Beer Calendar: Paying It Forward at New Image; McLovin Month at Call to Arms

The Grateful Gnome Sandwich Shoppe & Brewery opened in April after two long years of work, setbacks and work again. And although the sandwiches were great, the business was missing an important element: the brewery. That changed last week when head brewer Bess Dougherty tapped her first few beers made on site: the 7 percent ABV Gnome Giggity IPA; the 4.6 percent Gnome Brown and the 4.4 percent Gnome Pale Ale. Then she added two more, Gnome Blonde Ale, at 4.5 percent, and Tangerine Wheat, at 4.6 percent.

Keep reading for more craft-beer events in May and early June.

Wednesday, May 30
Comrade Brewing taps Moneypenny, an English summer ale, at noon. Brewed with a blend of English pale malt and Marris Otter, and hopped and dry-hopped with Cascade, this 5.1 percent ABV beer is clean and crisp, with an herbal, lightly spicy floral hop aroma.

Thursday, May 31
Wynkoop Brewing Company has finally installed a Crowler machine, and to celebrate, Colorado’s first brewpub  will give away twenty Crowlers. To participate, guests must come in from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. and ask for a raffle ticket; winners will be announced at 5:30 and must be present to collect their Crowler cans. Last week, the brewery tapped two new beers,  Malty-Tasking, a chocolate malt nitro beer, and Vail Pale Ale, a throwback collaboration.

Friday, June 1
Call to Arms Brewing will be presenting "McLovin Month," which celebrates hoppy beers, for all of June. Why is the brewery calling it McLovin Month? This scene from the movie Superbad should help explain it. During June,
Call to Arms will tap twelve different hoppy beers, which are not typically the brewery's focus. The first one, which taps today, is Hazers Gonna Haze, a 7 percent ABV beer made with lupulin powder. On June 8, it will be Great Great Great Gam Gam, an 11 percent triple IPA, which will also be in cans. Other beer with TBD dates include the brewery's World Beer Cup medal winning More Like Bore-O-Phyll; McLovin, a single-hop IPA; an experimental collaboration with Cannonball Creek Brewing; CTA IPA infused with hops oils; Sweet Bloom Coffee IPA; and more.

Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project debuts one of its staples, Vieille, in cans for the first time at noon in its taproom at the Source. "Translated from French as 'old-tradition,' Vieille is our barrel-aged classical saison," the brewery says. "Using time-honored techniques, our saisons employ traditional methods to restore the complexity and the rustic character lost in modern-day saisons. Saisons were the original wild ales, brewed for the farmhands to be a refreshing and sustaining beverage." It is brewed with Brettanomyces and lightly dry-hopped. The beer will be on tap and available in six-packs to go ($15).

Bruz Beers will release an extremely limited quantity (only 22 cases) of Crossbones Belgian-style Rum Barrel Stout at noon. The beer is a Belgian-style stout that has been aged in rum barrels. "Its roasty, grainy aroma and flavor profile, with distinct coffee and dark chocolate, is laced with rich tropical rum and oak notes," the brewery says. "Undertones of dark fall fruits, raisins and dates complement the oaky and complex dry finish." Crossbones, at 8.6 percent ABV, will be available in 750 ml bottles for $14.50 each.

Avery Brewing is introducing Plank'd Rum Barrel-Aged Coconut Porter, the newest beer in its barrel-aged series of twelve-ounce bottles. It will be available on tap and in the to-go cooler starting at 11:30 a.m. And on Sunday, June 3, the Boulder brewery is doing something it has never done before: selling the barrels that the beer was aged in. From noon to 5 p.m. on June 3, you can buy one for $50. "While we don't recommend that you use them for beer aging, they are great for planter boxes, making furniture, patio tables, bar tables, you name it," the brewery says. In addition, there will be a planking competition at 3 p.m. outside. Whoever holds a plank position the longest will win a case of Plank'd. "That's $288 reasons to work on your abs."

