Last week I went to the monthly meet-n-greet for Rocky Mountain Overland, a group that combines a few of my other interests: camping, off-roading, and amateur radio. Every month they hold a meet-n-greet at Odyssey Beerwerks (5535 W 56 Ave, Ste 107, Arvada, CO 80002) for 'members' to actually see each other.
Previously my buddy and I had tried the Hot Shot at Colorado Plus, so I was looking forward to bringing home a growler. But, no such luck... They were out of Hop Shot. So sad, drinking buddy...
While at Odyssey, I had the Clan Warrior Scotch Ale (8oz). I will definitely order this brew again. Really good scotch ale for sitting and visiting. Smooth, rich, malty.
Instead of bringing home some Hop Shot, I selected the Ghost Drifter Pale Ale. It is a nice mild session ale with fresh hop flavor. However, it doesn't seem to be filtered, so it caused my drinking buddy's allergies to kick in. Bad for her, good for me. I finished the growler over the next 4 or 5 days, and each time I enjoyed the Ghost Drifter more.
Odyssey Beerwerks has a rotating food truck schedule. I was very tempted to order some of the guacamole offerings, or get one of the many burritos, but I was already too full. Other people in the group did order food and they were enthusiastic about it. Next time I won't eat before I go to the meet-n-greet.
Staff: Nice, but slightly preoccupied with conversation
Atmosphere: Casual taproom. Mix of long tables and short tables.
Overall brew impression: Great beers.
Dog friendly: Yup
Food: ?? I didn't eat. Next time...
Saturday, May 16, 2015
Colorado Plus Brew Pub
One of our new favorite places is Colorado Plus Brew Pub (6995 W 38th Ave, Wheat Ridge, CO 80033).
We found this brewpub after visiting a friend in the area. They have a daily page of available craft brews on-tap from Colorado brewers. There must be >80 brews on the page!! Typically they only have a limited supply of the brews on the menu, so you have to pick one and try it now, because it will likely be gone before you come back.
So far we have tried and enjoyed the following:
We will definitely go back here often!
Staff: Friendly and knowledgeable about the brews and menu
Atmosphere: easy going brewpub. Definitely not a trendy feel.
Overall brew impression: You will find something you want and like!
Dog friendly: Nope, because they serve food.
Food: Great!
We found this brewpub after visiting a friend in the area. They have a daily page of available craft brews on-tap from Colorado brewers. There must be >80 brews on the page!! Typically they only have a limited supply of the brews on the menu, so you have to pick one and try it now, because it will likely be gone before you come back.
So far we have tried and enjoyed the following:
- Snowbank Brewing (Fort Collins) - Cranknbrew American Pale Ale with coffee from Cranknstein. Great coffee flavor without being over powering. Definitely for the coffee lover.
- Colorado Plus - 420 Redhead brewed on-site. A smooth, full mouth red ale with enough hope bitter/flavor to balance it. Gone now... 4/20 is over and so is the ale!
- Fort Collins Brewery - Double Chocolate Imperial Stout on nitro - so rich, smooth, easy that this should be a breakfast drink.
- Odyssey Beerwerks - (Arvada) - Hop Shot IPA. Excellent IPA. Not just bitter, but wonderful hop flavor and aroma!
We will definitely go back here often!
Staff: Friendly and knowledgeable about the brews and menu
Atmosphere: easy going brewpub. Definitely not a trendy feel.
Overall brew impression: You will find something you want and like!
Dog friendly: Nope, because they serve food.
Food: Great!
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Brews on Broadway
April 10 we went to 'The Brew on Broadway' (3445 S Broadway, Englewood, CO 80113) to get out of the house.
The BoB is right on South Broadway, and has quite a few restaurants nearby for food. One of our FAVORITE mexican food places is just a couple doors down, El Tepehuan. Great chili rellenos and green chili!
The BoB is a nice sized tap room; not too small, not too big. Again we ordered a sampler,and I'm so happy with myself: I actually made notes!!! Here is what we had:
City Mark Mild - good session ale, but doesn't draw me back.
