GABF First Night’s Recap

Admittedly I should be at a beer brunch right now.  Thats not happening.  Last night spiraled out of control real fast as most GABFs usually do.  Now I sit here … Read More

Waste your time at the Great American Beer Festival: The Strong Ale Route

The Great American Beer Festival has so much to offer. Below is a tasting from all over the country of exceptional beer. There’s just one problem: this route is a strong beer tasting. Though beer is poured one ounce at a time, these little droplets will mess you up. Honestly, I would not recommend tasting all of these in the same day but the options are available … well, maybe. I cannot guarantee these beers will be poured, but these are popular, so there’s a chance. Read More

GABF Sour, Hoppy, and Rare Beer Routes

We are literally hours away from the opening bagpipes sounding at GABF so we decided to condense a brief round up of which Sour, Hoppy and Rare beers to look for at the event.  Also be sure to follow us on Twitter at @PorchDrinkingCO or check back at 6 Mountain, 8 Eastern for a live blog from the event!

Sours- You know that kid that always had a steady cache of Warheads back in the 90s?  This is exactly the kind of beers they’d be taking.  You ready to pucker up? Read More

Rocky Mountain Great American Beer Festival Regional Breakdown

Rocky Mountain (CO, ID, MT, NV, UT, WV)

And alas we have finally arrived at the Rocky Mountain Regional Breakdown!  We’ll admit we’re a little biased as most of our staff is based in Denver or Boulder but the Rocky Mountain region boasts a tremendous assortment of fantastic brews.  There are the big dogs like Avery, Great Divide, New Belgium, Oskar Blues, Odell and there are also amazing up and comers like Copper Kettle, Elevation, Grimm Brothers, Renegade, and River North.

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GABF Eve Tristan’s Note

Hey there fellow porch dwellers new and old!  So nice of you to join us once again.  My friends and I started this site three months ago with the general interest in writing about beer, music, sports and pop culture.  Long term, perhaps two or three years down the road we had the goal of building something influential enough to receive press passes to the Great American Beer Festival.  Well that goal was kinda achieved two or three years early.

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A first-timer’s experience at Great American Beer Festival

I walked into the largest room I’ve ever been in and it was empty. As the volunteer group started to move about the Convention Center floor, I just stopped to take it in. I made it to the Great American Beer Festival.

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GABF Fancy Cork Route

Contributed by Cori Flinchbaugh the Draft Wench

Ok, so you’re going to the Great American Beer Festival but there are now over 2,000 beers to choose from, what do you do? I usually suggest to first timers to pick a beer style or two (IPA, Belgian, Porters or Stouts, Fruit Beers, Sour Beers) and stick to it.

If you don’t know what style to choose or are looking for something fun and different, a friend and I came up with “Fancy Cork Night.”  We go around and drink only beers that come in 750 ml bottles (Russian River has smaller ones too) usually with a fancy cork and cage. These beers are typically “Seasonal/Specialty or Sour.” It’s kind of like a delicious scavenger hunt.

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New Belgium Brewing Company- Fort Collins, CO

New Belgium Brewery was where it all began. It was in those same recycled bike framed bar stools in New Belgium’s tap room that I first embarked on my own journey into craft beer.

Virtually every Friday afternoon my buddy Cody and I would duck out a bit early and delve into the wide world of brew. It was here that I discovered my first sour. What the hell?! This beer, La Folie tastes like liquefied shock tarts! How is this possible?!

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Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and New England GABF Regional Breakdown

Today we continue our regional coverage by breaking down the Mid-Atlantic and New England Regions.  All of these are smaller regions which is why we decided to group them all together, however what they do have to offer packs a punch.  With the likes of Ommegang, DogFish Head, Surly, Boston Beer and Allagash, these are can’t miss regions!

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Pacific Great American Beer Festival Regional Breakdown

Pacific (CA, HI)

The Pacific region boasts one of the most impressive lineups of breweries at the fest.  One could really spend an entire session in this region alone.  We were able to find out what several of these breweries will be pouring!

