2011 Boulder Brew and Music Festival

Boulder Beer and Music Festival 2011

A couple friends and I got tickets for the Boulder Brew and Music Festival at the Fox Theater this past Saturday. To be honest I didn't expect much since I had been to the GABF not too long ago with all of the nations best breweries, but the small size and atmosphere really created a festival that I would most definitely go back to next year.

At GABF, I would sample a beer or two from a brewery and move on to the next. I felt like I needed to try as many beers from as many places as I could, which left no time to go back and try ones again that I had liked. The Boulder Brew and Music Festival had about 15 breweries, most local but a few out-of-staters, which was a great chance to go around a try everything once and then go back and try the ones you liked again. It was also a good chance to meet some of the brewers and talk with them without feeling like you were holding up a line.

Walking into the Fox, I was most excited for Copper Kettle's Mexican Chocolate Stout, which was definitely one of my favorites at GABF this year. Needless to say I had my fill of the stout and was even able to talk to the owner for a bit. (He has a tap house in Denver that he runs with his wife and one other bartender. They brew 3 barrels at a time, which is not much, but he said they have been getting great business and plan on bottling soon.)

I also spent a lot of time at the Grand Teton taps drinking their imperial red, IPA, and coffee porter and talking to the guy behind the taps, who I learned was "in the family." Grand Teton's Pursuit of Hoppiness is still one of my favorite reds to date, and their IPA and coffee porter were right in line as well. Unfortunately, I'm having a tough time remembering the name of the IPA.

Odell's had a few bottles of Mountain Standard, which is a really hoppy Double Black IPA. I was lucky enough to get to try it, but it was gone by the time I went back for seconds. I will most definitely be looking for this in liquor stores.

Alaskan Brewing Company, whom admittedly I am not a huge fan of, really surprised me with their Winter ale. It had a great spice to it and a bit of a hoppy finish. It had me going back for more. They also had a White ale that was a little too flowery for my liking, but my roommate Zach decided to have the guy pour a mixture of the Winter and White which actually was quite the concoction. The spice of the Winter toned the floral notes down on the White and actually created something with a good balance of spice, citrus and flowers. Not sure how the Alaskan guys would feel about it though...

Last, I want to mention some cider I had that was like something I have never tried before.The Colorado Cider Company had a cider with hops in it on tap, and it was one of the most delicious (non-beer) alcoholic beverage I've had. It had the usual really crisp, dry, and carbonated flavors of a good cider mixed in with just enough hops to put some bitterness on your tongue and make you realize you are drinking something very unique.

This was only the second year of the Boulder Brew and Music Festival, but judging by the turn out I would say there will most definitely be a third, and I will be there.