Today we revisit a favorite brewery on the Colorado Brewery Tour 2010 – Left Hand Brewing. Left Hand is moving across the US with the much anticipated (for this Beer Friend at least) Milk Stout Nitro, so in the meantime we figured we’d feature a special release as the SPotW to tide us over. Fade to Black is a great series in which Left Hand brews a dark beer with a different twist each year. Volume 1 was a Stout that poured of licorice and with a 8.5 ABV was nothing to mess with. Volume 2 was a Smoked Baltic Porter with 7.8 ABV and a decent smoky taste, and finally Volume 3, a Pepper Porter at 7.2 ABV. The ABV is a good thing because if the pepper taste doesn’t slow you down, maybe the higher ABV will. Spicy! Series beers! Metallica!
Traveling through Southwest Colorado you’ll be amazed with the beautiful surroundings. On our trip to the good old mile high state we heard about these crazy sand dunes and on the way to see them we took a little time to stop off in Alamosa to try the San Luis Valley Brewing Company. (more…)
This is a very exciting day for us, and only partially due to the beer we’re reviewing! Today Greg Avola (@gregavola) of Untappd.com fame has joined “the table” to review this double IPA offering from Breckenridge Brewery. Today’s review runs a little longer but while Greg was at the table we had to get some info on him and his excellent mobile app turned iPhone/Android app – Untappd. Greg also talks about some of the recent developments at the Untappd.com offices (which I can only imagine it’s a laptop in a beer freezer) but you’re gonna have to watch to find out! Beer! Online community! Untappd!
In the spirit of competition, Beer Friends would like to invite everyone to our NFL season hashtag battles! Using hashtagbattle.com we will pit two breweries against each other when their NFL counterparts are facing off on the gridiron. Are you ready for some football? And drinking? And #hashtag battle?!?!?!
What’s a hashtag battle? When you’re drinking a beer of a brewery competing in the battle (#stone vs #newbelgium), throw a #hashtag of the brewery and tweet it (or setup your foursquare or untappd to push to tweet and include the #hashtag) and we’ll use hashtagbattle.com to declare a winner after the Monday Night football game on ESPN. And because football needs beer, we’re starting on Saturday morning to include the brews consumed during College Football Saturdays. Support your team, support your beer, drink local and hashtag battle!
Hashtag Battle Week Five Matchup: Denver vs San Diego (#newbelgium vs #stone)
Asking any Beer Friend what their favorite brewery is has proven to be a dangerous endeavor. Expect hours of conversation as the Beer Friend presents information and opines about the brewery and it’s beer, then retracts some of the more outlandish statements, and then may even pass out from beer conversation overload. Once he wakes up and has a coffee, ask what his top five are and you’ll be much better off. In this Beer Friends top five is Bristol Brewing Company in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Full Disclosure -last week we mentioned we liked beer, a lot, this week we mention we like Colorado Beer, a lot. This week’s SPotW is Odell Brewing CompaniesCutthroat Porter. Odell is located in Fort Collins, Colorado and was a excellent stop (twice in fact!) on the Colorado Brewery Tour. Odell currently has a smaller distribution range (8 states and they mentioned something about England soon with their traditional English style brewing techniques) so if you find it, get it. Small Distribution! Big Delicious Taste! Rare Beer!
We like Colorado beers, can you tell? I’ve always been a bit transparent but I feel I was lucky to grow up in a great state for beer – and I love finding them out in NYC. We’ve conquered a few Boulder Beersbefore (and here) and today we complete the trifecta! Boulder! Beer! Company!
Shout out to Nick @ Stags head!!! Go see this man!!
Phil’s First-Oskar Blues G’Knight – Always my favorite from Oskar. Holds up at this great event. Just the right malty seedbeds with a hoppy bite to start the night off.
Brad’s First- Oskar Blues Ten Fidy – what else on a hot night but a stout… Wait… Somethings are just so good you need to get them. With no Hungarian Oak Aged available (See: The Pony Bar Oskar Blues Night) I settled on a brew I always enjoy – Ten Fidy, dark, malty and delicious.
Brad’s Second- Two Brothers Northwind Imperial Stout – I like a lot of stuff Two Brothers does, but this is no Imperial Stout, not nearly as heavy as the Ten Fidy, but this is unfair – like trying to follow Michael Jordan you’re never gonna be as good (Read: LeBron James).
Phil’s Second- Two Brothers Northwind Imperial Stout – thankfully I don’t really like basketball so I’m unbiased to my interpertaion…….and that means I liked it. Good and deep malty roasted goodness with a nice coffee sidecar attachment to the flavor. Definitely a repeat offender for my Taste buds.
Phil’s Third-Left Hand Sawtooth – always a fantastic way to round out the evening. This is one I never fail to have if it’s offered. Perfect for the back of the bell curve.
Brad’s Third-21st Amendment Monks Blood – classic, I’ve had this on tap a couple places and this is always enjoyable. This doesn’t taste like rotten fruit (Phil) but like a nice mixture of light fruity taste but still a beer. No overpowering notes makes this very light and drinkable.
Deep in the heart of Old Town Fort Collins you’ll find one of the most famous brewpubs in Colorado, Coopersmith’s Pub and Brewing. As the story goes, Coopersmith’s was founded in 1989 after John Hickenlooper had started the Wynkoop brewery in Lower Downtown (LoDo) Denver, and using that same formula created Coopersmith’s in Old Town, which was struggling to attract businesses and customers the same way LoDo was at the time. Coopersmith’s has a large fermenting tank outside and they do a lot of their brewing in the basement which is a self guided tour when you walk in and head down the stairs. Overall the beers are good, nothing outstanding but drinkable and the atmosphere was a little too family friendly. We did enjoy what they were trying to do in creating a brewpub with good beer and avoiding the Coors Light on tap to keep the highheels and popped collars out.
I had the Horsetooth Stout, and being a big stout fan, it wasn’t the best I’ve ever had. It had good flavor, slightly watery but didn’t really pick a style – not creamy enough for a milk stout, not dry enough for the Irish Dry style, no texture or flavor for a Oatmeal stout, and not enough roasted malts to create a bitter Coffee stout flavor.
Graham had the Punjabi Pale Ale that claimed to be a IPA, but Graham being a huge hophead felt the beer was too heavy on the malts and not enough hop flavor… To each their own I guess.
Phil had the Sigda Green Chili beer. This beer was a bit of a novelty for us New Yorkers visiting the Wild West. After each of us tasted it we felt it was too strong on the Green Chili taste and light on the beer taste.
Coopersmith’s Brew Pub is located in the heart of Old Town Fort Collins at 5 Old Town Square, Fort Collins, Colorado. The Brew Pub serves food and is open from 11am to 11pm Sunday through Thursday and 11am to 1am Friday and Saturday.
Today we reach back into the archives for a review from our Colorado Brewery Tour 2010 when we tried Ska Brewing Company’s Modus Hoperandi. Growing up in Colorado I was familiar with this brewery because of friends that lived in Durango and I’ve always enjoyed their Pinstripe Red Ale, but the tour guide from Oskar Blues suggested we try the Modus Hoperandi, and let’s face it – we do anything a brewery tour guide says. Beer! Cans! Not making Decisions!
Corporate Kerouac
Phil
Brad
Graham
Paul
