T.F. Brewing | Albion Belgian Trippel

The Utah brewing community was a little bit shocked when Kevin Templin left his long time position as Head Brewer at Red Rock Brewing Co. To us it seemed like an abrupt mic drop that didn’t make sense. After surviving the initial shock, we took comfort in the fact there must be something brewing in his mind. So we patiently let the months pass by. As the seasons morphed and the local craft beer continued to thrive, we might have almost moved on. Then, Kevin was back with a bang just as quickly as he had left—and this time he brought along the whole family! Read More

Dispelling the Myths Behind Utah’s Emerging Beer Scene

Let’s face it, when you are planning a vacation around beer, Utah isn’t usually at the top of the list. The liquor laws that dictate ABV and where you can consume may deter serious beer drinkers before even firing up an Airbnb search. However, Utah beer has a character of its own, a character that is both quiet and formidable all at once: A sleeping bear that is slow to wake but indomitable when angered. As such, let’s dispel some of the myths surrounding Utah’s beer culture. Read More

National IPA Day | Mountain Region Roundup

What consists of the mountain region of the United States, if you didn’t know, is a highly contested debate. What we at PorchDrinking.com consider the mountain states are Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado and Nevada. Most of the natives from any of these states use the Rocky Mountains as a directional point of either east or west and will happily bring a 6-pack of our favorite IPAs on camping trips or hikes.

Here’s a small dent in the IPAs the mountain region–and us at PorchDrinking–like to call “local favorites.”

Read More

Vernal Brewing Company | .50 Caliber IPA

ABV: 8.5%

We took a road trip to Vernal to visit one of Utah’s most modern and beautifully constructed craft beer breweries. Admittedly, visiting Vernal Brewing Company was planned with reckless abandon. And as soon as we plugged the address into the GPS and 3+ hours popped up, a little skepticism quickly arose. But, successfully driving there and back in a single day proved it was worth the trip.

Read More

2 Days, 2 Nights of Craft Beer in Salt Lake City

If you’re looking for a beercation like the rest of us, we know you can have an exceptional one here. Utah is generally thought of as that dry place between craft beer mega states Colorado and California. Unlike the super states that surround us in virtually every direction, you can truly experience a good amount of what Utah beer has to offer in just 2 days and 2 nights, sightseeing along the way.  Read More

Shades of Pale Brewing | Saint Blackout

ABV: 8.6% | IBU: 85

Hey friends! Its springtime and we are looking forward to beautiful weather, outdoor adventures and excellent beers. We recently attended the ReAle Homebrew competition, a tailgate-style … Read More

Red Rock Brewery | Rêve

ABV 10.3%

Although Valentine’s day is over for another year, it’s good to continue reflecting on things we love. When a highly anticipated seasonal release of a favorite local offering just so happens to land during the same week of warm weather in the middle of winter, the combination deserves reflection. Because, 1) Warm weather means summer really is coming back, and 2) Exclusive beer releases with limited bottles really are ‘all the hype’ and you’ll feel damn lucky to have your hands on the prize. When both happen to mingle, it feels like a celebration. Read More

Wasatch Brew Pub | Ginger, Apple, Wheat Ale

4% ABV

When I headed to my hometown of Kalamazoo, Michigan for Christmas, a town so steeped in its microbrew culture that it has a semi-pro baseball team called the Growlers, I’d planned to write a beer showcase from Bell’s Brewing’s Eccentric Café, my old college stomping ground. But then I got to Bell’s and saddled up to the bar with some old friends. Read More

Uinta Brewing Co | Port O’ Call

Average Reading Time: 2 minutes

ABV 9.4%

Beer is an adventure! We have been incredibly lucky to have explored new beer all over this country. Craft beer has pushed the … Read More

Red Rock Brewery | Griswald’s Holiday Ale

ABV 8.5%

What is the greatest holiday movie? Is it A Christmas Story or National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation? Perhaps Red Rock Brewery’s Griswald’s Holiday Ale can help sort out this yuletide … Read More

Uinta Brewing Company | King’s Peak Porter

ABV: 4%

The Winnebago Adventurer that I call home is parked 15 minutes from North America’s largest ski resort. This is no coincidence.

Since I bought my “Dirtbag Dreamship” last summer and parked it here October 1, the winterizing projects have been non-stop—fixing a broken furnace, heat-taping water hoses, insulating shit-pipes, installing a wood stove. But now these projects are done. It’s time for a beer, and the beer I choose tonight is King’s Peak Porter from Salt Lake City’s Uinta Brewing Company. Read More

Vernal Brewing Co. | Allosaurus Amber Ale

4% ABV

Utah’s September muzzleloader buck deer hunt yielded, for me, the viewing of several beautiful sunrises, tons of squirrels, birds of prey attacking those squirrels, other orange-clad hunters, lots of does and one tiny spike buck that I thought about shooting for only a moment before letting him walk away unscathed. What it didn’t yield was any buck sizable enough to fill the freezer.