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PorchDrinking’s GABF Dining Guide

Whether it’s your first time in Denver or you’re hosting friends from out of town, it’s not easy choosing from the bevy of amazing dining options available. We’re here to help. Continuing our Great American Beer Festival Preview, here’s our picks for the best food in Denver. There’s no shortage of options available, but we chose to highlight the top 5 spots for each category below.

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Oskar Blues Brewing Company | Longmont, CO

I mentioned in a previous article that Wynkoop Brewery is essentially the antithesis of what people expect of a microbrewery. Large, sometimes cavernous confines that house much more than just a bar and gathering area. Well, if Wynkoop is on one edge of the spectrum, Oskar Blues Brewery is on the other. Read More

GABF Denver Beer Bars Guide

Coming to town for the Great American Beer Festival is about more than just the festival itself.  It involves local breweries, restaurants, the city of Denver, and beer bars.  We decided to break down some of the local Denver beer bars that you may want to check out just in case you couldn’t already find enough beer.

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Southeast Great American Beer Festival Regional Breakdown

Southeast (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN)

Don’t count out the southeast region just because it doesn’t boast a tremendous beer history.  This region is an up and comer.  With Cigar City anchoring the field and two solid showings out of Lexington, KY, the southeast has the opportunity to make major in roads in the brewing community in the near future.

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Renegade Brewery – Denver, CO

Renegade Brewery could be one of the best breweries in the city of Denver that non-residents may have never heard of. Brian O’Connell’s brew laboratory specializes in taking traditional styles and adding one twist to completely differentiate their beers from the rest. Even their flagship Ryetous refuses to conform to the base line IPA category with it being a rye IPA. “There is no theme to our style other than being creative without going completely off the wall,” said O’Connell.

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Southwest Great American Beer Festival Regional Breakdown

The Southwest – land of Mexican food, cactus, and hot weather. There is nothing more perfect than beer to cool the heat. With a growing craft beer scene, the southwest has been cranking out award winning beer. Here our a few breweries and what they will be pouring  at the Great American Beer Festival.
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River North Brewery- Denver, CO

River North Brewery opened a little over six months ago, specializing in Belgian style ales. I happen to specialize in drinking Belgian style ales, so RiNo quickly became a favorite local brewery. Scratch that, a favorite anywhere brewery. Read More

The Official PorchDrinking.com Presidential Debate Drinking Game

Tonight, the two men running for President will go head-to-head in Denver for a televised debate on domestic policy issues. According to the latest popular vote polling, it’s a dead heat (although according to the electoral vote, it’s already a landslide). While this campaign is not as exciting as the “Hope-And-Change,” “I-Can-See-Russia-From-My-House” quotes of 2008, the presidential debate tonight promises us a unique opportunity to see democracy in action and discern the ideological rifts between our candidates and our nation.
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Pacific Northwest GABF Regional Breakdown

Pacific Northwest (AK, OR, WA)

The Pacific Northwest – land of salmon, mass-consumer coffee, towering evergreens, and rocky, rainy coast lines. And, not surprisingly, a rich craft beer community. From the rugged mountains of Alaska, to the coastline communities of the Puget Sound to fixie riding hipsters of West Burnside, the Pacific Northwest offers up some of the Nation’s most recognized craft beer names with new breweries continuing to pop up in small towns and large cities alike. Here are our favorites that we’ll be attending at the Great American Beer Festival.
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Odell Brewing Company- Fort Collins, CO

One overcast September day, Odell Brewing harkened me to the Mecca of craft brewing, Fort Collins, for a few cozy tasters in their amazing taproom. As Lee Holliday and the Time Off crooned scintillating blues for the live music night, I admired the walls, embellished with huge rich oil paintings of their highly recognized and highly revered microbrews: Cut Throat Porter, Easy Street Wheat, Levity Amber, IPA, and of coarse 90 Shilling.
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