In Case You Missed It

Hey there. Yeah, we know, it’s been a while. It’s all very awkward to start writing again when we’ve been clearly negligent for several weeks…. or months. We won’t bore you with the same old stale excuses, but suffice it to say that major work projects and other happenings have just occupied all our time. In fact, we were gone so long that even our own beer blog didn’t recognize us… and we spent several days just trying to get back inside the (virtual) doors of Bottle Makes Three. Yikes. Let’s not let this happen again.

The News in Brews

While we play catch up we thought we’d do a quick round-up of beer news. Some of these stores aren’t what you’d really call the newest news, but we think these stories are interesting enough to share in case you missed them. So let’s not spend any more time speaking of how much we’ve been slacking lately, and get right back to it.

Here’s our six-pack of beer news that you may (or may not have) already know about:

Colorado Breweries Win Big at World Beer Cup

The World Beer Cup awards were presented on May 6 in Philadelphia, and Colorado brewers won 37 awards.

Colorado gold medal winners included:

• Treachery by 12 Degree Brewing won gold in the Belgian-Style Pale Strong Ale category
• Pump Action Imperial Pumpkin Ale by 4 Noses Brewing won gold in the Pumpkin Beer category
• Independence Pass Ale by Aspen Brewing Co won gold in the English-Style India Pale Ale category
• First Peach Ale by Blue Moon Brewing won gold in the Fruit Wheat Beer category
• Yellow Fever by Comrade Brewing won gold in the Chili Beer category
• Summit Sunrise by Denver Beer Co Canworks won gold in the Double Red Ale category
• Amber by Dry Dock Brewing won gold in the Ordinary or Special Bitter category
• Fade to Black Volume 1 by Left Hand Brewing won gold in the Export Stout category
• 90 Shilling by Odell Brewing won gold in the German-Style Altbier category
• Clan Warrior Scotch Ale by Odyssey Beerwerks won gold in the Scotch Ale category
• Steam Engine Lager by Steamworks Brewing won gold in the American-Style Amber Lager category

Click here to view the full list of winners, including 26 more Colorado silver and bronze medal winners.

The World Beer Cup is a global competition held once every two years during the Craft Brewers Conference. It’s goal is to create greater consumer awareness about different beer styles and flavor profiles while promoting international brewing excellence. Often referred to as the “Olympics of Beer Competitions,” the World Beer Cup is considered the most prestigious beer competition in the world. Awards are presented in 96 different categories. This year’s competition saw 6,596 beers judged, representing 1907 breweries from 55 different countries. So yeah, it’s a pretty big deal! Congratulations to all of our local winners!

Craft Brewers Create the Biggest Small Beer

Small and independent craft brewers across the country have come together to create a very special beer in honor of American Craft Beer Week, May 16-22. To #MakeSmallBeerBig during the celebratory week, the Biggest Small Beer Ever Made was produced by participating brewers in all 50 states, each using the same recipe and ingredients, but with the understanding that even with the same recipe no beer could be exactly the same. American Craft Beer Week revelers are invited to sample the Biggest Small Beer Ever Made at one of more than 100 participating breweries nationwide.

While we consider every day to be an American Craft Beer Day, we relish this opportunity to celebrate the success of our many craft beer brewers during ACBW! If you want more info on ACBW and the events that are happening near you, click here to visit the American Craft Beer Week website.

2016 Denver Comic Con Beer Announced

Each year Denver Comic Con and Breckenridge Brewery join forces to create a special, limited-edition beer, named by fans. This year’s beer, Snape-ricot, pays homage to the late, great Alan Rickman, and the character he played in the Harry Potter films. Snape-ricot is an American pale lager brewed with fresh apricot puree, described as a complex potion that reveals unexpected layers as it progresses. Yum!

A Snape-ricot release party will take place at 7pm this Friday, May 20th at Stoney’s Bar and Grill (1111 Lincoln St, Denver). You can enjoy the beer, meet the artist Frankie Serna who created the Snape-ricot artwork, and enjoy live music from the Gin Doctor’s and RED 5. The first 200 people to order the beer will get a free limited edition pint glass. After the party, Snape-ricot will be available at select bars during Denver Comic Con, held June 17-19 at the Denver Convention Center.

Evans Brewing Announces Distribution To Colorado

Evans Brewing Company of Orange County, California has announced an agreement with New Age Beverage, LLC for distribution of their core year-round packaged beers to retailers in Colorado. “Colorado is home to one of the best craft beer markets in the country,” stated Hans Schmidt, Beer Manager of New Age Beverage states in their press release. “We are excited to add the award-winning Evans Brewing Company products to our portfolio and offer these unique beers to the sophisticated consumers of Colorado.”

Colorado is the seventh state where Evans Brewing Company’s ales and lagers are available, joining California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico. Evans Brewing Company’s year-round offerings are Pollen Nation Honey Blonde Ale, The KrHOPen India Pale Ale, Oaklore Brown Ale, and ChocōLatté Chocolate Porter. For more information about Evans Brewing Company and to check out a lineup of their beers, visit the Evans Brewing Company website at evansbrewco.com.

The Big Beer Festival is leaving Vail for Breckenridge

The popular annual Big Beers, Belgians and Barleywines Festival is leaving Vail after 16 years, and moving to Breckenridge. The Beaver Run Resorts and Conference Center will host next year’s event, January 5-7, 2017. The Big Beers Festival is a favorite festival for beer fans and homebrewers. They attract great Colorado and out-of-state breweries each year by combining a world-class beer festival with great beer seminars, a homebrew competition, and the opportunity for attendees to sneak off and do some skiing when they aren’t imbibing. So why leave Vail? The sale and pending remodel at Vail Cascade Resort will increase the rates, forcing the festival to find a new home.

To learn more about the Big Beers Festival and their new home in Breckenridge, visit bigbeerbeersfestival.com

Sierra Nevada’s 2016 Beer Camp Across America Beers Have Arrived

It’s finally here! Sierra Nevada Brewing Co released their Beer Camp Across America 2016 collaboration beers select retail locations last week. The highly anticipated beers were developed by 31 collaborating breweries from across the country. Each unique beer was brewed by a regional team of five breweries and Sierra Nevada to represent the styles of the breweries and ingredients from their region. This special collaboration release is being sold as a 12-pack, containing two beers of each limited-edition style, with various beer styles also be available on draught nationwide. To read more about the six incredible beers or to learn more about this year’s 6-city Beer Camp Across America tour, visit beercamp.sierranevada.com.

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There, now you’re all caught up and you have plenty to discuss around the water cooler or your favorite watering hole. We will try to post more often, though we’re about 2 months away from being able to pinky swear on it. If you really want to stay current on all we know about the news in brews, follow Bottle Makes Three on Facebook or Twitter. Then you’ll always be the bro (or bro-ette) in the know!

Cheers!