Now I sit here, in October, drinking an Allosaurus Amber Ale from Utah’s Vernal Brewing Co. I drink this tasty, medium-bodied amber ale next to a campfire in the Book Cliffs of Utah, where I’ve spent the last two weekends trying to make up for a failed deer hunt by trying in vain to fill my spike elk tag for the winter’s meat. We’ve seen some elk, but so far the only spike among them was in our neighbor’s campsite, already dead and being prepared to fill their freezer. Read More

2 Row Brewing | Random IPA

Average 2 minute reading time

8.5% ABV

New beer. Two words ranked amongst favorites: Barrel-aged, happy hour, beer festival, free beer! It’s fun walking into your local bottle shop to scour the shelves for that new label, but what’s better – is visiting a brand new location where the entire selection is new! Read More

Shades Of Pale Brewing | Misdirected IPA

4% ABV- Session

If a bottle had a label that said ‘Beer’, would you be interested? We think some people might be, just because trying to ‘not to be cool’ seems to be a form of ‘cool’ these days. It is just as likely in the beer world if there isn’t something interesting on the label, it might not hit the table. These days, label art has been taken to a new level, which proves the unconditional love many brewers have with their liquid gold.

Read More

Uinta Brewing Company | Yard Sale Winter Lager

The April snowstorm that blanketed the Salt Lake Valley last week is the biggest I’ve seen since moving here in September. Admittedly it hasn’t been a great winter. Luckily I was able to take advantage of my employer’s powder morning policy, getting up to Brighton Resort for first chair and making a few last-week-of-the-season powder turns. The hardest part is leaving to head to work while the late-comers are still arriving to make their own tracks in my snow.

Read More

Uinta Brewing Company | Anniversary Barley Wine Ale

10.4% ABV

There’s a common misconception that you can’t get strong beer in Utah. In reality, you can get strong beer in Utah; you just have to jump through a hoop or two to get it. So when you finally do drive the ten miles to the state owned liquor store, at a time that it’s actually open, when you’re willing to pay the ridiculous prices for room temperature beer, you know the secret handshake you have to give the clerk, and you walk out of the place with a couple of mix and match six packs of beers like Uinta Brewing Company‘s 10.4% ABV Anniversary Barley Wine Ale, you tend to want to save a bottle or two to enjoy on a random week night. Well, my friends, tonight is one of those nights. Read More

Bohemian Brewery | Czech Pilsner

ABV: 4.0%

Among the numerous reasons that I enjoy writing for PorchDrinking.com is that it allows me to drink beer at the laundromat. Now, I’d typically shy away from popping the top on some suds in a place such as this, and surely there’s some legality issues at play (or at least some questions of decorum, especially here in Salt Lake City). But I feel that writing for a reputable, national beer blog like PD brings to my drinking some professional perspective, thus justifying this laundromat imbibing; I have a beer showcase due tomorrow, and I’ve been going commando, as they say, for damned near a week now.

For this public showcase I went with a beer from Midvale, Utah’s Bohemian Brewery. I chose their 1842 Czech Pilsner. Why? Because I enjoy this light-bodied golden lager? Yes. But also because the silver can, in the right light, looks like it could be full of off-brand soda, or as we call it in my home state of Michigan, pop. Read More

Uinta Brewing Company | Cutthroat Pale Ale

ABV: 4%

IBU: 34

I love big dumps, and any other skier will tell you the same thing. When it’s pouring rain on a January day where I work in Salt Lake City, you can bet that up in the Cottonwood Canyons it’s dumping snow. And that’s why I’ve been craving all day to get up there and get in a little night riding at Brighton, where the falling snow will mean free refills.

When I got to the mouth of the canyon, though, I wished the dumping had kept itself in check a bit, as the road leading up into Big Cottonwood Canyon was closed and packed with stopped traffic —no doubt an accident plugging up the tiny, winding mountain road leading to my goods. As much of a kick to the nuts a thwarted powder night is, I take consolation that my favorite SLC bar, the Hog Wallow, is right at the base of the canyon. It especially makes me happy that the Wallow serves my favorite Utah beer, Cutthroat Pale Ale from Uinta Brewing Company. Read More

Epic Brewing | Big Bad Baptist

ABV: 11.2%

Big Bad Baptist | Batch #44 Charming Beard

Who says you can’t get a good beer in Utah? We think Utah is crafting some exceptional beer.

Read More