Thirst Magazine March-April 2019

SERVING UP THE COLORADO EXPERIENCE

Vol. 4, No. 3 March-April 2019

RUNNING UP A THIRST TIPS & TRICKS FROM A BOULDER ULTRA-RUNNER

METAMORPHIC BEER BLEND AN EVER-CHANGING BREW THAT WILL EXCITE YOUR PALATE

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NEW DISTILLERIES TO RAISE YOUR SPIRITS

A NEIGHBORHOOD ABOVE IT ALL

A NEIGHBORHOOD ABOVE IT ALL

A NEIGHBORHOOD ABOVE IT ALL

A NEIGHBORHOOD ABOVE IT ALL

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A

Proudly Serving The Colorado Community for Over 18 Years!

Local Craft Beers & Spirits, built with the effort of locally owned stores, continue to make Colorado unique.

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LIBATIONS BEYOND

Gear up, not down, this mud season!

With ski season winding down, powder hounds are starting to lament not calling in sick that time in January when the snow was so deep you could have buried yourself in a fall.

Even though things have slowed down at most resorts around the state, don’t worry.

There is still plenty to do and we have provided a few ideas for you to try.

If you need some low-key entertainment in which a town celebrates a dead person, drop into Nederland for Frozen Dead Guy Days. It’s as good a reason as any to eat, drink and be merry. The Sandhill Cranes migrate to the Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge each March, which is a great way to catch tens of thousands of birds enjoying a break in a peaceful setting. Don’t forget the camera! The St. Paddy’s Day Parade brings together hundreds of thousands of people in downtown Denver for a fun celebration of culture.

How about watching some skijoring in Leadville, or checking out the Fruita Fat Tire Festival?

If you would rather be more active, strap on a pair of hiking boots and storm your favorite trail. You can scrape the mud off before you hop back in the car to head down to your favorite watering hole. Or load up the bike and hit a trail at a lower elevation that is already dried out.

There are ample opportunities to catch festivals throughout the summer but one of the state’s best is in March. Collaboration Fest, put on by the Colorado Brewer’s Guild, is an excellent way to try some of the most unusual and cutting-edge beers available in the region.

So, there are really no excuses! Whether you just want to watch, or jump in as a participant, get out there and enjoy our beautiful state and everything it has to offer.

Remember, live your passion and thirst responsibly!

Paul Johnson Publisher & Tasting Guru facebook.com/thirstcolorado twitter.com/thirstcolorado @thirstcolorado

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March-April 2019

ADVISORY BOARD Jean Ditslear Owner, 300 Suns Brewing

Sean Smiley State 38 Distilling

Bess Dougherty Head Brewer, Grateful Gnome Sandwich Shoppe and Brewery

Alan Laws Owner, Laws Whiskey House Charlie Sturdavant Owner, Golden City Brewery

Publisher Paul Johnson paul@thirstcolorado.com Associate Publisher & Editor Joe Ross joe@thirstcolorado.com Vice President of Sales Tod Cavey tod@thirstcolorado.com Design & Layout Michele Garner President & Founder Wilbur E. Flachman Marketing & Distribution Neill Pieper Editorial Assistant Natasha Lovato Editorial Intern Lisa McIntyre Contributors Katie Coakley, Will Coonradt, Kim Fuller, Steve Graham, Kyle Kirves, Jordyn MacDonald For advertising and editorial information, please contact Joe Ross at 303.428.9529 Ext. 227 or email joe@thirstcolorado.com Proud member of the Brewers Association and the Colorado Brewers Guild Thirst Colorado is produced by The Publishing House, a division of Colorado Word Works, Inc. The Publishing House also produces Colorado’s Performing Arts Publications, serving arts venues along the Front Range.

7380 Lowell Blvd., Westminster, Colorado 80030 303.428.9529

Drink up life in large amounts, but restrict your alcohol consumption. We do not endorse or support excessive drinking.

Thirst Colorado is published six times a year by The Publishing House, 7380 Lowell Blvd., Westminster, CO 80030. © The Publishing House, 2019. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. Except where noted, the content of Thirst Colorado is the property of the magazine and should only be reprinted with permission. Thirst Colorado is not responsible for false or misleading claims made in advertising or editorial materials published herein.

THIRST COLORADO | March-April 2019

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INTERSECTIONS

18 Product Spotlight

Running in comfort is the name of the game – here’s how

21 Strange Brew

Black Project’s Cygnus continues to unfold into a tasty sour

28 Untapped

42

Open up a can of Colorado adventure with these gatherings

12

32 Art of Brewing

Soulcraft draws from the heart of its community for brewing and branding

46 Prime Pairing

Try a recipe that tastes great with a complementary beverage

48

Tales from the Lying Log Saddle up and take a trip back in time to experience the state’s backcountry

On the cover: Owner James Howat pulls a nail to test his latest creation at Black Project Spontaneous & Wild Ales in Denver. See story, page 44.

Photo: Neill Pieper

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52 Brewery, Distillery, Winery, Cidery and Meadery Guide Find great craft beverages wherever you end up in Colorado

ADVENTURES

8 Vino Salida

Winery brands with an eye toward history

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March-April 2019

12

Loving the Luthier

16

Run, Run, Run

22

Fresh Spirits Please

Discover the fine art of locally made, hand-crafted guitars

Lace up the tennies and prep for summer

New spirits producers that will tantalize your taste buds

26

American Indian Food

Purveyors take pride in bringing native foods to Denver

34 Wine from the Southwest

Fill a glass or two at the Durango Wine Experience in May

38

Colorado Castles

42

Digging Deep

Delve into the past with a look at four magnificent structures

Brianna Straut’s music reflects a long road to the stage

ART OF VINO

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March-April 2019 March-April 2019

COLORADO BLEND

Revolutionary winery uses Western Slope grapes

By Kyle Kirves

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t a crossroads in the Colorado high country, where U.S. Highways 50 and 285 intersect, there’s a quiet revolution going on in winemaking.

Here in Poncha Springs, Vino Salida is creating award-winning wines from Colorado grapes with community-sourced effort.

Crushed, pressed and bottled in Chaffee County by a small staff and community volunteers, the winery is reshaping perceptions about Colorado wines.

“When most people think of Colorado wine, they generally think of sweet wines,” says Jessica Shook, sales and marketing director for Vino Salida.

“But we focus on mostly

dry red wines and blends, wines that are expressive and that stand out for a good body structure and are just really great bold reds.”

Consider, for example, Vino Salida’s best-selling wine, a red blend of Zinfandel, Cabernet Franc and Merlot dubbed Vino Rosso di Salida. It’s a rich but balanced wine in the style of Italian table reds, and it pairs well with just about anything. Jessica describes it as a “crowd-pleaser.” And avid cyclists and oenophiles around Colorado know it not just for the rich flavor, but the bottle art that features an antique photograph of turn-of-the-century bicyclists in period clothes in downtown Salida.

Like all great wine, Jessica says it starts with the grapes. Sourcing all of their fruit from Palisade, Vino Salida takes great pride in shining a spotlight on agriculture within the state.

“The local growers on the Western Slope in Palisade are really the heart and soul of the operation,” she says. “That includes grape varieties you can only find there,

Left: Vino Salida’s Poncha Springs wine bar and tasting room sits in the heart of Chaffee County just off U.S. Highways 50 and 285.

Above: Vino Salida offers 20-plus varieties of wine at their tasting room.

Photos courtesy of Vino Salida

March-April March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 9

Above: The Tenderfoot Stomp is poured during a live music performance at the tap room.

Right: Vino Salida sources the grapes for their wine from the Western Slope near Palisade.

like hybrids that are resistant to cold temperatures.”

Founder Steve Flynn’s vision has always been to create 100-percent Colorado offerings. An artist whose energies eventually found a new creative outlet in winemaking, Flynn’s mission is to make wine that is really expressive of Colorado and the Palisade area where the grapes are sourced.

“Steve wanted to use wine to connect our locality with agriculture statewide. He tries to highlight the quality of fruit that growers produce,” Jessica says. So much so that the buttes of Palisade feature prominently on Vino Salida’s label art, which was painted by acclaimed regional artist Susan Mayfield.

“Our labels are important to Steve. We want them to be evocative of Palisade.”

So why Poncha Springs and Salida? Why not, say, Vino Palisade?

“People know about the quality of grapes and fruit from Palisade. But we also want to expand the reach and presence of wine producing in Colorado,” Jessica says. “Having a presence in Poncha Springs and Salida that really highlights our area and our mountain way of life is part of our mission, too.”

Community support and Colorado focus is woven into the very fabric of Vino Salida.

But it’s more than just a fan base, it’s a family of investors who came together to make Vino Salida happen. Jessica explains that “we’re a unique model. We are community supported and sponsored. There were no huge investors making this happen. A lot of very dedicated area people came together,

made small investments, and still continue to give us their time as volunteers.”

Recognizing that wholesale distribution is not a good fit for them, Vino Salida made the conscious decision to make their wines available as retail offerings via the winery and its website. But that should be fine with most wine lovers — Vino Salida is a destination worth seeking out, or it may already be “on the way” if you’re traveling to Monarch, Gunnison, Taos or Durango. The welcoming venue is family (and dog) friendly and offers a full menu and stunning views of the Collegiate Peaks and the Sawatch Range.

True believers may be hard to come by outside of the state — it remains a challenge for Colorado wineries, including Vino Salida, to overcome French and Californian bias.

But then the people of central Colorado know all about uphill struggles, right? And in the meantime, local and state support remains instrumental in Vino Salida’s steady success, something Jessica recognizes and is grateful for. “Our local response has been really positive. We have a lot of support out of the local and state communities. And our already big wine club continues to grow.”

Kyle Kirves drinks beer, plays guitar, runs trails, and manages projects – all with varying degrees of success. While not a craftsman himself, he is quite content writing about the Colorado artisans who create such wonderful things and memorable experiences.

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March-April 2019

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All Rights Reserved

Colorado Słrumming The (He)art of the Guitar: Talking with Local Luthiers

By Kyle Kirves

T

he guitar wants to collapse. Not just this guitar — a beauty with a Sitka spruce top, rosewood sides and back, and a custom-wood inlay for a rosette — but all guitars, every guitar. The string tension between the headstock and the bridge wants to take the whole thing and fold it in half like a broken bird. The truss rod, a metal bar that runs up the inside of the neck, allows the guitar to confidently withstand the rigors of playing and resist the forces of physics that would destroy it.

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March-April 2019

Above: Robbie O’Brien, right, works with a student during a guitar building class. Photo courtesy of Robbie O’Brien at O’Brien Guitars. Bottom: A custom guitar back depicts exotic wood and grain. Photo courtesy of Bevan Frost at Big Hollow Guitars.

So, you could say that, like all things of grace and character, a wellmade guitar is delicate without being fragile … and with a resilient backbone. The handmade guitars created at the hands of Colorado’s luthiers, artisans who specialize in creating handmade stringed instruments, exemplify those attributes.

“Creating a guitar is a way to combine design, aesthetic thinking, engineering, structural thinking, the whole brain,” says Bevan Frost of Big Hollow Guitars in Frisco.

“It requires a lot of skill with the hands and mind.”

Frost, a luthier with 18 years of experience, is almost entirely self-taught.

He learned the craft from a library book, which is more common than you might think.

