Beer Calendar: Spring Beers, Rye Fest and the Dankest 4/20 Ales

As the Greek Philospher Heraclitus said, "The only thing that is constant is change." Avery Brewing in Boulder has made a lot of changes in the past few years, from building a huge new campus to axing many of its most famous beers in favor of a new lineup to selling a 30 percent stake in the business to a Spanish brewery.

The latest change will come on June 9, with the Avery Brewing Invitational. It replaces two other long-running and immensely popular Avery events: Sour Fest and Strong Ale Fest. Tickets are on sale now.

This massive new festival, which runs from noon to 5 p.m., will include a whopping 200 beers from sixty different breweries. There will also be beer education sessions with Andy Parker, Travis Rupp and Patrick Combs. "We came up with the brewery invite list by polling our entire team (200 employees) to ask what beer they want to see. There are no restrictions...the only qualifier is that it must be delicious," Avery says.

Tickets are $40 at twoparts.com, and profits will benefit the Colorado Water Trust.

Keep reading to see craft-beer events through late April.

Wednesday, April 18
The Colorado Pickle and Beer Society hosts its Spring Societal Soiree from 6 to 8 p.m. at Spangalang Brewery, featuring pickles from the Real Dill. Like-minded beer and pickle aficionados will be able to drink the brewery's Birth of Cool, a cucumber gose, and try the Real Dill's spring mix of peas, fennel and radishes, along with garlic dills made with Spangalang's D-Train IPA.

Friday, April 20
In honor of 4/20, Station 26 Brewing will tap Danquet, a version of the brewery's Colorado Cream Ale that has been dry-hopped for a little of that "extra green." The brewery will begin selling Crowlers of the beer at 1 p.m.; the labels on the cans were specially designed for the day and feature a little poke at Coors Banquet. The beer will be on tap through the weekend. It will also be on at Max Taps, Royal Hilltop, Tap Fourteen Ballpark, Monkey Barrel, Larimer Beer Hall, Stanley Marketplace and Dunbar Kitchen & Tap House.

TRVE Brewing taps Nazareth every year on 4/20. This year’s rendition clocks in at 7.8 percent ABV and is double-dry-hopped with El Dorado, Centennial and Hallertau Blanc for a total of over six pounds per barrel.
Limited Crowlers will be available and filled to order.

Baere Brewing taps Dankjewel at noon. "We busted out all the hops for this one. Weighing in at 6.3 percent ABV, this haze craze IPA swallowed a generous amount of Citra hops in the whirlpool and heaps of Eureka, Galaxy and Nelson Sauvin in the Dry Hop," the brewery says. "Put on your party hats."

Bierstadt Lagerhaus is getting into the holidaze spirit of 4/20 by offering its Rauchbier, a German-style smoked lager, for $8 for a full liter, all day long. A Bob Marley tribute starts at 9 p.m.

Join Epic Brewing and its neighbors at Hotbox RiNo for Funk ’n Donuts, a special sour-beer-and-doughnut pairing from 6 to 10 p.m. The pairing will cost $4.20, natch, but supplies are limited, so get there early. DJ Gary Givant will be spinning old-school funk tunes from 7 to 9 p.m.

Oasis Brewing, a new brewery located in a church in Highland Square, will tap a new beer at 2 p.m. called St. Bernard Saison. There will be happy-hour pricing on St. Bernard all day.

Factotum Brewhouse taps Fruited Ice Wine Sour at 3 p.m. "This tasty lil brew is a Saison fermented with Ice wine grapes and then infused with Brettomycenes, Lactobacillus and fresh blueberries," Factotum says. "It combines the subtle sweetness of blueberries and ice wine grapes with the tartness of a kettle sour to create a flavor that is reminiscent of a typical Front Range spring: chilly, but pleasantly so, and lets you know warmer days are coming. Reward your tastebuds and grab a pour of this very limited small-batch beer."

To celebrate spring, Dunbar Kitchen & Taphouse has partnered with Alpine Dog Brewing, Epic Brewing, Ratio Beerworks and Station 26 for a little patio party featuring some one-off firkins. You can purchase a flight of four or full pours of any of the following: Alpine Dog Mango Double Dry-Hopped Pale Ale; Epic Escape to Colorado IPA with Palisade Peaches and Green Chiles; Ratio Beerworks Guava Handwritten Belgian Wit; and Station 26  Danquet: Dry-Hopped Cream Ale.

Resolute Brewing in Centennial introduces its new Hoppy Pilsner. Coming in at an easy 5 percent ABV, the Hoppy Pils features "a clean and floral noble hop aroma that is quickly followed by crisp bitterness and a mellow malt character," the brewery says. "It's the perfect spring beer."

