Over the past two months, Fate head brewer Jeff Griffith has taken his show on the road to eight other Boulder-area breweries. At each one, he and the brewers there came up with a collaborative recipe and then brewed the beer.
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At Boulder Beer, for instance, he brewed a English mild, which will be served on Nitro, while at Echo Brewing in Frederick, he whipped up an Eisbock with the brewers there.
"The idea is that we want to open with all of these on tap at Fate," Griffith says.
Since Fate is also a restaurant, it is classified by the state as a "brewpub," meaning it can serve beers that have been made elsewhere. Taprooms that don't serve food usually have a manufacturer's license, which means they can only serve their own brews."The main thought behind doing the collaborations is to celebrate Colorado beer culture and to extend a hand out to the Boulder beer community and express the brewing attitude of collaboration," Griffith says. "That is the way we want to open, with that mindset."
In addition to Boulder Beer and Echo, Fate has collaborated with the Asher, Wild Woods Brewery, Crystal Springs, Shine, Twisted Pine and Southern Sun breweries. Griffith says plans are in the works for future collaborations with Avery, Upslope and Big Choice.
While most of the breweries that have opened in Colorado over the past year had their brewing equipment in place long before their permitting, Fate had the opposite problem, Griffith says; it has spent most of its time and money getting the kitchen ready.
When it opens, however, the 230-seat brewpub will have a full menu designed by owner Mike Lawinski, most recently of Centro Latin Kitchen and West End Tavern, along with a full bar and thirty taps; the taps should include about ten collaboration beers and twenty handles of beers from other breweries in Colorado.
"We are hoping to have our own stuff going by late February," Griffith says. "We will see how it goes. We need to get the cash flow moving."
When the brewery is up and running, Fate will have a second grand opening to celebrate, he promises.
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