Saturday, June 2
Join Our Mutual Friend Brewing for the release of Esprit De Corpse: I, a collaboration with TRVE Brewing. The beer is "a blend of mixed culture ales hand selected by TRVE Brewing from the oak foeders, oak barrels and stainless steel mix culture program at OMF," the brewery says. "Their careful consideration yielded a beer with minerality, light acidity, and a fair amount of funk, while stone fruit and pineapple notes round it out." There will be a limited number of 500ml bottles available for $12.

Platt Park Brewing celebrates its fourth anniversary by tapping a variety of special beers. The first two hundred people to buy a beer will also get a limited edition pint glass. The beer lineup includes: Tropical Snow Dance IPA (SMaSH Mosaic); Madagascar Dream Vanilla Cream Ale on Nitro; Gump's Vienna-Style Lager; Phaded Pale Ale (El Dorado, Citra and Nelson Sauvin); Passion Fruit Phaded Pale Ale; Dune Brut IPA; Peach Dune Brut IPA; Madagascar Dream with Strawberries; Pear Berliner Weisse; Blackberry Berliner Weisse; Watermelon Berliner Weisse; and Coconut Coffee Porter. Torchy's Tacos will also be on hand with food.

New Wave Strawberry Berliner Weisse returns to Ratio Beerworks for the summer. This pink, kettle-soured beer is light, tart, effervescent, and clean on the finish. Strawberries are the dominant flavor profile, as each batch is fermented on over 300 pounds of real strawberries, the brewery says. To celebrate, there will be live music on the patio from Lawsuit Models and the Swindlin Hearts.

Station 26 Brewing releases Raspberry Sherbert, a fruity, kettle soured beer that was brewed with lactose and vanilla for "a smooth mouthfeel and perfect for patio crushing," the brewery says. There will be Crowlers available starting at 1 p.m. ($12). It will also be on tap.

River North Brewery continues its taproom-only series of hyper-limited beers with the release of Single Cask Quandary: Scotch Barrel. "A gentle peat finish rounds out the classic Abbey yeast notes of plum, figs and dates, for a beer unlike any we've released before," the brewery says. It goes on sale at noon for $12 each.

TRVE Brewing will release bottles of Photogtropic, a collaboration with Finback Brewery. "The Finback folks wanted to experiment with ingredients native to the southwest, so we refermented this golden mixed culture ale on a healthy amount of prickly pear," TRVE says. The brewery opens at noon.

New Image Brewing in Arvada debuts the first iteration of its new Pay it Forward canned series at 11 a.m. "Pay it Forward is a double dry-hopped IPA that we will produce and distribute in partnership with our retailers around Colorado," the brewery explains. For each iteration, we create a new variant of the beer for sale exclusively at the New Image taproom and the partnering retailer. Additionally, for every four-pack of the beer sold, we are donating $1 to Project Helping, a nonprofit organization that employs the power of purpose and volunteering to facilitate well being and mental wellness." The first in the series is an IPA brewed with more than six pounds of Citra, Eukanot and Columbus hops per barrel. It will be available only at Hazel's Beverage World in Boulder and the New Image Taproom.

Odd13 Brewing in Lafayette hosts its third annual hazy beer celebration and the release of Robot Librarian, its yearly collaboration with Cerebral Brewing, Fiction Beer Company and Weldwerks Brewing. The brewery will be selling the delicious double IPA on draft and in cans to go ($18 per six-pack). It will also be tapping guest beers from each of the other three breweries. Case limits and details on the guest beers are TBA.

Wednesday, June 6
Chain Reaction Brewing will tap its Coconut Kafir Lime Curry Saison as part of the continuing Traveling One Barrel Wednesday program shared by Chain Reaction, Strange Craft, Black Sky Brewing and The Brew on Broadway. The brewers at the four businesses travel once a week to one of the other breweries to make a small batch of a one-off beer. Then they rotate to the next brewery the next week. The beer will also be tapped at the other three breweries. Upcoming tappings include Blood Orange Pale on June 13, Sriracha Red Ale on June 20, and Fudge Pop Tart Porter on June 27.