Oskar Blues will tap JAHvanilla Bourbon Barrel Aged Ten FIDY Imperial Stout today in honor of 4/20. It will be on tap at its Colorado locations and available in limited cans.

Saturday, April 21
If you love rye-inspired ales and lagers, then the expanding annual Denver Rye Fest, taking place from 1 to 5 p.m., will put a wry — or rye — smile on your face. The Brew on Broadway, in Englewood, will host fifteen breweries this time around, each bringing their own version of the specialty brew. The breweries this year are Black Sky, The Brew on Broadway, Strange, Caution, Chain Reaction, Rickoli, Wit’s End, Dead Hippie, Boggy Draw, Barnett & Son Brewing, Fiction, Factotum, Peak to Peak and Fermæntra. Two examples of beers include Strange Craft Rye Knot Rye Pretzel Ale, brewed with two pounds of pretzels, and Black Sky's Russian Kvass, made with house-baked rye bread. Tickets, $40, are available at eventbrite.com. Some proceeds will go to support the Colorado Adaptive Sports Foundation.

Welcome to the party, comrade. Comrade Brewing will celebrate its fourth anniversary with a bash featuring limited-edition stemmed tulip glassware and some rare and special beers. They include Bourbon Barrel Aged Quit Stalin; More Dodge Less Ram, a triple-dry-hopped Superpower IPA; Grapefruit Superpower; Barrel Aged Vanilla Quit Stalin; Barrel Aged Chocolate Coconut Quit Stalin; and Barrel Aged Maple Coffee Quit Stalin. The Grassroots Grill will be on hand serving food. More info is TBA.

Join Mockery Brewing for its third annual Reinheitsgewhat?! Party in celebration of the 502nd anniversary of every German beer lover's favorite law, Reinheitsgebot. The sixteenth-century Bavarian rule mandated that beer be brewed only with barley, hops and water. Mockery was founded on the idea of both mocking and rocking the rule. For today's celebration, however, it will be mostly mocking it, with various special releases that all include more than the three allowed ingredients. There will be live music by the Polkanauts and food from Pavy's Food Truck; the first 100 people get commemorative glassware.

About two years ago, Call to Arms Brewing debuted a collaboration with friends at Novel Strand, a brewery in planning. Known as The Notorious G.L.E.E.K., the beer was a barrel-aged sour. Now the two breweries are tapping Vol. II: Still Gleekin', a sour ale fermented in a cabernet sauvignon barrel with Brettanomyces and Mosaic hops. "For Vol. II, we switched things up and fermented the whole shebang in a b-e-a-utiful cabernet sauvignon barrel with multiple microbes —some that we added and some that joined us from the wood. Several sneaky additions of Mosaic hops and a whole bunch of time yielded this glorious thing; a delicate, fluffy beer with a gentle twang reminiscent of historic Belgian saisons, and an unmistakable grape flavor that provides a subtle reminder of the wine this barrel once housed. It's pretty dope," CTA says. The beer will be on tap starting at noon and available for sale in 375mL bottles.

Station 26 Brewing taps Watermelon Sherbert at 1 p.m. The kettle-soured beer was brewed with lactose, vanilla and watermelon. There are 350 Crowlers ready to roll, with a limit of three per person.

Head to Black Shirt Brewing for the re-release of Bonzo Pistachio & Lavender Rye Pale Ale, which will be available on draft and in four-packs to go starting at 11 a.m. Later in the evening — from 8 to 11 p.m. — the brewery will have a crazy dance party with DJ Details.

Get ready for the return of Ursula Brewery's peanut butter and jelly porter, Crustless, as well as the decadent barrel-aged version. This beer, which is like nostalgia in a glass, will be available starting at noon on draft and in four-packs of sixteen-ounce cans. The barrel-aged version — which will come in two versions, blackberry and raspberry — will be on draft and available to go in 375-milliliter bottles.

Sunday, April 22
The latest iteration of the Makin' Noise beer project will pour Belgian-style beers at five participating breweries, with sales benefiting environmental or Earth-related charities in honor of Earth Day. They are Renegade Brewing, which is making a plum tripel, benefiting Groundwork Denver; Baere Brewing, benefiting Running Rivers; Fermaentra Brewing, which taps Militant Monk Chocolate Orange Tripel, benefiting Rocky Mountain Field Institute; Storm Peak Brewing in Steamboat Springs taps a Patersbier with grains of paradise that will benefit Friends of the Yampa; and Broken Compass in Breckenridge, which brewed a summer saison that will raise money for Friends of the Dillon Ranger District. The Makin' Noise beer project is a collaborative effort that raises money for charities and causes feeling threatened in today's world.

