colorado is a gorgeous state with amazing SCENERY and some of the best breweries in the countrY!

Check out my recommendations for Denver, Frisco, and Boulder:

Colorado Tips:

Be aware of the altitude! It's real! Stay hydrated and take things slow to avoid feeling sick, especially when you first arrive

Denver Top Recommendations:

Cerebral Brewing: Quite possibly my favorite stop—Cerebral has a killer tap list with juicy IPAs, thicc Stouts, and great vibes!
Voodoo Donuts: Creative and crazy donuts that are incredibly delicious!
The River North (RiNo) neighborhood is full of art and breweries, what more do you need?
- Bierstadt Lagerhaus: This is the Mecca of Lager beers. Get a Slow Pour Pils and Giant Ass Pretzel and don’t look back
- Our Mutual Friend Brewing: Lots of fantastic IPAs in particular. They also have rotating food trucks and an outside patio
- Ratio Beerworks: Fantastic outdoor space with cornhole and a patio. They have a wide variety of beers and it’s an overall fun & funky spot
- Odell Brewing: Another solid option in the RiNo neighborhood with a variety of beers
- Central Market is a great food hall in the heart of the RiNo neighborhood

Denver Top Recommendations CONTINUED:

TRVE Brewing Co.: A dark taproom filled with metal music specializing in Sour and Farmhouse Ales.
District Denver: A fantastic spot for brunch with $15 mix and match bottomless drinks, delicious food, and a cute patio.
Crooked Stave: Their Denver taproom is small but they still have a variety of beers to choose from and a huge bottle selection.
Denver Biscuit Company: A phenomenal, albeit touristy, spot for breakfast! The biscuits are massive, flaky, soft, and amazing.
Red Rocks Park & Amphitheater: The amphitheater is touristy but worth checking out! They do concerts, yoga, and numerous activities in this space.
- I would definitely recommend hiking in the park! We did a 4.3 mile trail that had diverse landscape and wasn’t too challenging.
New Image Brewing: In the suburb of Arvada, New Image has a small food menu, outdoor patio, and great IPAs!
Onefold: Fancy breakfast burritos for the win! They’ve also got super delicious coffee at this little cafe.
Burns Family Artisan Ales: A quaint brewery with big beers and homey vibes. This is not your standard brewery, they have super unique beers!

More Ideas for Denver:

Illegal Pete’s: A great spot for burritos, nachos, and tacos!
Check out the giant blue bear at the Convention Center!
Check out a bottle shop! Argonaut Wine & Liquor and Baker Wine & Spirits are two great options.
Spangalang Brewery: A microbrewery in the Five Points neighborhood with yummy beers and a patio.
- Famous Original J’s Pizza is right around the corner as well!
Epic Brewing: 25 taps! Food trucks!
Larimer Square: A little bit more of a 'fancy' area, the lights at night make it a beautiful place to grab dinner or a drink!
Wynkoop Brewing: More of a brewpub, Wynkoop is a hot spot for lunch during the work week, being located right downtown.
Great Divide Brewing: There is a lot of hype around this brewery but I wasn't super impressed. The staff was straight up rude and the beer was just alright. There are plenty of other places you should visit before here!

FriscO Beer & Travel Recommendations:

Frisco is just over an hour from Denver and definitely worth an adventure to!

Hike! The Frisco area is absolutely gorgeous. We did a moderate 3.4 mile hike to a small lake that was right near downtown and had amazing views!
Outer Range Brewing Co.: An absolutely amazing brewery with killer IPAs. The brewery has amazing mountain views from the taproom as well. There’s also a coffee shop and a “Thai-ish” fried chicken restaurant in the building.
Cabin Creek Brewing: Located in Georgetown, Cabin Creek is the perfect stop on your way back to Denver. It is right off of I-70 making it super convenient! Cabin Creek has a full food menu with delicious pizzas and is located right on the lake surrounded by mountains!

Boulder beer and travel recommendations:

Boulder is only about 30 minutes outside of Denver and well worth a visit!