Eagle Rock Pale Ale - great balance and good hops. My buddy's favorite of the night
English IPA - on CO2 and Nitro! We split on this one; I preferred the nitro and my buddy preferred the CO2
CO2 - very bright and good fresh hop flavor
Nitro - very similar, but smoother without the CO2 acid
Social Club Coffee Milk Stout - CO2 and nitro. Both are very good with mild coffee flavor
Griffin Red Ale - very sweet and smooth. So heavy that 8oz or a pint would be too much.
Gothic Sour Imperial Stout - WOW! Very fun. Almost lambic like, but better. This I will go back for, but it is only a specialty brew so it isn't always available.
Staff: Friendly and helpful
Atmosphere: low key and artsy
Overall brew impression: I give it a 4, but my buddy prefers more hops so only a 3 for her
Dog friendly: yes
Food: excellent mexican food nearby!
The BoB is right on South Broadway, and has quite a few restaurants nearby for food. One of our FAVORITE mexican food places is just a couple doors down, El Tepehuan. Great chili rellenos and green chili!
The BoB is a nice sized tap room; not too small, not too big. Again we ordered a sampler,and I'm so happy with myself: I actually made notes!!! Here is what we had:
City Mark Mild - good session ale, but doesn't draw me back.
Eagle Rock Pale Ale - great balance and good hops. My buddy's favorite of the night
English IPA - on CO2 and Nitro! We split on this one; I preferred the nitro and my buddy preferred the CO2
CO2 - very bright and good fresh hop flavor
Nitro - very similar, but smoother without the CO2 acid
Social Club Coffee Milk Stout - CO2 and nitro. Both are very good with mild coffee flavor
Griffin Red Ale - very sweet and smooth. So heavy that 8oz or a pint would be too much.
Gothic Sour Imperial Stout - WOW! Very fun. Almost lambic like, but better. This I will go back for, but it is only a specialty brew so it isn't always available.
Staff: Friendly and helpful
Atmosphere: low key and artsy
Overall brew impression: I give it a 4, but my buddy prefers more hops so only a 3 for her
Dog friendly: yes
Food: excellent mexican food nearby!
Grist Brewing Company
The following week we went to Grist Brewing Company in Highlands Ranch (9150 Commerce Center Cir, Suite 300, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129).
Grist Brewing is very close to 'Living the Dream', but it is a much different place. My impression is that it is ~6 times larger and has a large patio.
The tap tenders were friendly and helpful.
We ordered a sampler, but of course I didn't make notes on what was on the tray. All of the brews were drinkable; IE there were no off flavors or aromas. In general the brews were lighter in body and definitely less hoppy (bitter, flavor, and aroma) than Living the Dream. So, while the beers were good, there wasn't any one of them that is calling my name. I'll have to go back and try again before passing final judgement.
The food truck specialty was pizza (Brava Pizza). We had 'Fun-Guy' (white shroom), and 'Pizza Bianca Fresca' (white fresh pizza). Both were great. They were out of prosciutto for the Bianca, and substituted bacon for me. Nice option. :)
Guess I should come up with some rating system to compare the places we go. I suspect this rating system will morph over time...
Staff: Friendly and helpful
Atmosphere: Casual, but very 'Highlands Ranch'
Overall brew impression: nice, but not remarkable
Dog friendly: yes
Food: Brava Pizza - great crust and good, fresh ingredients - can't go wrong :)
Grist Brewing is very close to 'Living the Dream', but it is a much different place. My impression is that it is ~6 times larger and has a large patio.
The tap tenders were friendly and helpful.
We ordered a sampler, but of course I didn't make notes on what was on the tray. All of the brews were drinkable; IE there were no off flavors or aromas. In general the brews were lighter in body and definitely less hoppy (bitter, flavor, and aroma) than Living the Dream. So, while the beers were good, there wasn't any one of them that is calling my name. I'll have to go back and try again before passing final judgement.
The food truck specialty was pizza (Brava Pizza). We had 'Fun-Guy' (white shroom), and 'Pizza Bianca Fresca' (white fresh pizza). Both were great. They were out of prosciutto for the Bianca, and substituted bacon for me. Nice option. :)
Guess I should come up with some rating system to compare the places we go. I suspect this rating system will morph over time...
