Bringing Breweries Together One Collaboration at a Time

The second annual Collaboration Beer Festival took place a few weeks back during Colorado Craft Beer Week. This was my first year attending and I was very impressed with the success of only the second year of this festival. There were plenty of collaborations to taste with participants from Colorado and across the US.

Many beer festivals can be overcrowded but not this one. Even with 2000 attendees, the large space of the club level at Sports Authority at Mile High made it easy for mingling and most importantly, tasting beer 🙂 The venue also allowed for a beautiful view of downtown Denver.

There were plenty of beers I did not get to try but of the ones I tasted, my two favorites were the sour blend from Avery and Powder Keg and the lady collaboration. The Avery and Powder Keg collaboration was sour but not too sour; It was a delicious blend! The FMR Double Red IPA was brewed by many women in the beer industry. This was a very hoppy and good Double Red IPA.

Beer Highlights:

I Thought We Were Friends?? Black Double IPA- Elevation and Black Bottle

FMR Double Red IPA- Women’s Collaboration

Sour Blend- Avery and Powder Keg

Mississippi Method Dry-Hopped Golden Ale- 12 Degree and Cannonball Creek

English Brown Ale Cask- Upslope and Hogshead

Rye Pils- Oskar Blues and Shamrock

The only suggestion for this festival for next year would be to either have a list of collaborations or have signs above each stand displaying the type of beer to make it easier to navigate to all the delicious beer! It was a great festival and I am already looking forward to next year! I am excited to see this festival continue to grow. If you missed it this time, keep your eyes peeled early next year for tickets and information.

Cheers!