Others, however, took a more traditional, apprenticeship-based route. Robbie O’Brien of O’Brien Guitars in Parker learned from a master guitar maker in Brazil.

“I was working down there (in Brazil) and playing guitar and I had a few woodworking skills,” he says. “And I went looking for someone to train with. I found someone and went over on Saturdays for a couple of years to learn the trade.”

That someone was Antonio Tessarin, one of Brazil’s most renowned luthiers. Now, after more than 20 years in guitar making, O’Brien has turned instructor himself. His courses take initiates from a box of lumber to a finished guitar in six days. Jeff Bamburg of Bamburg Guitars and the Rocky Mountain Guitar Co. in Salida started out with a standard guitar-making kit, but it was enough to give him the bug. He says he didn’t formally train with anyone in particular, but he learned from everyone. “It’s really a non-competitive industry. A really open guitar-making community. That’s refreshing.”

The Colorado chapter of that community is turning out some of the finest instruments available, sought after by master musicians and enthusiasts. They are composed from materials with exotic names — Indian rosewood, Africana ebony, South American mahogany, Hawaiian koa — for a fanbase of professional musicians who include, in the case of O’Brien, Tommy Emmanuel and other champion fingerstyle players.

The character and the spirit of the intended owner often is woven into any number of customizations and personalization. Frost’s work has been repeatedly commissioned by a fan in France who’s flown him over to deliver instruments.

Bamburg cites as a standout a guitar completed for a local Salida musician inlaid with a Tree of Life on the fretboard.

O’Brien said most people will want their initials for a peghead icon, or custom inlay work on the fretboard. One unique request came from the other side of the United States.

“I did a ukulele for a football player from the Baltimore Ravens,” says O’Brien. “It had his jersey number on the fretboard.”

Player or not, there’s something that speaks to all of us about the guitar.

“It’s a very versatile instrument,” Bamburg says. “It’s as comfortable in a coffee house as at a campfire. And it’s portable. You never hear anyone say, ‘Hey, pass me that piano.’”

Part of it is the aesthetic. The guitars and their exotic woods are often pieces to admire even when they’re not being played.

The selection of woods starts with the intent and design of the guitar; that is, what music will this future beauty be made to sing?

Above right: Inlay rosette and binding work are displayed. Below right: The traditional “open” style headstock is featured with tuning pegs and Big Hollow inlay. Photos courtesy Bevan Frost, Big Hollow Guitars.

March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 13

Fast-picking? Big, robust open notes?

Fingerstyle?

Like all things built from scratch, the piece and the purpose always figures into design.

For example, Bamburg suggests, spruce has a high strength-to-weight ratio and responds well to strings — perfect for a top selection.

From there, it’s often aesthetic choice.

“After design is the look,” Bamburg continues. “A pretty piece of wood still draws people’s attention in.”

It’s fanciful to think that master craftsmen always fashion their artworks with fine hand tools fitted just to that purpose. But all these Colorado luthiers said some power tools are put in play. Still, for the fine work – the setting of phosphorescent accents or the shaping of a neck made to fit your hand – the old ways are still best.

“Back in our day, if you wanted to hear a piece of music, you had to learn how to play it. Now, we’re flooded with it. It’s a dying craft among the young,” O’Brien opines about the state of music in the 21st Century. Still, he says, he’s encouraged by the interest among the established generation of not just playing an instrument, but making one.

“In the 45-65 year-old crowd, the interest in doing something with their hands remains high,” he said. “And if you’ve made the guitar you’re playing, that interest stays way up there.”

Appreciation of fine instruments seems to be on the rise, both as collectibles and as things to be played. The reward and satisfaction that comes from a handcrafted guitar is still very real for these luthiers, and for the hundreds of players who count a Colorado-crafted guitar among their favorites.

Kyle Kirves drinks beer, plays guitar, runs trails, and manages projects – all with varying degrees of success.

While not a craftsman himself, he is quite content writing about the Colorado artisans who create such wonderful things and memorable experiences.

Above right: Sunburst guitars await a bridge and stringing. Photo courtesy of Bevan Frost at Big Hollow Guitars. Below left: Fine soundhole work is displayed on the sides of an O’Brien guitar. Photo courtesy of Robbie O’Brien at O’Brien Guitars. Lower right: Ornate “closed” style headstock, with parrot inlay, and tuning pegs. Photo courtesy of Robbie O’Brien.

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OPEN UP YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE

© 2018 Patagonia Brewing Co., Bohemian Pilsner Lager (Ale in TX), Fairfield, California. Brewed in USA.

ON RUNNING & BEER

Boulder athlete Sage Canaday says runners can drink, too

By Kim Fuller

L

ong-distance runner and ultramarathoner Sage Canaday now lives in Boulder and he’s originally from Oregon, so he is no stranger to craft beer. He says having a beer after a run is a “refreshing reward.”

“Usually I am pretty thirsty, and a nice cold beer is a satisfying drink,” he said.

“Of course, I also drink plenty of water and electrolyte fluid, but the beer is like a special treat that means I can finally relax and put my feet up.”

In the Sage Running Podcast, Cannady stressed the importance to take time off to let the body recover. “You can’t be racing at 100 percent all year long,” he said.

After a mid-winter mental and physical break, “it’s better to come back slowly ... before you think about any serious races.”

Many runners will ski, swim and bike in the off season. It’s also a good time to hit the weights to add power to their legs. And stretching routines are needed throughout the year.

In his peak training seasons, Canaday says he tries to run between 100 to 120 miles per week.

“Most days I run twice a day,” he says.

“When I’m training for a mountain-trail race or a hilly road race I run up and down a lot of the

2019 16 ThirstColorado.com ThirstColorado.com March-April March-April 2019

Photos courtesy of Sage Canaday.

mountain trails in Boulder and do some highaltitude pushes.”

Some of the biggest races Canaday has planned for this year include the Comrades ultramarathon in South Africa and the Pikes Peak Marathon here in Colorado.

And when it comes to beer, Canaday says he is a bit biased by his Avery Brewing sponsors, but he does have some favorite styles, including imperial IPAs (he says it’s hard to find an IPA that is too bitter for him), rum barrel-aged ales (like Avery’s Rumpkin), and “a really good” and authentic German style lager.

“There is a special art in making great lagers and they are very refreshing,” says Canaday.

Brewing companies like Avery Brewing sponsor running events and even some races.

“There is also a certain social element to being able to share a special beverage with others after a race or a run,” explains Canaday. “It can help open up conversation.

I like to kind of geek out and talk about all the different kinds of beer and my favorite flavors and I’ve had many great conversations with fellow runners who also share this passion.”

We’ll raise a glass to that. To follow Canaday’s running pursuits, visit sagecanaday.com.

Contributor Kim Fuller is a magazine editor and writer based in Vail.

Sage’s Running Tips

For those trying to break into the sport of running, Canaday has three main tips: Take your easy days easy. Most miles are run comfortably so you can carry on a conversation. This reduces injury risk but also lets you focus on bigger (and harder) workout days when you should run a lot faster.

Be patient. The adaptations to training occur over weeks, months and even years of consistent training.

Stay healthy. Health is No. 1, really, and this includes a healthy diet and getting enough sleep. It will influence your running.

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March-April March-April 2019 2019

ThirstColorado.com 17

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

Runner’s Checklist Torpedo Mountain Running Vest

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Eldo Sunglasses

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Native Eye Wear $129 These sunnies feature a large impact-resistant lens, trilaminate frame construction, lightweight durability and enhanced clarity. The Eldo is perfect for hitting the trail all day and capping it off with a celebratory beverage. nativeyewear.com

La Sportiva $125 The Torpedo Vest from La Sportiva is the ultimate versatile layer for runners. Multiple pockets, high breathability and reflective details round out this cool weather training garment. lasportiva.com

Global Shorts

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Topo Designs $59 Topo’s shorts are the doanything, go-anywhere shorts, made with quick-drying, lightweight fabric with ample stretch. They’re great for a jog through town or backcountry water crossings, and pack down to almost nothing. topodesigns.com

SlapLit Rechargeable LED

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Nite Ize $19.99 Nite Ize’s SlapLit allows you to add a bright LED to your wrist, arm, or ankle for nighttime visibility.

Lightweight and durable, the SlapLit features a reflective pattern, glow and flash modes, and easy recharge. niteize.com

PhD Run Cold Weather Mid Crew Socks

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Smartwool $20.95 It’s time to take “brrr” out of your running vocabulary. A Merino wool blend and mesh zones designed for runners help keep your feet warm during long winter runs. smartwool.com

March-April 2019

Newton Running $175 The Motion delivers a stable, smooth and versatile ride for your training runs. Motion’s midsole provides an exceptional balance of flexibility and stability. A new dual-density medial post is biomechanically engineered to address overpronation at all stages. newtonrunning.com

»

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Motion 7 Running Shoe

Maroon Bells Running Trucker

»

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Aftershokz $179.95 Bone-conduction technology is what powers Aftershokz’s open-ear headphones. Weighing about one ounce, these uber-light headphones are sweat resistant and provide up to six hours of continuous play per charge. aftershokz.com

Runner’s Tees

»

Trekz Air Headphones

BOCO Gear $29.99 BOCO’s Running Trucker provides the comfort of a running hat with the structured front panels and bill of a trucker hat. Ventilated panels provide the breathability needed for warm weather and long runs. bocogear.com

Ultimate Direction $24.95 Ultimate Direction has the perfect training T-shirts to show the world that you mean business when you hit the trail. ultimatedirection.com

Levante Mountain Running Jacket

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PhD Training Glove

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Smartwool $45 Thermo-regulating Merino wool, silicon grippers, reflective elements, and touchscreen compatible fingers make these training gloves a runner’s best friend on cool days out on the trail. smartwool.com

La Sportiva $160 Levante is a lightweight running softshell that provides everything a runner can ask for: great storage capacity thanks to the big mesh pocket on the back and a second side zipper pocket; high breathability; and reflective details for night training sessions. lasportiva.com

March-April 2019

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20 ThirstColorado.com

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THE SECRET IS OUT

STRANGE BREW

Stealthy Black Project’s cherry beer hard to explain, easy to enjoy

Cygnus

Style: Lambic-inspired, coolship spontaneous ale Brewery: Black Project Location: Denver ABV: around 7 percent IBU: 20

ven when James Howat isn’t being secretive, it can take him a while to explain his brews.

Howat is the founder, brewer and blender at Black Project Spontaneous & Wild Ales on south Broadway in Denver.

As the name might suggest, the theme of the brewery is secrecy. On the other hand, Howat is proudly forthcoming about his award-winning wild ales. Nonetheless, the styles can be hard to explain — both because they are complex and because of international labeling traditions.

Case in point: Black Project releases the third edition of Cygnus this spring. In place of a simple phrase identifying the beer style, the brewery’s website has a threeparagraph explanation. Howat was only a little more succinct in a phone interview.

“It’s made in the same way as an authentic kriek lambic, but we’re not in Belgium,” he said.

Like French champagne, only beer from one region of Belgium should officially be labeled lambic, but the Methode Traditionnelle guidelines help brewers around the globe create similar beers. Unlike champagne, international law does not prohibit the wider use of the lambic title, but Howat and other brewers avoid the name out of respect and tradition.

So the shortest descriptor of Cygnus is “a Lambic-inspired, coolship spontaneous ale.” But the name is less important than the fruity and funky flavor.

