Event Preview | The Fermentation Festival

Since you’re reading these words, I expect you have at least a passing fondness for beer, and perhaps other fermented beverages such as cider, wine, and kombucha. Great, now what about fermented foods? Sure, everybody loves cheese, but how about sauerkraut, kimchi, or tempeh? The process of fermentation has been yielding some of the most delicious things we eat and drink for thousands of years, so it’s a good thing Colorado has an annual event celebrating them. Yes, the Fermentation Fest returns to Denver this weekend!

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Festival Recap | Sesh Fest 2014

By this point in the summer, it seems like there are at least a couple beer festivals happening every weekend in or around Denver. Sure, they’re great and we all love them, but even the thirstiest craft beer drinker can feel a bit fatigued after one too many afternoons spent drinking Belgian Strong Ales, double IPAs, and Russian Imperial Stouts. Plus, they’re usually a bit pricey, so good luck convincing your friends who aren’t quite so beer-obsessed to come with you. Sometimes you just want something a little lighter and more refreshing. Thankfully, Imbibe and the Colorado Brewers Guild rewarded Denver with Sesh Fest 2014, an event dedicated to session beers and the perfect antidote to excessive, expensive beer festivals.

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Festival Recap | Springs Beer Fest 2014

A sold out beer fest is a good thing for craft beer, right?! Well, we aren’t 100% sure but we take a closer look with Springs Beer Fest 2014.

This past weekend, we were thrust into a myriad of emotions in relation to a sold out festival at the 8th Annual Springs Beer Fest at America the Beautiful Park in Colorado Springs. The festival ran from 12:00pm to 4:00pm (11am entry for VIP) with a cost of $25 for General (advance), $30 at Gate, $50 VIP. The promoters promised a fun-filled day of bottomless, fresh, craft beer samplings from over 45 notable Craft Brewers.

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Festival Recap | Sierra Nevada Beercamp Across America – Rocky Mountain Edition

Well, that was fun. Seriously. We don’t like to brag a bunch (we do, however, like to brag a little) but there were no lines for beer, there were celebrity brewers pouring their own wares, and there were many-a-food-truck setup with tasty nosh for purchase. Sierra Nevada’s Beercamp Across America – Rocky Mountain Edition boasted lots of brewer cameos. I saw Ken Grossman just milling around (much like we were) looking for his next liquid victim to quaff. The goal of the touring festival was to bring attention to the craft brewing industry as a whole. To do that, Sierra Nevada invited every brewery in the nation to attend one of the fests and they brewed twelve different collaboration beers with twelve other breweries, including Longmont’s Oskar Blues. The festival accomplished this and so much more. See just why this was our favorite festival of the year so far!

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Festival Recap | United Tastes of Belgium 2014 – Wynkoop Brewing Co

The United Tastes of Belgium festival featured over 30 breweries showcasing their authentic Belgian beer recipes along with some American takes on Belgian style beers. These offerings were inspired by experimentation of styles such as barrel-aged, sour, wild ales, triples, quads and many more.

The event included unlimited tastes of Belgian Chocolates and Cheeses. For $30 bucks, you really can’t beat the unlimited pours, nibbles and noshes of an event like this. You can be jealous; its okay, its not your fault. Read More

12 Ways Bonnaroo Changed You

Several of us PorchDrinkers were lucky enough to attend Bonnaroo June 12-15, 2014. Yes, Kanye, the press was there. *sigh*

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Great Divide | 20th Anniversary Celebration Recap

This past Saturday we celebrated Great Divide Brewing Company’s 20^th Anniversary with 2,000 of our hop cone compatriots in Denver, CO!

A long, line of craft beer connoisseurs formed on Brighton Boulevard. Cars slowly passed by looking for open parking spaces; patrons cruised in on their two wheelers and entered into the queue for bicycle valet (free courtesy of our friends over at Denver B-Cycle). A line of kegs outlined the entryway with Great Divide staff members donned in their 20^th anniversary red shirts and sporting the largest of smiles. They knew what we were in for as we were wrist banded. . .

