Beer Calendar: Sour Beers, Wicked Weed, a New Brewery and IPA Olympics

The majority of Denver's public schools open their doors this week or next, ringing in tens of thousands of students with the first bell. And although the teachers who give their all would love a few apples, it's likely that they'd prefer a beer — or two. That's why Spangalang Brewery is offering a "buy one, get one free” deal for all K-12 teachers and school staff through the end of August. All they have to do is present their school ID when ordering a beer, and they'll get their second one for free. 

“Teachers and school staff do some of life’s most important work,” Spangalang co-founder Taylor Rees says. "Yet they are underpaid and don’t get the community support they deserve."

Here are all of this week's craft-beer events.

Wednesday, August 17
Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project will release Batch #200 today at 5 p.m. at the tap room in the Source. "This beer builds upon the brewery's past Batch Series releases by blending two of the brewery's favorite ingredients, fruit and hops," Crooked Stave says. "Batch #200 aged for months on whole raspberries and was then dry-hopped with aromatic hops to match and contrast the raspberry-forward nose. The result is a deep red sour beer with a pinkish, red head and deep raspberry aromas, which instantly lift the heavy citrus and resinous, hop aromatics."

River North Brewery will tap a single keg of Hiphopopotamus American-style IPA at 4 p.m. today at its new tap room on North Washington Street.

Renegade Brewing owners Khara and Brian O'Connell recently had twins, so they are celebrating by tapping two barrel-aged versions of Baby's Got Bock, a seasonal maibock beeer. You can help them celebrate the arrival of Gracie and Emmett by trying both the red- and white-wine-barrel versions.

Thursday, August 18
Ratio Beerworks will release Major Nights Lime Gose today at 5 p.m.  The beer first debuted in 2015 as The Knew Schmew, a collaboration with Denver band The Knew. "The mildly tart, mildly salty, traditional German-style wheat beer received dry hop additions of nearly 400 hand-zested limes," Ratio says. "Major Nights is an explosion of unique savory flavors brought on by the use of coriander and red gold Hawaiian sea salt, as well as the bright, refreshing tartness of fresh limes." The party will feature a beer-and-cupcake pairing from Denver’s Church of Cupcakes, a special beer ice cream release from Frozen Matter Ice Cream — the recipe used Major Nights Lime Gose — and an Air Guitar Throwdown.

Call to Arms Brewing will release bottles of Frightened Baby Chipmunk today at 3 p.m. The beer, which takes its name from The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, is the second installment of the brewery's Carriage House Series of one-off wild, sour and barrel-aged brews. Chipmunk is "a wildly tart Farmhouse Saison blended with D'Anjou Pears," CTA says. "Using Pilsner, White Wheat, and Acidulated malts — along with Nelson Sauvin hops — in the brew, we initially fermented with a French Ssison yeast, then barrel-conditioned the beer in Chardonnay and Cabernet barrels alongside Brett Claussenii and D'Anjour Pears." There are only 100 375 ML bottles, although it will also be on tap. 

The Yak & Yeti brewpub in Arvada got a new brewer, Jeff Tyler, recently after longtime head brewer, Adam Draeger, moved to Wisconsin. Tyler will host a meet-and-greet today when he taps his first beer at the brewpub, Sun Temple IPA, a juicy, New England-style IPA that he has been fine-tuning for the past three years while living in Boston.

Under the Sun Pizzeria, the Mountain Sun-owned restaurant in Boulder, will turn over eight of its taps to Denver's Renegade Brewing today at 4 p.m. There will be a live band, and some of the proceeds from the evening will benefit Renegade’s Tap4Tap program, which calls for providing one gallon of fresh drinking water for someone in need for each gallon of Renegade beer purchased.

North Carolina's Wicked Weed Brewing continues its Colorado rollout at 5 p.m. at Backcountry Pizza & Taphouse in Boulder. Beers include Pernicious IPA, Freak Double IPA, Coolcucumber Golden Ale, Lunatic Belgian Blonde Ale, Myrtille BA Sour w/ Blueberries, Grand Pere BA Sour w/ Marionberries
Medora BA Sour w/ Blackberries & Raspberries, Marina BA Sour w/ Peaches & Apricots and more.

Friday, August 19
Resolute Brewery, a new brewery at 7286 South Yosemite Street in Centennial, plans to host its grand opening today, beginning at 11 a.m. There will be food trucks, beer releases and shenanigans throughout the day, the brewery says. Resolute will serve a variety of styles made by Zac Rissmiller, formerly of Elk Mountain Brewing in Aurora. I GotZ BratZ will be there today, while Donatellas Pizzatruck rolls in on Saturday and Ol' Skool Que on Sunday. "The tap room features a rounded bar, floor-to-ceiling views into the brewery, a pet- and family-friendly atmosphere, along with a garage door opening out to a patio beer garden," the brewery says. "Denver’s best food trucks will set up daily, offering a wide array of cuisines. Thirty-two ounce Crowler Cans will be available for purchase, and walk-in growler fills are welcomed."