Howat hasn’t always brewed such obtuse concoctions. After earning a microbiology degree and working as a home brewer

and high school biology teacher, he opened his first brewery, Former Future Brewing Company.

“We essentially made normal beers,” Howat said.

Shortly after opening in 2014, he started working on some spontaneously inoculated and spontaneously fermented beers. His first experiment earned a Great American Beer Fest prize, even though it was a surprise even to his staff.

“I was taking money out of the register to buy barrels,” Howat admits. “I waited until I had something that tasted good before I even told the people that worked here.”

The Black Project name grew out of that early stealth.

“We took the secrecy theme and ran with it,” he said.

He started brewing Black Project beers at Former Future, but soon realized there was at least as much demand for the spontaneous beers as for the “clean” beers in the standard Former Future lineup. So he briefly shut down the brewery to rebrand and reopen as Black Project, which has a taproom but specializes in bottle sales.

He said the bottle conditioning with wild microbes improves the beer and adds flavor.

The first version of Cygnus was bottled two years ago — a blackberry rendition that was only available for brewery members.

Last spring and this year, Black Project has aged the beer in oak barrels on two kinds of whole tart cherries, pits included, and created a pair of specialty Cygnus blends.

“It’s really fun getting in thousands of pounds of cherries, and the beer is really tasty,” Howat said. “It’s got a depth of complexity that goes far beyond a cherry puree or something.”

Howat said that his regular customers are familiar with Cygnus, even if the style is hard to explain. “People love Cygnus,” Howat said. “It’s a classic style, so a lot of people know what to expect.

Steve Graham is a freelance writer and former newspaper editor who likes taking his two young boys biking, hiking and brewery-hopping in northern Colorado.

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Photo: Neill Pieper

E

By Steve Graham

MARK YOUR MAPS Three distilleries to add to your bucket (or tumbler) list

C

By Katie Coakley

olorado’s craft distilling wave is building, with no signs of cresting.

It’s hard to believe the state had only five licensed distilleries in 2007.

The Colorado Distillers Guild now has more than 60 members. Although the total number of craft distilleries is a moving target, at least 80 have opened statewide. Suffice to say, an ever-growing variety of spirits is available, and liquor stores have allotted more local craft spirit space in case you can’t make it to the source.

To aid your quest to find the latest, we’re profiling a few of the state’s newer distilleries.

Tower 56 Distilling

GREELEY Opened: June 2018 Available: Bourbon, gin, vodka, coffee spirit (coffee liqueur) and almondretto (almond liqueur)

Former pastor-turned-distiller Matt Estrin and his wife Trista opened Tower 56 after a small inheritance let the couple pursue the dream of owning a business. Two years in the making, Tower 56 opened with five spirits on the menu: two liqueurs (which had been tested on friends with high reviews), gin, vodka and a year-aged bourbon.

“It was very, very important to me to have a bourbon product on our shelves right away,” said Matt. “Before we had a bank loan, before we even had a building, we contracted a distillery to fill about

52Eighty Distilling

Photo courtesy of 52Eighty Distilling

LITTLETON Opened: December 2018 Available: Blended Cackler Whiskey, Blended Hearthstone Whiskey, Palisade Peach Vodka, Winter Wheat Vodka

For the three owners of 52Eighty Distilling in Littleton, the decision to open came along with a career change. Brothers Erick and Drew Demgen and their best friend Anthony “Lou” Pacenta grew up in Littleton, went to school together, played sports together, and even ended up in the same corporate world as financial analysts and planners for major Colorado firms. So when the daily grind got to be, well, a grind, the trio turned their love of home brewing, distilling and experimentation into 52Eighty Distilling.

Using creative techniques, ingredients from small family-owned Colorado farms and Rocky Mountain water, 52Eighty “aims to bring variations to our spirits that aren’t traditional, and use recent innovations in distilling (such as our still, how we ferment and extract and accelerate aging) to produce consistent, high quality products,” said Erick Demgen.

Whiskey and gin are the distillers’ passions, Demgen said. After all, Colorado is a whiskey-loving state. Currently, two whiskeys are offered: Cackler’s Whiskey, a bourbon with a crisp oak aroma and smooth finish, with hints of caramel; and Hearthstone Whiskey, a

22 ThirstColorado.com March-April March-April 2019 22 ThirstColorado.com 2019

spice-forward Irish whiskey blended with American Rye. For vodka drinkers, 52Eighty offers a Palisade Peach Vodka and gluten-free winter wheat vodka. Keep an eye out for a gin (set to be released in March) and a single-malt, single-barrel whiskey, which is scheduled for October.

Located behind the Reel Factory, 52Eightly Distilling will be taking a frame from the historic business, which made movie film reels starting in the 1890s. The crew is offering tours, and tasting flights will be served on old film reels.

IF YOU GO:

52Eighty Distilling is open from 2 to 8 p.m.

Wednesday to Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Background photo: © Sean Gladwell / Adobe Stock

Photo courtesy of Tower 56 Distilling

60 barrels for us. It was our recipe, but they were willing to run it to spec for our recipe, which allowed us to have a year-old product in the barrel when we opened.”

Tower 56 has continued aging its bourbon, releasing it at different stages. Its two-year old bourbon will be released July 1.

Though Estrin is a self-proclaimed bourbon lover, he’s also proud of his gin.

“We haven’t seen the momentum get behind that yet, but everybody that tries it really likes it,” Estrin said. “The most common comment we get about our gin is from people that don’t like gin who say, ‘I hate gin, but I would drink this.’”

Head to the tasting room, located in the heart of downtown Greeley, and enjoy the mix of industrial edge and warm natural wood in the décor. Estrin said he’s balancing the line between being a bar and a tasting room; stop in a for a Black Knight (Tower 56 Bourbon, muddled blackberries, brown sugar, angostura and orange bitters) and experience it for yourself.

IF YOU GO:

Tower 56 is open from 4 to 10 p.m. Tuesday to Thursday; 4 p.m. to midnight Friday; 2 p.m. to midnight Saturday and from 2 to 8 p.m. Sunday.

Photo courtesy of Fraser Valley Distilling

Fraser Valley Distilling FRASER Opened: December 2018 Available: Vodka, gin, rye whiskey Coming soon: Citrus gin and Indecision Whiskey

Fraser Valley Distilling is a family business comprised of main distillers Barry and Debbie Young, their three children and one son-in-law. Wander into the brand-new building and you’ll feel as if you’re one of the family, with daughter Jenna mixing drinks and her mother Debbie offering tours. Families often fill the tables, too, enjoying lunch or a snack after skiing or warming up by the fire.

“As residents of Fraser, we were excited to add a business to downtown, and create a space for locals and tourists alike to enjoy good food and spirits,” Jenna said.

Belly up to the granite bar and you’ll get a chance to enjoy the fruits of the Youngs’ labor. Fraser Valley Distilling opened with a vodka, gin and rye whiskey. A citrus-forward gin is waiting to be bottled, and two different whiskeys are aging in barrels.

Sipping on an incredibly smooth vodka, then tasting the gin and rye whiskey, Barry explained that much of the credit for the quality is due to the aquifer-fed waters used in the distilling and proofing processes. The gin recipe is theirs, too — hand-picked local juniper and other botanicals are added to a basket at the top of the still for a vapor-infused product, which is softer and less aggressive than other

gins. And though these spirits are popular, Barry admits that he’s a whiskey lover. He’s experimenting with different aging techniques in the hopes of introducing a new whiskey in a few months.

Cocktails are created from homemade liqueurs, syrups and fresh juices, resulting in clean, simple concoctions that are deceptively drinkable. Be sure to ask about the slushie of the day. Even when it’s cold outside, these fun options in flavors like whiskey sour, cosmopolitan and gin gimlet are a tasty variation on their liquid counterparts.

IF YOU GO:

Fraser Valley Distilling is open from 4 to 9 p.m.

Thursday to Saturday, and from 12:30 to 5 p.m. Sunday.

Katie Coakley is a Denver-based freelance writer who focuses on craft beer and spirits, travel and outdoor adventures — the best stories combine all three.

You can see more of her work at katiecoakley.com.

March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 23

Same Bier, New Look Denver

Fort Collins

here’s to a fresh taSTE OF tradition!

24 ThirstColorado.com

March-April 2019

BEER, WINE, AND SPIRIT TASTING AND SILENT AUCTION

FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2019 FROM 6:00 - 9:00 PM AT THE DENVER MARRIOTT WESTMINSTER

ALL COLORADO PRODUCTS!

VIP PACKAGE $250

Provides admittance for two and unlimited samples of wine, beer and spirits as well as food options from local vendors, plus a one night stay at the Denver Marriott Westminster and a VIP gift.

REGULAR TICKETS $35

Provides admittance and gives you access to taste all wine, beer and spirits as well as limitless food options from local vendors

DESIGNATED DRIVER TICKETS $15 Includes unlimited non-alcoholic beverages and food

A PORTION OF PROCEEDS FROM THIS EVENT WILL GO DIRECTLY TO OUR LOCAL CHARITY, GROWING HOME

ANCIENT PEOPLES, MODERN TASTES

Keeping native culture alive and plates full at Tocabe, an American Indian Eatery

By Natasha Lovato

F

orget stereotypes of feathers, moccasins and dream catchers. The modern American Indian is not Hollywood’s misrepresentations, but rather authenticated in a communal space through a concept everyone can relate to — food.

Ben Jacobs sought to keep his Osage traditions alive by opening his own restaurant, inspired by Grayhorse American Indian Eatery, which his parents operated on the 16th Street Mall from 1989 to 1991. After partnering with Matt Chandra, he opened Tocabe, an American Indian Eatery.

After a trip to their Osage village in Pawhuska, Okla., Jacobs and Chandra wondered why American Indian food wasn’t available outside of the community, or even inside the community except for special occasions, family gatherings and powwows.

So they decided to take the idea of Grayhorse, evolve it and create a space that was designed and built for everyone.

The concept is casual, like many chain lunch spots. Customers order at the counter, go down the line choosing ingredients, pay and sit in an open space. The original recipes are based on his mother’s and grandmother’s recipes, and Jacobs realized the best way to make everyone feel welcome was to provide specificity without being too broad in terms of the food served.

26 ThirstColorado.com

March-April 2019

Above, Tocabe’s décor includes a variety of artwork such as wooden hands.

Offerings include posu bowls, bison ribs and fry bread. Photos courtesy of Tocabe.

“Being Osage is very tribally specific,” he said. “We also didn’t want to be regionally specific but rather as broad as we could without being pan-Indian because everyone has their own individual identity depending on what tribe they’re from.”

Chandra and Jacobs use their ingredients to create something that respects and represents many tribal identities. Tocabe sources ingredients from different tribes, with wild rice from the Great Lakes area and braised bison of the North American plains.

Running the only restaurant of its kind in Colorado, Jacobs set out to prove that the restaurant industry can be about more than food. He is creating an environment that shares identity and sparks conversation.

“Other natives will come in and ask, ‘who owns this place? Are they Indians?’ Because they want to know it’s true to the fact and not just cool and trendy,” he said “At the same time I’m going to hire someone who isn’t native because it’s open for everybody. We’ve been asked, ‘why are there no dream catchers? Why are there no feathers? Why are there no moccasins?’ But that’s the point about breaking the mold. If you don’t really care and you just want to eat food, then that’s great, eat food, we’re a restaurant. We’ve never attempted to be a gift shop.”

