After 28 Years Tommyknocker Brewery Undergoes Complete Overhaul

After 28 years as a pioneer in the Colorado craft beer scene, Tommyknocker Brewery located in the mountain town of Idaho Springs, CO, is undergoing an extensive overhaul. With the introduction of a branding refresh, new core beer offerings and a $100,000 remodel of their brewpub, Tommyknocker is looking to reinvent itself in today’s competitive craft beer market. 

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Wild Blue Yonder | Cellar Reserve: Tropical Storm

When is a Pastry Stout not a Pastry Stout? At what point does a barrel-aged 11.2% beer become refreshing to drink? These were questions I pondered while drinking Wild Blue Yonder Cellar Reserve – Tropical Storm, a rum barrel aged Imperial Stout with bananas, toasted coconut and macadamia nut. Expectations were exceeded and stereotypes were broken with this unique concoction brewed in Castle Rock, Colorado.

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Event Recap | Vail Craft Beer Classic 2022

A beer fest set in the middle of the Rocky Mountains is bound to be beautiful, and the Vail Craft Beer Classic did not disappoint in that regard. Along with the wondrous mountain scenery is a laid back mountain vibe enjoyed by patrons and vendors alike. No long lines, no crowded bottlenecks, and plenty of time and space to casually have a conversation with a brewery worker or a random attendee, the Vail Craft Beer Classic is ideally set up for enjoying a couple hours worth of various brews.

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Wah Gwaan 1 Year Anniversary and Juneteenth Celebration

How does a simple party become a full blown shindig? Make it an all weekend party celebrating two huge occasions! Wah Gwaan Brewing is turning one this weekend, an anniversary that coincidentally coincides with Juneteenth. Being a Black-owned brewery, Juneteenth is a perfect time for Wah Gwaan to celebrate, and celebrate they will.

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Westbound & Down | Chicago Peaks Kolsch

As the weather has transitioned to long, warm, pleasant days, one’s choice in beer necessarily becomes something that can be drunk for longer periods of time. No longer just getting it in while you can, this is the season for drinking sessions that extend for the duration of several beers, necessitating a beverage that is both refreshing and of moderate ABV so as to leave you in decent shape. This is the season for a beer like Westbound & Down Chicago Peaks Kolsch. Light and drinkable yet still packing serious flavor, this beer was made for warm weather get-togethers.

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2021 Guide to Colorado’s Oktoberfest Releases & Celebrations

Believe it or not, summer is once again drawing to a close. Before we dive into pumpkin spice bombs and fresh hop season, let us raise a liter to German-style beers with a round-up of Colorado’s craft beer-centric Oktoberfest celebrations. So lace up those dirndls and strap on the lederhosen it’s time for the beautifully crisp, easy-drinking, toasted malt forward profile of Oktoberfest Märzen lagers. Check out our craft beer guide to Colorado’s Oktoberfest celebrations. Keep in mind, we’ll keep adding Oktoberfest beers from Colorado’s craft breweries as they’re released, as well as Oktoberfest celebration events for future weeks.

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Colorado Legislature Helps Craft Breweries Bounce Back

The Colorado legislature ended their 2021 session in early June, having passed four bills that will help Colorado craft breweries recover from the pandemic and grow. Several bills take effect near-term, while others roll into place later in the year. Additionally, two of the bills will give craft beer lovers more options to get ahold of their favorites. Read More

Brewery Showcase | Jade Mountain Brewery & Teahouse

It’s been a long path for Sean Guerrero to reach the grand opening of Jade Mountain Brewery & Teahouse in Aurora, CO. The brewery, which blends American and Asian culture in its beers, celebrates its opening weekend starting on June 11, 2021. Along the way, Guerrero’s journey spanned 13 years, two continents, a pandemic and countless test batches of beer. Read More

New Image Brewing | Five for Freezing Imperial Stout

As part of their five-year anniversary series, New Image Brewing tackles the complicated science of fractional freezing with their new Imperial Stout, Five for Freezing. Typically, frozen beer is a travesty. There’s nothing quite as disheartening as cracking open the beer you crave, only to find that it’s morphed into a slushie mess or worse, discovering that a bottle left to chill in the freezer exploded like a Peep in the microwave. However, freezing beer before it’s packaged, is actually an old-world technique that yields some highly desirable results.

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LUKI Brewery Releases Circus-Themed Goodies Box

Building on the recent brewery trend of creating innovative to-go offerings, LUKI Brewery in Arvada, Colorado, will debut Circus-in-a-Box March 16. This is the first of their quarterly boxes offering seasonal goodies, fun-inspired curations and deals from local vendors.

The first edition of Circus-in-a-Box will be available through May. It includes glassware, snacks and items designed to bring out the beer-lover’s inner child. Customers can get their box by purchasing four crowlers online or in-person and choosing the Circus-in-a-Box upgrade. Read More

Colorado Craft Brewing Industry Comes Together to Assist Brewer’s Family

This week, two Colorado breweries will release unique beers in memory of Jason Buehler, former head brewer at Denver Beer Co. Denver Beer and Oskar Blues Brewery are each releasing Black IPAs as a tribute to the much-loved brewer and to help support his surviving family.

