Colorado Beer Beat | Bi-Weekly Beer Release Guide 3/25

Welcome to the Colorado Beer Beat, a bi-weekly roundup of all of the new can releases around the state. From Denver to Grand Junction, and everywhere in between, we have you covered. Be sure to check back on Thursdays to find out what’s new in the Colorado beer scene.

With March Madness in full swing this week, you’re undoubtedly going to be spending more time in front of a screen watching the games play out. What better than a tasty new beer to help calm your nerves as you panic about whether your parlay is going to hit (We all know you have no idea what you’re doing betting on sports)? Well luckily for you, you’ve come to the right place! Take a look down below to see what’s new this week, you never know what’s being brewed up next.
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Funkwerks | Barrel Aged Provincial

Funkwerks has been brewing Belgian-inspired beer and doing their part to “keep Fort Collins Funky” since 2010. They have managed to simultaneously be one of Colorado’s rising stars and maintain a Fort Collins hidden-gem vibe. While possibly best known for their flagship Saison, their GABF Gold Medal-winning Raspberry Provincial Sour Ale is also a crowd favorite from their core line up. Its popularity led them to create multiple variants, featuring other fruits such as pineapple, guava, passionfruit, apricot and strawberry rhubarb. The Rhuberry Provincial — the strawberry rhubarb variant — was the lucky liquid they put into a barrel to create Barrel Aged Provincial.
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Sour Series: Yazoo Brewing | Trio (Batch #2)

Brandon Jones is no stranger to barrel-aging and storytelling, using both his words and beer as the medium. Jones is a brewer, beer blender and self-proclaimed “funk wrangler” at Yazoo Brewing, one of the godfathers of the Nashville’s craft beer scene. When Brandon isn’t wrangling funk, he’s sharing recipes on his blog, EmbracetheFunk.com, where he talks about spontaneous fermentation, wild yeast and bacteria—all of what give wild ales their unique and “sour” profiles. On Embrace the Funk, Brandon states his modest goal of making the world of sour beers a bit more approachable.

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Colorado Beer Beat | Bi-Weekly Beer Release Guide 2/11

Welcome to the Colorado Beer Beat, a bi-weekly roundup of all of the new can releases around the state. From Denver to Grand Junction, and everywhere in between, we have you covered. Be sure to check back on Thursdays to find out what’s new in the Colorado beer scene.

Now that we’re well into stout month, have you found any new favorites? With Valentine’s Day and Mardi Gras this weekend, there are some “can’t miss” options being released. Take a look down below, and see what you’ll find. Maybe you’ll pick up some Baked Epiphany from Cerebral, or a crowler of Heart Shaped Box from Denver Beer Company…or both. I won’t judge.

If you’re looking for a way to finally get out of the house, why not head over to Briar Common? They’ve got a 3-course Valentine’s Day dinner that includes a beer pairing. Sounds like the perfect way to spend Valentine’s day with the beer lover in your life! They only have a few spots left, so make sure to make your reservation today.

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Dry January? Here’s How You Can Still Support Your Favorite Breweries

January is often a popular month for craft beer drinkers to take some time off from the “hobby.” It’s important to be able to do so and to drink in amounts where you’re comfortable. We recently offered 30 Reasons Why You Should Skip Dry January in 2021, but if you are taking the time completely off, you can still help your local breweries. Read More

What We’re Drinking | January 8, 2021

We’re back and well-rested, yet somehow exhausted, from all of the holiday hustle and bustle and time commitments. While 2020 is officially behind us — good riddance — 2021 isn’t exactly off to the best start it could be. In spite of weather and events on the national stage, the beer industry is still staying afloat despite pandemic shutdowns. That does not mean everyone, and that does not mean thriving. Dry January is popular for many “influencers” and eager resolution starters, but do what you can to continue supporting local. Buy shirts, hats and other merch or gift cards to use at a later date. Grab a beer or browse some online shops while checking out What We’re Drinking. 

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Ultimate 6er | The Bounty Hunters Hunt Down Great Beer

Bounty Hunters may like to consume more than Blue Milk. It’s also possible they enjoy some mystical ale fermented on Endor with its unique natural yeast and microbiota that must add a unique flavor to the ale not seen on planet Earth. The Bounty Hunters fill Star Wars lore and their stories have given us fantasy and fascination with the likes of characters such as the Mandalorian. Freelance Bounty Hunters must enjoy our planet’s exquisite craft beer on special occasions (never when piloting their aircraft!) and this is what we have chosen based on their backgrounds and personality. For the uneventful weekday an easy-drinking Lager, such as the Big Yellow Truck by Territorial Brewing, might commonly be found in the bounty hunter ships in the beer fridge or cooler.

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Crooked Stave | Scoville Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout

In a saturated Denver craft beer market, Crooked Stave has managed to remain a standout brand for a decade. They’ve recently chosen to move out of the River North Art District and return to their brewing roots in the up-and-coming Sunnyside neighborhood with a recently refreshed taproom. They also recently added a satellite location about an hour outside of Denver up the road in Fort Collins.

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Strong BA Series | Epic Brewing Sextuple Barrel Big Bad Baptist Imperial Stout

Some people call this magical time of year the holiday season. People who read this website probably know it more as Stout Season. But at Epic Brewing, it’s Baptist Season. And this year, they went big.

