More Maps

21 Breakfasts in Denver Worth Waking Up For

Where to Eat With Kids Around Denver

The Ultimate Guide to Late-Night Dining in Denver

More in Denver See more maps

Where to Find Award-Winning Breweries Around Denver

Try last year’s best beers to prep for the 2017 Great American Beer Festival this weekend

by Josie Sexton@josiebsexton Oct 4, 2017, 10:30am MDT

View as Map

by Josie Sexton@josiebsexton Oct 4, 2017, 10:30am MDT

Photo © Brewers Association

More than 60,000 beer drinkers this weekend will descend on Denver for the 36th annual Great American Beer Festival.

During three nights, festival attendees will have the chance to try nearly 4,000 beers from 800 breweries across the country. By Saturday winners of the world’s largest beer competition will be chosen from a boozy pool of some 8,000 entries. The GABF awards narrow down the country’s best beers in a given year across 160 styles.

For those gearing up for the weekend festivities, overwhelmed by the options, or just plain uninterested in that much beer tasting, last year’s medal winners are a good starting point for a self-guided tour of Denver-area breweries.

From Evergreen to Aurora, Fort Collins to Castle Rock, 26 Front Range breweries took home medals at the 2016 GABF. They range from Colorado classics, such as Coors, to startups, such as 14er, which has yet to open its brewhouse.

Seek them out while they’re still the reigning champions, and watch for an updated 2017 list to plan the next tour of GABF medal winners.

Breweries are listed from north to south.

• The Hottest Breweries in Denver Right Now, Summer 2017 [EDEN]

• The 38 Essential Breweries in Colorado, July 2017 [EDEN]

Read More

Coopersmith's Pub & Brewing

One of the state’s oldest craft breweries, CooperSmith’s won bronze in 2016 for Not Brown, an English-style brown ale.

Open in Google Maps

5 Old Town Square, Fort Collins, CO 80524

Visit Website

Black Bottle Brewery

Fort Collins’ brewpub Black Bottle took home silver for PDA, a Belgian-style tripel.

1611 S College Ave, Fort Collins, CO 80525

Visit Website

Verboten Brewing & Barrel Project

Loveland-based Verboten took bronze for Little Nonsense, an oatmeal stout aged in bourbon barrels.

Open in Google Maps

127 E 5th St, Loveland, CO 80537

Visit Website

Grimm Brothers Brewhouse

Grimm Brothers in Loveland won gold for its Little Red Cap, a German-style Altbier.

Open in Google Maps

623 Denver Ave, Loveland, CO 80537

Visit Website

Left Hand Brewing Co.

Fade to Black, Volume 1 won medals four times in GABF’s foreign export stout category; most recently it took home silver.

Open in Google Maps

1265 Boston Ave, Longmont, CO 80501

Visit Website

Echo Brewing Co.

Echo’s Erie location won gold for Tri-Town Brown, an English-style brown ale, while the original Frederick brewhouse won gold for Kirby Kölsch, a German golden ale.

5969 Iris Pkwy, Frederick, CO 80530

Visit Website

Bootstrap Brewing Co.

Bootstrap’s Stick’s Pale Ale earned a gold medal while a bronze went to Wreak Havoc imperial red.

Open in Google Maps

6778 N 79th St, Niwot, CO 80503

Visit Website

Upslope Brewing Co.

Boulder’s Upslope won silver in 2016 for its American-style Upslope Brown Ale.

Open in Google Maps

1898 S Flatiron Ct, Boulder, CO 80301

Visit Website

BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse

The Boulder BJ’s location won a bronze medal in the historical beer category for its version of a Finnish Sahti, Wild & Crazy Rye.

Open in Google Maps

1690 28th St, Boulder, CO 80301

Visit Website

The Post Brewing Co.

At the original Lafayette location, or in Denver on South Broadway, try The Post’s gold-medaled Achtertuin Seizoen Farmhouse Ale, a classic saison.

Open in Google Maps

105 W Emma St, Lafayette, CO 80026

Visit Website

Front Range Brewing Co.

Lafayett’e first brewery won silver for Piney Ridge, a medium-bodied, Munich-style Dunkel.

Open in Google Maps

400 W South Boulder Rd #1650, Lafayette, CO 80026

Visit Website

12Degree Brewing

Louisville’s 12Degree specializes in Belgian-inspired beers and took home bronze for Treachery, a Belgian-style strong specialty ale.

