I purposefully did not discuss Colorado and Denver area breweries in my
Great American Beer Festival round-up because it is a brewing scene worthy of an altogether separate post.

First up is Strange Brewing, situated in the back corner of an industrial park in the shadow of Mile High Stadium. This little hangout is reminiscent of Bootlegger’s Brewery in Orange County. A long list of eclectic styles and beers. They brew a rosemary IPA by the name of Zora that was my favorite of their massive 9-beer sampler tray. They also do a cherry porter that’s packed with flavor, if a bit heavy on cherry pie sweetness.

Prost Brewing overlooks the freeway and this LoDo adjacent, German style brewery has a great space inside and out. A fun place to enjoy beer with fellow beer lovers and the communal picnic tables. Their pilsner was the best of their offerings and would be a welcome beer here in Los Angeles because we have no brewery doing that particular style on a regular basis.

Close by is Denver Beer Co.. I did not make it to their tap room but I did sample two of their beers inside the festival hall and one (Kaffir Lime Wheat) was one of my top three GABF brews. They also had a really cool booth with a metal sculpture like arch with their name at the top. This is on top of my list of breweries to visit next trip to GABF.

Lastly, Renegade Brewing is just south of the convention center near a residential area. They have a cool corner location reminiscent of what you would see in Portland. They too brew a lot of styles. Their triple IPA, Elevation, punched through my tired palate and made me sit up and take notice. It was so good that I bought a bottle of their barrel-aged version too, Elevated Wood.

You could easily have sat down in the Colorado section of GABF and happily enjoyed beer sample after beer sample. The scene is varied so you would not get bored at all. And I haven’t even mentioned the rising stars of the area, Crooked Stave and Funkwerks. Check out the Colorado Brewer’s Guild for further information.

Your Beer of the Week comes not from Colorado but from California, Triple Voodoo and it is called Inception. The website describes it as an ale”not brewed in traditional Belgian style like traditional Trappist ales. Inception is bright and clear with a sharp alcohol note in the beginning and an added twist of black currant in the center of the flavor profile. The beer finishes clean and has a solid malty backbone. This unique flavor profile was achieved using a special hop varietal. The high hop load also makes it reminiscent of an IPA and gives it that unique California characteristics.”

Your Homework is to create your own list of must see breweries. After the Great American Beer Festival, my list grew and grew. And with the holiday travel season approaching, it would behoove you to know where you will be going after touching down at whichever airport you land in. For example, I will be heading to Portland this month. I have The Commons down as my first in line. In New York, it is a repeat visit to Brooklyn Brewery that tops my list.

Find more of Sean Inman’s writing on his blog, Beer Search Party.