North Carolina's Wicked Weed Brewing will continue its Colorado rollout at 5:30 p.m. at Freshcraft. Here's what will be on draft: Pernicious IPA, Freak Double IPA, Coolcumber Golden Ale with Cucumbers, Basil & Juniper, Lunatic Belgian Blonde, Calimost Gose with Grapefruit & Honey, Barrel Aged Lunatic, Marina Barrel Aged Sour with Peaches and Apricots, and Grand Pere Barrel Aged Sour with Marionberries.

Comrade Brewing will tap a new beer today. Honeyman XII: IPA was hopped with Enigma hops (which have rock melon and light tropical fruit flavors), Lemondrop (lemony, floral, earthy, herbal, grassy, citrus, pepper, and pine notes), Equinox (herbal to spicy green pepper and tropical papaya to citrus) and 07270 (tangerine/mandarin on the nose and ripe peach/apricot and mango on the tongue).

Saturday, August 20
The Crafty Fox will host its own 2016 IPA Olympics in honor of the real Olympic games. Starting at 11 a.m., the Crafty Fox will tap rare and sought-after IPAs from Ursula Brewery, WeldWerks Brewing Company, Cerebral Brewing, Melvin Brewing, Mockery Brewing, Renegade Brewing Company, Diebolt Brewing Company, Odd 13 Brewing and Black Shirt Brewing. "The first brewery's keg to kick will win gold and a permanent handle for a year," the bar says. There will be happy-hour pricing all day.

Dry Dock Brewing in Aurora will host its first-ever sour-beer festival — the A-Town Funk Fest — at its original South Dock location on Hampden Avenue, starting at 11 a.m. You can try some Dry Dock favorites along with a lineup of new selections from its barrel program, like Brett Stock Ale, Mary Rose Sour Red, Saison Brett and Black Currant Saison Brett, Vintage Ambassador, Sour Blonde, Sour Apricot and Swabby Sour Quad. There will also be live funk music and a '70s costume contest (the best outfits win Dry Dock gift cards), antacids and $12 flights.

Black Shirt Brewing will celebrate the annual release of its beloved Imperial Red Rye IPA, Red Evelyn, starting at 11 a.m. today. The beer, named for the grandmother of brewery co-founders Chad and Branden Miller, is "elegant, layered, complex, full of floral, citrus, caramel, and pine notes," Black Shirt says. It will be available on draft and in very limited (there are only fifty) 32-ounce Crowlers to go. In addition, the Colorado Raw Fresh Oyster Bar opens at 1 p.m. on site with 1,500 oysters. Tyler Imbrey & the Ghost Review will play a free show on the brewery's backyard Pallet Stage starting at 7 p.m.

North Carolina's Wicked Weed Brewing continues its Colorado rollout at noon at Hops & Pie by tapping Pernicious IPA, Freak Double IPA, Coolcumber Golden Ale, Lunatic Belgian Blonde, Calimost Gose, Old Fashioned Barrel Aged Brown with cherries and orange, Marina Barrel Aged Sour with Peaches and Apricots, Medora barrel-aged sour with blackberries, and much more.

Head to Call to Arms Brewing from noon to 9 p.m. today for Peace & Assist No. 3, the third in a series of beers meant to honor collaboration and goodwill between breweries rather than bickering and legal battles. This version is a collaboration between Call to Arms, Cannonball Creek in Golden and Amalgam Brewing, which is getting started in Niwot. In addition to the beer on draft, a very small of number of bottles will be for sale. There will also be other special tappings throughout the day; live music from he Whiskey Treats from 5 to 8 p.m.; and food from from Butcher's Bistro, Mas Kaos Pizzeria and Taqueria, and ChurnandBurn BBQ and Ice Cream. A portion of the proceeds will benefit local charities.

Alpine Dog Brewing will tap its first-ever wild beer today at 2 p.m. Barrel-Aged Brett Saison was aged in Chardonnay barrels for four months and finished with Brettanomyces yeast, "giving the beer amplified funky notes of tropical fruit, white wine and oak," as well as tartness, the brewery says. 

Comrade Brewing will tap Nelson Sauvin Blanc today. It was made with 2-row malt and hopped with Nelson Sauvin which has a fruitiness with fresh crushed gooseberry and grape infused flavors) and Hallertau Blanc (passion fruit, grapefruit, pineapple, grape and lemongrass).

The Bull & Bush Brewery continues a four-concert series today in honor of its 45th anniversary (as a restaurant and bar). Each Saturday this month, the brewery will feature a different band in concert. In addition to the concerts, the Bull & Bush will release tribute beers for each band; each limited-edition bottle will include a special music sampler download. Today's concert is by The Sadies, a band from Toronto. The tribute beer is Another Year Again, a Canadian-style maple stout.