Staff: Friendly and helpful
Atmosphere: Casual, but very 'Highlands Ranch'
Overall brew impression: nice, but not remarkable
Dog friendly: yes
Food: Brava Pizza - great crust and good, fresh ingredients - can't go wrong :)
Living the Dream!
I am WAY behind in documenting where I've been and my impressions. Slacker...
Back in March (2015), my drinking buddy and I decided it was time to explore tap rooms in our area. She had been to City Star in Berthoud, CO a couple times and really enjoyed the freshness of the beers. She especially liked the 'Red Necktar', a hoppy American red ale. So, it was time to explore tap rooms closer to home!
Our first choice, base purely on how quickly we could get there, was 'Living the Dream Brewing Company'. (12305 Dumont Way, Unit A, Littleton, CO 80125)
Living the Dream is a small tap room with very basic tables/chairs. The tap tenders were very attentive, friendly, and willing to talk about the different brews on tap. The brewery was promoting a ski bus trip, and they had setup a work bench to wax customer skis! All these items helped the place seem very local.
We ordered the full sampler setup. I wish I could remember what was on the tray... :( So, I'll have to give our general impressions. Our samples varied from light ale to full stout. The brews were well balanced for us. My buddy isn't too fond of very malty brews and prefers good hop flavor and aroma. I like those also, but I can enjoy a malty brew if it has decent bitter balance.
So, we will definitely go back to see what is new, and write better notes for the future.
The food truck was an excellent burger maker. I had a spicy burger that was wonderful. Lots of flavor, not too juicy but definitely not dry. Want more!
Staff: attentive, friendly, helpful
Atmosphere: very local and low key
Overall brew impression: wonderful
Dog friendly: yup
Food: I wish I could eat more burgers.
Back in March (2015), my drinking buddy and I decided it was time to explore tap rooms in our area. She had been to City Star in Berthoud, CO a couple times and really enjoyed the freshness of the beers. She especially liked the 'Red Necktar', a hoppy American red ale. So, it was time to explore tap rooms closer to home!
Our first choice, base purely on how quickly we could get there, was 'Living the Dream Brewing Company'. (12305 Dumont Way, Unit A, Littleton, CO 80125)
Living the Dream is a small tap room with very basic tables/chairs. The tap tenders were very attentive, friendly, and willing to talk about the different brews on tap. The brewery was promoting a ski bus trip, and they had setup a work bench to wax customer skis! All these items helped the place seem very local.
We ordered the full sampler setup. I wish I could remember what was on the tray... :( So, I'll have to give our general impressions. Our samples varied from light ale to full stout. The brews were well balanced for us. My buddy isn't too fond of very malty brews and prefers good hop flavor and aroma. I like those also, but I can enjoy a malty brew if it has decent bitter balance.
So, we will definitely go back to see what is new, and write better notes for the future.
The food truck was an excellent burger maker. I had a spicy burger that was wonderful. Lots of flavor, not too juicy but definitely not dry. Want more!
Staff: attentive, friendly, helpful
Atmosphere: very local and low key
Overall brew impression: wonderful
Dog friendly: yup
Food: I wish I could eat more burgers.
Friday, April 24, 2015
I guess I just have to put something on this blog to get started...
My drinking buddy and I thought it would be a good idea to use a blog to record our visits to Colorado taprooms. Lately we've been enjoying some of the local taprooms and the food trucks outside them. It really seems to more like a local pub; much less formal than brewpubs with restaurant style food service. And many of the taprooms allow dogs! Definitely a bonus for us.
When I finally created the blog I decided it would be nice to extend the purpose to include Colorado craft brew in general, brewpubs, breweries, and other beer stuff. I suspect that due to my inability to remain focused, other topics might appear from time to time.
So, now to decide where to start...
My drinking buddy and I thought it would be a good idea to use a blog to record our visits to Colorado taprooms. Lately we've been enjoying some of the local taprooms and the food trucks outside them. It really seems to more like a local pub; much less formal than brewpubs with restaurant style food service. And many of the taprooms allow dogs! Definitely a bonus for us.
When I finally created the blog I decided it would be nice to extend the purpose to include Colorado craft brew in general, brewpubs, breweries, and other beer stuff. I suspect that due to my inability to remain focused, other topics might appear from time to time.
So, now to decide where to start...
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