Breaking Down the 30 New Colorado Breweries that Opened in 2017
Last year, Colorado added 30 new breweries to its already impressive arsenal. That means all new recipes, taprooms and beers to explore throughout the Centennial state. How many of the new breweries did you visit last year? How many of these have you heard of? Either way, it’s time to welcome Colorado’s new class of brewers.
Check out our entire list below, where each is located and a brief analysis of the growth of breweries in Colorado.
Total Breweries
First of all, this list of 30 new breweries comes from Colorado Brewery List, which is one of the best resources for finding information about all Colorado breweries. This site also includes a list of the upcoming breweries, breweries that are under construction, or in planning. It is awesome and the Colorado Brewery List is managed by our very good friend, the Colorado Beer Geek, who has visited every brewery in Colorado.
Breweries by County
Currently, there are 314 unique breweries in Colorado. Additionally, 25 breweries are secondary locations. Lastly, two are owned by Coors or AB InBev. Altogether, this means there are 340 Colorado breweries in total.
As you might expect, Denver County contains the highest number of breweries of any county in Colorado with 62 breweries. Boulder County boasts 42 breweries, Larimer County follows with 32 breweries, and Jefferson County contains 27 breweries within its boundaries. El Paso County is next closest with 22 breweries.
Still, 24 counties around the state do not have a brewery. In 2017, all 30 new breweries opened in counties with at least one brewery in operation. Pitkin County doubled the number of its breweries to two with Capitol Creek Brewery opening in Basalt.
Using 2016 population estimates by the US Census Bureau, the scatterplot below shows all Colorado counties and the number of breweries each has.
Changes and Closings
Sadly, 15 breweries closed in 2017. Each brewery closed for differing reasons, such as selling to a new owner, financial issues or deciding to just serve food. Check out this article from Colorado Brewery List on why each brewery ended up closing last year.
Approximately, the average lifespan of these breweries was a little over seven years. Below is the list of locations that closed in 2017:
- 1933 Brewing Company (March 2014 – January 2017)
- Backcountry Brewery (September 1996 – October 2017)
- Beer By Design (June 2013 – December 2017)
- C.B. & Potts (Broomfield) (Unsure – October 2017)
- Deep Draft Brewing (July 2015 – October 2017)
- Fort Collins Brewery (March 2004 – July 2017)
- Moffat Station Brewery (October 2014 – August 2017)
- Mu Brewery (June 2014 – February 2017)
- Pateros Creek Brewing (June 2011 – April 2017)
- Rowdy Mermaid Kombucha (August 2016 – February 2017)
- Royal Gorge Brewing Co (May 2011 – June 2017)
- Shine Brewing Company (December 2011 – September 2017)
- Triple S Brewing (October 2015 – August 2017)
- Walnut Brewery (May 1990 – June 2017)
- Wolfe Brewing (September 2014 – August 2017)
In addition, Wit’s End Brewing and Strange Craft Brewing have joined forces and now share a location.
Colorado Craft Brewery Openings by Year
Moving on, last year marked the third consecutive year in which the number of brewery openings in Colorado decreased. Unfortunately, this is nearly a 38 percent decrease in openings from the year prior. Furthermore, the 30 brewery openings are the least amount since 2012 when 27 breweries opened.
However, there is no need to fret about new breweries opening in the near future, Colorado Brewery List identifies 184 breweries, cideries and meaderies in a phase of concept, planning or construction. Now, this does not necessarily mean they will open in 2018, but have started the process of making a brewery.
Colorado Breweries Born in 2017
Finally, here is a complete list of all 30 breweries that opened in Colorado last year. The list is sorted by county. In addition, you can also see any PorchDrinking articles related to the brewery.
