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Brewers Association and Ska Brewing Co. Release 2009 Sales Numbers

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Lakefront Brewery’s Fixed Gear American Red Ale

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Durango Wheel Club 2010

Now don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a new thing, but I have noticed it more and more Belgian style beers lately, from breweries that I haven’t seen Belgian’s from in the past. According to Soggy Coaster at Beer at 6512, Durango Brewing Co. is brewing a Belgian inspired sort of hybrid ale for their 20th anniversary, incorporating saison, witbier and Belgian golden ale characteristics.

One of the things that intrigues me (and presumably a lot of brewers) is that Belgium has been brewing beer for a long time and produces a wide range of varied beer styles. You can’t pinpoint one (or even a few) beers and say “This is Belgian Beer”. If someone hands you a Belgian beer and doesn’t tell you anything else about it you really have no idea what to expect.

Just a day after Soggy Coaster blogged about Durango Brewing Co.’s upcoming Belgian style ale, The New York Times ran an article about their blind tasting of 20 Belgian Style Golden Ales. It turns out their favorite out of the lot wasn’t even brewed in Belgium, they picked out Jolly Pumpkin’s Oro de Calabaza as their top pick. (Their top ten list was pretty evenly split, four of their favorites were from the US — two brewed in Dexter, Michigan, who knew? — one from Canada and five from Belgium).

Since there are so many different Belgian styles it can be hard to even compile a list of locally made Belgian style beers. As far as I can tell Durango Brewing Co. hasn’t made any Belgian styles in the recent past. Carver Brewing Co. does a ton of seasonals, far more than I can remember, but off the top of my head I can’t think of any they’ve made recently. Steamworks Brewing Co.’s seasonal Ale Diablo is considered by some to be a Belgian style Strong Pale Ale. And Ska Brewing Co.’s year-round True Blonde Dubbel is a Belgian style Dubbel or Strong Pale Ale. Ska’s DIFF, a witbier could also be considered a Belgian style.

Personally I love diversity in beer so I welcome the more Belgian style beers that local brewer’s are making, especially because beers brewed in Belgium are typically more expensive because they have to be imported and have more of an environmental impact having traveled so far.

This last part is pure speculation on my part, but it’s possible more craft breweries are making Belgian style beers because they can charge more for them. I imagine they’re more expensive to produce, especially if they’re making them in limited quantities, but when the competition is already expensive because it’s being imported from halfway across the globe, I presume there’s more room to adjust prices. Many Belgian style beers are also packaged in slightly fancier bottles. Ska’s True Blonde Dubbel comes with a wax dipped top, Steamworks’s Ale Diablo was packaged this past year in a 24oz bottle with a cork and cage top, and Soggy Coaster reports that Durango Brewing Co.’s 20th Anniversary beer will be bottled in champagne bottles.

I don’t mind paying slightly higher prices for quality beer or special, limited release beers that I don’t get too often.

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Belgian Style Ales, A New Trend in American Craft Beer?

There’s quite a bit of debate about this bill, some people say it’s unfair that only liquor stores can sell full strength beer, others say this is one of the things that makes Colorado craft beer so great. Personally as a beer geek I like the way things are, I can find a good craft beer at any of the liquor stores in Durango. In California where I could buy beer at any grocery store or convenience store it was easy to find the big heavier hitter craft beers, Sam Adams, Sierra Nevada and New Belgium’s major beers (but not their limited release or more unique beers) were available all over the place, but to find anything out of the ordinary one would have to find a liquor store with a good selection (most liquor stores out there don’t have a great selection).

One thing I don’t understand about HB 1186 is that family owned liquor stores, that only have one location could apply for and receive a liquor license to sell full strength beer as far as I understand. The problem comes in when a single company owns more than one convenience store, as Colorado law allows for only one liquor license per owner. (I’m not an expert on Colorado beer law, so please leave a comment if you feel something I’ve said is incorrect).

If this bill was defeated today Colorado liquor stores and brewers can’t rest yet, there is a possibility of another bill being introduced (or even put on the ballot in November for voters to decide) that would allow grocery stores to sell full strength beer.

Here’s a Denver Post article from when this bill passed committee. I’ll try to update this post tomorrow with any press coverage it gets this time around.

UPDATE: The Durango Herald had an article on this in today’s paper.