Although the community is encouraged to be a part of the identity conversation, Jacobs wanted to focus first and foremost on customer service, fearing that a bad experience would reflect on the larger Native American community.

“If someone has a bad experience in a Chinese food restaurant, for example, they can always go to another

Tocabe owners Matt Chandra and Ben Jacobs.

Photo courtesy of Tocabe

one,” he said. “I want my customers to enjoy the food, enjoy how they were treated, enjoy their time and then if they get something out of it, great. If they want to learn more, great.

In no way do they have to do that. It’s never force-fed, no pun intended.”

Jacobs applies the same theory at home. By just keeping aspects of the Osage lifestyle around his young children, they have developed a love for the culture on their own.

“We have drums around the house, my son loves the music, he loves watching people dance on YouTube and he likes all of those things on his own so I’m never trying to force any of those things on him. I just always want it to be an open conversation about who he is and where he comes from,” he said.

Jacobs’ mother taught him about native culture in a similar way, and he figured out how to navigate his identity as half European and half Osage in modern American culture.

“It’s the complexity of being an Indian that is so hard. What makes us strong is we understand our history,” Jacobs said, but because of places like Tocabe, the contemporary American Indian is able to thrive in a space where cultural identities are unified by food.

Colorado native Natasha Lovato will soon graduate from MSU Denver with a degree in Integrative Written Communication in the Arts.

March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 27

COLLABORATION BEER FEST MARCH 16 Denver

Don’t miss out on the ultimate creative beer festival, featuring 100-plus beer projects from over 200 participating breweries. Teamwork truly does make the dream work as breweries unite to brew something exciting, rare and delicious that you won’t find anywhere else. collaborationfest.com

YOGA WITH THE SHARKS MARCH 16 AND 30 Denver

Every week is shark week at the Downtown Denver Aquarium. Spend your morning appreciating these magnificent predators while also finding your zen. aquariumrestaurants.com

Photo courtesy of 11 Creative Services

MILE HIGH BEER FESTIVAL MARCH 2 DENVER

The always sold out, always delectable Mile High Beer Festival in the RiNo neighborhood of Denver is back. This laid-back festival celebrates

MARCH

milehighbeerfestival.com

THE APRÈS SKI COCKTAIL CLASSIC MARCH 14-17 Aspen

PINTS FOR PIGS! MARCH 2 Centennial

Rain, snow or shine, join Resolute Brewing Co. and Hog Haven Farm to commemorate another National Pig Day. Grab a beer, hop into the piggy photo booth, feed the pigs, partake in the prize giveaways, or sling back a delicious vegan meal. resolutebrewingco.com

KEYSTONE MARDI-GRAS PARTY MARCH 5 Keystone

Bring your beads, costumes and appetites because you’re invited to celebrate Mardi Gras in the Rockies. This family-friendly event offers unlimited tastes of all the delicious gumbo Keystone has to offer, along with live music by Chris Daniels and the Kings. keystonefestivals.com

MOUNTAINTOP YURT DINNER MARCH 9 AND 16 Leadville

The only thing better than skiing in the heart of the Rockies is dining in the heart of the Rockies. Take a snowcat ride to the top of Cooper Mountain, where you’ll spend the evening enjoying a delicious gourmet meal in a yurt. skicooper.com

28 ThirstColorado.com

Colorado craft brews, with more than 2,700 thirsty patrons served last year. So, cheers to tastings, food trucks, vendors, music and more.

March-April 2019

Blend together all things après in this fourday event featuring a craft cocktail tasting extravaganza, seminars by award-winning mixologists and brand ambassadors, snow parties, pop-up bars and spirit-paired dinners. apresskicocktailclassic.com

WAFFLES FOR WISHES MARCH 16-17 Denver

This brunch will bring a weekend of unlimited mimosas, bloodys, beer and waffles to the Denver Athletic Club’s rooftop during St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Above all else, be a part of a journey to make a local child’s wish come true with the Make-a-Wish Foundation. ​ ypwishco.org

PAINT THE WILD MARCH 16 Littleton

Sit back, relax and enjoy a beer with Living the Dream Brewing Co. while you create art of your own. You’ll be guided step-by-step as you paint Louvre-worthy pictures of flora and fauna species of the Highlands Ranch Community Association Backcountry Wilderness Area. livingthedreambrewing.com

STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE – LIVE IN CONCERT WITH THE COLORADO SYMPHONY MARCH 23 & 24 Broomfield

Experience the beloved Oscar-winning musical score of “Star Wars: A New Hope” perfomed live by the Colorado Symphony along with a full-screening of the film. Be a part of the adventure in a galaxy far far away this spring at the 1st Bank Center. tickets.coloradosymphony.org

ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK HIGH PEAKS ADVANCED SPLIT COURSE APRIL 11-13 ESTES PARK

Join Kent Mountain Adventure Center and Weston Snowboards for a three-day adventure deep into Rocky Mountain National Park. Advanced skiers

THE ILLUSIONISTS MARCH 26-27 Colorado Springs

You will be left awe struck as The Illusionists bring a show full of hilarious tricks, death-defying stunts and acts of out-of-this-world magic. theillusionistslive.com

APRIL

BRECKENRIDGE SPRING BEER FEST APRIL 6 Breckenridge

Beat the restlessness of spring fever at one of the coolest events in the Rockies. You’ll enjoy the best brews in the state while supporting a good cause with this year’s non-profit partner, Summit Advocates for Victims of Assault. spring.breckenridgebeerfestival.com

TULIP FAIRY AND ELF FESTIVAL APRIL 7 Boulder

When the Tulip Fairy and her elf friends parade around the Pearl Street Mall, spring has officially arrived. This beloved springtime tradition welcomes the tulips and features special events and activities for all. Celebrate along the mall with live stage performances, face paintings and more free activities. boulderdowntown.com

will sink deep into the park, set up a basecamp, then ride couloirs and summits all weekend. This is an opportunity for anyone who has advanced-level riding skills but wants to start heading deeper into the mountains.

kmaconline.com

Photo courtesy of Butterfly Pavilion

BEEKEEPING BOOTCAMP APRIL 13 - OCTOBER 19 WESTMINISTER

Work alongside Butterfly Pavilion beekeepers to develop the skills necessary to create thriving beehives. Beekeeping Bootcamp

THE DURANGO BLUEGRASS MELTDOWN APRIL 12-14 Durango

The annual Durango Bluegrass Meltdown celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. This year’s lineup includes Junior Sisk and Friends, The Larry Keel Experience, Songs from the Road Band, John Reischman and the Jaybirds, Richie and Rosie, Jeff Scroggins and Colorado, FY5, Steam Machine, Masontown, and many more. durangomeltdown.com

BARKIN’ DOG DUATHLON APRIL 20 Aurora

The Barkin’ Dog Duathlon celebrates 22 years in this kickoff race. The Barkin’ Dog is Colorado’s largest duathlon attracting pros and first-time multisport athletes alike. Participants can choose from the standard 5K run, 34K bike, 5K run event or the short course, which challenges participants with a 2K run, 11-mile bike, 5K run race. racingunderground.com

Have an event you would like to get into Thirst Colorado?

Let us know. joe@thirstcolorado.com or ThirstColorado.com Photo courtesy of Kent Mountain Adventure Center

- Compiled by Natasha Lovato

is qualified through the Colorado State Beekeeping Association and taught by Mario Padilla, a Butterfly Pavilion entomologist and knowledgeable beekeeper.

butterflies.org

EASTER EGG HUNT AT COPPER MOUNTAIN APRIL 21 Copper Mountain

Wrap up in your winter best and hop over to Copper with the kids for a 65,000-Easter egg hunt. The egg hunt isn’t just for kids though.

Adults are encouraged to search for the 12 golden eggs in an on-mountain hunt followed by Easter breakfast. coppercolorado.com

JEFF DUNHAM PASSIVELY AGGRESSIVE TOUR APRIL 24 Loveland

Get ready to laugh your socks off with ventriloquist comedian Jeff Dunham as he stops in Colorado for his Passively Aggressive Tour, alongside his puppet cohorts. treventscomplex.com

LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS APRIL 25 - MAY 19 Colorado Springs

When Seymour cultivates a sassy R&B-singing Venus fly trap-like plant, everything seems great until the plant’s devious plans threaten to ruin everything. Enjoy the quirky sci-fi smash hit “Little Shop of Horrors.” uccspresents.org

March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 29

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March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 31

ART OF BREWING

HOMETOWN ARTS AND CRAFTS

Soulcraft’s community connections help direct branding and beer styles

By Kyle Kirves

S

ome breweries are so intimately associated with the cities they call home that it is almost impossible for the beer lover to separate the two. The spirit of place and its people are infused right into the can, and often onto it.

Staffers at Soulcraft Brewing in Salida share that kind of spiritual bond with their playground city on the Arkansas River. Not just for their great beer and creative labels, but also because of their sincere investment in giving back. “From ownership on down, everybody, every employee has contributed time, money, effort – something – to an event or a non-profit that improves the quality of life in Salida,” says owner and founder Mike LaCroix.

“We’re a brewery that’s connected to the community and, from the start, we wanted to be Salida’s hometown brewery.”

In many ways, that vision has been realized: The Salida Chamber of Commerce recognized Soulcraft as Business of the Year for 2018.

“That recognition is very meaningful to us. It’s something we take great pride in,” says marketing manager Eric Ramsey.

THE BIRTH OF A BREWERY

The evolution from startup to stalwart has been steady. LaCroix arrived on the Salida scene 16 years ago after applying for “the only brewing gig in Chafee County,” he says, as head brewer for what would become Amica’s, a local favorite Italian restaurant.

“The in-house brewing operation was a ‘Frankenbrewing’ system, something I was familiar with from my brewpub experience,” LaCroix remembers.

When Amica’s sought to outsource its brewing operations, LaCroix and his partners decided it was the perfect time to set up their own shop.

Enter the new enterprise

in 2016: Soulcraft Brewing, a startup that traces its name back to a Bad Brains song that, by LaCroix’s interpretation, is a celebration of being true to yourself and your calling. The calling for Soulcraft is to make beers that appeal to highcountry beer drinkers, a distinctly different breed of enthusiasts from their more urban cousins.

LaCroix said he focuses on unique takes on flavorful, drinkable beers, like hoppy doppelbock and pils offerings, and seasonal sours. Amica’s classic beer recipes remain on the brewer’s menu, and Soulcraft still provides those favorites to the downtown pizza joint.

“It remains a great partnership for us to this day,” LaCroix says. “They support us, we support them. It’s a real, small-town family feel between us.”

THE SOUL OF A CAN

Similarly, all Soulcraft beers share a distinct branding “feel” – cans with images in eyepopping, neon-sign-on-a-stormy-night color against an almost chalkboard-like matte black background. Each beer has its own identifiable and distinct iconography, walking the line between illustration and graphic design, as well as some sublimated ghosted images in the background.

The X-RAY IPA, described by Ramsey as “smooth, easy drinking,” features a hops blossom in old-school split 3-D that might send you looking for some red lens/blue lens glasses. The green chile beer shows flames behind an almost heroic, winged drawing of the titular veggie. And the Low Vis hazy pale ale, a personal favorite for LaCroix, is a foggy

32 ThirstColorado.com

March-April 2019

daydream where clouds wrap around mountains in metallic blue-green oceanic swirls. All of it, though, evokes a throwback vibe to blacklight and lava lamps — in a good way.