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Why You Should Not Miss Another Hangout Music Festival

Last weekend, 40,000 of my closest friends and I gathered on an unassuming little beach in Gulf Shores, Alabama to soak in the rays and the musical talents of some of our generations’ favorite artists at Hangout Music Festival. If you weren’t there this year, do yourself a favor and put this one on your bucket list. Read More

Chicago Craft Beer Week

Chicago is a mind-blowingly large city, boasting a population of over 2.7 million people, it is divided into more than 200 neighborhoods. These neighborhoods showcase the various cultures and lifestyles of the city’s residents, and each one is unique. The fifth annual Chicago Craft Beer Week (CCBW), which started last Thursday and runs for ten days total, is centered on these small, intimate parts of the city that are so integral to its structure. With over 300 participating venues in the city and surrounding suburbs, this week is guaranteed to be amazing. Read More

Awesomesauce | Underrated TV Shows

We all have those TV shows that we know in our heart of hearts were brilliant: The Wonder Years, Freaks and Geeks, Firefly, The Wild West C.O.W.-Boys of Moo Mesa (you know the standard list that everyone agrees on.) For the most part, we collectively determine after they’re cancelled that these shows were the greatest thing since The Wire—the TV show equivalent of the no-one-says-anything-bad-about-you-at-your-funeral effect. Why, then, didn’t we actually WATCH them while they were on the air? Here are a few of my favorite underrated TV shows on the air right now that more attention- tune in before its too late! Read More

BrüFrou Beer + Culinary Pairing Event

THE FIRST ANNUAL BRÜFROU WILL SHOWCASE THE BEST
OF COLORADO’S CRAFT BEER + CULINARY EXCELLENCE
Building upon the local celebrations, BrüFrou elevates craft beer to the next level by pairing
it with culinary excellence. On April 19th, we invite you to join Coloradoans-in-the-know.

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Awesomesauce- I Made A Funny!

Does anyone else love this movie besides me?  (Sidenote: apparently Michael Bay does, enough to ruin it with a reboot involving Megan Fox as April….ugh.)

TMNT aside, take a peek … Read More

PorchDrinking Does Craft Brewers Conference 2014

Well, folks, Denver is the lucky city this year to host the Craft Brewers Conference for 2014. Denver is already equipped for the influx of beer heads because of the annual Great American Beer Festival that occurs every October in our fine city of suds. This year, though, we are also host city for the Craft Brewers Conference AND the World Beer Cup. And all in the same week. I don’t know how more stoked I can be than I am right now to announce that PorchDrinking.com will be there to provide coverage. Pre-and-post event coverage, live tweeting and, as always, a terrific banter to accompany the beerversation. Why? Because in the end, #itsjustbeer, right?!?

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Trademark Troubles Continue for Ska

[press release]

Ska Brewing Announces Litigation Against O[xxx]r Blues Brewery

DURANGO, Colo., (Apr. 1, 2014) — The craft beer industry has recently been rocked by in-fighting over trademarks—and the lack thereof—and it appears that Ska Brewing and Oskar Blues Brewery are the latest two who will be fighting it out over a name. Read More

PorchDrinking’s Weekly Denver Beer Beat

It’s the second half of Colorado Craft Beer Week so if you are like us, and we know you are, you are feeling frisky for brewskies and ready to go for another weekend of libations. Please follow along as we showcase the not-to-miss events in PorchDrinking’s Weekly Denver Beer Beat including the latter part of Colorado Craft Beer Week, some more beer releases, beer dinners and other brewcentric badassery in the Denver Metro area. Yeahbud!

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Awesomesauce- TED Talks

In direct contrast to most of most of my peers who like to go out after work, be social, and have some fun,  my idea of an exciting Friday night … Read More

Awesomesauce- The Olympics

I may be a bit biased with this one, because I’m OBSESSED with the Olympics.  I mean, hum along to the Olympic Fanfare every time they play it on the … Read More

Awesomesauce- Early 2014 Movie Picks

Ok, so this is more of a future-Awesomesauce (is that a thing?)  I’m a huge movie fan, but they can be somewhat (ok, totally) expensive; have you SEEN the cost of movie popcorn these days?!  I have a mortgage to pay!

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Awesomesauce- Awards Season

If you’re like me (which I think you are, since you broke the PD Golden Globes live blog for the second year running!) your favorite time of year is Awards … Read More

DC Event Preview – Beercheology!: Ancient Ales and Archeology Beer Tasting Featuring Heavy Seas

I am a huge archaeology nerd. I am also a beer nerd (obviously). The folks at The Capitol Archeological Institute had the brilliant idea to combine the two. I will … Read More