Buehler passed away last fall, leaving behind a wife and three children. The breweries will donate 100% of the proceeds from the brew to Buehler’s family. Breakthru Beverage, Columbine Label Co., Yakima Chief Hops, Proximity Malt, Cerveceria Itañeñe and artist Megan Wingeleth also contributed to the releases. Read More

Barrel-Aged Shake Chocolate Porter Builds On Classic Beer and Expands Boulder Beer Brand

After a tumultuous end to 2019 and the pandemic-related uncertainty of 2020, Boulder Beer Company is forging ahead with a refresh of its brand lineup in 2021. To help kick off the rebrand, it’s created a barrel-aged version of Shake Chocolate Porter using Laws Whiskey barrels.

The new variety brings a robust and complex twist to an already-flavorful beer. Starting with the deep brown color and moving to the rich, multi-layered nose it’s clear—this beer needs to be slowly sipped and savored. Read More

Boys Are From Märzen Podcast | Whitney Way City Star Brewing

In Episode 22 of the “Boys Are From Märzen” podcast, Kindsey Bernhard is joined by Whitney Way of City Star Brewing in Berthoud, Colorado.

Whitney Way calls herself the “Jill of All Trades” for City Star Brewing, and that title fits her perfectly. Way is a co-owner with her husband, John. She is also the general manager, the taproom manager, she does the brewery’s accounting and taxes and helps with the brewing.

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Crooked Stave | Scoville Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout

In a saturated Denver craft beer market, Crooked Stave has managed to remain a standout brand for a decade. They’ve recently chosen to move out of the River North Art District and return to their brewing roots in the up-and-coming Sunnyside neighborhood with a recently refreshed taproom. They also recently added a satellite location about an hour outside of Denver up the road in Fort Collins.

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Falling Rock Alternative Festival of Great Beer Aims to Fill Void of GABF

For the past 22 years, on the Monday before the Great American Beer Festival (GABF), one of the country’s most iconic beer bars has helped usher in the event with a celebratory kick-off tapping at 5 p.m.

However this year, on September 21, when Falling Rock Tap House’s GABF countdown timer would normally have ticked down to all zeros, there will be little pomp and circumstance as the festival transitions to a virtual format in response to the pandemic.

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Oktoberfest Beer Showcase | Bierstadt Lagerhaus Oktoberfest Märzen

In a year when longstanding traditions have been upended by the unconventional, a Denver brewery is aiming to preserve one of beer’s most time-honored rituals. Bierstadt Lagerhaus in Denver, CO, which has been celebrated since its inception for its unwavering dedication to brewing traditional Lagers, is set to release their vaunted Oktoberfest Märzen Lager. This weekend’s release will coincide with the date that the 210-year-old Oktoberfest festival in Munich was originally scheduled to kick-off before being canceled as a result of the pandemic.

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2020 Guide to Colorado’s Oktoberfest Beer Releases

It’s clear by now that the year 2020 has no chill, and rather than ease into a gradual shift of in temperature, us Coloradoans have already begun experiencing some seasonal … Read More

Colorado Brewers Guild Announces Colorado Pint Day Date & Participants

The Colorado Brewer’s Guild (CBG) has announced the new date and participating brewery list for Colorado Pint Day 2020. Colorado Pint Day will now take place on Wednesday, July 29.

The annual event raises money for the guild and traditionally takes place during Colorado Craft Beer Week each spring. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the CBG had to postpone its 2020 fundraiser. Now that breweries are being allowed to re-open with on-premise consumption, the guild was able to confirm a new date. Read More

3 Freaks Brewery | Lloyd Christmas Porter

Like an adult candy cane, Lloyd Christmas Peppermint Chocolate Porter from 3 Freaks Brewery in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, offers a minty, tasty holiday treat that captures the spirit of the season. Each year the brewery tweaks the recipe to explore new flavor profiles; the 2019 version seems more mint-centric and somewhat lighter on the chocolate than previous incarnations.

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2019 Craft Brewers Conference External Events Guide

While the Craft Brewers Conference is an amazing opportunity to gain valuable education from the multitude of sessions and seminars, as brewers we know the real fun comes with the after-parties surrounding the conference. To help you navigate the week-long schedule of tap takeovers, beer dinners, special releases and more surrounding CBC we put together a day-by-day external events guide. Use the menu below to quickly navigate to the corresponding day.

Additionally we will be updating this guide throughout the week, so if we missed an event be sure to shoot us a message.

Special thanks to our friends at OnTap Credit Union, who have been crafting banking solutions for breweries, brewery employees and beer lovers for the past 64 years in Golden and Arvada. Their support in underwriting PorchDrinking allows us to continue to research and present in-depth pieces like the the 2019 CBC External Events Writeup

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