A clear favorite among the brands is the All-Mountain Amber, with a Toyota FJ 60 Land Cruiser lumbering over harsh terrain.

Complete with kayak and mountain bike strapped to the top, it’s what local Salidans might call a real sports car. Not only is it an iconic image to associate with a great tasting, go-to style of beer, it comes with a built-in fanbase.

“An online group of FJ enthusiasts called IH8Mud came in and bought us out of it, every case. And then they called all the local liquor stores and bought them all out, too,” Ramsey says.

T-shirt orders from FJ fans continue coming in from all across the country.

“We’ve had to reorder them three times already,” he says.

The inspiration behind their vehicular artwork comes from an unlikely place.

“There’s a repair manual from the ’70s that’s illustrated in line drawings.

It’s called ‘How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive: A Manual of Step-by-Step Procedures for the Compleat Idiot,’” LaCroix says. “I took that to Kurt

and he instantly got it.

Turns out his favorite thing to draw in school were cars.”

Kurt is Kurt Snyder, a graphic artist, illustrator, luthier and native Salidan.

“I’ve been doodling hot rods since I was in grade school. So when I started doing the Soulcraft art, it was just a natural fit to do the Type 2 VW or the FJ for the labels. It’s just stuff I love drawing,” Snyder says.

Soulcraft works closely with Snyder through each product development, and there’s an iterative back and forth. Citing the same Volkswagen guide, Snyder said the illustrations inspired him to add subtle details that may go unnoticed at first look but that emerge from the can on second or third look.

“It helps that they’re gear heads over there,” Snyder added.

Of the many identities Snyder has created, one stands out as a personal

favorite. “Loud Uncle Old Ale was inspired by a flat-track racing motorcycle,” he says. The “uncle” is a grimacing and gripping rider in old-time goggles and racing gear, verily flying off the edge of the label.

With a presence in about 85 percent of the Colorado market, and frequent participation at state festivals and celebrations, you can find Soulcraft beers from Pueblo to Palisade, from Craig to Colorado Springs. But the soul of Soulcraft resides in Salida, where you’ll find the inviting brewery on Rainbow Boulevard, right on the threshold of historic old town.

Connections and correlation run deep between a place and a taste, and between local pride and fandom – here, there, and everywhere. Soulcraft is fast becoming as readily identifiable with Salida as the S on Tenderfoot Mountain. Rarely have a burg and a brewery been so ideally suited to one another.

Kyle Kirves drinks beer, plays guitar, runs trails, and manages projects – all with varying degrees of success. While not a craftsman himself, he is quite content writing about the Colorado artisans who create such wonderful things and memorable experiences.

March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 33

DURANGO Springtime Fun in the Beautiful Southwest

By The Thirst Colorado Team

The Durango Wine Experience is the perfect springtime escape to southwest Colorado. Locals and tourists alike flock to the weekend festival. Photos: Neill Pieper

S

pringtime in Durango is quite the experience no matter what’s on the entertainment agenda. Throw in a wandering wine-tasting event and the southwest Colorado town blooms like a valley of wildflowers.

The Durango Wine Experience features three days of wine-related events. Tastings, dinners, pairings and seminars unfold in a relaxed setting. The climax, The Grand Tasting, takes place on Saturday afternoon just a few blocks from downtown.

“You will be able to sample hundreds of wines, beers and spirits at 50 or more beverage tables,” said Mandi Davis, event director. “Fifteen of our top local chefs present samples of their restaurants’ cuisine.

And people can bid on exciting items at our silent auction to help raise money for our nonprofit beneficiary.”

34 ThirstColorado.com

March-April 2019

However, the Experience also features a Friday evening outing that prompts people to explore the downtown area businesses by tempting them with great wine, beer, spirits and food. The Walk-About Durango Tasting showcases more than a dozen outlets that offer libations and pair them with great hors d’oeuvres, desserts and other fine foods.

During last year’s Experience, hundreds of people took part, toasting with friends.

Locals mingle with visitors and everyone gets to enjoy top-flight beverages, many from the region.

Although fine wine from across the country is available, local breweries and distilleries, restaurants and retail outlets also offer a variety of weekend options. For those with extra time, visitors can always explore the area’s hiking and biking, fishing and rafting, the Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge train

and Mesa Verde National Park. The Animas Valley has a bevy of fun to offer.

Proceeds from the event go to charitable, cultural, educational and economic development in the area. “For the last 10 years, all net proceeds have gone to a local Durango non-profit,” according to the Durango Wine Experience website. “The beneficiary for the last several years has been the United Way of Southwest Colorado.”

IF YOU GO

The Durango Wine Experience May 2-4, 2019 durangowine.com or 970-946-2408 durango.org for lodging ideas

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Men in the Colorado’s towering monuments to historic characters

By Jordyn MacDonald

Westminster Castle overlooks downtown Denver from its perch near West 83rd Avenue and Federal Boulevard.

Photo: © KitLeong / Adobe Stock

M

ountains are not the only symbols that scrape the sky in colorful Colorado. Hidden among or near the state’s towering peaks are elaborate European-inspired castles built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Erika Warzel, state preservation planning manager at the Colorado History Center, said they “are not castles in the way that we think of real castles that are fortified and living spaces for kings in Europe.”

Rather, the buildings were constructed to show off the permanence of organizations and the wealth of magnates during the early years of Colorado.

A number of castles throughout the state are on the National Register of Historic Places. Some feature tours and host events, offering the perfect opportunities to celebrate contemporary gatherings while taking a step back in Colorado time.

38 ThirstColorado.com

March-April 2019

Westminster Castle

The suburb of Westminster is home to a castle that has featured education throughout its history.

“Westminster University was built in 1892 by the Presbyterian church that wanted to develop the university and call it the Princeton of the West,” Warzel said.

Originally, Westminster University was in the town of Harris, but the town was renamed Westminster after the university in 1911.

After becoming an all-male university in 1915, it almost closed because of the World War I draft. The only aspect of the university that survived was the law program, which merged with Denver University Law in the 1950s.

In 1920, the Christian group Pillar of Fire bought the structure and remains the owner. It currently operates as Belleview

Christian School. The red, Richardsonian Romanesque-style castle, which penetrates the skyline for miles around, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

Red Stone Castle

Settled into a hillside in Carbondale, the Red Stone Castle was built for John Osgood, a coal magnate who developed the Colorado Fuel Company.

In the early 1900s, Osgood was one of the wealthiest people in the United States and entertained J.D. Rockefeller, J.P. Morgan and Teddy Roosevelt at his estate.

Prior to his castle’s construction, Osgood created the village of Red Stone to provide housing and other amenities for miners and their families. Warzel said Osgood hired the same architects to design the small village and the Red Stone Castle. Completed in 1903, the 23,000-square-foot castle

was finished in a 16th century English architectural style.

According to Warzel, the estate was closed in 1913 due to suspected financial troubles. In 1925, Osgood reopened the castle, where he died the year after.

After passing through numerous owners, the estate was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. The castle, purchased in 2016 by Steve and April Carver, currently operates as a boutique hotel and offers tours.

Cherokee Ranch and Castle

Cherokee Ranch and Castle in Sedalia, 35 miles south of Denver, includes a wildlife sanctuary thanks to Mildred “Tweet” Kimball’s work on acclimating a breed of Texas cattle to the thinner, colder Colorado air.

Originally, Charles Alfred Johnson built the castle in Sedalia in the 1920s.

Johnson was prominent in the Denver Chamber of Commerce and worked for the Denver Mountain Park System. Architect Burnham Hoyt was chosen to design the 10,000-square-foot estate.

“Hoyt was kind of given free reign of the design, so he decided to emulate 16th century Scottish castles,” Warzel said. “He decided that he needed some masons that actually knew how to do the stone work that he wanted done, so he hired some Cornish mine workers, who were known for their stone craft.”

The miners left their jobs in Wyoming to come and build the castle using stone from a nearby quarry on the property, Warzel said.

Construction was finished in 1926.

Johnson named it Charlford Castle after his son Charlie and his wife’s son Gifford.

Johnson left in 1949, and the castle was sold to Tweet Kimball. Since becoming a wildlife sanctuary, the castle is available for tours and hosts weddings and other events.

Glen Eyrie

In 1870, William Jackson Palmer picked the beautiful and then-empty landscapes of western Colorado Springs to build his castle.

Just north of what is now Garden of the Gods is the land Palmer selected for his castle. Along with this castle, he also played a huge role in the founding of the town of Colorado Springs.

The magnificent structure, built in 1903 and 1904, features Tudor revival architecture.

Later named Glen Eyrie, the castle has 67

Top: Red Stone Castle near Carbondale now operates as a boutique hotel. Photo courtesy of Red Stone Castle. Bottom: Cherokee Ranch and Castle is located in Sedalia and is surrounded by a ranch that hosts a plethora of wildlife. Photo courtesy of Cherokee Ranch and Castle

rooms and more than 20 fireplaces. There was a bowling alley in the basement, and a balcony for an orchestra in the largest hall.

It was also basically self-sustaining. “(Palmer) had a dairy, granary, was raising cows and growing crops,” Warzel said.

She added that Palmer also opened his estate to tourists. Palmer wanted the drive up to the castle to snake through unique sandstone formations.

After his death, Palmer’s daughters tried to donate the castle to the city but were denied due to high maintenance costs. The castle was purchased by the Navigators, a Christian ministry, in 1953 and has remained mostly unchanged to this day.

Glen Eyrie currently hosts tours, retreats and events such as tea parties and weddings.

Warzel said these castles are historic gems that deserve a visit.

“These are the grandest and most visually prominent buildings that Colorado has,” Warzel said. “If people do not appreciate those, they are not going to appreciate the lesser-known historic places. This can be a great entry point for all people to appreciate historic architecture and the historic stories.”

Jordyn MacDonald is finishing up her English and history degrees at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa.

March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 39

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D

Hands-on Music Brianna Straut honors her community and marches forward with album trilogy

By Steve Graham

Brianna Straut looks to push past her singer-songwriter roots and incorporate heavy grooves, electric guitar and drums in future albums. Photo: Kate Salley Photo at right: Nikki Rae

on’t let the length of Brianna Straut’s first album fool you. She is a hardworking singer-songwriter with plenty to say about her journey to Colorado.

She only released five songs on “La Mano,” but the beautiful, textured songs and her captivating voice reflect a lifetime of stories and experiences. She is planning two more releases by the end of 2019. She is also promoting the albums with a relentless calendar of house shows, club gigs and brewery performances.

Her “hands trilogy” began last fall with her acclaimed debut. She said the release is inspired by the hands of her community, which she has created and curated since moving to Colorado from Texas.

Straut was born in Houston, but moved one hour north to the small, conservative town of Livingston as a small child.

“I grew up southern Baptist and going to church,” she said. But Straut didn’t fit in the box she was being forced into, particularly regarding her sexuality.

“Everything you know is ‘this is the way it is,’” she said. “There were not a lot of people in my life I knew who were gay so I didn’t even know that was an option.”

She even almost married a man before calling off the union and moving to west Texas, where her songwriting career started.

“I started the process of trying to be more transparent and started writing, literally on the walls of the trailer,” Straut said.

