LUKI Brewery | Rocinante Mexican Lager

May 20, 2021 | Seth Garland

LUKI Brewery in Arvada, Colo. has been open just a bit over 10 months now. In terms of our current relationship with time/space, that’s more or less an eternity. As Jefferson County gave its businesses the “all clear,” LUKI and owner/head brewer Jeff Smith now have their first opportunity to pack the big top to capacity.

What better way to kick pandemic restrictions to the curb and start summer off than with a crisp, subtly sweet, lime-tinged Mexican Lager?

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Outdoor Spaces During COVID-19 | 56 Brewing

February 1, 2021 | Erik Eidem

“Burn the Jenga!” the crowd feverishly chanted. The patio was bustling and the taproom at 56 Brewing was out of firewood, so something had to go. Your typical brewery staples of Yahtzee and Scrabble would only stoke the flames for so long. This called for something bigger, bolder… something that would warm their patrons for hours. When one is dealing with both pandemic-based shutdowns and the frosty winds of the North, out-of-the-box thinking is required. Welcome to the Patio Pintometer.
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Why Patio Season in the Midwest Means More

June 19, 2018 | Taylor Laabs

Oh, summer. As a native Minnesotan and current Chicagoan, I have a mixed relationship with the best season of the year. I’m used to rationalizing the cold, the rain, the snow, more cold…and even hail, endured during roughly nine months of the year, knowing that the sweet embrace of 70 degrees and sunny skies is right around the corner. Unfortunately, summer in the Midwest can be as fleeting as the last drip of Lager in your glass, which is why Midwesterners go so crazy for the nice days:  because there are so few of them. One of my favorite summer activities is patio drinking. It’s a staple pastime that tans the skin and bloats the belly as you sit outside sopping up suds and some much-needed Vitamin D. Much like its inhabitants, the breweries of the Midwest also rejoice when the first summer forecast comes into the picture. Patio season can even start before Memorial Day – I’ve seen Chicago breweries unveil their patio chairs on an unseasonably sunny day in March. And guess what? That patio was filled. We asked several Midwestern brewers why patio season is so special for their brewery and for their patrons.

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