Adams County
Mother Tucker Brewery
12189 Pennsylvania St, Thornton, CO 80233
(303) 993-6033
Opened May 26, 2017
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Alamosa County
Square Peg Brewerks
625 Main Street, Alamosa, CO 81101
(719) 580-7472
Opened June 2, 2017
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Arapahoe County
Peak to Peak Tap & Brew
16701 E Illif Ave, Aurora, CO 80013
(720) 446-8714
Opened May 20, 2017
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Boulder County
Beyond The Mountain Brewing
6035 Longbow Drive Unit 9, Boulder, CO 80301
(303) 530-6981
Opened December 9, 2017
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- Grand Opening Party featuring live music by Timber @ Beyond the Mountain Brewing Company (Boulder)
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Bootstrap Brewing – Longmont
142 S. Pratt Parkway, Longmont, CO 80501
(303) 652-4186
Opened March 9, 2017
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Boulder Beer Company – Walnut St
1123 Walnut St, Boulder, CO 80302
(303) 447-1345
Opened July 22, 2017
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Endo Brewing
2755 Dagny Way, Lafayette, CO 80026
(720) 442-8052
Opened August 26, 2017
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Gunbarrel Brewing
7088 Winchester Circle, Boulder, CO 80301
(800) 803-5732
Opened June 14, 2017
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Open Door Brewing
2030 Ionosphere Street G, Longmont, CO 80504
(720) 593-1401
Opened March 24, 2017
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The Post – Boulder
2027 13th St, Boulder, CO 80302
(720) 372-3341
Opened November 2, 2017
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Uturn BBQ
599 Crossing Drive, Lafayette, CO 80026
(303) 993-6033
Opened January 30, 2017
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Clear Creek County
501 Rose Street, Georgetown, CO 80444
(303) 569-5167
Opened May 26, 2017
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Denver County
14er Brewing Company
2801 Walnut St, Denver, CO 80205
(720) 773-1437
Opened July 1, 2017
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- 14er Brewing Opens for To-Go Sales & Taproom Tastings July 1
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Alternation Brewing
1539 S Broadway, Denver, CO 80210
(303) 802-5340
Opened December 9, 2017
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- Brewery Preview | Denver’s Alternation Brewing to Focus on Consistently Rotating Taps
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The Intrepid Sojourner Beer Project
925 W 8th St, Denver, CO 80204
(720) 572-5172
Opened May 20, 2017
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- Brewery Preview | The Intrepid Sojourner Beer Project (Denver, CO)
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Woods Boss Brewing
2200 California St, Denver, CO 80205
(720) 642-7177
Opened August 11, 2017
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Zuni Street Brewing
2900 Zuni St, Denver, CO 80211
(303) 862-6525
Opened March 8, 2017
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Douglas County
FanDraught Sports Brewery
19340 Cottonwood Dr, Parker, CO 80138
(303) 990-2070
Opened October 28, 2017
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Grist Brewing – Lone Tree
9535 Park Meadows Dr, Lone Tree, CO 80124
(303) 728-9394
Opened May 27, 2017
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El Paso County
2727 N Cascade Ave, Colorado Springs, CO 80907
(719) 471-4628
Opened July 31, 2017
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Jefferson County
Denver Beer Co. – Arvada
5768 Olde Wadsworth Bvld, Arvada, CO 80002
(303) 433-2739
Opened June 17, 2017
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Landlocked Ales
3225 S. Wadsworth, Lakewood, CO 80227
(303) 284-8748
Opened June 24, 2017
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Larimer County
DC Oakes Brewhouse and Eatery
3581 E Harmony Rd, Fort Collins, CO 80528
(970) 286-2076
Opened June 20, 2017
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Gilded Goat Brewing Company
3500 South College Ave, Fort Collins, CO 80525
(970) 825-7192
Opened February 3, 2017
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Purpose Brewing and Cellars
4025 S Mason St, Fort Collins, CO 80525
(970) 377-4107
Opened August 4, 2017
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Montezuma County
WildEdge Brewing Collective
111 North Market Street, Cortez, CO 81321
(970) 565-9445
Opened April 11, 2017
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Pitkin County
Capitol Creek Brewery
371 Market St, Basalt, CO 81621
(970) 279-5723
Opened May 22, 2017
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Weld County
Green Earth Brewing
725 10th St, Greeley, CO 80631
(970) 702-2332
Opened December 2, 2017
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Mountain Cowboy Brewing
302 Fifth St, Frederick, CO 80530
(303) 726-9288
Opened December 26, 2017
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Veteran Brothers Brewing Company
21 N Parish St, Johnstown, CO 80534
(970) 587-6786
Opened May 26, 2017
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Tags
14er brewing company 1933 Brewing Company Alternation Brewing Backcountry Brewery Beer By Design Beyond The Mountain Brewing Bootstrap Brewing Boulder Beer C.B. & Potts (Broomfield) Capitol Creek Brewery DC Oakes Brewhouse & Eatery Deep Draft Brewing Denver Beer Co Endo Brewing FanDraught Sports Brewery Fort Collins Brewery Gilded Goat Brewing Company Goat Patch Brewing Green Earth Brewing Grist Brewing Guanella Pass Brewing Company Gunbarrel Brewing Landlocked Ales Moffat Station Brewery Mother Tucker Brewery Mountain Cowboy Brewing mu brewery Open Door Brewing Pateros Creek Brewing Peak To Peak Tap & Brew Purpose Brewing and Cellars Rowdy Mermaid Kombucha Royal Gorge Brewing Co Shine Brewing Company Square Peg Brewerks The Intrepid Sojourner Beer Project The Post Triple S Brewing Uturn BBQ Veteran Brothers Brewing Company Walnut Brewery WildEdge Brewing Collective Wolfe Brewing Woods Boss Brewing Zuni Street Brewing
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