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A Guide to Brewery Hopping in Fort Collins

How to make the most of a day in Northern Colorado’s booming beer scene

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With more than 20 brewhouses serving 150,000 residents, even the locals can’t keep up with Fort Collins’ beer scene. It includes everything from the country’s 4th-largest craft brewery to a town favorite that delivers kegs via tricycle.

Some of the city’s oldest and newest breweries are not on this list, though they’re good, too. Equally worthy perhaps is the campus hideout that specializes in cask ales, and runs on an engine system. One of Fort Collins’ breweries is a CSA with a taproom in neighboring Wellington. But here is a list of the 10 Fort Collins breweries to try out in one questionably long day of beer drinking. And the really exciting part — all are accessible from one another via bike or public transportation.

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Eater maps are curated by editors and aim to reflect a diversity of neighborhoods, cuisines, and prices. Learn more about our editorial process.

Zwei Brewing Co.

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For German beer fans, this South Fort Collins gathering spot is a must. Career brewers (and brothers) Kirk and Eric Lombardi expertly recreate all the classics, with an American twist.

Maxline Brewing

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This Midtown oasis behind a shopping center feels like a friend’s backyard, if only your friends hosted daily food trucks, weekly concerts, and industry discount nights.

Black Bottle Brewery

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Fort Collins’ renegade brewpub features 40 beers from near and far on tap, with the majority brewed in-house. Try the Dream Journal Pilsner, made with all-local Troubadour malts.

Equinox Brewing

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Tucked behind College Avenue, Equinox is the stop to make in Old Town — weekly firkin tappings, two music stages, and beer distributed only as far as the keg trike will travel.

New Belgium Brewing

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Community yoga? Check. Regional bands? That, too. New Belgium’s year-old liquid center expansion is still enjoying the limelight among locals and visitors alike. And it just opened a satellite taproom in RiNo.

Odell Brewing Company

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This hometown hero has reintroduced festivals to its sprawling, see-and-be-seen patio. Add farmer and artisan markets to the list of reasons (food trucks, live music, cornhole, also beer) to spend an afternoon here. And check out the new pilot brewhouse in RiNo.

Snowbank Brewing

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Brewery row’s newer addition is founded by a group of home-brewing friends with science backgrounds. Geek out with them over a glass of their flagship Colorado Red or seasonal Cucumber Sourado.

Horse & Dragon Brewing Company

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This family-run operation is slightly off the beaten path. To get here, drinkers will wind through an industrial corridor and arrive at a hidden cabin. The Almost Summer Ale and Sad Panda Stout are favorites.

Funkwerks

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The stop for award-winning Belgians, saisons, and sours, Funkwerks is another unsuspecting hideout in the former Fort Collins airpark. Start here with the medal winners: Saison and Raspberry Provincial.

Jessup Farm Barrel House

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A Funkwerks collaboration, find barrel-aged and blended beers in this converted 19th Century hayloft. Great for sunset views and vertical flights, so you drinkers can taste how a beer changes over time and with, say, tequila- or wine-barrel notes.

Zwei Brewing Co.

For German beer fans, this South Fort Collins gathering spot is a must. Career brewers (and brothers) Kirk and Eric Lombardi expertly recreate all the classics, with an American twist.

Maxline Brewing

This Midtown oasis behind a shopping center feels like a friend’s backyard, if only your friends hosted daily food trucks, weekly concerts, and industry discount nights.

Black Bottle Brewery

Fort Collins’ renegade brewpub features 40 beers from near and far on tap, with the majority brewed in-house. Try the Dream Journal Pilsner, made with all-local Troubadour malts.

Equinox Brewing

Tucked behind College Avenue, Equinox is the stop to make in Old Town — weekly firkin tappings, two music stages, and beer distributed only as far as the keg trike will travel.

New Belgium Brewing

Community yoga? Check. Regional bands? That, too. New Belgium’s year-old liquid center expansion is still enjoying the limelight among locals and visitors alike. And it just opened a satellite taproom in RiNo.

Odell Brewing Company

This hometown hero has reintroduced festivals to its sprawling, see-and-be-seen patio. Add farmer and artisan markets to the list of reasons (food trucks, live music, cornhole, also beer) to spend an afternoon here. And check out the new pilot brewhouse in RiNo.

Snowbank Brewing

Brewery row’s newer addition is founded by a group of home-brewing friends with science backgrounds. Geek out with them over a glass of their flagship Colorado Red or seasonal Cucumber Sourado.

Horse & Dragon Brewing Company

This family-run operation is slightly off the beaten path. To get here, drinkers will wind through an industrial corridor and arrive at a hidden cabin. The Almost Summer Ale and Sad Panda Stout are favorites.

Funkwerks

The stop for award-winning Belgians, saisons, and sours, Funkwerks is another unsuspecting hideout in the former Fort Collins airpark. Start here with the medal winners: Saison and Raspberry Provincial.

Jessup Farm Barrel House

A Funkwerks collaboration, find barrel-aged and blended beers in this converted 19th Century hayloft. Great for sunset views and vertical flights, so you drinkers can taste how a beer changes over time and with, say, tequila- or wine-barrel notes.

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