Left Hand Brewing Co. celebrates 21st birthday with inaugural Nitro Fest, circus acts, and chance to win free beer for a year

Tyra Sutak NOVEMBER 13, 2014

In the beginning, the concept of craft beer was just plain confusing.

“You want to make something other than a lager?”, they said. “You’re planning on adding all of those hops?”, they scoffed.

As the industry gradually found its footing, new phases and trends started to emerge. For awhile, the majority of beer drinkers had no idea what the combined letters of I.P.A. stood for, but they eagerly ordered ‘em up at their local watering hole. Then the industry entered a funky Sour phase that challenged brewers’ creativity— along with the stomach lining of craft beer consumers. And somewhere in between the introduction of the double dry-hopped IPA, and the inception of Crooked Stave, the first nitrogenated beer was born.

The “nitro” in nitrogenated beer refers to the type of gas used in the carbonation process. Most beers are carbonated with a dominating percentage of carbon dioxide, which creates those mesmerizing bubbles that dance up the sides of the glass filled with your favorite pilsner. Introducing more nitrogen in the carbonation process creates a smooth and velvety texture with a distinctly creamy head.

The nitro beer trend had a pretty quiet start, but has since gained an avid following and appreciation— thanks in part to the innovative folks at Left Hand Brewing Co. In 2011, after years of experimenting and producing nitrogenated beers, Left Hand made a push in total nitro beer domination by becoming the first American brewery, and first craft brewery, to bottle a nitro beer without the use of a widget, making the beer style more accessible to craft beer drinkers outside of the tap room. The brewery’s popular Milk Stout Nitro has been charming palates out of the tap and from a bottle ever since.

This Saturday, November 15th, Left Hand is throwing a big bash at their brewery to not only celebrate the art and advancement of nitro beers, but to also celebrate their milestone twenty-first birthday. Just like any twenty-first b-day bash, Left Hand is busting out all of the stops and if you haven’t already snagged a ticket to this event, here are five reasons that you should probably stop what you’re doing now, and get on Left Hand’s Nitro Fest/21st Birthdayguest list today.

1.) Twenty-first birthdays are a time to go all out and get a little crazy, and Left Hand’s big birthday bash is no exception. If you’re a guest at the big party this weekend, expect to taste 21+ exclusive nitro beers from some of the top breweries across the country. And of course, what birthday party isn’t complete without circus acts like fire spinning, aerial acts, juggling, contortionists, and burlesque? And with any good party, expect to hear live music and to be fed tasty hors d’oeuvres from Haystack Goat CheeseFrontiere Natural Meats, and Happy Cakes Bakery.

2.) Nitro Fest is the first beer fest of it’s kind, making the event the place to find the most diverse array of nitro beers in one place at one time. If you’re a fan of nitro beers— this is definitely the event for you.

3.) Left Hand brought home some serious hardware from this year’s Great American Beer Festival, earning silver medals for their Milk Stout and Black Jack Porter, which they’ll be serving nitro versions of at the fest, along with Sawtooth Nitro, Wake Up Dead Nitro, Safety Round, and the smooth, coffee-centric specialty brew— Beer Week Sauce.

4.) If the craft beer industry had an actual dress code, it’d be flannel shirts and bushy beards. ButLeft Hand is twenty-one now, so they’re making their big bash a swanky affair. Cocktail attire is requested and guests are encouraged to “dress to impress”. So this is your chance to say “you clean up nicely!” to all of your favorite craft beer friends.

5.) These five words: “Free Beer For a Year”. If you’re not planning on dressing in cocktail attire, you better be planning on dressing like one of Left Hand’s beer labels for the event. If you do, and your beer-label costume is selected as the winner, your winnings will be the sweet, sweet taste of beer for a year. That’s beer for a whole year, people. (Get some inspiration for your creative costume here: http://lefthandbrewing.com/beers/.)

FATE Brewing Company Brings a New Twist to Brewpubs in Boulder


Tyra Sutak February 21, 2013


Walking into the FATE Brewing Company is like walking into the dining room that I wish I had. A contemporary casual place filled with warm colors, adorably organic centerpieces, good smells, friendly guests, and 30 draft lines streaming delicious local and nationally-brewed craft beer.

Located in the former Playa Azul restaurant space, tucked in the front of the business park at 38th and Araphaoe, FATE Brewing is making waves in its first month of existence on the Boulder craft beer scene.

It seems like FATE owner and founder, Mike Lawinski, thought of just about everything when he designed his first beer/food-centric venture. Fresh off of a 10 year stint with Boulder’s well-known Big Red F Company, Lawinski has branched out to create a stand-out craft beer establishment in the midst of Boulder’s biggest brewery boom. From the inviting and open floor plan, to the cost friendly better-than-bar-food menu, and those nifty little hooks on which to place your purse or jacket on installed on the underside of bar—FATE Brewing may be the new kid in town, but it’s giving the other beer bars and tap rooms in Boulder a good run for their well-earned money.

