Denver's on Fire with Pre-GABF Festivities

Whether you are attending the Great American Beer Festival or not, you can take advantage of the spectacular events that are taking place in anticipation of this beer celebration. Today alone, there are many beer events from dinners to special tappings organized by some of Denver's best restaurants from Osteria Marco to Euclid Hall and ChoLon. Here are some highlights.

Osteria Marco is hosting "Hooves & Hops," a five-course dinner with beer pairings from Durango-based SKA Brewing Company. The menu is designed to pair with some of SKA's classic beers, moving from the brewery's hoppy Euphoria Pale Ale to its rich Steel Toe Milk Stout. The dinner is priced at $55 a person, not including tax and gratuity.

1515 Restaurant is hosting a four-course beer dinner in collaboration with
Uinta Brewing Co, a Utah brewery whose brewmaster, Steve Kuftinec, will be attending and talking about each of the beer pairings. This dinner is priced at $40.

Russell's Smokehouse will serve a four-course German beer dinner with San Francisco-based Master Cicerone and Consultant à la Bière Rich Higgins. Together, Higgins and chef Taylor Drew will lead guests through an evening of German beers paired with tender cuts of smoked duck, roasted venison loin and braised short ribs. This dinner costs $55/person, not including tax and gratuity.

Lucky Pie Pizza and Taphouse features nineteen taps of limited release Sam Adams brew. Food pairings are available with the beers and master brewer Jennifer Glanville and the whole Sam Adams Team will be present to meet, greet, and chat about their beers.

The Kitchen [Next Door] is featuring five of the best Colorado craft breweries that have consistently been on tap at the restaurant: Oskar Blues, Dry Dock, Odell, Funkwerks and Upslope. A total of ten specialty beers will be available on tap, all paired with food from the the Kitchen. The party is priced at $65.

ChoLon is running a special beer menu consisting of a limited supply of some fairly obscure American craft beers, like bottles of the highly sought after Avery Rumpkin (18% abv), as well as Boulevard Reverb on tap.

Euclid Hall will host a 6 p.m. Upslope Brewery Tapping. The brews that are part of this event are the Pumpkin Ale, the Belgian Wit, and the Barleywine.

· All GABF Coverage [EDen]