Sunday, July 07, 2019
An Overview of the Steamboat Beer Scene
One of the things Colorado can be proudest of is the breadth and depth of its beer scene outside of metro areas. Summit County features some of the best experimental (Broken Compass) and hazy (Outer Range) beer makers in the state. Durango (Ska, Steamworks) and its 18,000 residents rates on a per-capita basis with anywhere. And Greeley (Weldwerks, Wiley Roots), well, wow.
So it was interesting to note on a recent trip to Steamboat Springs that the 13,000-person skiing and hiking paradise now boasts four breweries of its own, ranging from a production brewery with statewide distribution to a 25-year-old restaurant brewery that offers its beer just there in its bar. But while the production brewery, Butcherknife Brewing, has a wide range of excellent offerings, the rest of the scene seems to be a work in progress, hitting at times with bold flavors and missing at other times with basic staples, particularly in the area of IPAs.
First, Butcherknife. You may know its Amputator IPA, which can be found up and down the Front Range, a boozy (7.2% ABV) and vaguely old-fashioned (it's crammed with Centennial hops) piny but balanced hop bomb that's won "Best of the Boat" five years running. It's a quality and reasonably unique offering, with its malt-heavy quality — but it's hardly the best thing on this excellent menu.
That distinction goes to Sunshine Express Pale Ale, the reigning GABF gold-medal-winner in the Australian pale ale category, which features an expertly blended mix of Citra, Mosaic and Amarillo hops in a medium-light body where the hops get to do all the speaking without preaching bitterness. Throw in a crisp Pilsner, a subtle but vibrant Champagne du Nord Berliner Weisse released not long ago and a banana-ful Hefeweizen (and pleasingly fruity Mango Hefeweizen offshoot) and the offerings show both great craftsmanship and impressive range.
Storm Peak Brewing, meanwhile, is the beer maker everyone seems to be talking about, and with roughly 15 beers on tap, it certainly makes an impression from the moment you see its menu board. But while its Hoochie Mama — a sour blonde ale with guava that pleases by having a high fruit-to-tart ratio that makes it both intriguing and accessible — is one of the best things you'll find in town, the quality of beers varies significantly from there.
The Arborist, a spruce tip saison, is sweet with just enough pine bite to make this a fun experiment, and the Chowder hazy IPA flashes pineapple and tangerine tastes in a subtle body. But the rest of the IPA and hopped offerings tend toward the lighter side — not bad, but leaving you wanting more bite — and the darker offerings include a Zomb brown ale that couldn't stand up to the wings from the barbecue joint next door and a milk stout, Coffee Moos, that was almost all java and little sweetness.
Mountain Tap Brewery is the downtown spot, with a wood-burning oven that makes its full food menu, and its location just feet away from the path winding beside the Yampa River (see photo at bottom) makes this a must-hit for juggling both beers and beauty in a short period of time. But the beer here is even more inconsistent than Storm Peak.
The highlights of the menu were the Mountain Macaroon — a brown ale aged on lightly toasted coconut that has a nice roast and just enough sweetness to make it unique — and the Passionate Pedal, a passionfruit wheat that refreshes completely and has a bonus tinge of tart. But the several IPAs on the menu were beers that let their malts talk more than their hops and even the more experimental tastings like the offshoot of Mountain Macaroon aged for several weeks with rum-soaked oak seem to diminish the original beer (with a shockingly boozy taste for a 6% ABV offering) rather than boosting creativity.
Maybe the biggest surprise in town was Mahogany Ridge Brewery & Grill, a 25-year-old restaurant brewery whose beer menu has changed only a little over the past 15 years despite the enormous changes in the craft-brewing scene. The offerings feel as dated as that description makes them sound, from an Alpenglow amber ale that is reminiscent of an early copper ale to an Elk River ESB that lacks hop bite and feels amateurish.
But if you go in knowing what to expect, the effect is a pleasant surprise. The Lil' Lyddie's IPA is a throwback to English-hopped IPAs and almost feels sentimental, and Uncle Daryl's Dunkelweizen, while lacking crispness, is full of banana and dark-malt overtones. And the Powdercat Porter is a shocker of a good beer that hits you with a crisp, roasted malt finish that combines with a medium body to produce a lovely winter-warmer effect without a high amount of alcohol.
When asked about the local scene, one beertender told me it was "up and coming." Truth be told, Steamboat Springs' breweries are a little more coming than consistently up at the moment, but there are quality offerings at each — and a wide range of special beers at Butcherknife — that give indications that an up-and-down selection may be on the upward curve in the local sector's taste evolution.
So it was interesting to note on a recent trip to Steamboat Springs that the 13,000-person skiing and hiking paradise now boasts four breweries of its own, ranging from a production brewery with statewide distribution to a 25-year-old restaurant brewery that offers its beer just there in its bar. But while the production brewery, Butcherknife Brewing, has a wide range of excellent offerings, the rest of the scene seems to be a work in progress, hitting at times with bold flavors and missing at other times with basic staples, particularly in the area of IPAs.
First, Butcherknife. You may know its Amputator IPA, which can be found up and down the Front Range, a boozy (7.2% ABV) and vaguely old-fashioned (it's crammed with Centennial hops) piny but balanced hop bomb that's won "Best of the Boat" five years running. It's a quality and reasonably unique offering, with its malt-heavy quality — but it's hardly the best thing on this excellent menu.
Storm Peak Brewing, meanwhile, is the beer maker everyone seems to be talking about, and with roughly 15 beers on tap, it certainly makes an impression from the moment you see its menu board. But while its Hoochie Mama — a sour blonde ale with guava that pleases by having a high fruit-to-tart ratio that makes it both intriguing and accessible — is one of the best things you'll find in town, the quality of beers varies significantly from there.
Mountain Tap Brewery is the downtown spot, with a wood-burning oven that makes its full food menu, and its location just feet away from the path winding beside the Yampa River (see photo at bottom) makes this a must-hit for juggling both beers and beauty in a short period of time. But the beer here is even more inconsistent than Storm Peak.The highlights of the menu were the Mountain Macaroon — a brown ale aged on lightly toasted coconut that has a nice roast and just enough sweetness to make it unique — and the Passionate Pedal, a passionfruit wheat that refreshes completely and has a bonus tinge of tart. But the several IPAs on the menu were beers that let their malts talk more than their hops and even the more experimental tastings like the offshoot of Mountain Macaroon aged for several weeks with rum-soaked oak seem to diminish the original beer (with a shockingly boozy taste for a 6% ABV offering) rather than boosting creativity.
Maybe the biggest surprise in town was Mahogany Ridge Brewery & Grill, a 25-year-old restaurant brewery whose beer menu has changed only a little over the past 15 years despite the enormous changes in the craft-brewing scene. The offerings feel as dated as that description makes them sound, from an Alpenglow amber ale that is reminiscent of an early copper ale to an Elk River ESB that lacks hop bite and feels amateurish.
When asked about the local scene, one beertender told me it was "up and coming." Truth be told, Steamboat Springs' breweries are a little more coming than consistently up at the moment, but there are quality offerings at each — and a wide range of special beers at Butcherknife — that give indications that an up-and-down selection may be on the upward curve in the local sector's taste evolution.
Labels: Butcherknife Brewing, coconut, IPA, Mahogany Ridge Brewery & Grill, Mountain Tap Brewery, mountain-town breweries, New Colorado breweries, Porters, sour ale, Steamboat Springs breweries, Storm Peak Brewing
