Beer Calendar: Cannonball Creek Turns Seven; Black Shirt Toasts the Aussies

WeldWerks Brewing, which helped turn the oft-maligned city of Greeley into a worldwide beer destination over the past four years, said this week that it raised $50,000 last June during the WeldWerks Invitational, a two-year-old event that has already become one of the must-attend beer festivals in Colorado.

The money will be distributed to thirteen local charities: A Woman’s Place, Brigit’s Bounty, Envision, the Greeley Dream Team, Greeley-Evans School District 6, Habitat for Humanity, Immigration & Refugee Center of Northern Colorado, LifeStories, NOCO Veterans Resource Center, Partners Mentoring Youth, Turn Around Bikes, the Weld County Food Bank and United Way of Weld County.

The brewery also said that tickets for the third annual WeldWerks Invitational will go on sale February 8 via Eventbrite. The event will include more than 45 of the country’s best breweries

Keep reading to see craft-beer events into early February.

Thursday, January 16
Jagged Mountain Craft Brewery will tap two new beers at noon. The first is Breakfast in Belgium, a Belgian-style barleywine made with vanilla, maple syrup and fifty pounds of Belgian Waffles from Waffle Brothers. The second beer is London Calling, a light and malty English-style ESB.

Great Divide Brewing will tap High Fives and Hanging Out, a 3.5 percent ABV Belgian table stout at both locations. The beer is a collaboration with Durango's Ska Brewing and was made for the Big Beers, Belglians and Barleywines Festival, which took place last weekend in Breckenridge. Although most of the beers at that festival are high in alcohol, this one highlights the lower ABV tradition and was brewed with professional beer people in mind — those who needed a break in between the 10 percent stouts they were drinking.

Lone Tree Brewing taps a 6.9 percent ABV Black IPA at noon. "This IPA has full hop flavor with piney, stone fruit and resinous tasting notes, complemented by a subdued chocolate and coffee flavors, and an earthy hop aroma," the brewery says. Black IPAs aren't all that common anymore, so this is your chance.

Friday, January 17
Black Shirt Brewing will host a small fundraiser, Bevvies for Ozzies, to assist the people and animals of Australia as they continue to fight devastating wildfires. "Along with so many of you, we have watched as bushfires continue to ravage the country of Australia, displacing thousands of residents and forever altering the flora and fauna of that region," the brewery says. "As Coloradans, we know all too well the devastation that wildfires can leave in their wake." As such, the brewery will donate $1 from every pour of Safety Greeting IPA to the National Bushfire Disaster Appeal in Australia.

Join Cerebral Brewing for the release of a new IPA called Intentionally Blank. Made with Mosaic in the whirlpool and dry-hopped with Nelson Sauvin, Idaho 7 & Sabro, the 7.2 percent ABV beer has "notes of cedar and candied pineapple," the brewery said. It will be on draft and in cans to go. Cerebral will also have fresh cans of Rare Trait, its flagship 6.4 percent AVB IPA.

POSTPONED UNTIL SATURDAY: Hops & Pie will host a tap takeover by Missouri's Perennial Artisan Ales starting at 11:30 a.m. They will be pouring Abraxas, Vanilla Bean Abraxas, Coffee Abraxas, Long Descent, Sanctuary Fog and Saison Di Lis.

Are you missing summer? If so, then Summa Summa Time is here from Next Stop Beer Company/Intrepid Sojourner. The 6.7 percent ABV IPA is packed full of summery flavors from Azacca, Apollo, Cashmere, Pacific Jade and Lemondrop hops, the brewery says.

Odyssey Beerwerks will tap Sweet Stout O Mine at 2 p.m. This 5 percent ABV oatmeal milk stout is described by the brewery as follows: "velvety smooth ribbons of dark chocolate dance together with creamy oatmeal sweetness and subtle roasted malts to create a rich, medium-bodied, extremely drinkable beer."

Wiley Roots Brewing in Greeley will release a couple of new beers today. The first is Wiley IPA, an "unfiltered," or hazy-looking, IPA that was dry-hopped with Simcoe, Amarillo and Cascade. "The IPA combines recipe design and hopping techniques used in both East Coast IPAs and West Coast IPAs to create a hop-forward beer that pulls elements from both styles," the brewery says. It will be Wiley Roots's new flagship IPA. Along with Wiley IPA, the brewery will release Strawberry Sunshine Sparkle, a Milkshake IPA collaboration with Knotted Root Brewing in Nederland. Brewed with strawberry purée, milk sugar and vanilla, the beer was dry-hopped with Citra and Vic Secret. Wiley Roots will also have new cans of Cinnamonstah, an imperial stout with cinnamon, vanilla and graham cracker; Mean Beans, an imperial stout with coffee and caramel; Wooden Spoon & Whisk Peanut Butter Toffee Brittle, an Imperial milk stout with peanut flour, toffee and milk sugar; and Guy on a Buffalo Episode 2, a bourbon-barrel-aged imperial stout collaboration with Mile High Wine & Spirits.