A few years later, a roommate from the trailer who had moved to Colorado invited her to come stay. Straut had recently come out to her family “and it didn’t go so well.” So she was ready for a fresh start.

“I didn’t even have a car,” she said. “I took three boxes with me to Boulder on a whim.”

Straut felt more welcomed in Colorado than she had in Texas.

“Colorado is a much more accepting place,” she said. “There are more examples of people living their truths.”

After about three years in Colorado and a difficult breakup, she tried to move back to Texas, but soon realized it was no longer home.

“The entire time I spent down there I was talking about Colorado and that’s when I realized my roots are here,” Straut said.

When she first moved to Colorado, she worked in home health care for about 18 months.

“I wanted something that was consistent and for another person,” she said.

She started writing and performing more music, while also playing in two other Denver Americana bands. Bison Bone released its second full-length album in February, and Tomahawk Fox is currently on hiatus while Straut focuses on her solo career and her “hands trilogy.”

Straut struggles to get by as a full-time musician, and earns extra income with odd jobs and an Airbnb rental. She said she also takes up a part-time job to pay for studio time whenever she is recording.

“It’s a lot of hustling,” she said of her demanding work and nearly nightly gig schedule.

Her performances draw comparisons to Brandi Carlile and Bonnie Raitt, although she hopes to branch out from her folky, singersongwriter stylings on her two new albums this year.

She plans on adding more electric guitar and less cello on the next release, and she is working with the drummer and bass player from the Lumineers.

“It’s going to be bigger and a more full sound with some really heavy grooves,” Straut said. “It’s going to be a fun album. I look forward to putting it out.”

Steve Graham is a freelance writer and former newspaper editor who likes taking his two young boys biking, hiking and brewery-hopping in northern Colorado.

See Brianna live

Brianna Straut will be playing the first Tuesday of each month at The Bar Car in Denver. She is also playing:

MARCH 1 Wash Park Grille in Denver MARCH 9 Hadley Library in Denver MARCH 11 The Side Door in Colorado Springs March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 43

GET YOUR TUMMIES READY. LONGMONT RESTAURANT WEEK RETURNS

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It's all about the food...

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Longmont Restaurant Week is the ultimate celebration of the unique, growing, and thriving dining scene in our town. Foodies can expect delicious deals on exclusive prix fixe menus at participating venues every day, March 29 – April 7.

There are many amazing breweries, distilleries, and cideries in Longmont that deserve their own shout out. While these venues may not have food, Longmont Restaurant Week participants still deliver on a special menu of craft beverages.

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Prime Pairings Tomato Braised Pork The braised pork can be eaten as soon it comes out of the oven, but I recommend letting it cool in its liquid, overnight if possible, to allow the flavors to meld.

This might seem like an intimidating recipe, but it’s very simple.

Remember, ice is cold, water’s wet and butter is slippery. This is a phrase that I use with one of my partners in the kitchen, usually when I’ve done something that is obviously wrong or backwards.

Ingredients 2 lbs pork tenderloin, cut into roughly 4-inch loins 1 tbsp ginger, diced

½ cup chicken stock Vegetable oil Fresh mung bean sprouts

2 Fresno peppers, sliced into rings 1 red onion, diced 5 vine-ripened tomatoes, quartered 3 big cloves of garlic, smashed and diced ¼ cup soy sauce 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil 1 tbsp honey

8.8 oz rice vermicelli 3-6 whole jalapeños (or shishito peppers if you don’t want heat) Picked cilantro leaves Green onions, sliced Salt and pepper to taste 2 limes, juiced 1 tbsp rice vinegar

Pair with Colterris Malbec The Colterris Malbec is a perfect, fruitforward wine for this pairing. Deep aromas of raspberry and blueberry are accompanied by a hint of mocha and cinnamon spice. Colterris Winery in Palisade distributes throughtout the state.

Directions Preheat a skillet or cast-iron pot to medium-low heat and preheat the oven to 250 degrees. When the pot is warm, add a splash of oil and all the red onions. Allow to sweat, stirring occasionally. When they begin to become transparent, add the garlic, ginger and Fresno Peppers, then stir. When the garlic has bloomed (become fragrant), remove all the aromatics from the pot and save for later. Do not clean the pot.

In the same pot, which is now seasoned, turn the heat up to medium-high. Salt and pepper the pork. Once the pan is hot, splash in a high smoke-point cooking oil and add the tenderloins. (Oils with a high smoke point include peanut, vegetable and safflower, but not olive oil. Olive oil is delicate and not intended to reach high temperatures. As a result, the flavor will turn bitter).

While the meat is cooking, in a separate bowl, combine the honey, sesame oil, and soy sauce, and whisk together with the chicken stock. Allow the pork to cook and caramelize for 5-7 minutes, flip the pieces to their raw side, allow to cook for a few more minutes. When the pork is seared on both sides, deglaze your pan with the rice vinegar, followed by the other liquid ingredients, including lime juice. Then add the tomatoes and the previously cooked mixture. This will add magnificent flavor.

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March-April 2019

Cover it all with a lid and place in the pre-heated oven for 2.5 hours. Braised meats are also best if they are left to cool in their jus. This will ensure the most intense flavors for the dish.

Cook the rice vermicelli in a boiling pot of water for about 4-5 minutes. Then, fire-roast a whole jalapeño. If you don’t have an open flame, cook the jalapeño in a 300-degree oven for 20 minutes, or until charred (if using this method, do it before making the noodles).

To plate Distribute the noodles to your desire: this is your meal, you take the reins on the measurements, cowpoke! Pile the pork, along with the braising liquid, on top of the noodles. Garnish with the jalapeño (if you ain’t too scared!), followed by bean sprouts, green onion finished with the refreshing punch of cilantro.

’’ng thu’ c ba.n bè cu’ a tôi (“enjoy, my friends,” in thu’o Vietnamese).

Will Coonradt is a sous chef working in Denver.

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ThirstColorado.com 47

TRUE TALES FROM THE LYING LOG

By Bufford T. Clapsaddle

F

or an assortment of reasons ol’ Clapsaddle never owned a mule for augmenting his pack string during nearly five decades of horse-powered expeditions into the backcountry.

However, those fascinating, respected, admired, long-eared, braying, intelligent, independent, sturdy and occasionally resistant critters certainly conjure up some antecedent reflections.

Clapsaddle’s initial mule encounter had a setting in the early 1970s when two longripened old-timers were invited by a friend to join an equine fishing pack into the Flat Tops Wilderness. Ray and Gerald were both in their mid-80s and each needed no assistance in saddling his own geriatric mule.

It was a later-concluded trend for each participant to bring the food and prepare a meal while in camp. So, we set forth on the trail that day with over-packed panniers and gear.

The horse pack string would be one-quarter mile ahead of the dawdling mules. But each of the six or seven times a stop was required to adjust a pack or two, the petite hooves of the pair would pitter-patter on ahead. Soon we would overtake, but another pack demanded attention, and the positioning was transposed again and again.

Ray and Gerald coaxed their weary mounts into camp and had them unsaddled by the time the remainder arrived.

Ol’ Clapsaddle has always been too occupied with saddling, packing and engineering campfires to carry a camera. So, he will always have a couple of compelling mind snapshots to cue that first mule connection.

away any envious licensed farrier. Clapsaddle reckoned it probably was not the first time the duo conspired to negotiate a fix.

Brain Photo No. 2 While Clapsaddle was being awed by the complete collaboration of Gerald’s animal buddy, J.T. hollered from the far side of the lake. “Ya gotta see this.” Picture Ray upon his saddled sidekick 20 feet from shore, in 4-feet of water, casting spinners to entice tacklesnapping Rainbows. There is no recollection of him hooking or landing a trout, but the mule never budged or flinched, and that image will always be in brain focus, like a frame from “Secretariat” or “The Man from Snowy River.”

A second encounter with the centuries-old cross-breeding between a mammoth jackass and a horse mare (of many breeds), transpired about five years later. A friend of a friend, Jack, had purchased a mule because he desired a pasture pal that he suggested might be more sure-footed on the trail.

Our White River National Forest campsite at a favorite fishing lake was distinguished with thousands of standing and fallen Colorado spruce trees, which beetles had killed 30-35 years previous. A couple of the pack posse elected to grab the two-person crosscut and tumble one of the standing beetle kills to assure dry wood for the fire pit. The falling tree accidentally took a wrong fall in direction, promoted by a gusting wind.

Brain Photo No. 1 Gerald’s flopped-eared chaperone lost a hind hoof shoe en route to the fishing hole.

The following day, he pulled a spare out of his saddle pack, sat on a chair-high stump and patiently persuaded his four-legged partner to elevate that left hind appendage while he tacked on a replacement. It took him a majority of the day to accomplish the task, but his jawdropping achievement likely would have blown

48 ThirstColorado.com

March-April 2019

Photo: courtesy American Mule Association

Totally diversified during the last two decades, mules now compete in the most exclusive equine shows and events of every kind around the world.

Photo: © Andreas Edelmann / Adobe Stock

Emerging from the Grand Canyon, this pack string regularly hauls gear and food for hikers who utilize a designated camp for overnight or longer vacations. The surefooted mules are well suited for work in semi-arid climates, essentially because of their water-drinking habits and their requirement for less protein than a horse.

Jack’s new four-legged creature was exactly in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The top 12 feet of that falling tree caught the mule squarely on his face, splitting apart his skull from nose to above his eyes. He was bleeding profusely.

“Got a favor to ask. Take my rifle and my new friend Max about a mile from camp, well off the trail in a secluded spot and end his suffering. I can’t do it.”

When Clapsaddle arrived at a proper funeral location, the mule had ceased bleeding and was mostly interested in grazing.

Clapsaddle kept a vigil for an hour, perhaps two, then made a decision, said a prayer, fired one shot in the sky and returned to camp for dinner.

Crawling out of the tent the next morning all eyes were shocked by the miraculous mule at the edge of the lake drinking water. He was short of breath, exhaling and inhaling primarily through a fracture above his nose. Though not keen on being caught, he hung out with the horses the following three days, followed the string on return to the trailhead and a couple of forest rangers there had some panels to assist with capturing and trailer loading. Max was a typical tough, tough, tough mule and

he recovered at home in Woodland Park that winter only to approach his final chapter. He escaped his corral early the next spring and collided with a Teller County deputy sheriff patrol car en route to a highway accident. The once-salvaged mule this time suffered fatal injuries.

More than once Clapsdaddle and his packing buddy, RR, shared the Lying Log and a bottle of Jim Beam while discussing the merits and contradictions to adding a pair or two of mules to our backcountry adventures.

One spring RR’s telephone jingled. It was a brother-in-law who was attending a

H

ybrid mules have been integrated to America’s economy since President George Washington accepted a pair of donkeys from the King of Spain. If interested, the internet can produce volumes about these sometimes cantankerous individuals, ranging from their inability to breed and reproduce to significant roles in fighting wars.

livestock auction in Kansas. There was a pair of mules on the sale notice, being touted as professionally trained, would ride, pack or attempt any assignment one might embrace them for.

A max bid was established and the next week the mules arrived in Colorado, just in time for the initial pack trip of the season.

Small, even for the varied size of mules, they were gentle, healthy, willing and unbelievably powerful. They packed hefty loads amicably, competently and intelligently.

Mostly, they could be trusted without a lead rope and followed the trail horses like a St. Bernard on a leash.

