a LONG ways off! I live on the opposite end of CO, but Casey Brewing does not go far as far as I know, so that might be a problem. Those other brew's should be pretty easy to get, I would believe, in the Front Range area. River North really surprised me, especially in the bomber bottles. Avery has been putting out some very interesting/tasty brews lately. GD, OB never under estimate them.

Cheers!

 

@geodonnokepyo, I can definitely relate to the excitement! I'd take the next several months to peruse the Mountain forum for similar posts (there have been several in the last few months, that are chock full of good suggestions). As the time gets closer, more info will probably be available regarding special releases, etc.

Are you looking mainly for bottle shops, or are you wanting to hit up breweries? For the latter, the RiNo and Five Points areas in Denver are fantastic: Epic, Crooked Stave, Great Divide, etc. For bottle shops, I'm more familiar with the Boulder / Longmont scene: Hazels and Liquor Mart in Boulder, and PJ's and Wyatt's in Longmont will have the widest selection of what you're looking for.

But ignore what I said above, and crawl through the rest of the Mountain forum and feel free to come back with questions

 

Small Batch in NW Denver might be your best bet for Casey in the Denver metro area (and is a pretty great bottle shop in general, though it is small). However, it's relatively rare when that stuff makes it out to Denver. You'd have to get a bit lucky to have a release coincide with your visit. Beers from the other breweries that you mentioned should be much easier to get your hands on.

 

Would absolutely love to do an IP trade with you, OP, for some Voodoo offerings!

Big Black and Wynonna's please!!!!!

 

For sure. The mentioned shops are probably going to be your best bets for the Boulder / Longmont area (reliably good, large selections). Someone else can chime in with Denver suggestions.

Seekabrew (if you haven't used it before) is a good, albeit often a bit dated, resource if you're looking for a general idea of what's not distributed in your area (do the 'Compare Distribution'). If you're wanting to start compiling a list of stuff you want to look for.

 

Casey beers occasionally hit Denver, but it's going to be really tough to predict, what, where, and when. The odds of stumbling upon some is pretty slim unless a lot changes between now and then.
You can almost certainly set up a face-to-face trade in town to get anything you want, though. That's going to be easier than scrambling to different stores and praying they have something.
That said, you can buy nearly anything else that isn't a whale straight off our shelves. Hazel's and Liquor Mart in Boulder have a fine selection of local beers.

 

If you have time venture up to Fort Collins. I'm in love with Funkwerks right now, and Odell is perpetually killing it. Hopefully Sad Panda will be in cans by then as well. Wilburs, Supermarket, and Craft Beer Cellar are the places to go in Fort Collins. Liquormax in Loveland has a huge singles selection.

+1 for Wyatts in Longmont.
Also be sure to hit up Odd13 since it sounds like you'll be close to it.

 

Sad Panda makes this ManBear a happy panda...


From what I was told (by H & D's owner), they will be packaging it on 22 oz bombers though FYI.

 

Colorado is a great place for beer lovers and you're gonna have a great time!

With that said....you're gonna miss something. Count on it. Even those who live here miss something every week. I need an intern to keep track of new breweries opening and new beers pouring. And then there are the out-of-state beers...

The key is to not to get upset at missing something. Enjoy what you find. And don't lament about the thin pocketbook afterwards And drink LOTS of WATER!

I wouldn't spend too much time hunting for specific beers. The shops mentioned above will more than have enough for you. If you want to hit breweries, there are tons of those...just swing a dead cat and you'll hit a good one. Some do not package (Hogshead, Bierstadt--hopefully open by then, Comrade...) so those may jump to the top of the list. Yet, even breweries with great packaged lineups (like Odell and Dry Dock) have great tap-only lineups.

Then there are the tap houses, like Falling Rock and Freshcraft and Colorado Plus and Hops and Pie....
You won't be bored!


*Disclaimer: don't swing a dead (or live) cat