Saturday, January 18
The Beer, Bacon & Coffee Fest is back at Denver Beer Co.'s Olde Town Arvada location for its third year in a row; it takes place both Saturday and Sunday, from 8:30 to 11 a.m. Tickets are $45 at denverbeerco.com and include a big breakfast burrito, unlimited Coda coffee, and "as much bacon as we can cook up and you can fit in your belly," the brewery says. "You will also receive a souvenir Denver Beer Co. coffee mug to fill with all the breakfast-inspired brews you can drink in 2.5 hours."

River North Brewery brings Super Stout Saturday back to its Washington Street taproom at noon. A wide variety of the brewery's rich, high-ABV stouts will be available on tap and in bottles. The G Wagon will have food.

Did you miss the first Ratio Beerworks bottle release of 2019 Bourbon Barrel-Aged Coconut Vanilla Genius Wizard Imperial Stout? Well, guess what? It's back. Starting at noon, the brewery will release one final batch of this beer in 375ml bottles. There are a limited number of bottles, but the beer will also be served on draft. BA Genius Wizard "is brewed with copious amounts of base malt, specialty grains with the addition of molasses, then barrel-aged for twelve months to produce subtle sweet vanilla and oak forward flavors," Ratio says.

Hops & Pie will host a tap takeover by Missouri's Perennial Artisan Ales starting at 11:30 a.m. They will be pouring Abraxas, Vanilla Bean Abraxas, Coffee Abraxas, Long Descent, Sanctuary Fog and Saison Di Lis.

Cannonball Creek Brewery in Golden hosts a two-day celebration of its seventh anniversary beginning at noon. There will be special tappings, a food truck both days, live music and a photo booth.

Friday, January 24
Hogshead Brewing hosts the 2020 version of Hogshead Days, its celebration of big and dark beers. You'll find everything from a Russian imperial stout to bourbon-barrel-aged old ales, a Baltic porter, a barleywine and numerous English-style cask ales. Hogshead opens at noon.

"Back when all of the other brewers were recovering from GABF, our brewers teamed up with California's Bagby Beer to make a smooth, malty, and delicious dark Czech lager" known as a t/mavy. That's the word from Bierstadt Lagerhaus, which will unveil this rare collaboration beer during a release party starting at 5 p.m. There will be Prague-inspired food, live music by God Jammit, a pop-up clothing shop by Crazy Concepts.

Platt Park Brewing is finally releasing its two most popular beers in sixteen-ounce cans. Madagascar Dream is a nitro cream ale brewed with Madagascar vanilla. "This beer has been the number-one-selling beer in our tasting room since the day it was released," the brewery says. The second beer is Tropical Snow Dance, a 7.1 percent ABV West Coast IPA brewed with 100 percent mosaic hops and pale malt.

Bruz Beers will tap two new beers at its new Bruz Off Fax location at Colfax Avenue and York Street; they are the first two creations from former Ursula Brewery brewer Dave Olson, who is now with Bruz, and collaborations with Jensen Cummings and his Good Bugs Fermentation Project. The two beers both came from the same base, which was brewed with barley, spelt and flaked oats and then  heavily hopped with Huell Mellon and Hallertau Blanc. Have was then fermented with saison yeast; called La Reine, it has notes of "pears, green grape skins, and honeydew melons up front with background phenolics of white pepper, and hay," the brewery says. The second half, called Le Renne, was fermented with Kviek yeast; "this one has an even fruitier nose with orange marmalade, cantaloupe, pears and green grapes," Bruz says.  "With the same hopping schedule as La Reine, this one is more like an American IPA-style beer." Try them both, side by side.

Black Project Wild & Spontaneous Ales hosts its big January can and bottle release starting at 2 p.m. There will be two sixteen-ounce cans: Magic Lantern, a spontaneously fermented wheat sour made with blood orange, guava and passion fruit; and Jumpseat, a dry-hopped blended sour golden ale that was previously only sold in bottles. And speaking of bottles, Black Project will have five of those. Go to the Facebook page for details.

Westfax Brewing brings back Life Hack, its our 8.1 percent ABV double hazy IPA, brewed with Mosaic, Pacifica, and Zythos hops, which produce "decadent and juicy notes of pineapple, mango, and papaya," the Lakewood brewery says. Life Hack will be available in sixteen-ounce four-packs and on draft.

Saturday, January 25
The Makin' Noise collaboration beer project is back after a hiatus with several new beers that were brewed to raise money for causes and charities that are particularly at risk right now. Odyssey Beerwerks in Arvada will tap a pale ale made with Goldspot Brewing brewed with Troubadour Maltings Serenade Malt, yeast from Propagate Lab and Cashmere, El Dorado and Lotus hops. One dollar from every pint sold from will go to Epic Experience, to help with its mission of empowering adult cancer survivors and thrivers.