Although the in-house brewing part of FATE Brewing won’t actually produce products until late March, Lawinkski has creatively found a way to put FATE’s name in the local craft brewing scene without actually serving beer made in his own establishment. Teaming up with local breweries to create a variety of very palatable craft beers, like the not-too-sour Cherry Fate Stout brewed with the Mountain Sun Brewery, or the smooth Twist of Fate Rye Brown Ale created as part of a collaboration with Twisted Pine, FATE has found a way to stick the FATE name on locally brewed craft beers before the thick sheets of murky plastic have even been pulled off of the large glass windows to reveal FATE’s see-through in-house brewing operation.

On Sunday, the restaurant was full of brunch-goers and families, sampling items off of the new food menu and drinking specialty cocktails or one of the collaboration beers that FATE head brewer, Jeff Griffith created with the help of breweries like Twisted Pine, Boulder Beer, Mountain Sun and just about every other Colorado brewery that you can think of. On Wednesday evening, the hip, North Face-wearing, unnaturally fit, 30-something crowd of Boulder braved the snow and came pouring through the door for $4 beers and tasty discounted menu items at happy hour.

While the stacked draft line at the bar isn’t shabby, the food coming out of the FATE kitchen is holding its own as well. “This is the best Rueben that I’ve ever had,” said my brother-in-law, after digging into the house-smoked pastrami Rueben. “I wonder if I can make this at home?” said my sister, after tasting FATE’s flavor-filled pasta salad. “Mmmmm,” said my friend after devouring a spoonful of a FATE dessert special composed of a vanilla-infused buttery biscuit with a tart strawberry and orange compote. I echoed her sounds when it was my turn to sample a spoonful of the concoction.

And perhaps one of my favorite things about FATE Brewing—is the way they have a little something for everyone. Whether you’re a craft beer nerd and looking to geek out on specialty craft beers, just looking for a nice upscale twist on the typical bar food served with your local beer—or, if you’re like me, and schedule most of your meals around your favorite pro sports teams, FATE is just the place for you. Several very conveniently placed TV’s stream a steady program of relevant sports—the kind of sports that you would skip dining out for if it meant missing the big game.

With any new venture comes growing pains, and FATE is no exception. The service isn’t as consistent as a weathered establishment, but the staff is friendly, and eager to share whatever level of beer and menu knowledge that they possess.

Check out FATE Brewing for yourself at: 1600 38th Street (one block west of Foothills on Arapaho Road).

And for a full list of FATE food and beverages, click here.

Twisted Pine Continues Steady Growth

 

Tyra Sutak September 12, 2012

 

In my heyday, (which I’m starting to think is unfortunately nearing its end), I used to sell craft beer— legally, of course. I spent my days selling beer in a can for a local brewery and I spent my weekends sampling the cream-of-the-crop of local and national beers from everyone else. As you can imagine, it was an extremely tough job, and I loved it.

 

During my stint in the beer world, and as a resident of Boulder, I always knew about Twisted Pine Brewing, located in their current convenient location just east of 30 th Street on Walnut. I knew that Twisted Pine had been around for quite awhile and that they stayed fairly busy crafting up a palatable line-up of beers that even my craft beer-loathing friend would drink. Aside from that, Twisted Pine really wasn’t on my radar. I never purchased a six-pack of their beer at a local store, or even ordered a pint at my favorite local watering hole. Twisted Pine seemed to stay afloat with a very local, long-standing following and really didn’t spend too much time worrying about pushing the beer boundaries too much—unlike the rest of the Boulder County breweries that found themselves immersed in their own extra hoptastic and high ABV races.

But lately, Twisted Pine has stepped it up a notch. I’ve been seeing them everywhere. I had one (or two or so…) Twisted Pine beers at the Boulder Food Truck Party at Gateway Park a few weeks back. (A portion of all beer proceeds from the event were donated to local non-profit, Parenting Place). I also found myself at a friend’s barbeque where the host promptly placed a tall boy of Hoppy Boy in my hand upon arrival. Twisted Pine has also been making headlines lately by announcing the expansion of their brewery and tasting room, kicking up their social media efforts a notch, and brewing one ofthe hottest beers on the planet… the Ghost Face Killah, which is currently on tap in their tap room.

On my last visit to the Twisted Pine tap room, owner Bob Baile was seated at the bar, sharing laughs, greeting patrons, chatting about beer, enjoying his own product, and eventually giving up his seat in an increasingly busy tap room for a group of regulars that greeted Bob with a handshake and a big smile.

In the beer business, there’s nothing better than sitting down in a tasting room and enjoying a cold one with the owner himself.