RR and his companions utilized them during elk hunting season that fall and became even more enthralled with their contributions.

Then, the mules went home for the winter and took up residence in a two-acre pasture. When spring arrived, the mules temperamentally resisted being haltered time after time. With the assistance of neighbors and a few eager cowboys, RR and friends crowded the mules into a corner of the pasture, whereupon the critters simply steeplechased continued on page 51 March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 49

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ongtime mule owners generally agree that, more than other animals, each individual possesses “a mind of its own.” An old friend told Clapsaddle about his grandfather riding a mule to country school nearly every day when he was only seven years old. “Manny” the mule was never officially “broke” to ride but accommodated the youngster without hesitation. His uncle came by one day to accomplish the “breaking” of Manny. The uncle put on a saddle, strapped on his spurs, and Manny proceeded to “buck him so high birds built a nest in his pocket before he hit the ground.”

the fence and exited the neighborhood.

It required weeks to get those two rascals rounded up, and the assumption surfaced that the pair probably was disciplined to become Missouri coon hunting mules. (From a standing position it is common for a four-foot-tall raccoon-pursuing mule to easily clear a 72 inch fence, then wait for the rider to mount on the other side.)

Mattered not in this situation. The captured hurdlers were soon back in the trailer for a return to the sale barn in Kansas.

Numerous occasions over the years Clapsaddle has been awed by the site of a string of 10 to 12 pack mules packing in or out of a wilderness fishing or hunting camp.

Often the string is controlled by a lone wrangler riding a faster-walking quarter horse.

Such a pack string generally provides greater economy for a commercial outfitter: They can carry heavier loads than a horse, eat poorer and courser food and require less hoof care.

And if one was to seek out the mule with the proper personality, Jack or Jenny just might be your new fishing partner.

Bufford T. Clapsaddle (aka Wilbur Flachman) is a retired newspaper and magazine publisher who has guided hundreds of horse pack trips into the Rocky Mountains for family, friends and business associates during the past 45 years. (Logging more than 10,000 miles in the saddle). Majority of his tales are revealed only at timberline.

March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 51

COLORADO BREWERY, DIS Vision Quest Brewing Co West Flanders Brewing Co ● ● White Labs Tasting Room Wild Woods Brewery

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CENTENNIAL/LONE TREE/ HIGHLANDS RANCH 3 Freaks Brewery ● Blue Spruce Brewing Co ● ● C.B. & Potts Highlands Ranch ● Grist Brewing Co ● Halfpenny Brewing Co Lone Tree Brewing Co Resolute Brewing Co Rock Bottom Park Meadows ● COLORADO SPRINGS AREA 1876 Aleworks Atrevida Brewing ● BierWerks Brewery ● ● Black Forest Brewing Brass Brewing Co Bristol Brewing ● Cerberus Brewing Co Cogstone Brewing Co ● Colorado Mountain Brewery ● Dueces Wild Brewery ● FH Beerworks ● Fossil Craft Beer Co ● Goat Patch Brewing Co Gold Camp Brewing Co Iron Bird Brewery ● Iron Tree Table & Tap ●

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NORTHWEST DENVER Amalgam Brewing

Bruz Beers ● bruzbeers.com 303.650.2337 1675 W 67th Ave Denver

Call to Arms Brewing Co ● De Steeg Brewing Diebolt Brewing Co ● ● The Empourium Brewing Co Factotum Brewhouse FlyteCo Brewing Goldspot Brewing Co ● ● Grateful Gnome Sandwich Shoppe + Brewery ● Hogshead Brewery ● Lady Justice Brewing Oasis Brewing Co

Prost Brewing Co ● prostbrewing.com 303.729.1175 2540 19th St Denver

RINO 10 Barrel Brewing Co ● ● 14er Brewing Bierstadt Lagerhaus ● Black Shirt Brewing Co ● ● Blue Moon Brewing Co ● ● Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project Epic Brewing Co ● Great Divide Brewing Co ● ● Mockery Brewing ● New Belgium - The Woods at the Source Odell Brewing Co Our Mutual Friend Ratio Beerworks ● ● River North Brewery

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Copper Kettle Brewing Co ● Jade Mountain Brewing ●

SOUTHWEST DENVER Black Sky Brewery ● ● Chain Reaction Brewing Co ● Crazy Mountain Brewing Co ● ● The Intrepid Sojourner Beer Project ● Renegade Brewing Co WHEAT RIDGE/EDGEWATER/ LAKEWOOD Brewery Rickoli ● Colorado Plus Brew Pub ● ● Great Frontier Brewing Co Green Mountain Beer Co Ironworks Brewery & Pub ● Joyride Brewing Co ● Landlocked Ales Westfax Brewing Co DURANGO AREA Animas Brewing Co ● Bottom Shelf Brewery ● BREW Pub & Kitchen ● Carver Brewing Co ● Dolores River Brewery ● ● J. Fargo’s Family Dining & Micro Brewery ● Main Street Brewery & Restaurant ● Mancos Brewing Co ● Steamworks Brewing Co ● WildEdge Brewing Collective EAGLE COUNTY 7 Hermits Brewing Co ● Bonfire Brewing ● Gore Range Brewery ● Vail Brewing Co ● ● ENGLEWOOD AREA The Brew on Broadway ● ● C.B. & Potts Denver Tech ● Dead Hippie Brewing Peak View Brewing Co ESTES PARK Estes Park Brewery ● Lumpy Ridge Brewing Co Rock Cut Brewing Co FAIRPLAY South Park Brewing Co ● FORT COLLINS AREA Anheuser-Busch BJ’s ● Black Bottle Brewery ● Coopersmith’s Pub & Brewing ● DC Oakes Brewhouse & Eatery ● Envy Brewing Equinox Brewing ● Freedonia Brewing Funkwerks Gilded Goat Brewing Co

TILLERY & CIDERY LINEUP Horse & Dragon Brewing Co Intersect Brewing Jessup Farm Barrel House ● Mash Lab Brewing Maxline Brewing McClellan’s Brewing Co ● ● New Belgium Brewing Co ● ● Odell Brewing Co ● ● Old Colorado Brewing Co Pitchers Brewery ●

Prost Brewing Co prostbrewing.com 970.484.2421

321 Old Firehouse Alley Fort Collins

Purpose Brewing Rally King Brewing Ramskeller Brewery ● Red Truck Beer Snowbank Brewing Soul Squared Brewing Co Timnath Beerwerks Zwei Brewing Co ● ●

FRUITA Copper Club Brewing Co ● Suds Brothers Brewery ● ● GLENWOOD SPRINGS/ CARBONDALE/ASPEN Aspen Brewing Co ● Capitol Creek Brewery ● Carbondale Beer Works ● Casey Brewing and Blending Glenwood Canyon Brew Pub ● Roaring Fork Beer Co ● GOLDEN Barrels and Bottles Brewery ● Cannonball Creek Brewing Co ● Coda Brewing Coors Brewing Co Golden City Brewery ●

Holidaily Brewing Co Holidailybrewing.com 303.278.BEER 801 Brickyard Cir., Golden

Mountain Toad Brewing ● New Terrain Brewing

GRAND JUNCTION AREA 4 B’s Brewery ● ● Dented Face Brewing Co Edgewater Brewery ● Kannah Creek Brewing Co ● Palisade Brewing Co ● ● The Rockslide Restaurant and Brewery ● GREELEY AREA Brix Taphouse and Brewery ● ● Broken Plow Brewery ● Crabtree Brewing ● ● G5 Brew Pub ● Grand Lake’s 16th Street Tavern ● ● Green Earth Brewing High Hops Brewery ● ● Mighty River Brewing Co Rocky Mountain Taphouse ●

WeldWerks Brewing Co Wiley Roots Brewing Co ●

IDAHO SPRINGS/EVERGREEN/ CENTRAL CITY/GEORGETOWN Dostal Alley Saloon & Gambling Emporium ● El Rancho Brewing Co ● Evergreen Taphouse & Brewery ● Guanella Pass Brewing Co Lariat Lodge Brewing Co ● ● Tommyknocker Brewery & Pub ● Westbound & Down Brewing Co ● KREMMLING

Grand Adventure Brewing Co ● grandadventure.us 970.724.9219 207 Central Ave Kremmling

LAKE CITY Lake City Brewing LITTLETON AREA 38 State Brewing ● ● Blue Spruce Brewing Co Boggy Draw Brewery Breckenridge Brewery ● Coal Mine Ave. Brewing Co Jackass Hill Brewery ● Living the Dream Brewing Co Locavore Beer Works Saint Patricks Brewing Co LONGMONT 300 Suns Brewing ● Bootstrap Brewing Brewmented Collision Brewing Grossen Bart Brewery ● ● Highland Lake Brewing Co Left Hand Brewing Co ● Oskar Blues Brewing ● Outworld Brewing Primitive Beer Pumphouse Brewery ● Shoes and Brews Wibby Brewing ● ● LOVELAND/BERTHOUD Berthoud Brewing Co Big Beaver Brewing Co ● Big Thompson Brewery Buckhorn Brewers City Star Brewing ● Crow Hop Brewing Drätz Brewing Co Grimm Brothers Brewhouse Loveland Aleworks Rock Bottom ● Rock Coast Brewery Tilted Barrel Brewpub Verboten Brewing Co Veteran Brothers Brewing Co ● MONUMENT Pikes Peak Brewing Co ● ● NORTHEAST COLORADO Parts & Labor Brewing Co Tumbleweed Brewing Co

NORTHGLENN/THORNTON Mother Tucker Brewery Periodic Brewing ● Satire Brewing Co PAGOSA SPRINGS/ DEL NORTE/ALAMOSA The Colorado Farm Brewery Pagosa Brewing Co ● Riff Raff Brewing ● ● San Luis Valley Brewing ● Square Peg Brewerks Three Barrel Brewing Co ● PAONIA Chrysalis Barrel Aged Beer Paonia United Brewing Co PARKER Barnett and Son Brewing Co ● ● Downhill Brewing Co ● Los Dos Potrillos Mexican Restaurant y Cerveceria ● Welcome Home Brewing PUEBLO AREA Brues Alehouse Brewing Co ● ● PDub Brewing Co Shamrock Brewing ● Walter’s Brewery & Taproom SALIDA/BUENA VISTA/ CRESTONE/LEADVILLE Crestone Brewing Co ● Eddyline Restaurant and Brewing Co ● Elevation Beer Co ● Moonlight Pizza and Brewpub ● Periodic Brewing Soulcraft Brewing GUNNISON/CRESTED BUTTE Elk Ave Brewing Co ● ● High Alpine Brewing Co ● Irwin Brewing Co SOUTHWEST COLORADO Avalanche Brewing Co ● Colorado Boy Pizzeria & Brewery● Colorado Boy Pub & Brewery ● Golden Block Brewery ● Horsefly Brewing Co ● ● Ouray Brewery ● Ourayle House Brewery Red Mountain Brewing ● Smuggler’s Brewpub ● Telluride Brewing Co Two Rascals Brewing Co STEAMBOAT SPRINGS Butcherknife Brewing Co Mahogany Ridge Brewery & Grill ● Mountain Tap Brewery ● Storm Peak Brewing Co Yampa Valley Brewing Co SUMMIT COUNTY Angry James Brewing Co The Baker’s Brewery ● Breckenridge Brewery & Pub ● Broken Compass Brewing Dillon Dam Brewery ● ● HighSide Brewing ● ●

