Denver off the Wagon

GABF 2013 ticket prices announced

Everyone’s favorite beer holiday, the Great American Beer Festival, has posted ticket prices for the 2013 sessions today. Briefly - I’d start sewing up the holes in your pockets as prices took a bit of a jump this year over last – $75 per evening session and $65 for AHA members-only session.  The festival takes place this year [...]

GABF Week Photo Recap

GABF involved way too much drinking for me to put into words.  So here are a few slideshows detailing my week.   Tuesday – Beers Made by Walking at Wynkoop:   Wednesday – The Lion, The Bear, and the Brewmaster (Firestone Walker Beer Dinner) at Mile High Station:   Friday – Denver Rare Beer Tasting [...]

Super-Sized Dale’s Pale Ale Cans Revealed Thursday

Taller than a typical pint glass, heavier than a plate of nachos, able to destroy sobriety in a single serving!  Look, on the bar!  It’s a tube of tennis balls!  It’s a cylinder of Pringles!  No, it’s the new 19.2 ounce cans from Oskar Blues!  Yes, the extra-tallboy cans of Dale’s Pale Ale, strange visitors [...]

An Interview With Master Cicerone Rich Higgins

With the city’s annual rodeo of beer events, Ryan Conklin of Euclid Hall fame had a chance to sit down and chat with Rich Higgins, master cicerone, covering everything from snacks to the laws of physics. Denver Off The Wagon: How did you get into the Cicerone program? Rich Higgins: Brewing at Thirsty Bear Brewing [...]

Denver Gets Dolly the Trolley In Time for GABF

What is Dolly the Trolley, you ask? Other than one of the most awesome ideas to come to Denver recently, Dolly the Trolley is a unique and fun way to experience the sites of Denver with a libation in hand. I recently had a chat with David Pike, owner of Dolley the Trolley and Mastermind [...]

Colorado Collaboration of Awesome: The Full Story

A couple of months ago I told you cats about a secret I had been keeping regarding a Colorado collaboration of epic proportions.  With the arrival of GABF it is time to share with you all of the (not so) gory details. It all started with an invite from Mr. Moose of Peach Street Distillers [...]

Osteria Marco Marries the Pig and the Beer at their Hooves & Hops Dinner Tonight

When I heard Osteria Marco was hosting a pig and beer dinner, the southerner in me almost came out of m’boots. A bonafide roasted pig and beer? Shoot, I knew GABFers and pig & beer lovers alike would be clambering for a seat at this dinner. We’re talking 5-courses prepared by Chef Burton Koelliker paired [...]

Denver Off the Wagon Post-GABF Hangover Breakfast

No one wants to think about the Great American Beer Festival being over before it starts; however, with a sigh, I say it must be done. But I don’t think of it as a bad thing, think of it as an “I’m hung over and need food in my belly” kinda thing. We’re partnering up [...]

Get the Party Started Early: How To Pass the Time Standing in Line for GABF

By Julia Yugel and Lisa Bongiovanni Without a doubt, the best part about standing in line for the Great American Beer festival is that you know what is waiting for you in the near future. Once you complete the long cattle march around the Convention Center, have your ID checked and tickets checked and receive [...]

Seven new breweries in Denver since GABF 2011

Think back to GABF 2011… remember how many new Colorado breweries were on the scene? Denver Beer Company, Copper Kettle, Renegade Brewing, Caution Brewing – well, the fun didn’t end there. Since the last Great American Beer Festival seven eight new breweries have opened in Denver, and this does not include the nine new breweries [...]