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Colorado House Bill 1186

A few months ago I met the proprietors of Pagosa Pub Works and found out that wasn’t the case. They’ve been operating as a restaurant and bar, with plans to brew their own beer and become an actual brewpub. It seems that day has finally come. Tonight at 5pm the Pagosa Springs Chamber of Commerce held an event and ribbon cutting ceremony for the grand opening of the Pagosa Pub Works Brewery. Based on the information I’ve received it’s unclear to me what exactly this means, I’m not sure if this means they will now start brewing beer on premises (meaning you’ll have to wait at least a few weeks to enjoy one of their beers), or if they’re tapping the first beer they’ve made at their brewery (meaning you can enjoy one tonight). (And there’s always the possibility that there’s something I didn’t consider, or I got the story wrong when I met the owners a while back and they were in fact brewing beer.)

I have an email into the folks at Pagosa Pub Works Brewpub and will update this post if I hear back from them. If any of you readers know more of have been to the brewpub leave a comment below.

UPDATE: While I haven’t heard back from the folks at Pagosa Pub Works an acquaintance did go to the grand opening and reports that last night they did tap their own beer (meaning they qualify as an actual brewpub in my book) but he says that it was really bad, not just he thought it was bad but that everyone there did and it spoiled the night (there was a Pagosa Chamber of Commerce mixer going on). One complaint was that it was severely under carbonated. Again, this is second hand news but it’s what I’ve been told. I’m still looking forward to hearing from someone at Pagosa Pub Works Brewpub and stopping by there myself when I can get out to Pagosa Springs next.

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A New Brewery in the Four Corners: Pagosa Pub Works

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Ska Brewing Beer Blogger Collabeeration: The Release Party

Three Rivers Brewery down in Farmington, NM has a brand new menu for their annual Cajun Feast. They’re having a five course meal, paired with beer and wine. It’s $40 per person, but the menu looks great. Check out the menu at the Three Rivers Brewery website. They’re even having a mask party. Should be a good time.

Out in Pagosa Springs, Pagosa Brewing Co. is having a Mardi Gras party of their own. They’ll be tapping a brand new beer, Smokey the Beer, a German smokey light lager. Proceeds from the sale of this beer will go to the Volunteer Fire Fighters of Archuleta County. They’ll also have cocktail and cajun food specials as well as beads and masks.

If I hear of anything special going on at any of the other area breweries I’ll update this post.

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Mardi Gras Four Corners Style

Beer Blogger by Kinsee Morlan

Ska Brewing Co. head brewer Thomas Larsen is showing Chuck Slothower the ropes – or the tubes as the case may be.

“We need to shut that filter bed so everything runs nice and easily and doesn’t get stuck and doesn’t compact,” explains Larsen. He goes on in a language that can only be understood by fellow brewers and beer geeks.

Good thing Slothower, a tall, thin man who makes his way through life as a journalist by day and a beer blogger by night, falls into the second category. He’s an admitted beer addict who shares his love of craft brews online at beerat6512.blogspot.com. The “6,512” number, by the way, is the approximate elevation of Durango, which is indicative of his blog’s goal – “Local but not provincial, so I try to cover all the local beers that come out, but I’ll also write about beers in the Front Range, Oregon, California and whatever else is interesting,” he says.

Click on over to The Durango Telegraph to read the full story.

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Ska Brewing – Beer Blogger Article in the Durango Telegraph

• Collabeeration: Ska Brewing Co. To Team up With Beer N Bikes and Beer at 6512
• Ska Brewing Collaboration: Formulating a Belgian-American IPA Recipe
• Ska Brewing Collaboration Tomorrow, Belgian-American IPA Recipe
• Ska Brewing Collabeeration: Belgian-American IPA Is In The Fermenter

Check out Beer at 6512 for the Soggy Coaster’s take on brewing at Ska Brewing Co. as well.

So come on out this Saturday, Febraury 13th at 5pm to the Ska Brewing tasting room (225 Girard St, Durango CO) to taste our beer.

The Ska brewers have been hard at work experimenting with the 10 gallon pilot system as well. They have a handful of batches of 10 gallon beers they’ve brewed just waiting to go on tap. After these two beers run out they’ll be tapping unique beers made by their brewers on the 10 gallon pilot system every Tuesday. They have a Belgian IPA, a Black Trippel, and a Weizenbock just waiting to go on tap.

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Ska Brewing Co. Beer Blogger Collabeeration Tapping Party