Epic Brewing, originating in Utah, is famous for being the state’s first brewery since prohibition to solely brew beer with a “high” alcohol content. Now, in Utah, that means something different than you’re probably thinking: Back in 2009 when Epic was founded, the Beehive State considered any beer above 4.0% ABV to be a “strong brew” and restricted those sales to state-run liquor stores (they’ve now increased that maximum up to 5.0%, those daredevils). But Epic Brewing didn’t just make strong beer by Utah standards; like most kids with strict parents, they rebelled and started making strong beer. Thus, in 2011, their Big Bad Baptist series was born: A Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout with coffee that was such a hit, the brewery turned it into an annual tradition and introduces new variants each year during Baptist Season.

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Strong BA Series | Foothills Brewing Coffee Infused BA Sexual Chocolate Imperial Stout

In an industry which has been largely built around the search for the new and exciting, it can be refreshing to revisit some of the beers and breweries which blazed the trails for the modern day. Foothills Brewing, based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is a perfect example not only of one of these foundational companies, but also of one which has done an amazing job of staying relevant and responsive to the modern craft beer drinker. Perhaps none of their brews illustrates this better than their Coffee Infused Bourbon Barrel-Aged Sexual Chocolate, one of the state’s most anticipated yearly releases.

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Strong BA Series | Bottle Logic Fundamental Observation

We all remember the first time we waited in an exceptionally long line for an exceptionally small pour of a notable beer. On a sunny SoCal day in May 2015, at The Bruery’s 7th Anniversary party, a beer from local upstart Bottle Logic Brewing named Fundamental Observation showed up like Lindsay Lohan as the new queen bee of The Plastics. An explosion of vanilla followed by the soft cuddle of high-end bourbon barrels, this beer was a delicious needle in the four hours of unlimited tastings haystack. With the next public release of this beer came a block-spanning line, providing a delicious 8oz reward for an hour of your time, and the first memory of waiting in extended anticipation for a single draught of excellence. Read More

Previewing Revolution Brewing’s 4th Deep Wood Release

A drier, barrel-focused release is the theme in Revolution Brewing’s 4th Deep Wood release of 2020 with three different beer styles hitting cans this weekend.

With the last two releases featuring adjuncts like cherries, maple, and honey, the release of Mineshaft Gap, Ryeway to Heaven, and Double Barrel V.S.O.D. go quite a different direction in the December Deep Wood installment.

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Strong BA Series | Off Color Brewing Barrel-Aged Dino S’mores

Barrel, chocolate, marshmallow all packaged up in Off Color Brewing’s notable 250ml bottles — it’s Barrel-Aged Dino S’mores season, and this year’s version is not to miss.

The popular Russian Imperial Stout comes in a non-barrel-aged version and typically a couple of variants as well as the barrel-aged version. This year’s BA beer spent 13 months sitting in Wild Turkey 101 bourbon barrels and the beer took to the barrel like a fish to water.

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Indulgent Beer Series | Three Taverns Brewery Heavy Bell

Whether it’s that fourth cookie, bonus day of vacation or third barrel-aged beer of the night, life is too short to not indulge every once in a while. This time of year always seems to bring more chaos. Luckily, Decatur, GA’s Three Taverns Brewery has the perfect beer to slow you down during this indulgent holiday season.

No, it is not a pastry-loaded adjunct Stout. It’s not a hopped-to-the-brim Triple IPA, either. What is it? It’s Heavy Bell (2020)–a Belgian Quadrupel Ale aged in bourbon barrels.

Heavy Bell (2020) takes indulgence to a new level as it expands on the base recipe of Quasimodo, a 10% Belgian-style Quadrupel, and ages it on eight-year-old bourbon barrels.

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Familiar Beers Return for Latest Revolution Deep Wood Release

A trio of familiar faces make up Chicago’s Revolution Brewing’s third Deep Wood release of barrel-aged beers with pickup beginning this weekend at the brewery’s taproom.

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First Taste | Cruz Blanca’s 2020 Luchador Series

Each year, Chicago’s Cruz Blanca continues to get bolder with its barrel-aged series, Luchador. In 2019 the brewery released six different variants and in 2020 upped that number to eight different masked bottles that will be released this Saturday.

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Deth’s Tar, Maple Deth Shine in Revolution’s Second Deep Wood Release

As the temperatures dip and the days get shorter, barrel-aged season in Chicago continues to ramp up. This weekend, Revolution Brewing will host the second of four releases in their Deep Wood series. A trio of beers highlights this release with two familiar names and a new one to the series.

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Fremont Brewing Releases 11th Anniversary Series

Located in Seattle, Washington, Fremont Brewing first opened its doors during the 2008 financial crisis and is no stranger to making high-quality beer in the middle of a recession. Quality, sustainability and ingenuity have been the mainstays of brewing at Fremont over the past 11 years, a tradition they continue even as the COVID-19 pandemic rages on… and “ingenious” is the word that comes to mind when sampling their latest release: the 11th Anniversary series. These two Stouts debuted in mid-August and are already sold out on their website (but don’t worry: limited cases are still available—see below for details). Their classic barrel-aging process, with a twist, makes these beers something special.

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Revolution Brewing Announces 2020-21 Deep Wood Lineup

Next month will officially kickoff Revolution Brewing’s 2020-21 Deep Wood series as the brewery prepares to release a dozen barrel-aged beers between September and January.

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FoBAB Cancelled, ICBG to Continue with Virtual Competition

On Thursday, the Illinois Craft Brewer’s Guild announced that their annual Festival of Barrel and Wood Aged Beer (FoBAB) will be among the many festivals to get cancelled because of the global pandemic. This news coincides with the cancellation of the 2021 Big Beers, Belgians & Barleywines festival held in Breckenridge, Colorado. The ICBG mentioned in their official announcement that the annual competition and awards ceremony would still be taking place virtually. Participating breweries will be asked to send their competition beers to FoBAB where they will be judged by 50 industry leaders and certified craft beer judges.

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