Food and Drink Festivals

Photos: South Denver Beer Festival kicks off beer season in Littleton's Clement Park

The brand-new South Denver Beer Fest kicked off the summer beer festival season in style over the weekend, as more than sixty breweries poured beers and ciders for adoring fans in the southern suburbs. The two-day extravaganza, in Littleton's Clement Park, was blessed with spring weather that was ju ... More >>

Colorado's beer festivals are becoming victims of their own success

May brings Maibocks, spring tappings and the start of beer-fest season

Salt Lake City-based Epic Brewing, which announced in January that it will build a 20,000-square-foot brewery and taphouse in Denver, updated its followers on social media this week with a couple of pictures and some potential opening dates. The Facebook pictures (like the one above) show the brewer ... More >>

South Denver Beer Fest in Littleton will feature breweries-in-planning alongside the pros

Colorado breweries continue to open at a rapid pace in 2013 -- and they're typically swamped the minute they open by beer fans eager to sample their brews. But breweries-in-planning don't usually get a chance to put their products in front of customers (paying customers, anyway) ahead of time. That ... More >>

Seven signs that Denver is obsessed with bacon

Several years ago, Purina started broadcasting a line of commercials featuring a dog awakened by the scent of Beggin' Strips. Not knowing the odor didn't belong to real bacon, the dog frantically ran through the house, then finally found a strip and exclaimed, "It's BACON!" But while dogs may not kn ... More >>

Photos: the 2013 Winter Brew Fest rocked Denver's Mile High Station

The annual Winter Brew Fest returned to Mile High Station last Saturday, offering Denver denizens a taste of some delicious craft beers and other beverages from Colorado and elsewhere. Add in some live music, food and other vendors and you've got an event to remember -- if you didn't drink too much, ... More >>

Reader: Bacon has finally jumped the shark

Can there ever be too much bacon? Diners were in hog heaven at last weekend's Bacon and Beer Festival, featuring craft beers from some of the state best breweries as well as bacon in every form imaginable, some edible -- and some not, as the photo above indicates. It was a delicious debacle -- but ... More >>

Newcomer's beard earns him "Man of Denver" title from Wahl

Christopher Laplante arrived in town less than two months ago and has already been dubbed the "Man of Denver." He gained this noble title at the Great American Beer Festival, inside a Wahl Home Products tent; he'll now move into the finals, with a chance to win $1,000. See also: - Wahl's 'Man of ... More >>

Beer State of Mind

Reader: The GAFB is now a real beer tasting, not a frat party

Brewery reps -- brewers, and sometimes even owners -- were out in force at the 2012 Great American Beer Festival, pouring beer, answering questions and just hanging out with beer fans. This was a big change from previous festivals; did a letter from Garrett Oliver, the brewmaster at Brooklyn Brewery ... More >>

Fort Collins and Funkwerks step up in a down year for Colorado GABF medals

Colorado took home 35 medals at the Great American Beer Festival this year, including six that went to Fort Collins brewers, highlighted by Funkwerks, which won two golds and was named Small Brewing Company of the Year. See also: - Meet the winners of Great American Beer Festival 2012 - "Stand your ... More >>

Reader: Great American Beard Festival does not include women!

The Great American Beer Festival filled this town with lots of great beer -- and many great beards in the male-heavy crowd. We documented some of them this past weekend in our "Fifteen best beards of the Great American Beer Festival" post. Which inspired a classic response. See also: - Great Ameri ... More >>

"Stand your ground and pour": How Brooklyn Brewery's Garrett Oliver saved GABF

Aisle after aisle, table after table, there was one thing about the 2012 Great American Beer Festival that was different from the event in previous years: There were brewery reps, brewers and, in many cases, brewery owners themselves staffing their booths, hanging out and answering questions. It was ... More >>

