I was in Chicago for a long weekend in July and got to visit a bunch of breweries I'd never tried before. A few of them really stood out, and I've featured my favorite beers in this post. The coolest experience had to be the tasting menu with beer pairings at Moody Tongue. It's a must-try for beer and food…

June brought the unfortunate closing of my longtime favorite — Copper Kettle Brewing Company. In June, they celebrated their 15th Anniversary and then closed at the end of the month, but noe before I could stock up on all my favorites (Helles and every flavor in the Snowed In series). One of my favorite aspects of craft beer is that…

Early in the month, I celebrated my birthday at Oakwell Beer Spa. If you haven't been, I highly recommend it. An excellent place to unwind and enjoy great craft beer (plus wine, cider and NA options). Some other highlights were discovered at Odell's Five Points Brewhouse and The Post on Broadway.

In April, I visited New Image Brewing's Wheat Ridge location and had some incredible beers. It was a good reminder to get out and enjoy some of the taprooms that are a little outside of my neighborhood. We've got great craft beer all over the Denver metro area.

In March, I hosted a St. Patrick's Day beer tasting featuring Irish Stouts and Irish Red Ale, but a different red ale stuck out for me—Bull & Bush's Colorado Barrel Collective #9 Ruby Baggins Port Barrel Aged Imperial Red IPA. I can say with certainty that I've never had a beer that ticks all those style boxes at once, and…

In February, all five of my favorite beers were from Colorado, and I tried four of the five in the brewery taprooms, which is always fun. Cohesion, Copper Kettle and Outer Range are a few of my favorite breweries in the state, and I was excited to finally stop by WestFax for the first time. This is a reminder to…

While I don't do "Dry January," I do tend to slow down a little after indulging during the holiday season. Still, I tried a few beers that really stood out to me. I had the pleasure of visiting Guatemala for a long weekend and visited three different breweries in the town of Antigua, in addition to enjoying their national lager,…

The holidays are my absolute favorite time to enjoy beer, especially Belgians and dark lagers. The flavors of dried fruit, spices, caramel, roasted nuts and shortbread tend to dominate the beers I drink this time of year. That said, I will always enjoy a high quality IPA, and I think the piney flavors present in many American IPAs are a…

Christmas—my favorite time of year to enjoy beers that are old favorites and visit local breweries to try something new. This time of year, I love drinking beers that have spicy, nutty, biscuity, sweet flavors. They go so well with the other flavors that accompany the holidays—mulled wine, roasted meats, dried fruits, shortbread. While there are tons of beer styles…

Throughout the year, I try a lot of different beers. Between my favorite spots in Denver, the breweries I visit when I travel and stuff I pick up at the store, it's hard to pick just a handful of favorite beers from the past year. My criteria for the "Best Beers" is whether or not I can still conjure up…

I hosted a fun beer tasting in November about beer's evolution in America with a great group. We had pumpkin beer, Vienna Lager, Porter, Standard American Lager, American Pale Ale, American IPA, Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout and American Wild Ale. I also visited family and friends in Baltimore over Thanksgiving and enjoyed some of my favorite local beers there.

October was full of great beers, many of which I tried at Great American Beer Festival, which you can read about in my 2025 recap. My favorite sips at GABF included a lavender Summer Ale from Breakside Brewery and a bunch of Fresh Hop IPAs. I've decided to exclude those from the list below and focus instead on the best…