clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Breweries and Bars Get Creative to Keep Customers Between Their Walls

Beer-makers across Denver are pushing the boundaries to keep customers interested

Brewery Boot Camp at Comrade Brewing on May 1
Brewery Boot Camp at Comrade Brewing on May 1
Facebook

As more breweries, bars, and restaurants open, owners are tapping into previously dissociated areas and trends to attract and keep guests within their walls. From yoga and trivia to painting and mug clubs, here's what we've seen across Denver.

Sweat Hard, Drink Hard

From the monthly Viewhouse Ballpark Run Club to numerous paired yoga classes, Denverites are having their beer and working it off, too. Alpine Dog Brewery stays in the mix this May with $15 Bend, Breathe, and Brew yoga classes in the taproom  and weekly run clubs on Tuesdays at 6:15 p.m. that traverse around Chessman Park.

Copper Kettle and Dry Dock up the ante with brewery boot camps in mid-May. Start off your Saturday with a bang on May 14 for a Brewery Boot Camp with Strength Train 4 Life at North Dock at 11 a.m. Participants will receive discount beers after the workout. The next day, Strength Train 4 Life is back at it with Copper Kettle Brewing. For $10, enjoy the hour workout and happy hour prices afterwards. Other May boot camps will recruit Comrade Brewing and 38 State Brewing. Tickets for all Brewery Boot camps can be purchased here.

Image credit: Facebook

Creative Paired Tastings

From ciders and sides to beers and salsa, breweries across Denver are diversifying their paired tastings for funkier crowds. Stem Ciders and Copper Kettle Brewing prefer their brews with sweeter tastes: Ciders and Sides paired Stem’s brews with Dead Dog Chocolate while Copper Kettle partners with Deb’s Travelling Bakery for a cookie and beer pairing on May 19. Meanwhile, Epic Brewing in RiNo changed up traditional pairings and kicked off May’s Beer School event with Los Chingones for a salsa and beer pairing.

Beer and cheese pairings are still going strong. Copper Kettle hosts its monthly pairing with the Truffle Cheese Shop on May 12. Tickets for the event are $20 and include four cheeses and four craft beer samples. Wild Woods and Mu Brewery both organized events with local partner Haystack Mountain Cheese in Boulder and Aurora. Pre-order your snacks and drink for Mu’s May 13 event; $10 of your contribution will be donated to Brent’s Place

Image credit: Facebook

Mug Clubs: Get a Glass

Stem Ciders brings back its monthly Keep this Glass Monday on May 16. The RiNo spot offers two pours along with the glass for $10 while Swine & Grind Weiner Cart will on site to provide goodies. Two Parts also runs the monthly Denver Mug Club across Denver’s burgeoning craft beer scene. To join the Denver Mug Club and view the club schedule, visit its website.

Image credit: Facebook

Beers Out, Brushes Out

Breweries across Colorado are letting their creative juices flow. A series of events at Rowdy Mermaid Kombucha in Boulder explored the art of adult coloring and kombucha in their taproom in late April. Factotum Brewery raises the stakes for the brewery’s monthly Painting Fun event and invites man’s best friend into the mix for Puppy Petals Painting Party on May 26. The event includes instruction, paints, canvas, and a welcome beer, kombucha, or soda on the house. Collaboration with your pup is encouraged. Tickets for the event can be purchased here.

Image credit: Facebook

Live Shows

Gastro comedy has been a burgeoning trend throughout Denver for a while and events from comedy roasts to showcases continually crop up in the "funny-food" scene. Musicians are also sharing the spotlight. Dry Dock Brewing hosts a weekly acoustic showcase each Tuesday on the South Dock Stage. The free event changes its lineup every week.

Image credit: Dry Dock

Trivia and Game Nights

For those with a competitive edge, a myriad of breweries across the Denver area hosts trivia and game nights. The Geeks Who Drink take over South Dock every Wednesday in a free event where nerds can garner cash prizes and internet fame - along with one of the five free pints given throughout the night . The Geeks Who Drink also compete weekly at breweries including Comrade Brewing Company on Wednesday and Jagged Mountain Craft Brewery on Thursdays. For a complete list of participating breweries and bars, check out the Geeks Who Drink list of venues. Factotum Brewhouse plays by a different set of rules at Tricks and Trumps Euchre Night on May 12. Go back to your Midwestern childhood for a series of facilitated Euchre tournaments complete with beer prizes.

Image credit: Facebook

The Truffle Cheese Shop

2906 E 6th Ave, Denver, CO 80206 (303) 322-7363 Visit Website

Wild Woods Brewery

5460 Conestoga Ct, Boulder, CO 80301 (303) 484-1465

Jagged Mountain Brewery

1139 20th St, Denver, CO 80202 (720) 689-2337 Visit Website

Dry Dock Brewing Co.

15120 E Hampden Avenue, Aurora, CO 80014 303 400 5606

Stem Ciders

2811 Walnut Street, , CO 80205 (720) 443-3007 Visit Website

38 State Brewery

8071 S Broadway Ste A, Littleton, CO 80122 (720) 638-3678 Visit Website

Factotum Brewhouse

3845 Lipan Street, , CO 80211 (720) 441-4735 Visit Website

Epic Brewing Denver

3001 Walnut Street, Denver, CO 80205

Comrade Brewing Company

7667 East Iliff Avenue, , CO 80231 (720) 748-0700 Visit Website

ViewHouse Eatery, Bar & Rooftop

2015 Market Street, , CO 80205 (720) 878-2015 Visit Website

Copper Kettle Brewing Company

1338 South Valentia Street, , CO 80247 (720) 443-2522 Visit Website

Alpine Dog Brewing Company

1505 North Ogden Street, , CO 80218 (303) 832-1245 Visit Website

Rowdy Mermaid Kombucha

2516 49th St Ste 2, Boulder, CO 80301 (303) 396-0498

Mu Brewery

9735 E Colfax Ave, Aurora, CO 80010 (720) 446-8273 Visit Website