Liquid Mechanics Brewing in Lafayette will celebrate its second anniversary with a free outdoor beer-and music festival in its parking lot. There will be more than twenty beers on tap, including collaboration brews made in conjunction with Odell, Avery and WeldWerks. There will also be lots of live music: Bluegrass by Rusty 44 from noon to 2 p.m.; classic-rock covers by Wild Mountain Honey Band from 3 to 5 p.m.; and party music by the Hazel Miller Band from 7 to 9 p.m. 

Sunday, August 21
Black Sky Brewery is celebrating its third anniversary all week with beer tappings and live heavy-metal music. Today you'll find Toxic Zombie Pale Ale and Carnivorous Steak Ale, along with some free matinee metal from Zombie Hate Brigade and Carnivorous Greed at 2 p.m.

Avery Brewing is joining the early pumpkin beer club today by releasing both of its annual pumpkin monsters at 11 a.m. on the same day in bottles. This year's Rumpkin, a spiced pumpkin ales aged in rum barrels, clocks in at 17.5 percent ABV, while Pump[KY]n, a porter spiced with nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice and cloves and aged in whiskey barrels, comes in at 18.8 percent ABV. 

Monday, August 22
Black Sky Brewery is celebrating its third anniversary all week with beer tappings and live heavy-metal music. Today you'll find Barrel Aged Fallen Angel Stout.

Tuesday, August 23
First Draft Taproom & Kitchen is hosting Malts vs. Hops today beginning at 5 p.m. with Firestone Walker beers. The draft list includes: STiVO Keller Pils (collaboration with Russian River), Unfiltered DBA (entirely aged on oak), Luponic Distortion #2, Stickee Monkee, Pale 31 and Union Jack.

Thursday, August 25
Black Sky Brewery is celebrating its third anniversary all week with beer tappings and live heavy-metal music. Today you'll find Sacrificial Red IPA, and music from Master with Sacrificial Slaughter at 8 p.m. Black Order and VS 36 are also playing. Tickets are $10.

Saturday, August 27
Black Sky Brewery is celebrating its third anniversary all week with beer tappings and live heavy-metal music. Today you'll find a rare bomber release from the brewery: Black Currant Belgian Strong Ale. OK Stupid and Hail Satan are playing at 7 p.m.

Thursday, September 1
As it does every year, Euclid Hall will celebrate the run-up to the Great American Beer Festival (which takes place October 6-8) with a series of intimate craft beer dinners. For the sixth year, each dinner will have a multi-course menu created to pair with the particular brewery and a brewery expert on hand to discuss the beers and answer any questions. Each dinner starts at 6:30 p.m., and tickets, $65 per person, are available at brownpapertickets.com. Today's dinner features beer from Wyoming's Melvin Brewing.

Thursday, September 8
As it does every year, Euclid Hall will celebrate the run-up to the Great American Beer Festival (which takes place October 6-8) with a series of intimate craft beer dinners. For the sixth year, each dinner will have a multi-course menu created to pair with the particular brewery and a brewery expert on hand to discuss the beers and answer any questions. Each dinner starts at 6:30 p.m., and tickets, $65 per person, are available at brownpapertickets.com. Today's dinner features beer from Call to Arms Brewing.

Thursday, September 15
As it does every year, Euclid Hall will celebrate the run-up to the Great American Beer Festival (which takes place October 6-8) with a series of intimate craft beer dinners. For the sixth year, each dinner will have a multi-course menu created to pair with the particular brewery and a brewery expert on hand to discuss the beers and answer any questions. Each dinner starts at 6:30 p.m., and tickets, $65 per person, are available at brownpapertickets.com. Today's dinner features beer from  Prost Brewing.

Saturday, September 17
Join Station 26 Brewing today for an Oktoberfest celebration with Oktoberfest lager served by the liter in Station 26 branded maßkrüge. There will also be a live punk oompah band, brats from Matt's Snack Shack and pretzels by City Pretzel Company, and a masskrugstemmen (stein holding contest).

Lost Highway Brewing will celebrate its birthday and tap a pumpkin beer, Pumpnik Pie-Eyed, today starting at 11 a.m. There will be food trucks, a pumpkin-carving contest, prizes and live music.

Thursday, September 22
As it does every year, Euclid Hall will celebrate the run-up to the Great American Beer Festival (which takes place October 6-8) with a series of intimate craft beer dinners. For the sixth year, each dinner will have a multi-course menu created to pair with the particular brewery and a brewery expert on hand to discuss the beers and answer any questions. Each dinner starts at 6:30 p.m., and tickets, $65 per person, are available at brownpapertickets.com. Today's dinner features beer from Odd 13 Brewing.

Thursday, September 29
As it does every year, Euclid Hall will celebrate the run-up to the Great American Beer Festival (which takes place October 6-8) with a series of intimate craft beer dinners. For the sixth year, each dinner will have a multi-course menu created to pair with the particular brewery and a brewery expert on hand to discuss the beers and answer any questions. Each dinner starts at 6:30 p.m., and tickets, $65 per person, are available at brownpapertickets.com. Today's dinner features beer from Funkwerks.