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!
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.
While almost everyone has heard of New Belgium Brewery, Fort Collins has another major player in beer brewing and sales, Odell’s Brewing Company. A little lesser known, but the quality of everything they do is outstanding. The Beer Friends visited on a Saturday and they happen to be setting up for a party that started at 2pm – which every Saturday they have a party that starts at 2pm! We tried a few beers and then had to run, look back in the future for Odell’s to be the Beer Friends Brewery of the Week and read below for the few taste we did get in!
Phil:
1st: Cutthroat Porter is fan-freaking-tastic! Off a Nitro Pour it has a wonderful smokey flavor that has just a hint of coffee if you look hard enough.
Today we revisit our Colorado Brewery Trip and try out Odell Brewing Companies 90 Shilling. A shilling is a unit of coinage and 90 was the tax Scotland used to put on beer. 90 Shilling is a lighter Scotish Ale, red in color and delicious in taste (so says this Beer Friend). History! Coinage! Beer!
Are you tired of your current wardrobe? Are you jeans somewhere between Brooklyn-Too-Tight and Too-Baggy-To-Be-Cool? Have no fear, the Garb Stylist over at www.uncrate.com have answered your prayers:
From a comfy shirt to a swanky set of shorts, not to mention a few good selections of our favorite beverage from Fort Collins, Odell, and New Belgium, they’ve got you covered. don’t be surprised if you see one of us sporting the whole ensemble…alright be surprised, but it would be cool wouldn’t it?
The Fort Collins Brewery scene is controlled by Odell’s and New Belgium, and the locals all know to go to Coopersmith’s Pub – but there is a new player in the world of Northern Colorado brewing, Equinox Brewery. Located within miles of New Belgium, Odell’s and Coopersmith’s, Equinox is a young brewery (opened in April) and hidden down Remington Street. There is a great local brewery feel when you walk in, much like a coffee house but for beer. Everyone there knows why they’re there – not to impress with flashy clothes, or get wasted - but to enjoy good beer. High top tables fill the left side of the room with the bar straight ahead, to the left of the bar is the merchandise and in front of the bar the board games(!). Journey to the right and the room opens up to extra seating, bathrooms and a hallway to their recently opened Beer Garden. We enjoyed this place because of the freshness, and the possibilities abound. As for the beers:
After weeks of excellent beer competition, a few overtimes and a whole lotta votes – the Beer Friends Final Four has a clear winner! Congrats to New Belgium Fat Tire Amber Ale from Fort Collins, Colorado!
The New Belgium Brewery was founded in Fort Collins, Colorado in 1991 when the company’s Brew Master took his home brewing to the next level. Since then, New Belgium has grown into one of the more popular breweries in a state producing many top craft beers. While you can’t find their stuff out on the East Coast – yet, you can certainly find it in any store in Colorado and the surrounding states.
Old Chicago will always have a special place in this Beer Friends’ heart. My home bar – it’s a chain restaurant – is located on the North End of Colorado Springs off the Woodmen Exit. Old Chicago is a typical bar/restaurant, serving deep dish pizza, calzones, salad bars and pasta. What sets Old Chicago apart is the beer list.
Old Chicago is my Holy Grail of drinking. This is where I learned about beer, about good beer, and the difference between bottles and draft — basically my beer-education.
Corporate Kerouac
Phil
Brad
Graham
Paul