"We work hard; you work hard. Let's relax together and enjoy an afternoon of music and beer." That's the word from Co-Brew Denver, the homebrewing shop and brewery, which will celebrate its third anniversary with a party from 2 to 5 p.m. The Dollhouse Thieves will be playing, the annual employee beer competition returns, and there will be special sales to say thank you to customers.

Join Woods Boss Brewing and Dan and Virginia Carreno of the Climate Reality Project at 2 p.m. for an Earth Day presentation about how climate change is impacting water quality and hops production — and, in turn, how this affects both the price and taste of beer. Save the Beer will also address ways that some people are trying to make progress and what individuals can do to make a difference.

Wednesday, April 25
Platt Park Brewing taps Pop Tart Porter at 3 p.m. as part of its 11th Tap small-batch project. This robust porter was brewed with brown sugar and Cinnamon Pop-Tarts. There is only one barrel, so it will go fast.

Spice Trade Brewing and the Yak & Yeti Restaurant in Arvada are hosting a Thali Beer Dinner from 7 to 9 p.m., featuring five courses of Nepalese, Indian and Tibetian food and beer from both Spice Trade and guest brewery Cheluna Brewing. Guests will get explanations of each pairing from Spice Trade's Jeff Tyler and Cheluna's Javier Perez, along with a Spice Trade specialty beer glass. Tickets, $52, are available at Eventbrite.

Friday, April 27
Heart Tattoo is a blackberry-infused version of Ratio Beerworks' classic Handwritten Belgian Wit. "Think fruit smoothie with a kick," the brewery says. "This easy drinking summer seasonal showcases brilliant blackberry flavors on top of the blank canvas that is our Belgian Wit base." In honor of the return of Heart Tattoo, join Ratio for a special release party featuring temporary tattoos and special tappings of other Handwritten variants that will be available for one day only.

Copper Kettle Brewing is turning seven, and the brewery is celebrating with a three-day party. Today is the release of Maple Snowed In, which will be available on draft and in bomber bottles. The Acoustic Mining Company will be playing from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Dough Boy Pizza and We Chef Kitchen will have food. On Saturday, there will be a beer showdown among brewery staff, who have made four new beers. The winner, chosen by the crowd, will go on to be brewed as a taproom long-term feature. Various sours will also be released. Strings and the Box will be there with music, while El Gallo Blanco and the Wing Wagon Grill will have food. And on Sunday, wear your jammies to a hangover brunch featuring a Cafe Con Leche beer and food from Mama Said Eat.

Saturday, April 28
Bruz Beers, which celebrates Belgian styles, brings back its Belgian Brew Fest from 1 to 4 p.m., pouring ten local breweries in addition to a special guest from out of town: Brewery Ommegang. The fest is held sun or snow in The Garden next to the brewery. There will be food trucks and live music. Tickets, $48, are available at ticketsauce.com.

Spring has sprung at Factotum Brewhouse, which will tap Grapefruit Strawberry New England Style IPA at noon. "The subtle hoppyness of the whole-cone hop mixes perfectly with a small addition of grapefruit and huge heaping of strawberries," Factotum says. "It creates a beautiful beer that is meant to be enjoyed by IPA lovers and skeptics alike."

Inspired by "the nostalgia of the most cherished days of our grade-school careers," the crazy crew at Call to Arms Brewing are debuting a new Rumpus event as part of their series: the Tennyson Street Field Day Rumpus. From 2 to 4 p.m., watch as a team of pro brewers compete in a variety of industry-inspired field day events against a team of pro drinkers. Games include modified dodge ball, relay races, musical kegs and more. DJ Psychonaut will be spinning from 1 to 5 p.m., while Rolling Smoke BBQ will be on hand all day. Other vendors will also be in the house.

Four breweries in the west Denver area have created a West Side Brewery Bike Loop running the last Saturday of each month during the summer. Westfax, Joyride, Hogshead and Seedstock Brewery will have punch cards offering a free beer, $1 off a pint and other stuff. Go to the Facebook page for details.

Six Parry's Pizzeria locations in Colorado will host their seventh annual Big Ass Tap Takeover from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. in conjunction with Avery Brewing. The celebrated annual event is the largest tapping in one day of Avery beers, and Parry's will pour as many as 45 different brews between its participating locations. They include everything from staples like White Rascal to highly sought-after brews like Tweak. Mix and mingle with the Avery crew, including Adam Avery himself, enjoy delicious eats and enter raffles. Participating Parry’s are in Castle Rock, Greenwood Village, Highlands Ranch, Johnstown, Longmont and Northglenn. See the Parry's Pizzeria & Bar website for locations and details.