GOLDEN, COLORADO
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| View of Golden, Colorado from South Table Mountain |
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| Coors Brewery from Clear Creek in downtown Golden |
That’s
because Coors Brewery -- the world’s largest single site brewery – has been
making beer here since 1872. That’s when
German brewer Adolph Coors was hiking along Clear Creek and found some nearby natural
springs and decided to open a brewery.
Today, Coors uses that same Rocky Mountain spring
water to produce 13 million barrels of beer a year. That translates into 4.3 billion bottles – or about 221,000 bottles of beer for every
resident in Golden.
And Coors isn’t the only brewery in town. There are five other award-winning craft
breweries, as well as two distilleries. The
legendary Western scout and showman, Buffalo Bill Cody, would be so proud. Buffalo Bill was known to have a fondness
for beer and alcohol, and today his grave on top of Lookout Mountain overlooks Coors
and the pretty town of Golden down below.
But there’s more to do in Golden than stop and
smell the hops.
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| Downtown Golden |
The quaint Western-looking town, is a major
recreation center known for biking, hiking, rock climbing, fly fishing, and
kayaking, and is just minutes from the world famous Red Rocks
Amphitheatre. The first T-Rex and many other
dinosaurs were discovered here and Golden is also home to America’s only
mountaineering museum and Colorado’s largest narrow gauge railroad
collection. And of course, the “Wild
West” lives again at the Buffalo Bill Museum.
But it’s beer that put Golden on the map and here’s
some ways to celebrate National Beer Day in this little town where the slogan
is, “Where the West lives.”
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| Golden, Colorado from the Lariat Loop Trail |
FIRST – WHAT IS NATIONAL BEER DAY?
Since 2009, National
Beer Day has been celebrated on April 7, marking
the day that the Cullen-Harrison Act went into effect in 1933, ending prohibition
for the production of beer. Upon signing
the legislation, Roosevelt said, "I think this would be a good time for a
beer." The act eventually led to
the Eighteenth Amendment being repealed on December 5, 1933, with ratification
of the Twenty-first
Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
April 6, the day prior to National Beer Day, is known as New Beer's Eve. In 2019, New Beer’s Eve and National Beer Day
fall on a Saturday-Sunday, making it a perfect time to celebrate man’s oldest
food.
How
to Celebrate in Golden:
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| Coors Brewery in downtown Golden |
Tour Coors
Well, of
course you have to start here. The
brewery has a 30-minute, self-paced tour of the malting, brewing and packaging
of Coors Beer. http://www.millercoors.com/Brewery-Tours/Golden-Brewery-Tour.aspx You get to explore a
room of giant copper kettles and then stop in the packaging room, where
thousands of cans and bottles whirl by, marching one-by-one on tread mills to
be filled with beer and slotted into six packs.
After the tour, those 21 and over can sample three free glasses of
beer. If you already know how beer is
made, ask for the “short tour,” which is no tour at all. They’ll direct you straight to the free
tasting room and gift shop. Tours are $5
for Colorado residents and $10 for out-of-state visitors and include three free
beers and a free souvenir glass.
Savoir Some Samplers at Craft
Breweries
The way to drink at the five craft breweries in Golden is by
ordering a tray of samplers – usually six different four-ounce beers that let
you taste a variety of handmade brews, from lagers and pale ales to India Pale
Ales, porters, stouts and sours.
Golden’s craft breweries don’t serve food, so you can bring
your own food in or order from rotating food trucks that park directly
outside. Because there’s no kitchen, dogs
are allowed on the patios and it’s a rare day when there aren’t a half dozen
dogs or more enjoying the Colorado sun at these outdoor beer gardens. Here
are the choices:
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| Statue of Adolph Coors in downtown Golden |
Golden City Brewery was founded in 1993 by two geologists, Charlie and Janine Sturdavant. The unusual thing was they founded the brewery in their own house. The beer garden is their backyard. In winter there’s always an outdoor fire; in summer, there are often musicians playing. Order a beer through the Dutch door of the carriage house, find a table, and relax in Charlie and Janine’s backyard (they still live here). Their specialty is the Clear Creek Gold Pale Ale, an award-winning, traditional German Kolschbier hopped with Czech Saaz for a pleasant floral finish.
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| Sampler tray in Golden City Brewery |
Barrels
& Bottles is a friendly brewery that believes in
equality: there are 24 craft beers on
tap (a half dozen of their own and great guest beers from across the country)
and just to be equal, 24 tap wines. If
you’re not familiar with tap wines, it’s a growing trend and the freshest way
to enjoy wine right from the barrel, including wines produced in Colorado. Barrels & Bottles has one of only four
beer infusion machines in the nation (one of only two in Colorado). These science fiction looking machines add
tasty flavors like coffee or chocolate to beer, after it’s been brewed. Stop by
and say hi to the owner’s two dogs and warm up with a Hint of Mint Brown
Porter, a complex, malty dark beer with a lightly burnt character.
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| Cannonball Creek |
· MountainToad is the quintessential Colorado brewery with big windows that open to the outdoors, an outdoor patio with food trucks, a beer garden, and 6-12 craft beers on tap. Check out the chalkboard to see what beers have been added to the menu. Dogs are always welcome and mingle with guests on the large tree-shaded patio, which is filled with picnic tables.
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CannonballCreek Brewing
In its first year, this young brewery took
two prestigious silver medals at the Great American Beer Festival, and in 2016
they were the only Colorado brewery to win two gold medals, winning another
gold in 2018. They usually have between
6-12 craft beers on tap, as well as offering gorgeous views of the buttes and
mountains surrounding Golden.
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| Barrels & Bottles Brewery |
New
Terrain. Located high on the
east side of North Table Mountain with views down into Clear Creek Valley, the
brewery, like its name says, is exploring new ways to make traditional
beers. Their motto is not, “this is how
it is done,” but rather, “what if we try it this way?” Couldn’t be more fitting, because among the
many things you can see from their outdoor patio is massive and traditional Coors
Brewery in the valley below.
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| New Terrain |
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Holidaily This
one-of-a-kind brewery is dedicated to making delicious tasting gluten-free
beers. Try a Buckwit Belgian, a thirst quenching light brew with a mix of coriander
and orange peel. Or let your hair down with a Ponytail Pale Ale – a single hop variety pale ale
brewed specially for Collaboration Fest 2017.
For
more information on other activities in Golden, visit: www.visitgolden.com