Meet the winners of Great American Beer Festival 2012

This year's Great American Beer Festival played temporary home to 580 breweries -- and with more than 2,700 beers poured, the fest's professional judge panel had its hands (and mouths) full when making decisions on the winners of all 84 categories. Continue reading for the full list of the weekend's ... More >>

Five sexiest beer names at the 2012 Great American Beer Festival

The Great American Beer Festival is full of novelties, and Westword has brought you everything from the Best Beards to the Best Beer Swag to the Best Beer Porn over the past few days. Now we'll take a look at a few of the sexiest beer names we encountered. See also: - Great American Beer Festival ... More >>

GABF volunteer coordinator Carol Hiller on over-pouring, comfortable shoes and Guinness

This is the first in a series of Q&As with beer-minded folks who have jobs to do during the Great American Beer Festival. Volunteers at the Great American Beer Festival are sometimes maligned, usually busy and always -- always -- needed. After all, there are going to be 2,700 different beers at thi ... More >>

Tell us your first beer memory to win GABF tickets

It was all such a blur. Within 45 minutes of their release on August 2, every ticket to the annual booze-a-palooza that is the Great American Beer Festival had sold out. All of them. While some dreams were achieved, others were dashed. But if you were one of the unfortunates who didn't get tickets, ... More >>

Tell us how beer makes you feel to win GABF tickets

It was all such a blur. Within 45 minutes of their release on August 2, every ticket to the annual booze-a-palooza that is the Great American Beer Festival had sold out. All of them. While some dreams were achieved, others were dashed. But if you were one of the unfortunates who didn't get tickets, ... More >>

L.A.'s hip Golden Road Brewing will release its latest, Burning Bush, in Denver for #GABF

Los Angeles-based Golden Road Brewing, an upstart craft brewer that's managed to make waves in a town that sees them every single day, will release its latest canned beer, Burning Bush, in Denver during the Great American Beer Festival. But the beer -- and the one-year-old brewery -- won't be here f ... More >>

Win two tickets to the opening night of GABF! Write us a beer haiku

It was all such a blur. Within 45 minutes of their release on August 2, every ticket for the Annual booze-a-palooza that is the Great American Beer Festival had sold out. All of them. While some dreams were achieved, others were dashed. Plans were changed. Beers were poured out in small moments of s ... More >>

Mayor Michael Hancock will help brew tomorrow at the Denver Beer Co

Only history books will be able to properly assess the mayorships of John Hickenlooper and Michael Hancock, and whose administration did more for Denver. But there's one area in which Hancock will always be a step behind: beer. Still, the mayor will get his feet wet on Wednesday, possibly for real, ... More >>

Three juicy reasons to spend your weekend at Colorado Mountain WineFest

The Colorado wine industry is having a kick-ass year. In fact, we might even say that 2012 will go down as the one in which our state's wine biz officially blew up. Let's rewind: In April, our fair city hosted the fourth annual Drink Local Wine conference, a national affair that lured a clique of t ... More >>

That was fast: #GABF tickets sell out in record 45 minutes

Update: Tickets for the Great American Beer Festival sold out in a jaw-dropping 45 minutes today, smashing last year's record of seven days, which, in turn, crushed the previous year's rate of several weeks. Craft beer, it appears, is now as popular as a Justin Beiber concert. But the Boulder-based ... More >>

Happy Friday! Enjoy the weekend with one (or two) of these culinary events

The weekend is packed with culinary events, especially if you're a fan of beer -- and who isn't? Here's what on tap:

Quench Your Thirst

Caution Brewing gets hoppy and the Falling Rock gets busy in our weekly beer calendar

Crabtree Brewing in Greeley has announced that it is moving and expanding in order to make more Eclipse, Oatmeal Stout, Ginger Bee and -- hopefully -- its GABF award-winning Berliner Weisse. The brewery will hold a grand opening at the new location, 2961 29th Street, on Wednesday, August 8 at 4 p.m. ... More >>

