The brewery, located at 5535 West 56th Avenue in Arvada, may have started the adults-only policy during the pandemic, but the debate about having children in the brewery began well before COVID hit. “Two different times I watched toddlers walking between the cars, and their parents had to grab them by the arm because a car was flying by,” says Chris Hill, who owns Odyssey with his wife, Deana. “Where we’re located, there are fleet-based businesses on [both sides of us]."
Not everybody gets that, or accepts it. Despite having dozens of breweries within ten minutes of Odyssey that allow children, most of the negative reviews that it has received recently stem from the policy. In fact, several reviews allude to the brewery making a terrible financial decision.
Odyssey Beerwerks has received plenty of pushback on its adults-only policy.
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“Our customer base loves it,” adds Chris.
But what do the numbers say? “Sundays, which were always the most family-oriented day, they are up 50 percent,” says Chris. “If our business fell by 25-30 percent, we would look and figure out why, and if it was kids, we’d allow kids again. But it’s literally been the opposite.”
One story in particular sums up how Odyssey's customers seem to feel about the decision: “We were pouring at the Taste of Arvada,” says Chris, "and a couple asks us when we’re going to get rid of the no-kid policy. And I said, as far as I knew, we weren’t going to get rid of it in that location. We’re probably going to keep it. And they said, 'I guess we won’t come. We won’t be back anymore.' I told them that I was sorry to hear that, but maybe they could come for a date night. And they said, 'Yeah, we’re not coming back,' and they left."
Chris continues, "The couple behind them, both of their eyes lit up and they were smiling ear to ear, and they said, 'You don’t allow children?' And we said nope. And they asked where our brewery was, and I’ve seen that couple many times since.”
While the brewery may not allow children, it is certainly a place where one you summon your inner child. Recently, Odyssey bought an aluminum track from Facebook Marketplace and hosted a pinewood derby tournament. Unlike the wooden tracks of the past, the aluminum one that Odyssey used is a bit more high-tech and includes digital timers that display the finishing order and time for each lane.
The customer base came out strong for the event, with over twenty cars submitted. “It was really fun seeing the designs people came up with,” says Deana. “People went all out.” The derby awarded prizes in several categories, and was judged by a trio that included Colorado Brewers Guild director Shawnee Adelson.
As the brewery prepared for its tenth anniversary, a new can design rolled out earlier this year. Early in the pandemic, Odyssey had a lot of beer in the fermenters so, like many breweries, it scrambled to get beer into to-go packaging. “We reached out to some of our friends,” says Chris. “We needed can labels, and we asked if anybody would help us out. A surprising number of people responded, doing labels for us pro bono.”
One of the people who helped was Gili Wolf from BigBad Industries. Chris and Deana liked Wolf's work so much, they tapped her to do the recent rebranding. The new design is playful and folksy, and the team hopes that will help their product stand out better on crowded shelves in liquor stores. The can rebrand, combined with bringing sales and distribution in-house, is a way for Odyssey to better compete in the marketplace.
To celebrate a decade in business, the brewery is throwing a party May 19-21. Throughout the weekend, a host of new beers will be tapped, and the styles really run the gamut. From Helles of a Time (German helles), to Fluffy Lemon Bar Cream Ale, to a barrel-aged quintuple collaboration with Woods Boss and an experimental lager collaboration with Aurora’s Launch Pad, Odyssey has a lot in store for those who are coming out for the event.
There will also be a drag queen brunch, which, along with drag bingo, is something the brewery has done since 2016. Food trucks will be in tow for the weekend bash, too, with Seasoned Swine on May 19, El Jefe’s and El Turkito on May 20 and Crepes de Soissons on May 21.
As for the ever-divisive children-in-the-brewhouse debate, Chris just wishes everyone could respect each other a little bit more and get along. He and Deana have also been searching for a second location. “If we find another location that’s more conducive to retail, we’ll allow kids,” says Chris.