Boulder is definitely a college town so be aware of football games and other big events that could hinder your transportation/plans

Avery Brewing: Great beers in a large facility. An extensive tap list.
Mountain Sun Brewing: They have a cute little outdoor space and delicious food!
West Flanders Brewing: Super friendly bartenders, lively atmosphere right off the main strip of town
Boulder Beer Co.: They closed their taproom, but look for their beers on tap around town. The Nitro Chocolate Porter is delicious!

You May Also Enjoy:

Colorado

Seattle, WA

Utah

Phoenix, AZ

Sedona, AZ

Tucson, AZ

Lunchbox Series Blackberry PB&J from Funguys Brewing in Raleigh, NC

Funguys releases different variants of their Lunchbox Series of Smoothie Style Sour Ales, each that are Peanut Butter and Jelly inspired. This one is brewed with peanut butter, blackberry, and lactose, and truly tastes like you’re biting into an elementary school lunch sandwich. All of their Sours are incredibly delicious so you really can’t go wrong, but this one really exceeded expectations.

Deferred Stimulus from Cerebral Brewing in Denver, CO

Deferred Stimulus is a Double IPA with Galaxy and Cashmere hops coming in at 8.4% ABV. Cerebral makes some of the best Juicy IPAs in the game and this one is no exception! The color is warm and inviting, the smell is fresh and hop-filled, and the flavors are powerful and smooth. I absolutely love getting my hands on Cerebral’s brews and can’t wait to visit them again in the future!

Summer Jam: FrosE Collaboration from Barrel Culture Brewing and Blending in Durham, NC and Kings Brewing in Rancho Cucamonga, CA

This collab is a tiki-drink inspired Fruited Sour Ale with pineapple, mango, coconut, and key lime. At 7% ABV, this is a powerful Sour from two fantastic breweries. It is thiccc, packed with flavor, and super easy to drink. I had this one on tap during our visit to Raleigh and it was so good I also scooped a 4-pack to go!

Abstract Harvest from Heist Brewing and Barrel Arts in Charlotte, NC

Abstract Harvest is a Fruited Berliner Weisse with passionfruit, pink guava, pineapple, and lactose. It is extremely refreshing but super packed full of flavor. At 7.8% ABV it is definitely a boozy brew, but the fruits hide the alcohol and it is super easy-drinking. Pair this with a pizza from Livy’s and you won’t be disappointed!

Self-Reliance: Motueka from Hill Farmstead Brewery in Greensboro Bend, VT

This batch of Hill Farmstead’s Farmhouse IPA, Self-Reliance, has hand-selected Motueka hops from Freestyle Farms, their agricultural partner in Upper Moutere, New Zealand. It was conditioned in oak puncheons for 3 months and then bottled since March 13, 2019. This was truly phenomenal and will probably be one of my favorite beers of the year.

Intern Backpack collaboration from Other Half Brewing in New York, NY, Shared Brewing in Maplewood, MO, and Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA

Intern Backpack is an Imperial IPA with hand selected Centennial and Nelson Sauvin hops plus Vic Secret and Galaxy hops. This is a true juice bomb coming from three of the best breweries in the country—Other Half, Monkish, and Shared. Shared is by Side Project Brewing and where they create their non-Barrel Aged beers. I look forward to getting to try more of their fantastic creations!

Soft Parade from Short’s Brewing in Bellaire, MI

Soft Parade was my original favorite craft beer! I grew up in Michigan so Short’s and Soft Parade were everywhere, but now as a North Carolinian I rarely get to revisit this delicious classic. Soft Parade is their flagship Fruit Ale brewed with pureed strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries. It is fruity and refreshing but still 7.5% ABV!

Extra Extra Juicy Bits from WeldWerks Brewing in Greeley, CO

Juicy Bits is already a phenomenal beer and one of the best IPAs in the country. Extra Extra Juicy Bits is the Double Dry Hopped Double IPA version of this classic beer with Citra, Mosaic, and El Dorado hops. This is an incredible beer and one of the top IPAs I’ve personally had. Don’t want to take my word for it? This brew won a gold medal at the 2019 Great American Beer Festival in the Juicy or Hazy Imperial India Pale Ale category.

Check back next month to see my top beers of April!

Cheers -Alexis