Denver Planning
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Denver has spots where you can walk in and keep speaking Spanish with a friend or family member, without having to switch back to English when you order. Raíces Brewing, located at 2060 West Colfax Avenue, is one of those places, one of just a few downtown that serve beer as well.
Well, it was one of those places.
On Wednesday, October 8, Raíces announced that it has closed its doors because it is unable to pay the sales and property taxes demanded by the City of Denver, as stated in an open letter.
“Since 2024, Raíces Brewing Co. has faced a series of unexpected charges from the City of Denver’s Department of Taxation,” Raices wrote. “No reasonable payment solution was reached that realistically would allow us to continue operating sustainably. On the contrary, we encountered resistance and additional audits that felt retaliatory.”
According to the open letter, the city hit them with a heavy bill for personal property taxes, interest and penalties that had accumulated since the brewery opened in 2019, and Raíces ownership “had never been previously notified” until last year. The letter states that they were also charged “an additional $30,311 in sales tax.”
The news comes about three months after the closure of Cerveceria Colorado on Platte Street, which Wilding Brands just reopened as the Outpost on Platte; on October 8, it hosted a party for the Great American Beer Festival, now underway in Denver.
Cerveceria Colorado and Raíces were two of a kind in that category of places to sip suds and speak Spanish. They both hosted Spanish-speaking meetups. Every Wednesday, an “Hablamos Espanol” speaking group would meet at Raíces, while Cerveceria Colorado would host “Juebes Social,” a social Spanish meetup every Thursday.
Cerveceria Colorado leaned into Mexican flavors like Tajin and chamoy on the rims of glasses that held mango- and guayaba-flavored beers. Raices, whose owner, Jose Beteta, was from Costa Rica, had a wider selection of beers, but the selection sometimes overlapped with that of Cerverceria.
Raíces was tucked in a quiet industrial corner in La Alma Lincoln Park behind the Zuni Power Plant, Burnham Yard, a Colfax Avenue overpass and the South Platte. The wide beer garden in the back was a nice plus, especially on the cooler days. It also led easily into the South Platte Trail and the Lakewood Gulch Trail heading off to the west, making it a perfect stop for cyclists.
Cerveceria, which was at 1635 South Platte Street, was in an area that felt more like downtown Denver and Highland (the neighborhood just above), with murals and modern apartments around it. Inside, it did a nice job making the Platte, which is a block away, feel like the Pacific, with a vibe that came pretty close to what you’d find beachside at Ensenada or Tijuana. It could satisfy a sweet tooth better than Raices, too, as it had more drinks inspired by Mexican confections like spicy candy and cocktails like micheladas.
On the busiest days at either of those, you could hear Spanish and English conversations fill the place, and the patrons were both Latinos and gringos looking to learn the language. They did a great job not just of bringing la cultura to Colorado, but blending it with Denver’s hip, cosmo style. There are few places like that downtown now that both are gone.
¡Adios, Amigos!