Open in Google Maps

820 Main St, Louisville, CO 80027

Visit Website

4 Noses Brewing Co.

In the pumpkin spice beer category, Pump Action Imperial Pumpkin Ale reigns, with more than 10 pounds of pumpkin in each barrel and 7.7 percent alcohol in every glass.

8855 W 116th Cir #4, Broomfield, CO 80021

Visit Website

Also featured in:

Denver’s Essential Breweries Right Now, Summer 2022

Blue Moon Brewing Co.

Blue Moon, which moved into its sprawling RiNo digs two years ago, garnered a silver medal for its fruit wheat beer Mango Wheat in 2016.

3750 Chestnut Pl, Denver, CO 80216

Visit Website

Blue Moon - RiNo

Also featured in:

Cannonball Creek Brewing Co.

Two gold medals in 2016 went out to Golden’s Cannonball Creek for Solid Gold, a Belgian-style blonde ale, and Trump Hands, a session IPA.

393 North Washington Avenue, Golden, CO 80403

Visit Website

Also featured in:

Denver’s Essential Breweries Right Now, Summer 2022

Coors Brewing Co.

Coors Banquet lost only to Pabst Blue Ribbon in the American-style lager category, while Coors Light, an American-style light lager, secured the bronze.

Open in Google Maps

3777 McIntyre St, Golden, CO 80401

Visit Website

Prost Brewing Co.

At Prost’s LoHi brewhouse or in the Fort Collins taproom, the Weißbier, a south German-style hefeweizen, is a silver-medal winner.

Open in Google Maps

2540 19th St, Denver, CO 80211

Visit Website

14er Brewing Co.

The RiNo-based brewery, which will open its brewhouse and taproom in early 2018, won gold in its first year of operation for Rocky Mtn Saison in the chili beer category.

Open in Google Maps

2801 Walnut St, Denver, CO 80205

Visit Website

Denver Beer Co.

On Platte Street or in Olde Town Arvada, try the current saison on tap. Denver Beer Co. took gold last year for Drama Queen, a red wine barrel-aged saison.

1695 Platte St, Denver, CO 80202

Visit Website

Also featured in:

Where to Avoid a Prix-Fixe, Couples-Only Valentine’s Day in Denver

Fiction Beer Co.

These bookish Park Hill brewers took silver for Alternate Present, a German-Style Schwarzbier.

Open in Google Maps

7101 E Colfax Ave, Denver, CO 80220

Visit Website

Also featured in:

Where to Eat and Drink This Fourth of July in Denver

Cerebral Brewing

Cerebral took home a silver medal in its first year brewing for Dreamy Thing, a Brettanomyces beer fermented with house-grown yeast.

1477 Monroe St, Denver, CO 80206

Visit Website

Also featured in:

Denver’s Essential Breweries Right Now, Summer 2022

Baere Brewing Co.

Baker’s tiny Baere Brewing won bronze for its flagship Saison, a classic saison.

Open in Google Maps

320 Broadway, Denver, CO 80203

Visit Website

El Rancho Brewing Co.

Evergreen’s El Rancho took home the gold in 2016 for a historical beer, the Finnish Sahti Valhalla. Evergreen brews this farmhouse ale with barley, oats, and rye, then flavors its with juniper berries and fermented with baker’s yeast.

29260 US-40, Evergreen, CO 80439

Visit Website

Copper Kettle Brewing Co.

Copper Kettle’s Blond, a sessionable Belgian-style ale, won gold last year. Also try the gold-medaled Mexican Chocolate Stout.

1338 S Valentia St #100, Denver, CO 80247

Visit Website

Dry Dock Brewing Co. — South Dock

Decade-old Dry Dock took silver for its Aurora-brewed Munich-style Helles.

Open in Google Maps

15120 E Hampden Ave, Aurora, CO 80014

Visit Website

Also featured in:

Rockyard American Grill & Brewing Co.

Warning Sign, a 12 percent ABV German-style Eisbock, brought in a gold medal for this Castle Rock brewery, which collaborated on the project.

Open in Google Maps

880 Castleton Rd, Castle Rock, CO 80109

Visit Website

© 2023 Vox Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

Link copied to the clipboard.

Coopersmith's Pub & Brewing

5 Old Town Square, Fort Collins, CO 80524

One of the state’s oldest craft breweries, CooperSmith’s won bronze in 2016 for Not Brown, an English-style brown ale.