Three Colorado winemakers worthy of Drink Local Wine week love

A little more than nine months ago, we ruffled a lot more than a few feathers by voicing our opinion on the local wine industry. Everyone from the Front Range Winery Association to hobbyist vintners juiced over where we got the balls to speak our minds on such an -- unbeknownst to us -- unbelievabl ... More >>

Beer calendar: show your love for beer at these heart-y beer events

The resumes were long and detailed, the qualifications extreme, but the ten finalists in the Wynkoop Brewing Company's annual Beerdrinker of the Year contest have been whittled down to three -- and these guys know their beer. The man who eventually claims the title for 2012 will be determined at an ... More >>

Charlie Papazian and Pete Meersman to be inducted into the Colorado Tourism Hall of Fame

​Visit Denver just announced the people who will be inducted into the Tourism Hall of Fame at the thirteenth annual celebration set for March 14, 2012, and the list includes two key people from the Colorado drinking/dining scene: Great American Beer Festival president Charlie Papazian and Pete ... More >>

Foam On the Range

Skis and Brewskis

I pity the fool! Oskar Blues issues hilarious correction to a GABF announcement

The announcements highlighting Colorado's big wins at the Great American Beer Festival have been coming fast and furious from local breweries since the three-day event ended on Saturday. But nothing was as entertaining as the correction/clarification issued by Oskar Blues concerning its three-medal ... More >>

Reader: Someone needs to invent a Ziploc utility belt for the Great American Beer Festival

The Great American Beer Festival is over for another year -- but it's not too early to start planning what you'll wear to next year's event. Tired of the ubiquitous pretzel necklaces, we came up with "five disgusting alternatives," including a doughnut necklace and a cantaloupe necklace -- for tho ... More >>

The Great American Techno Festival aims to give beer geeks a place to dance

Three September Colorado wine events you won't want to miss

​With Labor Day behind us and summer's sun-soaked days and sizzling temperatures vanishing before our eyes, we aren't traditionally all that psyched to welcome the month of September with open arms. This year, though, we're seeing things differently, given the tantalizing array of wine event ... More >>

Colorado beer calendar: Renegade Brewing opens; AC Golden goes wild

Jonathan ShikesAC Golden.​New Belgium Brewing celebrates its twentieth anniversary -- and two decades of spreading the word about better beer -- next Tuesday. Founded in Fort Collins in 1991, the brewery has gone from the basement of a house to become the third largest craft brewer in the nat ... More >>

A Wine Time

Colorado Beer Week could be the start of an annual spring toast to the state's brewers

​Seattle has a beer week. So do Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles. San Francisco's and Philadelphia's are famous world wide. Hell, even Eugene, Oregon; Louisville, Kentucky; and the entire state of Alabama have beer weeks. Denver has the Great American Beer Festival and the surrounding Denver ... More >>

Beer Today, Gone Tomorrow

Culinary calendar for the week ahead: Denver International Wine Festival, Primal Cuts and more

​Our culinary calendar is a day late this week -- but the events herein are certainly not a dollar short. Keep reading to learn about the Denver International Wine Festival, cooking classes, A Taste for Life and much more. Here's what's on the menu:

The week in Cafe Society bloggery: Best GABF T-shirts, Chef and Tell with Roberto Diaz, hosts behaving badly and a new bar manager at Steuben's

​ Behold the highlights from this week's Cafe Society blog:

BREWS YOU CAN USE

PLAYING THE BREWS

Thaw Out in Snowmass

The Amazing Race

Run to the hills for a half-marathon and chillin’ thrillin’ brew fest.

Beer and Cheer

The Winter Brew Fest will warm your cold-weather blues.

The Wonder of Wine

Eat, drink and be merry at the Denver International Wine Festival.

A Hoppin' Time

Too Many Cooks

A collaboration between Steamboat Springs and Denver chefs leads to one tasty meal.

The Bite

Wining and dining in Estes Park.