Keep reading for more beer events coming up this week.
See also: South Park Brewing Will Offer a Welcome Watering Hole in the Highway 285 Corridor
Wednesday, September 17Epic Brewing is celebrating the one-year anniversary of its Denver taproom this week with a couple of events (it is also inviting patrons to use its Taproom Typewriter to leave a note, poem, or short essay about why they love Colorado; one lucky winner will get to brew a batch of Escape to Colorado IPA with our brewers). Today from 5 to 8 p.m., Epic will tap two special real-ale firkins of Escape to Colorado IPA; both were made by local homebrewers during the recent American Homebrewers Association Rally. The Roaming Bull Brasserie food truck will be selling tapas.
Copper Kettle Brewing will tap a firkin of Pomegranate Molasses Blonde today as part of its weekly cask program. CKrepes will be selling food starting at 3 p.m.
Friday, September 19
Diebolt Brewing will kick off a three-day celebration of its first anniversary today by tapping a few throwback beers along with a firkin of dry-hopped Mariposa. There will be live music from Calder's Revolvers at 7 p.m. and food from the Bakin' Bakery.
Lowry Beer Garden will strike up the band again this year for Oktoberfest, celebrating the German-style beer party. And this year, the spot's new sister location, Green Valley Ranch Beer Garden, will also celebrate. Odell Brewing will take over the taps today and tomorrow, from 5 to 9 p.m., pouring Oktoberfest Marzen, Odell 90 Shilling, Myrcenary, and 5 Barrel Pale Ale. There will also be Oom-Pah bands in the house -- not to mention Lowry's collection of brats and dogs. So, dust off your dirndl, polka shoes and lederhosen for this annual fall tradition. Anyone wearing the getup gets their first beer free.
Dry Dock Brewing will tap a cask of Lemon and Sage Saison at its original location today as part of its weekly Firkin Friday program. These specialty casks are tapped at 3 p.m.
Copper Kettle will tap Pumpkin Porter today. The beer is an English-style porter with pumpkin pie spices. Instagram alert: It will be served in baby pumpkins to the first fifty patrons.
Denver International Airport will debut a new, temporary beer garden called Beer Flights, in the center of the Jeppesen Terminal today. Featuring beers from eleven Colorado breweries, the garden will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. through October 4. Sponsored by the Colorado Lottery, it was designed to coincide with the Great American Beer Festival and the surrounding events, as well as various Oktoberfests. Admission is $10 and includes a souvenir glass, a bag of pretzels provided by Southwest Airlines, and access to ten two-ounce pours. The breweries are Avery, Breckenridge, Bristol, Dry Dock, Great Divide, Left Hand, New Belgium, Odell, Ska, Pug Ryan's and Telluride.
Check out the second annual Fortoberfest today (from 5 to 10:30 p.m.) and tomorrow (from 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.) in the Old Town Square in Fort Collins, a fall celebration honoring beer, bikes and bands. There will be a tent featuring beers from a dozen of the city's sixteen breweries, including New Belgium, Odell, Fort Collins Brewery, Black Bottle, Coopersmith's Brewery, along with Zwei Bruder and Snowbank Brewing Company, both of which are brand new. Guests will be able to build their sampler flights ($6 for four four-ounce pours) from the choices on hand. There will also be a variety of bike makers/retailers and bike-enthusiast groups at the fest, and live music from fourteen different bands on two stages.
Denver Oktoberfest returns to downtown for the 45th year this weekend and next, filling the Larimer Street at 21st with music, bier, brats and more than 500,000 people. The event runs today through Sunday, and again September 26-28. Highlights include: the 4th Annual Stein Hoisting Competition and Championship, Bratwurst Eating Contest, Keg Bowling, and the Long Dog Derby, a Dachshund race. Admission is free for all ages, but VIP Packages are available for purchase.
Saturday, September 20
Fiction Beer Company will open for business at 2 p.m. today, becoming one of the few breweries to find a spot on the city's east side. The beer menu will be limited, however, as the brewery works out the kinks (it will also open at 2 p.m. on Sunday). Fiction will then close for the week in advance of its grand opening at 2 p.m. on September 27, when it will serve its full beer menu.
Wit's End Brewing will celebrate its third anniversary from noon to 8 p.m. today with a party featuring at least thirteen beers on tap, including old favorites and new concoctions. There will also be raffles throughout the day -- for schwag, beer, and a set of Saturday afternoon GABF tickets -- and two food trucks, Pride of Philly Cheesesteaks and Bakin' Bakery. Check out the Facebook page for the beer list and other details.