Outer Range Brewing Co ● Pug Ryan’s Brewery ● Syndicate Brewing Co

TRINIDAD/WALSENBURG Crafty Canary Brewery Dodgeton Creek Brewing Co WINTER PARK AREA Hideaway Park Brewery Never Summer Brewing Co The Peak Bistro & Brewery ●

Rising Sun Distillery - Denver Rocker Spirits - Littleton Santa Fe Spirits - Littleton Ski Bum Rum Distillery - Golden

Spirit Hound Distillers spirithounds.com 303.823.5696 4196 Ute Hwy Lyons

State 38 Distilling - Golden Stranahan’s - South Denver Strongwater Spirits & Botanicals - Denver Talnua Distillery - Arvada Tighe Brothers Distillery - Denver Vapor Distillery - Boulder Weaver’s Spirits - Parker Whistling Hare - Westminster ●

DISTRIBUTION ONLY AC Golden Brewing Co Acidulous Brewing Co Amalgam Brewing Atom Brewing Co Black Sheep Brewery Burgundian Brewing Divebar Brewing Co Donovan Brewing Co Gemini Beer Co Good River Beer Idylwilde Brewing New Planet Beer Sleeping Giant Brewing Uhl’s Brewing Co

DISTILLERIES DENVER/BOULDER 12 Point Distillery - Lafayette Altitude Spirits, Inc. - Boulder Anders’ Vodka - Parker Archetype Distillery - Denver Arta Tequila - Englewood Art of the Spirits Colorado Whiskey - Denver Bear Creek Distillery - Denver The Block Distilling Co - Denver Broken Arrow Spirits - Centennial Denver Distillery - Denver Deviant Spirits - Boulder Deviation Distilling - Denver Devil’s Head Distillery - Englewood Downslope Distilling - Englewood Elwood Distilling - Boulder The Family Jones Spirit House Denver ● Geek Spirits - Boulder

Golden Moon Distillery goldenmoondistillery.com 303.993.7174 412 Violet St. Golden

Golden Moon Speakeasy goldenmoonspeak.com 720.638.1155 1111 Miner’s Alley Golden

Hogback Distillery - Wheat Ridge J & L Distilling Co - Boulder Ironton Distillery - Denver Laws Whiskey House - Denver Leopold Bros - Northeast Denver Local Distilling - Golden Mad Rabbit Distillery - Westminster Mile High Spirits - Lodo Mythology Distillery - Denver ●

NORTHERN COLORADO Anvil Distillery - Longmont Big Fat Pastor - Loveland Black Canyon Distillery - Longmont Bouck Brothers Whiskey - Idaho Springs Coyote Gold Margaritas - Fort Collins Coppermuse Distillery - Fort Collins Dry Land Distillers - Longmont Elevation 5003 Distillery - Fort Collins Elkins Distilling Co - Estes Park Feisty Spirits - Fort Collins The Heart Distillery - Windsor Longtucky Spirits - Longmont Mobb Mountain Distillers - Fort Collins NOCO Distillery - Fort Collins Old Elk Distillery - Fort Collins Old Town Distilling - Fort Collins Still Cellars - Longmont Spring 44 Distilling - Loveland

Steamboat Whiskey ● steamboatwhiskeyco.com 970.846.3534 55 11th St Steamboat Springs

Syntax Spirits - Greeley Tower 56 Distillery - Greeley

SOUTHERN COLORADO 3 Hundred Days of Shine - Monument 1350 Distilling - Colo. Springs

Axe and the Oak axeandtheoak.com 719.660.1624 1604 S Cascade Ave Colorado Springs

Black Bear Distillery - Green Mountain Falls Cockpit Craft Distillery - Colo.

Springs Colorado Gold - Colorado Springs Deerhammer Distilling Co - Buena Vista Distillery 291 - Colo. Springs Lee Spirits - Colo. Springs Meridiem Spirits - Elizabeth Mystic Mountain Distillery - Larkspur Sand Creek Distillery - Hugo Sangre Distilleries - Westcliffe

March-April 2019

ThirstColorado.com 53

Spirits of the Rockies - Pueblo Wood’s High Mountain Distillery - Salida

WESTERN SLOPE 10th Mountain Whiskey & Spirit Co - Vail 39 North Spirits - Eagle 808 Distillery - Eagle Coal Creek Distillery - Crested Butte Durango Craft Spirits - Durango Highlands Distillery - Grand Junction Honey House Distillery - Durango Idlewild Spirits - Winter Park KJ Wood Distillers - Ouray Marble Distilling Co - Carbondale ● Montanya Distillers - Crested Butte Peach Street Distillers - Palisade Peak Spirits - Hotchkiss Stoneyard Distillery - Dotsero Storm King Distilling - Montrose Telluride Distilling Co - Telluride Woodshed Distilling - Pagosa Springs Woody Creek Distillers - Basalt

WINERIES GRAND JUNCTION AREA Avant Vineyards - Palisade Carlson Vineyards - Palisade Colorado Cellars Winery - Palisade Colterris Winery - Palisade DeBeque Canyon Winery - Palisade Desert Sun Vineyards - Grand Junction Garfield Estates Vineyard & Winery - Palisade Grande River Vineyards - Palisade Graystone Winery - Clifton Gubbini Winery - Palisade Hermosa Vineyards - Palisade Maison la Belle Vie Winery & Amy’s Courtyard - Palisade Mesa Park Vineyards - Palisade Peachfork Orchards and Vineyards - Palisade

Plum Creek Cellars - Palisade Ptarmigan Vineyards - Grand Junction Ram’s Point Winery - Grand Junction Red Fox Cellars - Palisade Reeder Mesa Vineyards Whitewater St. Kathryn Cellars Winery & Gift Shop - Palisade Summit Cellars - Palisade Talon Winery - Palisade Two Rivers Winery - Grand Junction Two Swedes Glögg - Grand Junction Varaison Vineyards and Winery Palisade Whitewater Hill Vineyards - Grand Junction

CENTRAL WEST AREA 5680′ - Paonia Alfred Eames Cellars at Puesta del Sol Vineyards - Paonia Azura Cellars - Paonia Black Bridge Winery - Paonia Evening Grace Vineyards - Hotchkiss Leroux Creek Vineyards - Hotchkiss Mesa Winds Farm and Winery Hotchkiss Stone Cottage Cellars - Paonia DELTA & MONTROSE COUNTIES Chill Switch Wine - Cedaredge Cottonwood Cellars/The Olathe Winery - Olathe Garrett Estates Cellars - Olathe Jack Rabbit Hill - Hotchkiss Mountain View Winery - Olathe Stoney Mesa Winery - Cedaredge Winery at Cedars Farm - Cedaredge SOUTH FRONT RANGE Byers Cellars - Cripple Creek D’Vine Wine - Manitou Springs Evergood Elixirs - Palmer Lake Le Fuselier Winery at Spring Creek Vineyards - Canon City Legatum Cellars - Canon City Mountain Spirit Winery, Ltd. - Salida

CENTRAL FRONT RANGE Allis Ranch Winery - Sedalia Aspen Peak Cellars - Bailey Balistreri Vineyards - Denver Bigsby’s Folly - Denver Black Arts Cellars - Littleton Bonacquisti Wine Company - Denver Carboy Winery - Littleton Creekside Cellars - Evergreen Gaijin 24886 Sake - Denver Golden City Winery - Golden Golden Valley Winery - Denver InVINtions, A Creative Winery Greenwood Village Kingman Estates Winery - Denver Ladrón Cellars - Englewood Leap of Faith Winery - Wheat Ridge Point Blank Winery - Centennial Purgatory Cellars Winery - Parker Ryker’s Cellars - Denver Silver Vines Winery - Arvada Spero Winery - Denver The Infinite Monkey Theorem Denver The Wine Barrel - Parker Vino Passarelli - Lakewood Water 2 Wine - Centennial Waters Edge Winery - Centennial What We Love, The Winery - Boulder Wild Women Winery - Denver Wine & Whey - Denver NORTHERN FRONT RANGE Augustina’s Winery - Nederland Bad Bitch Cellars - Eaton Blue Mountain Vineyards - Berthoud

Blue Skies Winery - Fort Collins BookCliff Vineyards - Boulder Decadent Saint - Boulder River Garden Winery - Fort Lupton Settembre Cellars - Boulder Snowy Peaks Winery - Estes Park Stonebridge Farm Winery Longmont Sweet Heart Winery - Loveland Ten Bears Winery - Laporte Turquoise Mesa Winery - Broomfield Viewpoint Wines - Boulder Vintage Handcrafted Wines - Fort Collins

CENTRAL MOUNTAIN Buckel Family Wine - Crested Butte Continental Divide Winery Breckenridge Monkshood Cellars - Minturn Vines at Vail Winery - Wolcott Winter Park Winery - Fraser PLAINS Claremont Inn & Winery - Stratton Mummy Hill Winery - Holyoke Reds Wine Boutique - Sterling FOUR CORNERS Flying T Wine - Cortez Four Leaves Winery - Durango Fox Fire Farms - Ignacio Guy Drew Vineyards - Cortez Pleasant View Vineyards - Pleasant View Sutcliffe Vineyards - Cortez

Branch Out Cider - Fort Collins C Squared Ciders - Denver ● Clear Fork Cider - Denver Climb Hard Cider Co - Loveland Colorado Cider Co - Denver Colorado Common Cider - Colo.

Springs Colorado Plus Cidery - Golden Golden City Winery - Golden Haykin Family Cider - Aurora The Ice Cave Cider House Monument Old Mine Cidery & Brewpub - Erie Scrumpy’s Hard Cider - Fort Collins Snow Capped Cider - Cedaredge St. Vrain Cidery - Longmont Stem Ciders - Denver ● ● Stem Ciders Acreage- Lafayette ● ● Summit Hard Cider - Fort Collins Talbott’s Cider Co - Palisade Teal Cider - Dolores Waldschänke Ciders - Denver Wild Cider - Firestone

MEADERIES Black Forest Meadery - Colorado Springs Colorado Honey Wine - Distribution Only Dragon Meadery - Aurora Hunters Moon Meadery - Severance Meadery of the Rockies - Palisade Medovina - Niwot Miracle Stag Meadery - Loveland Queen Bee Brews - Denver Redstone Meadery - Boulder

CIDERIES Apple Valley Cider Co applevalleycider.com 103 Broadway #13 Penrose

Artisan Craft Cellars - Westminster Big B’s Juices and Hard Cider Hotchkiss

BARISTA OWNED AND OPERATED

2017 Colorado Whiskey Distillery of the year

Dedicated to building community by way of coffee.

Come enjoy a craft cocktail, food & live music at the Whiskey House.

WWW.LOYALCOFFEE.CO LOYALCOFFEE

719.660.1624

1604. S. Cascade Ave. Colorado Springs 80905

54 ThirstColorado.com

Sette Dolori - Black Forest Songbird Cellars - Beulah The Winery at Holy Cross Abbey Canon City The Winery at Pikes Peak - Cascade Vino Colorado Winery - Colorado Springs Vino Salida Wine Cellars - Poncha Springs

March-April 2019

RUGBY. GUARANTEED TO MAKE YOUR BEER COLDER, BOLDER & MORE REFRESHING. Enjoy your next brew with us March 2 at Infinity Park.

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