Tuesday, March 12, 2019
Old 121 Brewing: Old Fashioned and Loving It
Caution Brewing reveled in making beer with ingredients that most brewers would enjoy only with the food portion of their dinners. Cardamom, a proprietary Chinese five-spice blend, a hearty helping of Earl Grey tea — these were the things that made the Lakewood brewery so magical and unique.
So, when the new brewery in Caution's former 1057 S. Wadsworth Boulevard home opens on Wednesday, the tap list might seem shocking in comparison: a honey brown ale, an Irish red, a lager, a pale ale with Mosaic hops. And in that sense, Old 121 Brewhouse might just be the anti-Caution.
The co-owners (pictured above) of what will be the sixth brewery in Lakewood have backgrounds with some of the largest and most experimental breweries in the area. Head brewer Jason Bailey learned the art at TRVE. Brett and Karla Zahrte held various roles at Coors Brewing. Both Brett and Jason spent time ramping up the production at Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project.
But when they and partner Eric Gupta decided to launch their own brewery, they wanted something laid back, with a focus on easy-drinking styles without the words "hazy" or "brut" or "pastry" anywhere in their descriptions. And while they may eventually work with nearby businesses to get some kegs out to them, they also have no interest in pushing Old 121 into the realm of distribution.
"I want to see people out here enjoying what they've got. It's not so much about making a big name for ourselves on the scene," Bailey said over a beer on Tuesday, one day before the soft opening. "We're not going to try to run the race with everybody else in the industry."
Instead, Old 121 wants to be the neighborhood brewery, a place that is easily accessible to the growing residential population in central Lakewood. Three of the four partners live in the western suburb, and the Zahrtes grew up in Golden going to a local bar that they considered to be like a community as it welcomed in families.
To that aim, Old 121 also will make its own sodas, including two dry-hopped sodas, and will be the first brewery in the Denver area offering iced tea on draft. It will have a video-game machine, and its owners hope it can be that place that people feel comfortable pulling into out of rush-hour traffic and having a beer or two without fears of being intoxicated.
The beers, by the way, are just what one may imagine for a place with the laid-back goals of Old 121. The honey brown is pleasant and easy - malty and a touch sweet without being cloying. The Irish Red (pictured in front of the brewery's beer engine that will be used for pouring an English mild collaboration with Grateful Gnome that is titled "tastes like beer — one star") is all malt with a medium body and a sessionable feel to it.
They're beers that you will enjoy if you're not expecting to have your taste buds blown away. They're beers that, appropriately, just have an old-school feel.
"Really, what we're trying to do here is build a community gathering space, open a local watering hole," Brett said. "We're trying to keep this taproom focused as a neighborhood fixture where you can come and get that after-shift lager."
Caution Brewing reveled in making beer with ingredients that most brewers would enjoy only with the food portion of their dinners. Cardamom, a proprietary Chinese five-spice blend, a hearty helping of Earl Grey tea — these were the things that made the Lakewood brewery so magical and unique.
So, when the new brewery in Caution's former 1057 S. Wadsworth Boulevard home opens on Wednesday, the tap list might seem shocking in comparison: a honey brown ale, an Irish red, a lager, a pale ale with Mosaic hops. And in that sense, Old 121 Brewhouse might just be the anti-Caution.
The co-owners (pictured above) of what will be the sixth brewery in Lakewood have backgrounds with some of the largest and most experimental breweries in the area. Head brewer Jason Bailey learned the art at TRVE. Brett and Karla Zahrte held various roles at Coors Brewing. Both Brett and Jason spent time ramping up the production at Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project.
But when they and partner Eric Gupta decided to launch their own brewery, they wanted something laid back, with a focus on easy-drinking styles without the words "hazy" or "brut" or "pastry" anywhere in their descriptions. And while they may eventually work with nearby businesses to get some kegs out to them, they also have no interest in pushing Old 121 into the realm of distribution.
"I want to see people out here enjoying what they've got. It's not so much about making a big name for ourselves on the scene," Bailey said over a beer on Tuesday, one day before the soft opening. "We're not going to try to run the race with everybody else in the industry."
Instead, Old 121 wants to be the neighborhood brewery, a place that is easily accessible to the growing residential population in central Lakewood. Three of the four partners live in the western suburb, and the Zahrtes grew up in Golden going to a local bar that they considered to be like a community as it welcomed in families.
To that aim, Old 121 also will make its own sodas, including two dry-hopped sodas, and will be the first brewery in the Denver area offering iced tea on draft. It will have a video-game machine, and its owners hope it can be that place that people feel comfortable pulling into out of rush-hour traffic and having a beer or two without fears of being intoxicated.
The beers, by the way, are just what one may imagine for a place with the laid-back goals of Old 121. The honey brown is pleasant and easy - malty and a touch sweet without being cloying. The Irish Red (pictured in front of the brewery's beer engine that will be used for pouring an English mild collaboration with Grateful Gnome that is titled "tastes like beer — one star") is all malt with a medium body and a sessionable feel to it.
They're beers that you will enjoy if you're not expecting to have your taste buds blown away. They're beers that, appropriately, just have an old-school feel.
"Really, what we're trying to do here is build a community gathering space, open a local watering hole," Brett said. "We're trying to keep this taproom focused as a neighborhood fixture where you can come and get that after-shift lager."
Labels: Caution Brewing, Coors Brewing, Crooked Stave, Grateful Gnome, honey brown ale, Irish red ale, Lakewood breweries, Old 121 Brewhouse, TRVE
