The Passport Program: Denver

If you’re a craft beer fan, you know that Colorado is home to some of the most popular and highly regarded breweries in America as well as craft beer’s governing body, the Brewers Association. Figurehead breweries such as Great Divide, Avery, Oskar Blues, Odell, New Belgium and Left Hand are but a handful of the state’s zymurgical militia, which was last totaled at 284.

Such a vast array of breweries makes planning a beer-cation a dicey proposition, especially within the fertile fermentation grounds of a city like Denver, where your beloved BC editors were heading. Since logistics and ale-quaffing don’t mix well, we’ll plot trip details in advance, which usually requires a couple hours of checking tap lists, Google Maps and perhaps a phone call or two.

A few quick sips and some bacon nachos at Wynkoop Brewing Company riled us from our post-flight fug.

Thankfully, much of that rigmarole was avoided with the help of The Passport Program, a “road map for the curious drinker – a pocket-sized little black book filled with drink specials all across town, valid from May 27 (Friday before Memorial Day) to September 5 (Labor Day).” To boil it down, it’s a coupon book that provides 2-for-1 drinks at select locations throughout various cities.

Our Denver trip started bright and early, and we led off with a visit to Wynkoop Brewing Company direct from the runway. While we had been warned of the thin mountain air in Colorado’s capitol (and how lower levels of alcohol may affect drinkers in such climes), a quick four-beer flight and some bacon nachos almost immediately perked us up, and got us prepared for a full day of brewery visits.

The next stop was Breckenridge Brewery’s new Littleton location, a craft beer hideaway housed – fittingly – on a street called Brewery Lane. Though the brewery has caught flak for its big beer ties, it manages to balance its present without abandoning its roots as a family-run operation.

Breckenridge Brewery, housed on Brewery Lane in neighboring Littleton, CO, had the sheen of a macro operation and the dedication to the craft of a start-up.

The beer is crisp, with new release Mango Mosaic providing a citrusy punch to start the trip, and the brewery’s ever-expanding barrel-aging program creating some surprising results, such as the tequila barrel-aged version of its flagship wheat beer Ophelia and the various single-hop, barrel-aged variants of 471 IPA. If you’re not afraid of getting a little closer to the big beer flame, Breckenridge in Littleton is worth checking out.

After Breckenridge, with numerous brewery-only releases tucked under our arms, we headed to one of our most anticipated stops – Cerebral Brewing, which is known for its hazy IPAs, funky sours and specialty offerings. The brewery was releasing two different versions of a new Brett Beer when we arrived – Invisible Hand Azacca and Equinox. A Hazy Treatise, a blog post from Cerebral’s founder Chris Washenberger, outlines the brewery’s ethos, which focuses on flavor and quality ingredients rather than looks or hype.

Founder Chris and head brewer Sean Buchan hosted us at the brewhouse as we sipped on a few of the brewery’s trademark brews – Rare Trait IPA (which we recently reviewed), Elephant Gun Imperial Milk Stout and both versions of Invisible Hand – and discussed the Colorado craft beer scene as well as the brewery’s swift growth.

We finished up our first day back at the hotel (Hotel Teatro in Denver’s LoDo district), with four Cerebral crowlers in tow, reminding us how delicious brewery-fresh beer can be.

For our second day in Denver, we started off at one of the best breakfast spots in the city, Snooze: an AM Eatery at Denver’s grand Union Station. The main event on day two, however, was Great Divide Brewing Company’s 22^nd Anniversary celebration.

Cerebral Brewing’s Rare Trait was a real treat during our trip.

Lasting most of the day, the anniversary was certainly a happening occasion. With food trucks, the Yeti experience, numerous beer booths, a rarities tent and a complimentary Denver Pale Ale and metallic cup at the door, the celebration had everything one would expect from a well-established brewery’s anniversary party.

Despite sweltering heat, lines were long at the rarities tent – which included numerous barrel-aged and adjunct-filled versions of the brewery’s coveted Yeti Imperial Stout, and the Yeti himself made a rare appearance (though his shaggy fur was quite superfluous in the 95°+ heat).