"After 21 months of hustle and grit," Our Mutual Friend Malt & Brew is pausing to reflect on its evolution and thank its customers with the Gratitude party, running from 2 p.m. to midnight. Throughout the day, there will be special tappings, including a beer called Gratitude Dark Sour Ale, as well as live music, merchandise giveaways, and food from Pride of Philly and A Taste of the Philippines. Draft beers will be $3 all day and include: Proletariat Session Ale, American Wheat, IPA, Chinook Red Ale, Farmhouse, Brown Ale, Ritual Cocoa Nib Brown Ale, Novo Coffee Stout, Blackberry Sour, American Wild Ale, Fresh Hop IPA and Gratitude, which will also be sold in bottles. "We absolutely love making beer and don't take for granted the fact that we've had immeasurable support from an uncountable amount of people. We wouldn't exist without them," the brewery says. The party will also be the first opportunity to check out Tenth Acre, a new garden space where OMF will produce hops, fruits and vegetables next year that it plans to use in its beers.
The fourth annual Vine Street Uptown Neighborhood Block Party and Brewer's Olympics kicks off today at 1 p.m. at the Vine Street Pub, which will close down its namesake thoroughfare between 17th and 18th avenues. There will be a beer garden highlighting brews from the Mountain Sun/Vine Street group, as well as a dozen or more other local beer makers. Representatives from many of these breweries -- Mountain Sun, Avery, Breckenridge, Wynkoop, Prost, Jagged Mountain, River North, Upslope, Boulder Beer, Great Divide, Oskar Blues, Renegade -- will also complete in the Brewer's Olympics, 1 to 2:30 p.m., which includes events like the tricycle race, obstacle course and the yeast-filled balloon toss. Live music will start at 3:30 and continue all night; bands include Drunken Hearts and the Vine Street All-Stars. All proceeds benefit New Era Colorado.
Diebolt Brewing's third anniversary celebration continues today with a corn-hole tournament and several beer tappings, including Barrel-Aged Biergarten with Bourbon aged Imperial Stout, Cabernet aged Biere de Tromphe, Gin/Oak aged Saison Voila and Gin aged A Votre Sante. The Sandy-Bear Shack food truck will be on hand there will be live music from Hello Bourbon at 7 p.m.
Epic Brewing, which is celebrating the first anniversary of its Denver taproom this week, will tap three different cask-hopped versions of Escape to Colorado IPA at 1 p.m. Each firkin was packed with whole leaf hops and cellared. The varieties include Apollo, Amarillo, and Chinook with spruce tips.
In honor of the Autumnal Equinox, Odyssey Beerwerks in Arvada is holding Odtoberfest at the taproom. Starting at noon, you can enjoy beers -- Fresh Hop IPA, Guava Ale, Black Raspberry Schwarz and more -- along with food from Corner of Gourmet and Mile High Grub. There will also be live music starting at 1:30, prize drawing, games and more.
Colorado on Tap: The State of Brew Culture, a temporary exhibit at Denver International Airport, opens today in Ansbacher Hall, which is the pre-security walkway to the A Gates on level 6. Timed to coincide with Oktoberfest and the Great American Beer Festival, the exhibit "features an assortment of educational information and interesting artifacts from various participating Colorado craft breweries," according to the airport, which produced the show along with the Colorado Brewers Guild and Colorado Creative Industries. "Display cases will showcase a variety of craft brewery related items including growlers, pub glasses, specialty glassware, coasters, tap handles, t-shirts, bottles, cans and custom art created for beer labels. Visitors can learn about canning systems, ingredients and the brewing process." It will stay up through December.
Barrels & Bottles Brewery in Golden will toast its first anniversary today with a party starting at noon. The brewery will tap two limited releases: Raspberry Imperial Stout barrel aged in a Breckenridge Distillery bourbon barrel, and Juniperus Imperial IPA aged in an agave based based Gin barrel from Golden's State 38 Distilling. Other tappings during the day will include some beers made just for the party, like a tequila-infused lager with edible glitter from Wynkoop Brewing, a 1/2 barrel of AC Golden Brewing's Peche, and a collaboration beer with Strange Craft. There will also be special beers from Cannonball Creek, Russian River, CAUTION: Brewing, Copper Kettle, Yak & Yeti, The Bruery, Elevation Beer Co., Funkwerks, Odell, Deschutes and more. The Colorado Craft Beer Show will be broadcasting from noon to 2 p.m. on AM 760. There will be live music, free glassware to the first 100 people to order Barrels & Bottles Beer, giveaways, including free growlers, shirts and glassware.
Prost Brewing will welcome the Denver Broncos Cheerleaders today from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. as part of the brewery's annual Marzen Release Party, at which they will tap their first Oktoberfest keg of this beer. Wear your lederhosen and durndles.
