Boulder, Colorado: Land of Beer
Boulder, Colorado, has a well-deserved reputation as a town for ultra-athletes: runners, cyclists, triathletes, and climbers. But it’s also home to a bunch of really good breweries, so it’s almost as well know for its beer. And, in true Boulder fashion, you can hit almost all of the breweries by bike, getting in a bit of a workout in the process. Here’s how to do it.
The lineup at Avery’s tap room. Photo by Avery
Avery, which has been housed in a nondescript warehouse behind a carwash since the mid-1990s, makes some beers you might be familiar with, such as Ellie’s Brown, and some that are more unusual, such as the seasonal Maharaja. The beer is good, and strong, and the brewery hosts events, including weekly fun runs and bike rides, so there’s always something going on. It’s right off the Boulder Creek Path, which means that access is easy. It’s also a good starting point for your two-wheeled brewery tour, because it’s the farthest east.
Doesn’t get much more Colorado than that. Photo by Upslope
Upslope might be the quintessential Boulder brewery. They brew beer in cans, because they know that makes it easier to pack in and out of the backcountry, and they say their beers, like their signature pale ale, are perfect for sipping at trail heads and takeouts. We agree, and like the brown ale for the aforementioned activities, too. They’ve opened a new taproom on the east side, near Avery.
If you’re coming back downtown from the eastern breweries you’re going to bike right past Boulder Beer, which brews hoppy Hazed and Infused, and sessionable Singletrack Copper Ale. The oldest brewery in Boulder has live music a few nights a week, and their creek side patio is prime for summer and fall drinking.
Hippies welcome. Photo by Mountain Sun
Mountain Sun is a throwback to Boulder’s real hippie days. They don’t take credit cards, everyone who works there is a little disorganized, and there’s a lot of tie-dye and tempeh in the house. (The tempeh reuben is actually really good.) Despite the disarray, they make some damn good beers, such as the award winning Colorado Kind Ale. If you come to town in February, it’s stout month, which means they brew a huge variety of dark beers that range from weird and random to really delicious.
One of Boulder’s newest breweries is gaining accolades for their beer and for their business practices. Brewmaster Chris Asher is making all-organic beers, such as the Green Bullet IPA. His brewery and tap room is on the north side of town, so make sure you’ve saved your legs for a bit of a pedal. It’s uphill on the way there, but it’ll be an easy ride home.
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