The warm glow of a successful WinterBrew now fading behind us, we enter into another little quiet stretch before Super Bowl Sunday and, for the Crew, the return of our Stout Challenge to the big day. Amid the windy days and chilly temperatures outside, those wonderful dark beers truly keep us going at this time of year. More are out this week, more are coming in the weeks ahead, and we are all as content as we can be, at least in terms of beer.
New Draft:
Bombs Away tapped the season-appropriate Winter Amber Ale. Bosque’s new dark lager, Dark Times in the Shire, which we enjoyed at WinterBrew, is now on tap at most locations. Brew Lab 101 tapped Lockdown Vanilla Porter. Canteen brought back Zdeno Dark Czech Lager. Casa Vieja will tap Winter Sun Dark Hefeweizen on Friday. High and Dry turned over quite a few taps with the additions of Lamb with Fangs (Hoppy Wheat), Rivalry of Worlds (Dark Lager), Part Time All the Time (Pilsner), Indistinct Chatter (Hazy IPA), The Houses (Pale Ale), and the return of How Do You Spell Kolsch. La Cumbre tapped some tasty Dortmunder. Late Shift added Double Shift Pilsner. Marble brought back Thunder from Dortmunder. Sunday Service Motor Company will introduce its first lighter (in color) beer, Easy Street Cream Ale, this Thursday. Tractor brings back one of its classics, Double Plow Oatmeal Stout, on Friday. (UPDATES) La Cumbre added Wee Bairn Scottish Ale on the nitro tap. Marble tapped Hersbrucker Pilsner. Quarter Celtic added A Cure for my Ale-ment (Pale Ale). Sidetrack revealed their special beers for Saturday’s anniversary party — Downtown Tripel, Accelerator Dopplebock, Buzz Bomb, Duke of Earl.
Up in Santa Fe, Beer Creek will tap Special Kind of Special Bitter, another WinterBrew standout, this Friday. Down south, Truth or Consequences Brewing will tap TorC Wrench Porter on Thursday. (UPDATE) Second Street tapped Tipsy Parrot, a pina colada inspired cream ale.
New Package:
Steel Bender will debut Pineapple Dynamite in cans and on draft this Thursday. (UPDATES) Boxing Bear will release Strata Mountain IPA on Friday. La Cumbre brings back Cafe Con Leche in cans and on draft this Friday.
Notable Events:
Friday — Both Canteen locations will host Beers for Briefs all day, where if you bring in an unopened five-pack (or more) of underwear to donate to Locker 505, you can trade it for a pint of beer.
Gin & Jazz returns to Tractor Wells Park at 5 p.m.
Saturday — JUNO will host a customer appreciation day from 3 to 7 p.m., featuring VIP club memberships for half price, all beer and cider pints will be just $3, there will be DJs inside, and classic cars being displayed outside. After all that, a local rock showcase ($5 cover) will start at 8 p.m.
Sidetrack will celebrate its seventh anniversary all day. Tuerta Sandwich Shop will be set up on the patio, and there will be some classic beers on tap, plus at least one new brew. Stay tuned to their social media for more details as we get closer to the event.
Quick News Bits:
Tumbleroot’s new taproom, The Pottery Pub, is now open in Santa Fe at 135 W. Palace Ave. Hours of operation are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday, and 11 to 9 Thursday through Saturday.
Bathtub Row is in the midst of a major renovation in the back, with the concrete floor being replaced so they can install their new 7-barrel brewhouse and other equipment. Their lineup will soon be mostly guest taps, so be patient, and soon the beer will flow again, better than ever!
Albuquerque metro area breweries
Boese Brothers Brewery — Featured seasonal: Raspberry Sour (7% ABV), is pretty self explanatory, but it’s also the only seasonal at all four BBB locations, including Desert Dogs.
Bombs Away Beer Company — Featured seasonal: Anniversary IPA (6% ABV, 90 IBU), a red IPA that features the 2022 Yakima Chief Hops Veterans Blend. This year is comprised of HBC 586, Ekuanot, Idaho 7, Chinook, and Triumph hops. Well balanced hop flavor and aroma, tropical, citrus, and woody notes. YCH donates a portion of hop sales to the HunterSeven Foundation, and Bombs Away donates $1 from every beer sold to the EOD Warrior Foundation.
Bosque Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Jean Cuffs (8% ABV, 60 IBU), a double red with a hoppy kick. It is starting to run low, so get it while you still can!
Bow & Arrow Brewing — Featured seasonal: Dark Harvest Dunkelweizen (6.9% ABV, 14 IBU), available on draft for a limited time, this German-style wheat beer has a new recipe since the last time it was brewed as a collab.
Boxing Bear Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Scotch Rocket (8.1% ABV), a delicious wee heavy to keep you warm this winter, available on draft and in cans.
Brew Lab 101 Beer & