We Climbed The Crazy Mountain Brewing Company in Denver, CO

Last week, H and I found ourselves in beautiful Denver for a live MST3k event. While there, we decided to make a pilgrimage to Crazy Mountain Brewery, located at 471 Kalamath St in Denver. Crazy Mountain's beers have always been a standout to me when perusing my local liquor stores due to their cool design, fun names, and interesting flavor blends. I was very excited to try a selection straight from the source.

H and I did a sampling of six different beers from their menu. These aren't going to be complete reviews with grades but basic impressions of what we tried and liked (or didn't).

The first beer on the board (#16) was a Sauvignon Blanc Sour. This turned out to be the least favorite for both us out of all we tasted. I found it unenjoyably sour but what H and I agreed upon most of all was that it just didn't taste like beer at all, but like white wine (and, in H's opinion, cheap wine).

Moving on to ##14, Black Barleywine, I found this pitch-black concoction to be very flavorful with hints of coffee. H even liked this one as well, because while it is bitter it's not super bitter in a way that overpowers it or is unpleasant.

#19 is Rum Barrel Aged Dark Ale with Ginger and Lime. Though not as dark looking as the Black Barleywine, this beer was very deep and complex tasting. It's a very unique beer- it almost tastes and smells more like a very boozy mixed drink than a beer. H didn't love the booziness and she thought the lime, ginger, and rum combined to give this an almost coconut flavor. I feel like because of all the flavors in it it's one of the most summery tasting dark beers I've ever had. This quirky brew was my favorite of the tasting and if you like dark beers I would definitely give it a try.

                               

Next we had some lighter fare. #17 is a Gin and Juice pale ale. It's light and finishes very dry. I liked it ok but only could detect the faintest hint of juniper at the end. H couldn't get any juniper flavor at all during her sips. We both wished the gin flavor was more pronounced.

Our next taster is the lightest and sweetest of all the beers we tasted- it's also H's pick for favorite (Hey, I like what I like. -H) Mama Bear Wheat Ale had a very light and fruity taste. It's floral and sweet, with a great smell. However, I found it too sweet and, in my opinion, almost syrupy. Yet this was our most divisive sampling. If you like sweeter beers, or wheat beers, this is a good example- light, flavorful. If you prefer darker flavors and bitter/sour then maybe give this one a pass.

The last beer we sampled if Lawyers, Guns, and Money barleywine. This was a fine beer with a nice color and a good caramel flavor. It's not too boozy tasting considering it's 10.5% abv but ultimately it just wasn't that memorable. Whereas the Mama Bear and the Black Barleywine spurred strong reactions in us, this one just didn't stand up against the other, bolder flavors we tried.

                 

Overall, I had a great time sampling the beers at Crazy Mountain. Though some were hit and miss it was great to see the creativity and variation they are putting out- I can't wait to head back and try the rest! 

-Jeff

Note: Click here to view larger menus!

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Jeff laid out our tasting odyssey so now I'm going to talk design and overall consumer experience (whee!). The outside is a pretty nondescript brick building, but I do like the taps they have along the wall as you walk up.

The most interesting room you walk by on the way to the entrance is what appeared to be one of their art/design offices. It showcased some label art that I really, really love. A quick peek in the window showed other layouts of their other labels as well. It was a fun glimpse into the process of one of the most artistically interesting beer companies around.

The vibe in the brewery (can we just call it a bar?) is very Colorado-relaxed. Think high ceilings, wood, dark colors, comfy chairs. However, I have to point out in the below picture how sucky their tasting board was. The big shotglass sized vessels wobbled in the board due to their shape and spilled everywhere when the board was laid down. I hate this design- it may help prevent broken glasses, but it's sure as anything is not helping with keeping everything from becoming a sticky mess.

Otherwise though, it's a fine place to stop and have a beer. Parking was easy and it was far away enough from downtown that traffic wasn't a problem. Beer nerds would do well to stop in when we did- middle of the day on a weekday. Of course that's not a reasonable target for most people but it did lead to a nice relaxed atmosphere, plenty of privacy, and no waiting. They also have a cooler with a nice selection of ready to purchase twelve packs and specialty brews (all at reasonable prices). Even their merch for the most part was well designed and cool (no, I didn't get a pic- oops!).

J and I really enjoyed our little excursion and we hope to visit another brewery soon.

Look out in the next couple of weeks for a full review of a Crazy Mountain brew we brought home from this trip, and here's hoping you and yours are enjoying the same lovely summer that we are here in Colorado.

-Haley