Denver Beerfest 2011

By Grant Davis  |  September 22, 2011

This Friday, the city of Denver is awash in suds thanks to the annual Denver Beer Fest, a weeklong celebration of Colorado’s craft breweries. Check the website for the lowdown on free brewery tours and beer tasting specials at brewpubs all over town and within the Colorado’s Beer Triangle, which connects Denver, Boulder and Fort Collins and creates what’s known worldwide as the “Napa Valley of Beer.”

The festivities kick off with Denver Oktoberfest on Larimer Street between 20th and 22nd, named THE best Oktoberfest in the country and likely to draw 100,000′s of people for its beer tastings and entertainment (dachsund racing anyone?).

Even local beer baron Coors gets into the act, inviting people to its massive facility in Golden to sample a glass of its exclusive AG Golden beer, brewed only for the Beer Fest and only available to tour groups.

And with a former craft brewer residing in the Governor’s mansion, the Capitol Hill Mansion Inn figures everyone should start the day off with beer. They’ll be serving Wynkoop Brewing’s Rail Yard Ale (Current Governor Hickenlooper founded Wynkoop) with breakfast all week.

On Saturday, the 50-plus medal winning beers from the state of Colorado will take over the taps at Wynkoop Brewing and offer patrons a chance to sample the best brews in the state all in one spot and all for one low price.