Diebolt Brewing releases David Frambowie Raspberry Quick-Sour in cans and on draft. "The second installment in our notable people quick-sour series (Charlie Blackberry was the first), David Frambowie was soured over five days with Lactobacillus bacteria, primary fermented with French saison yeast, and finally dosed with a massive amount of Raspberry puree in secondary," the brewery says. Diebolt will be jamming out to David Bowie tunes all day long. Cyndy's Foodlishus food truck will be outside.

The Denver stop of the Winter Brew Fest takes place at Mile High Station from 1 to 10 p.m., with two different ticketed sessions and more than 100 beers, ciders and other beverages from forty breweries. There will be food trucks, live music and an indoor/outdoor section. For tickets, $40 to $60, and much more information, go to the event's Facebook page.

Dry Dock Brewing hosts Can Bash starting at noon in honor of National Can Appreciation Day. There will be a wide variety of games, including a can shooting range with Nerf guns, Can Hockey, Giant Twister, and of course, Can Smash. There will also be live music from DJ Em, and a Mexican food truck (cash only) until 5 p.m. and Crock Spot Food Truck until 7 p.m.

Verboten Brewing in Loveland brings back its annual Stout Fest by once again tapping more than twenty different stouts at 11 a.m. These include small-batch releases, barrel-aged beers and fun/crazy taproom-only releases. Purchase tickets and glassware in advance by calling 970-775-7371.

Wednesday, January 29
Stout Month is just two days away, and this year, Mountain Sun director of brewing operations John Fiorilli and his team are hosting an event from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Vine Street Pub so that you can sample some of the best and most unusual Mountain Stouts you'll see on tap at all five locations throughout February. "Learn the origins of this stout-rageous style of beer and the history of Stout Month at the Mountain Sun," the company says. There will be seven beer samples along with seven heavy passed appetizers created by Chef Forrest Bayne. Tickets are $50 and are extremely limited. Get them at Vine Street Pub (and get a free pint for every ticket purchased).

Saturday, February 1
Vine Street Pub and the Mountain Sun group of restaurants and breweries will kick off their 27th annual Stout Month in Denver, Boulder and Longmont. At least 36 Mountain Sun stouts will be showcased, including 48 Smooth Chai Stout, Coconut Cream Stout, Addition Imperial Coffee Stout, Nihilist Russian Imperial Stout, Chocolate Dip Stout and Space Odyssey Stout. There will also be barrel-aged stouts like Rye Whiskey Barrel-Aged Addition Imperial Coffee Stout, Chocolate Thunder Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Chocolate Milk Stout, and Pinot Noir Barrel-Aged Nihilist Russian Imperial Stout. In addition, stout offerings from other Colorado breweries will rotate through the taps. The pub group operates the Mountain Sun, Southern Sun and Under the Sun locations in Boulder, as well as Denver's Vine Street Pub and Longmont's Longs Peak Pub.

Baere Brewing brings back Bring the Greenback, a special beer its releases once a year in bottles. "This beer was quick soured with our house lactobacillus culture and fermented in stainless with a mixed culture of yeast and bacteria," the brewery says. "It was aged on emergent green englemann spruce tips foraged from Southern Colorado.This limited-release table sour celebrates the rebirth of a rare Colorado native, the Greenback Cutthroat Trout. Until recently, the true Greenback could only be found in Bear Creek, but aggressive recovery efforts are underway to put our state fish back into its native waters within the headwaters of the South Platte."  Proceeds from each bottle will be put towards Greenback Cutthroat Trout projects by the Colorado-based non-profit Running Rivers. There will also be a Valentines' Craft Market at the brewery.

Wednesday, February 5
Today is World Nutella Day (as if you didn't already know), and the Brewability Lab in Englewood is serving up Nutella-rimmed porters and complimentary Nutella cookies.

Friday, February 7
It's First Friday on Tennyson Street, and that means a new beer at Empourium Brewing. This time it's the Nightman Cometh Schwarzbier, a smooth and roasty dark lager. Little Red's Kitchen will have food.

It's time for Snowed In Cherry at Copper Kettle Brewing, which will tap this annual barrel-aged oatmeal stout when it opens at noon. The beer, made with cherries and chocolate, will also be available in 19.2-ounce cans.

Saturday, February 8
Black Project Wild & Spontaneous Ales celebrates its sixth anniversary with a party starting at 4 p.m. In addition to special hourly beer tappings, there will be limited giveaways and more.

Ursula Brewing will release 180 Gram Barrel Aged Imperial Stout at noon, along with several variants, and pair them all with Girl Scout Cookies. Also a local troop will be selling cookies from noon to 2 p.m. at the brewery.

Send beery information to [email protected].