Elitch Gardens' 2nd Annual Brew Festival takes place today inside the Elitch Arena with unlimited tastings from fifty different breweries from Colorado and rest of the country. Guests can enter and exit the Arena and enjoy the rest of the park as well. The fest takes place from noon to 5 p.m. (Elitch's is open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. today); tickets for both together are $45.99.
Loveland Oktoberfest takes place today from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Thunder Mountain Harley-Davidson. The free community festival kicks includes ten local craft breweries (like sponsor Grimm Brothers Brewhouse), a large assortment of food vendors, artisan and craft vendors, German style contests and other activities. Live music begins at 4 p.m. from live music from the Flobots, Proverbial and The Epilogues. Tickets for the evening concert start at $15 for students, $18 for pre-sale tickets and $20 at the door. A portion of event proceeds will benefit Colorado Youth Outdoors. For more information, go to LovelandOktoberfest.org.
Sunday, September 21
Avery Brewing will release a new high-alcohol, barrel-aged pumpkin beer beer today with the debut of Pump[KY]n, part of the Boulder brewery's Annual Barrel Series. This spiced spiced pumpkin porter weights in at 16 percent ABV. Bottle sales begin at the taproom at 1 p.m. and cost $12 per twelve-ounce bottle; there is no limit. Avery will also be tapping and selling several rare beers that day, starting at 11 a.m.
Diebolt Brewing will wrap up its three-day birthday celebration today by drinking whatever beer was left over from the previous day's tappings, serving Little Man Ice Cream Imperial Stout floats; Huckleberry Roasters Coffee Biere de Garde and turning on the Broncos/Seahawks game.
World of Beer will open its third Colorado location today (and its 63rd nationwide) downtown at 1555 Blake Street. The 4,100-square-foot spot is owned by WOB franchisee Jason Rappaport and has 65 employees. It has a 500-square-foot patio and features more than fifty rotating taps and 500 bottles. The WOB downtown is the fidrst in Colorado to also have a food menu, featuring a variety of comfort foods and traditional bar offerings like giant Bavarian pretzels, a Guinness "Brat" Slider and Chimay Burger.
Monday, September 22
Odell Brewing in Fort Collins will celebrate its 25th anniversary with beer/food/music events all week long. They start tonight with a kickoff party in the taproom, where there will be live music from The Seers, food trucks and some throwback beers.
Tuesday, September 23
Odell Brewing in Fort Collins celebrates its 25th anniversary in style from 6 to 9 p.m. tonight with the Silver Lining Soiree. The event includes live music from the Phuong & Friends Jazz Combo, small plates prepared by The Kitchen, Jay's Bistro, The Moot House, and The Welsh Rabbit Cheese Shop & Bistro, and pairings of some of Odell's rare, vintage, and Cellar Series offerings.The brewery will also unveil its 25th anniversary release: 180 Shilling. Tickets are a whopping $100, but they include all of that, plus a commemorative Teku glass and benefit the Food Bank for Larimer County.
For more events in September, turn the page. Wednesday, September 24
Odell Brewing officially releases its 25th anniversary beer, 180 Shilling, today with a party in the Fort Collins taproom. Jax Fish House will have its food truck out with guest chef Kevin Grossi from Lola in Denver. There will be live music from the Commoners. The 9.6 percent ABV beer is a play on Odell's flagship 90 Shilling. 180 is a double version of the recipe. It has a "hearty roasted malt base balanced by subtle earthy hops and aged on oak to create notes of toffee, plum, vanilla and dried cherry," Odell says.
Friday, September 26
Copper Kettle will tap its malty Oktoberfest today. There will also be German-inspired food on hand and a local band.
The two-day Longmont Oktoberfest returns today to Roosevelt Park. In addition to sponsor, Left Hand Brewing, the event will feature five other Longmont breweries, Oskar Blues, Pumphouse, 300 Suns, Grossen Bart, and Long's Peak. Oktoberfest begins with a bike parard that will usher kegs from local breweries to the park, where the first one will be tapped at 6 p.m. by Longmont Mayor Dennis Coombs, who is also the co-owner of the Pumphouse. There will be a Stein Holding Contest and live music Last Men on Earth as well as German costumes, food and fun.
Saturday, September 27
Fiction Beer Company will hold its grand opening today at 2 p.m. today, becoming one of the few breweries to find a spot on the city's east side.
Longmont Oktoberfest continues today at noon in Roosevelt Park with the town's six breweries on hand and various family-friendly activities. There will be a kids zone, local vendors, and live music featuring THUNK. At 3 p.m., fest organizers will begin to build the world's longest bratwurst in attempt to beat their 2013 record. Then they will grill the two hundred-foot-long bratwurst, made by Boulder Sausage, on site. Longmont Oktoberfest benefits the Left Hand Brewing Foundation, Safe Shelter of St. Vrain Valley, and A Precious Child.
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