On a recent visit with my fellow Dames d’Escoffier, I enjoyed a guided tour and tasting of Epic Brewing in Denver. This Utah brewery opened a Denver location in 2013 where it brews a lot of beer and has a large taproom. In Utah, it was the first brewery since prohibition to brew exclusively high alcohol beer. The Utah brewery became so popular, it opened a larger brewey and taproom in Denver to supply it’s national distribution. Lucky us… we have some pretty “epic” brewers in town.
OK, bad pun. But, the space is beautiful and the patio’s not too shabby either!
Upon entering, the coolers full of beer greet you. Epic currently brews 39+ beers, so chances are at least one of these beers will please you.
I arrived a little early for our tour, so I enjoyed a Brainless on Peaches Belgian-style Ale while chatting with the woman next to me. Champagne yeast and barrel aging in oak are the key to this 11.5% ABV delightfully drinkable beer.
The brewery tour was brief, but it’s always nice to get a behind the scenes peak at popular breweries, especially when they barrel-age beer. There’s something quite beautiful to be seen in stacks of old bourbon or wine barrels, let alone the fantastic flavors they impart from aging.
Our group then enjoyed a guided tasting of six beers: Mid Mountain Mild, Glutenator, Oktoberfest, Utah Sage Saison, Pumpkin Porter, and Brainless on Cherries.
Pictured above is the Imperial Pumpkin Porter. It’s mid-September, so get one NOW before all of the pumpkin ales are sold out!