Beer Me: May 3, 2016 – May 9, 2016

One score and eight years ago, our brewing forefathers announced to Congress that henceforth May 7th would be known as National Homebrew Day. To help cement the occasion, the American Homebrewers Association created the AHA Big Brew, held the first Saturday in May.

In 2015, there were 484 related events attended by 11,004 participants. In all, 2,722 batches were brewed resulting in 19,631 gallons of beer.

While the overall goal is to get people brewing no matter the style, the AHA does put out official recipes annually. In honor of the 500 year anniversary of the German Beer Purity Law, aka the Reinheitsgebot, one of this year’s recipes is a Northern German Altbier, which uses only barley, water, hops, and yeast. The other recipe—a Summertime Ginger Ale incorporating wheat, honey, and ginger—flies in the face of the Reinheitsgebot because rules were made to be broken. You can find both recipes here.  

In honor of this special occasion, individuals can create their own event (or event-related brew) or find events organized by local breweries and homebrew shops. In and around Denver, Factotum Brewhouse, Fiction Beer Co., Station 26, Caution Brewing Co., The Brewhut, Halfpenny Brewing Co., and Locavore Beer Works will all be holding events. Keep in mind that many of the events required an early RSVP to ensure space and equipment but you can still watch the brewing action go down.

Tuesday, May 3 – Friday, May 6, 2016: Teacher Appreciation Week at Factotum Brewhouse

While it might not completely make up for how underpaid our teachers are, Factotum will at least offer them unlimited (wha?) BOGO deals on beer this week. The promotion goes from Tuesday at 4pm to Friday at 10pm. Any teacher at any level is eligible, just bring your work badge.

Wednesday, May 4, 2016 @ 4 – 9pm: Mai the Fourth Release at Wit’s End Brewing Company

May the Fourth, aka Star Wars Day is currently the fastest growing holiday in the galaxy. That may not be true, but, whatever—it’s all made up anyway. This holiday, Wit’s End is releasing Mai the Fourth, a Maibock-inspired ale and will be screening the space opera all evening. Wear your Star Wars gear and get 10% off.

Thursday, May 5, 2016: Cinco de Mayo Beer Releases at various breweries

Several Denver area brewers will release beers to celebrate Mexico’s surprise triumph over the French way back when the Most Interesting Man in the World was still in short pants. At Boggy Draw Brewery, they’re releasing Cosmico Vaquero (a chili cream ale augmented with hatch chilies) at 3pm. Further south at Grist Brewing Company, they’re unveiling a Mexican lager fittingly called Cerveza at 5pm. Several versions will be available, including Mango Habanero Cerveza, Tequila Oak Aged Cerveza, Red Beer/Cerveza, and Pineapple Lime Cerveza. Alpine Dog is throwing a Chili Pepper Beer Fest at 5pm, featuring Rye Blonde Ale with Anaheim and Jalapeno peppers, Habanero IPA, ESB with smoked Serrano peppers, and Chocolate Chili Pepper Stout with Aleppo, Gaujillo, and Fresno peppers + cacao nibs.

Friday, May 6, 2016 @ noon – 7pm: It’s the Yeast We Could Do at Declaration Brewing

You already know Saturday is National Homebrew Day, but have you gotten all of your supplies yet? Declaration is helping you get prepared by offering FREE yeast for your brew day. They’ll have three strains of White Labs yeast available: Irish Ale Yeast (WLO004), Belgian Monastery Ale Yeast (WLP500), and California Ale Yeast (WLP001). Please bring a clean container with a lid for your yeast.

Saturday, May 7, 2016 @ 11am – 8pm: Skate-O De Mayo at Little Machine Beer

Party in the parking lot! Little Machine is releasing Sir Veza, a Mexican-style lager brewed in collaboration with Colorado Spring’s Black Fox Brewing. They’re also setting up a skate and bike ramp and will have rail jam demos from 3 to 5pm. Panderia, The Kinky Fingers, and Josh Moorehead & The Guest List will play live, starting at 2pm.

Saturday, May 7, 2016 @ 3pm: Berkeley Beer & Spirits (and wine) Fest at Local 46

This Saturday, the Spring Horseshoe Market will be going down at 4345 W. 46th Avenue from 9am to 4pm. Afterwards, head across the street to Local 46 where local brewers (Ratio, Odell, Call to Arms, Avery, Ska, and Upslope) and distillers (Laws Whiskey House and Peach Street Distillers) will be serving up samples of their wares, in addition to offerings of wine and coffee. Block & Larder will be on hand with BBQ and there will be live music + giveaways from local small businesses. Tickets are $20.

Sunday, May 8, 2016: Mother’s Day Festivities at various breweries

Today is Mother’s Day. If that’s news to you, there could be trouble. The Rackhouse Pub is doing brunch with C Squared Cider and Bierstadt Lagerhaus. Grist Brewing Company is also doing brunch with Pavlo’s Taste of Ukraine and Pink Zebra Cupcakes. Dry Dock – South Dock is doing Brushes & Brews and the Brew Hut is teaching a wine and cheese making class. Factotum thinks Moms Are RAD and Fiction is pairing beer and cheese, which includes five cheeses and five beers for $20 in advance or $25 day of.

Monday, May 9, 2016 @ 6:30 – 8:30pm: Ferment to Be Vertical SMASH Tasting at 300 Suns Brewing

Longmont’s 300 Suns is giving you the chance to witness how yeast impacts the flavor of beer. They brewed four batches of SMASH (Single Male Single Hop Ale) with four different strains of yeast (California, Sweet Mead, Burton, and Belgian Strong) so that guests can taste the difference. Try all four results and learn more about yeast’s role in brewing. Tickets are $16.

Still thirsty? Use this handy map of Colorado breweries and other drinking establishments to plan your next adventure. Cheers.

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Matt Sandy, a self-proclaimed “Beer Gadabout,” has been enjoying beer since he was of legal drinking age. Having been born across the pond where “legal drinking age” is a relative term, let’s just say he washed down a shandy or two while still in short pants. He moved to Denver in 2007 and immediately took up residency at the Great Divide taproom. Since then, he’s enjoyed exploring all of the craft corners of this great town and in this column will highlight weekly beer-related events that you should consider drinking in.