Following a full day at the festival, we headed to The Source in Denver’s RiNo district, home to RiNo Yacht Club & Crooked Stave, then finished up the day at Biju’s Little Curry Shop. Despite having a craving for curry, it just so happened that right next door to the curry house was a cozy microbrewery – Zephyr Brewing Company. This appealing little brewery had a taproom packed with numerous people playing board games and enjoying Zephyr’s varied and interesting draft list, featuring a Pale Ale with blood orange, a Quadrupel with Belgian candi sugar and pomegranate molasses and even blends of kombucha.

A quick Uber led us back to our hotel where we popped open a crowler of Cerebral’s Rare Trait and called it a night.

Our final day in Denver proved to be the most eventful, as we traveled from brewery to brewery, sampling wares at every stop.

True to the name, TRVE Brewing Company had all the feeling of a place that would rather sacrifice a pig than change its craft ways, with vintage metal spurring the yeast to frenzied fermentation within the mash pits.

From the outside, Baere appeared a bit barebones, nestled in the bosom of a shopping center whose halcyon days likely coincided with Gerald Ford’s presidency. However, the inside was a sunny saturnalia of reclaimed wood and kettle-soured gose goodness. Coupled with a sprightly Berliner Weisse, we had found excellent replacements for our morning orange juice.

Call to Arms Brewing Company’s I Need An Adult Double IPA highlighted an informative and enjoyable brewery tour hosted by founder Chris Bell.

Renegade Brewing Company was up next, and we got started with a few IPAs. With numerous options on tap, including a summer seasonal DIPA (Summer Tan), a West Coast-style IPA (Runaway) and a year-round Triple IPA (Endpoint), we were a bit spoilt for choice. In addition, the brewery was replete with sours and saisons, including Crixus, a strawberry rhubarb saison, and Beetnik, a saison with beets. With samples of all under our belts, it was time to move on to our next destination – Call to Arms Brewing Company.

We were met by Call to Arms “proprietor and controller” Chris Bell, who walked us through the brewery’s background. Founded by himself, Jesse Brookstein and Jon Cross (all three are transplants from Boulder, Colorado’s well-established Avery Brewing Company), Call to Arms focuses on beer styles the brewers want to make and share with the entire Denver beer scene such as Freedom Fries Saison, an imperial-strength Belgian beauty, Oats and Hose Porter, a smooth-drinking dark brew, and I Need An Adult, a Double IPA with lip-smacking hoppiness.

After a brief reprieve, it was dinner time. Work & Class Restaurant proved to be one of the hottest eateries in Denver, and we opted for the famous Southern Fried Chicken. Crispy, tender and well-seasoned, the meal lived up to the hype. Throughout the meal, this tiny, lo-fi, corner restaurant was packed to the gills with people clamoring for a taste of some All-American cuisine. It didn’t hurt that the beer list was solid too, though we opted for a whiskey barrel-aged apricot offering from Stem Cider with our meal.

Our last stop of the day was First Draft, “the largest self-serve draft system in Denver.” This novel concept for a bar featured 40 taps of craft beer from around the nation from which you could serve yourself. First Draft charges by the ounce, and when you enter, they provide a glass and a card that you swipe that keeps track of what you drink and in what quantity. After a long day of drinking fine craft brews, I finished up with a small pour of Pipeworks Brewing Company’s Lizard King Pale Ale, a highly-sought after brew that delivered an aromatic punch of grassy hops with a crisp, citrusy flavor and firm bitterness in the finish.

A self-poured sample of Pipeworks Brewing Company’s Lizard King at First Draft rounded out our Denver trip.

Denver was an amazing trip, and we could’ve easily spent two weeks there without scratching the surface of the incredible volume of craft suds that was on display. The Passport Program runs from May 27 to September 5, so you still have plenty of time to book a trip and enjoy the benefits of using the Passport in any of the 12 cities where it’s available.

Colorado, the headquarters of The Passport Program, boasts the most choices for passports with Boulder, Colorado Springs and Fort Collins joining the capital. Numerous other locations scattered around the U.S. feature passports, such as Brooklyn, San Diego and Nashville. While beer was our main concern, the passport also provides discounts at bars, restaurants, wineries and distilleries in the city of your choice.

If you need an excuse to take a beer-, wine- or spirits-themed trip, look no further than The Passport Program. Find out more at www.thepassportprogram.com.

(All body photos by Chris Guest)