Open in Google Maps

5 Old Town Square, Fort Collins, CO 80524

Visit Website

Black Bottle Brewery

1611 S College Ave, Fort Collins, CO 80525

Fort Collins’ brewpub Black Bottle took home silver for PDA, a Belgian-style tripel.

1611 S College Ave, Fort Collins, CO 80525

Visit Website

Verboten Brewing & Barrel Project

127 E 5th St, Loveland, CO 80537

Loveland-based Verboten took bronze for Little Nonsense, an oatmeal stout aged in bourbon barrels.

Open in Google Maps

127 E 5th St, Loveland, CO 80537

Visit Website

Grimm Brothers Brewhouse

623 Denver Ave, Loveland, CO 80537

Grimm Brothers in Loveland won gold for its Little Red Cap, a German-style Altbier.

Open in Google Maps

623 Denver Ave, Loveland, CO 80537

Visit Website

Left Hand Brewing Co.

1265 Boston Ave, Longmont, CO 80501

Fade to Black, Volume 1 won medals four times in GABF’s foreign export stout category; most recently it took home silver.

Open in Google Maps

1265 Boston Ave, Longmont, CO 80501

Visit Website

Echo Brewing Co.

5969 Iris Pkwy, Frederick, CO 80530

Echo’s Erie location won gold for Tri-Town Brown, an English-style brown ale, while the original Frederick brewhouse won gold for Kirby Kölsch, a German golden ale.

5969 Iris Pkwy, Frederick, CO 80530

Visit Website

Bootstrap Brewing Co.

6778 N 79th St, Niwot, CO 80503

Bootstrap’s Stick’s Pale Ale earned a gold medal while a bronze went to Wreak Havoc imperial red.

Open in Google Maps

6778 N 79th St, Niwot, CO 80503

Visit Website

Upslope Brewing Co.

1898 S Flatiron Ct, Boulder, CO 80301

Boulder’s Upslope won silver in 2016 for its American-style Upslope Brown Ale.

Open in Google Maps

1898 S Flatiron Ct, Boulder, CO 80301

Visit Website

BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse

1690 28th St, Boulder, CO 80301

The Boulder BJ’s location won a bronze medal in the historical beer category for its version of a Finnish Sahti, Wild & Crazy Rye.

Open in Google Maps

1690 28th St, Boulder, CO 80301

Visit Website

The Post Brewing Co.

105 W Emma St, Lafayette, CO 80026

At the original Lafayette location, or in Denver on South Broadway, try The Post’s gold-medaled Achtertuin Seizoen Farmhouse Ale, a classic saison.

Open in Google Maps

105 W Emma St, Lafayette, CO 80026

Visit Website

Front Range Brewing Co.

400 W South Boulder Rd #1650, Lafayette, CO 80026

Lafayett’e first brewery won silver for Piney Ridge, a medium-bodied, Munich-style Dunkel.

Open in Google Maps

400 W South Boulder Rd #1650, Lafayette, CO 80026

Visit Website

12Degree Brewing

820 Main St, Louisville, CO 80027

Louisville’s 12Degree specializes in Belgian-inspired beers and took home bronze for Treachery, a Belgian-style strong specialty ale.

Open in Google Maps

820 Main St, Louisville, CO 80027

Visit Website

4 Noses Brewing Co.

8855 W 116th Cir #4, Broomfield, CO 80021

In the pumpkin spice beer category, Pump Action Imperial Pumpkin Ale reigns, with more than 10 pounds of pumpkin in each barrel and 7.7 percent alcohol in every glass.

8855 W 116th Cir #4, Broomfield, CO 80021

Visit Website

Blue Moon Brewing Co.

3750 Chestnut Pl, Denver, CO 80216

Blue Moon, which moved into its sprawling RiNo digs two years ago, garnered a silver medal for its fruit wheat beer Mango Wheat in 2016.

3750 Chestnut Pl, Denver, CO 80216

Visit Website

Blue Moon - RiNo

Cannonball Creek Brewing Co.

393 North Washington Avenue, Golden, CO 80403

Two gold medals in 2016 went out to Golden’s Cannonball Creek for Solid Gold, a Belgian-style blonde ale, and Trump Hands, a session IPA.

393 North Washington Avenue, Golden, CO 80403

Visit Website

Related Maps

Coors Brewing Co.

3777 McIntyre St, Golden, CO 80401

Coors Banquet lost only to Pabst Blue Ribbon in the American-style lager category, while Coors Light, an American-style light lager, secured the bronze.

Open in Google Maps

3777 McIntyre St, Golden, CO 80401

Visit Website