Avery’s Sour Fest returns this weekend for its 6th iteration and it’ll be another tremendous showcase of both national and local pucker inducing gems. This year’s lineup features a monster haul of tremendous Avery sours, however there are also several rising breweries who will be showcasing strong talent that many likely haven’t tried before.

Must Try Risers

A few notable newcomers or underdogs, that you should absolutely venture out for: Grimm Brothers, it’s a bit puzzling why Grimm constantly gets overlooked, because they are consistently producing tremendous beer. Such is the case with their four year vertical of Once Upon a Time.

Powder Keg Brewing in Niwot has already garnered a bit of an underground following for their sour releases but still remains below the radar for many casual beer fans. That said, they are producing some of the best wild and sour beer in the state including Lettre Rouge and Fruitful Union which will both be on showcase Saturday.

One brewery that is well respected but may not get the hype it truly deserves is Paradox Brewing now out of Divide, CO. With a focus on barrel-aged wilds and sours Paradox has been cranking out gems and will have even more capacity to do so at their new facility. Tart Noire and Cerveza Provincial are the perfect example of their ascension to the next level.

We can’t rave enough about the beers coming from WeldWerks Brewing, just refer to yesterday’s brewery showcase for the full rundown, and while we haven’t actually tried their three sour fest blends, we’ve had Cherry Berliner and Black Cherry Gose so we know they can handle kettle sours.

However my biggest under the radar pick is another fellow Greeley brewery in Wiley Roots, who after a trip down to Jester King was inspired to begin their own wild and sour program. They’ve since been quietly cultivating a specialty Catacombs Series that stacks up against the best in subscription series beers. Don’t miss Montmorency Dreams.

The Bigguns

The great thing about Avery’s host of festivals is that you’ll also get a chance to re-visit some top tier national brands and already established premiere local brands who are already at the top of their game. This year is no different. While you should definitely explore some of the newcomers you can’t miss out on the likes of Black Project who’s rightfully medaled at back to back GABFs in the Experimental Wild Ales category. Casey Brewing and Blending will also be on hand with Oak Theory and Biere de Garde as will Crooked Stave with some specialty offerings. TRVE which has been able to increase their focus on growing their sour program will be on hand with their strong lineup of bottles released this year.

And of course you can’t forget about Allagash, New Belgium, Russian River, and The Lost Abbey who will all be bringing their titan sour lineups.

Tickets are currently sold out, however some last minute attendee schedule conflicts mean you might likely find tickets via the event Facebook page.

Here’s the initial lineup for this year’s 2016 Avery Sour Fest (keep in mind all beers on this lineup are subject to change)

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