First Draft Taproom + Kitchen is collaborating with a different brewery each month this year. For June, its partner is Declaration Brewing. For the beer, they brewed a variant of Declaration's King Nalu Koa'e Imperial Tropical IPA with loads of Southern Cross hops along with pineapple and coconut additions. It should be available all month long. Tonight, First Draft will also tap several other Declaration beers, including Straight Outta Golden, Sake Mountain, Raspberry Dec Lager, Electric Silk and Beez Nuts.

Friday, June 8
Every week, from 5 to 7 p.m., the brand new Cerveceria Colorado partners with a nonprofit for a celebratory happy hour, with proceeds benefiting that organization. This week, Cervezas for Causes will benefit Centro Humanitario Para Los Trabajadores, a day-laborer center that "promotes the rights and well-being of day laborers and domestic workers in Colorado through education, job skills, leadership development, united action and advocacy." Cerveceria Colorado, which is owned by Denver Beer Co next door, opened with the goal of promoting the idea that "beer is inclusive, collaborative, and celebratory. We seek to honor the traditions, cuisine and culture of Mexico by utilizing traditional Mexican ingredients, flavors, and processes to create innovative styles of beer." Some of the beers on tap include: Lupulo Cacao, a chocolate pale ale; Senor Piña, a pineapple blonde; Venga, a traditional Mexican lager that you can sip chelada-style with a salted rim and lime wedge; Barrica Reserva, a tequila-barrel-aged saison; Churro Stout, a milk stout aged on vanilla beans and cinnamon; Cocolimon, a kettle sour with zested limes and shredded coconut, created in collaboration with Cerveceria de Colima in Colima, Mexico; Nopalito, a wheat beer with nopal, created in collaboration with La Cirquera from Querétaro, Mexico; and Poblano Pils, a smoked Mexican lager aged on smoked fresh poblano chiles.

Saturday, June 9
Banded Oak Brewing is hosting a two-year anniversary bash on June 9 from noon to 11 p.m, complete with two live music acts, a food truck and thirteen beers on tap, including everything from flagships to specialties. The beer lineup includes: Pinky Promise, aged in a syrah barrel; ATOMGA Imperial Stout, aged in a Fireside Bourbon barrel; Belgian Blonde, aged in a cabernet barrel; Sofia’s Sour Gose, aged in a cabernet barrel;  Belgian Dark Strong, aged in a cabernet barrel; French Lager, aged in a pinot barrel; Olde Ale, aged in a pinot barrel; Double IPA; Crenshaw Melon IPA; Vienna Lager; Table Saison; Kölsch; and Blood Orange Gose. Modern folk band Deborah Solo Trio will play from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., followed by funk band Sleazy Grease and Friends from 6 to 8 p.m. The Areyto Puertorrican Food Truck will be serving fare all day. For those interested in a behind-the-scenes look into the brewery, Banded Oak will be opening the entire brew house for seating.

The eighth annual Lake Dillon Brew Festival runs from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Lake Dillon Amphitheatre and the Marina Park in Dillon. More than 25 members of the Colorado Brewers Guild will be serving beer. There will also be live music. Tickets are $35 and a portion of the proceeds benefits the Guild.

Tuesday, June 12
There's only one time all year when Bierstadt Lagerhaus lets you break its only rule: that its lagers, in particular its Slow Pour Pils, be served and imbibed from the brewery's specialized glassware. And that is today on the second anniversary of its first brew in their brewhouse when you can buy a full liter of pilsner for just $11. And since second anniversaries traditionally involve gifts of cotton, Bierstadt is calling this the Cotton Brewniversary. "Cotton seems perfect when you think about that beautiful pillowy head that sits so perfectly atop of our Slow Pour Pils," the brewery says. "If you’ve ever asked for your Pils in a bigger glass, you may have been disappointed when we for sure told you, 'No way!' But June 12 is your day. Come drink a Pils the size of your head." There will be happy hour snacks from 3 to 6 p.m. as well.