Can’t-Miss Beers to Try at the 2024 Collaboration Fest

Karen Mills
On March 15, 2024
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It’s almost that time of the year again! The time to celebrate the art of collaboration at the highly anticipated Collaboration Fest. Hosted by the Colorado Brewers Guild, this unique festival features local and national breweries coming together to collaborate on distinctly unique beers made specifically for the festival. As one of the more novel festival concepts in the country has continued to serve as one of the best and brightest beer events in the country where creativity knows no bounds — and this is the largest year yet, with 145 beers from 180 breweries.

At Collaboration Fest, brewers join forces to push the boundaries of traditional brewing, resulting in one-of-a-kind brews that defy expectations. With each brewery putting forth a small batch, one-off beer, attendees will have the opportunity to explore a diverse array of beer styles, all while soaking in the lively atmosphere filled with live music, food trucks, and camaraderie. Because of this unique one-off wrinkle, Collaboration Fest often allows participating breweries to experiment with innovative new styles or bizarre adjuncts.

From exciting collaborating breweries to unique or off-the-wall beer styles and ingredients, we’ve broken down some of the can’t-miss beers to try at this year’s festival.

Beers to Look Out For

Bent Barley Brewing and Launch Pad Brewery | Horchata-style Beer
Baere Brewing and Milieu Fermentation | BA Bareleywine
- This beer was brewed at Baere at the end of the summer 2022 when Milieu was early in its planning stages and now will serve as our first glimpse into what Milieu will have to offer
Bootstrap Brewing and Cannonball Creek | American Pale Ale
- Two of the state’s best Pale Ale producers have teamed up to brew… you guessed it… an American Pale Ale, and it’ll assuredly be amazing
Burns Family Artisan Ales and River North Brewery
- Two of Denver’s most prolific barrel-aged beer producers teamed up to blend a total of 10 beers (five from each brewery). This is sure to be a beast of a final cuvee.
Denver Beer Co. and New Terrain Brewing Company | Thai-Inspired Sour Kolsch
- Inspired by DBC’s Princess Yum Yum, New Terrain thought a Tom Yum beer would be interesting and we couldn’t agree more.
Downhill Brewing Greenwood Village and Los Dos Potrillos Cervecería Parker | Tiramisu Churro Stout w/ BA Coffee
- This just sounds like the perfect dessert beer.
Craftsman Brew Co. and MainStage Brewing | Dad-Style IPA
Public Offering and Burns Family Artisan Ales and Monolith Brewing | Tea ‘n’ Tee – Arnold Palmer-inspired Ale
- Two of South Broadway’s bright rising breweries teaming up is what this festival is all about. Additionally as greater interests have arisen in recent years around Hard Lemonades and Hard Teas, this Arnold Palmer-inspired beer should be a hit.
Mountain Toad Brewing and Coal Mine Ave Brewing | California Common/Spiced Beer
- Manuel from Coal Mine was inspired by the time he spent working in Southern India and wanted to recreate the flavors of a Samosa (not to be confused with the Girl Scout Cookie) in beer form.
Odell – Sloan’s Lake and Mythmaker | Bending Corners – Finnish Sahti
Our Mutual Friend Brewing Company and Primitive Beer | Beligan Pilsner
- Two of Colorado’s best breweries have teamed up to brew a Pilsner inspired by trips to Belgium… not much more needs to be said.
Joyride Brewing and Call To Arms | Sake Jockeys – Mango Mochi Lager
- Brewers from each of these breweries used to brew at Colorado Sake Company, so it was only nature that they would team up on a Rice Lager with Sake yeast and mango
Vail Brewing and Hakuba | Hanami Lager – Japanese Rice Lager with Plum
Woods Boss Brewing Company and Angry James Brewery | Mr. Kumquato – Kumquat Pale Ale
- The name alone has us hooked but a collab that dates back 6 years when the founders both worked at other breweries coming together to brew a kumquat Pale Ale is pretty rad as well.
Sleeping Giant and Reverance | Spuds and Buds – Potato IPA
Steep Brewing and El Rancho | Spud Heavy – Potato Lager
- A unique and unusual style on the surface but this Potato Lager was actually inspired by the historic Kartoffelbier (German potato beer) style.
TightKnit Brewing Co. and Timnath Beerwerks | Imperial German Pilsner
- Two of the state’s sleeper Lager producers both happen to reside in Northern Colorado and they decided to team up to brew… you guessed it… a Lager… and thank God.
Two22 Brew and Fiction Beer Company | Pinky Swear – Beligan Blonde with Roasted Beers & Pink Oyster Mushrooms
- Sounding more like a veggie friendly culinary creation, this Belgian Blonde with roasted beets and oyster mushrooms is definitely one of the more interesting entries for the fest.
Jagged Mountain and Able Baker | Spa Water – Rice Lager with Cucumber and Aloe
Storm Peak and Stillwest | Yoshimi – Yuzu and Matcha Hefeweizen
Lone Tree and Bierstadt | Zymurgy Zoigl – Zoigl

Whether you’re a seasoned beer connoisseur or a casual enthusiast, CollabFest promises an unforgettable experience filled with discovery and delight. So gather your friends, raise your glasses, and toast to the spirit of collaboration as you dive into a world of innovative brews and endless possibilities. Be sure to grab your tickets now! March 30th is right around the corner and surely this is an event you don’t want to miss out on.