Although Twisted Pine is experiencing an exciting expansion and is recently selling their beer in nine states, they’re still taking the time to create some buzz in their tap room. A few carefully-placed TVs transmit a steady stream of sports games, a trivia night has recently been introduced and they’re offering up happy hour specials nearly every day of the week.

Unfortunately, as with a good majority of tap rooms, it’s a toss-up on the kind of customer service that you receive. On my last trip to the brewery—I showered, did my hair, wore lipstick and generally acted like really decent and knowledgeable craft beer-loving lady—but I still had to fight to get refills and my tab (which consisted of only three beers) was still wrong. As a former brewery employee, I understand that things come up. People want to tour the brewery, and ask questions about the types of malts and hops that go into the beer—and as a tap room employee, you’re first in line to answer all of those questions.

And although the Twisted Pine tap room does serve food, the selection is pretty limited—however they do offer an interesting grilled cheese and beer pairing selection that’s worth checking out.

Bottom line, as a long-term staple in the Boulder beer scene, it’s definitely worth keeping an eye on the growth that Twisted Pine is experiencing. The view of the Flatirons from their patio on a clear day is worth the trip alone.

THE SISTERHOOD OF THE HOP EDUCATES WOMEN ABOUT BEER


The Sisterhood of the Hop Educates Women About Beer

Tyra Sutak May 15, 2012

At the 2012 Craft Brewers Conference earlier this month, a rep from Dogfish Head Brewing tweeted a picture of a long line to the mens restroom with the caption, “Best thing ever (for women at a brewer’s conference!) The only bathroom lines are for the men’s restroom!”

While it’s certainly true that the number of men in the craft brewing industry highly outnumbers the women, more girls are sneaking into traditionally male-dominated roles as brewers, owners, and Presidents and VP’s of successful breweries; women are also busy collecting paychecks designing marketing programs for breweries, running territories as saleswomen and slinging beers and craft beer knowledge at popular beer bars. With the recent increase of women in the craft brewing industry, it’s no surprise that the number of female craft beer consumers has increased as well. It’s been said that women will be the ones to keep the craft beer industry barreling ahead at full steam, and with dedicated female brewery employees, such as the crew of women at Avery Brewing, I don’t doubt that statement for one second. 

Avery Brewing’s Sisterhood of the Hop is doing their part to get women involved in craft beer by holding monthly educational meetings that include everything from tastings, to recommendations on beer/food pairings, to dissecting and examining the brewing process and providing an in-depth history of specific beer styles. The majority of the monthly Sisterhood meetings are typically held in the barrel-aging cellar/private function room at Avery Brewing, however, the group occasionally ventures out into the local craft beer scene, sampling different styles of beers in some of the best beer bars in Boulder. The Sisterhood of the Hop meetings are not only a great way for women to get involved and interested in the craft beer scene, but also a great way to help members of the community, both women and men, gain a new appreciation and understanding of the complexity of the beer products that they consume each week.

Last month, I had the privilege of attending my first Sisterhood of the Hop meeting. I sat in Avery’s chilly barrel-aging cellar, devouring the ever-present smell of hops and savoring a selection of Belgian-style beers by Avery and a few other special breweries. Although you generally can’t go wrong by serving people healthy portions of good beer, the women behind the Sisterhood of the Hop are also serving up a wealth of experience and knowledge about the beer scene. It’s no surprise that Jess Steinitz and Amy Newall-Large, the women behind the Sisterhood, are filled with passion and opinions about craft beer– they are a part of one of the most popular breweries in Boulder County and their engaging and energetic stories about their experiences and love of the craft beer business is absolutely infectious to fellow beer drinkers and enthusiasts.

I, as usual, was late to the meeting, but pleasantly surprised to be greeted with many smiling faces of eager women (and a few men), along with a sample of Avery’s Karma Belgian Pale and perhaps the best meeting itinerary of any meeting I’ve ever attended: an outline of the beers (in order of planned consumption) along with a short description and space to write in first impressions and to guess ingredients was laid out in front of me. Amy and Jess took turns providing the history of Belgian beers along with ABV percentage, the general ingredients of each beer and a personal food pairing preference to enhance each beer.

This month, the women of Avery are throwing their monthly Sisterhood meeting smack dab in the middle of American Craft Beer Week with a screening of the film, “The Love of Beer”, a documentary celebrating the women of craft beer on Wednesday, May 16th.  Tickets for the event are $10 and include a pint of Avery beer and the opportunity to hang out in the scared room filled with aging and infusing beers at the Avery Brewery. Regardless of your level of understanding of craft beer, be sure to follow the Sisterhood of the Hop group on their Facebook page and be sure to check out at least one of their events. You’ll leave feeling inspired, empowered, and possibly a little bit tipsy…