Beer Run Blog

A Most Unique Denver Brewery

Your first impression of the offerings at Dos Luces Brewery, frankly, is: These aren't beer. The thick, multicolored samplers at your fingertips are bright and flavorful, but there's no way they are beer.

And yet, owner Judd Belstock not only is serving up beer, he is fashioning malted beverages in a uniquely American way from the Pulque and Chicha traditions of Mexico and Peru — traditions passed down from his father, who spent a portion of the 1960s with the Peace Corps in South America enjoying the unusual native beverages.

As the brewing world descends on Denver this week for the Craft Brewers Conference, there are no shortage of great breweries making memorable beer for them to stop by. But there may be none so wildly unique as Dos Luces, so much so that the biggest question is whether it inspires copycats or simply remains a one-of-a-kind draw.

"Our mission statement is we want to change the way that people think about beer," Belstock said.

Over the past 10 years, the onslaught of sours, pastry stouts and IPAs with all manners of adjunct ingredients already has redefined beer. What separates Dos Luces' offerings is the wide range of tastes they produce from just two base styles of beer.

Chicha, a corn-based beverage made in the Peruvian tradition, has a natural sweetness, even as Belstock makes it with a slightly nuttier-tasting blue corn, and it works perfectly as a base when spice is added. The brewery's flagship Chicha Inti has strong flavors of both clove and cinnamon, and that has given life to a series of one-offs, including a Pumpkin Spice Chicha from late 2018 that used ginger to create a particularly refreshing aftertaste.

Pulque, a Mexican drink traditionally made from the sap of the maguey plant, brings a slightly more familiar taste, one that's less juice-reminiscent and more earthy and malty in its design — particularly in the always-available Pulque Metztli, which is Brett-fermented and kettle-soured. It's produced fascinating spin-offs such as a slightly tart Strawberry Nutmeg Pulque and a Lime Ancho Chile Pulque that brings the full mouth of a meal cooked with spices rather than the traditional burn of a chile beer.

Belstock (pictured below) makes his creations from barley and corn in order to meet the definition of beer, though the lack of hops in his offerings renders them eligible for just two categories at the Great American Beer Festival — historical and experimental brews. At his first festival last year, just a few months after the brewery opened, he found drinkers confused as to what they were imbibing, yet still wanting to come back and have more.

The reaction is understandable, and it's one that only will grow as he adds more twists on his two flagship beers, including a collaboration Belgian-style saison made with maguey sap — brewed with with Atrevida Beer Co. of Colorado Springs and BorderX Brewing of San Diego — that will be on at Dos Luces throughout this week. That follows the brewery's first imperial chicha, released last month.

But as other breweries scramble for ways to stand out in a crowded market, Dos Luces needs only to attract attention for people to note how it's different. And in a city that has embraced everything from traditional English-style cask beers to oenobeers, it deserves its own spotlight.

Labels: Atrevida Beer Co., BorderX Brewing, chicha, Craft Brewers Conference, Dos Luces Brewery, Great American Beer Festival, New Colorado breweries, pulque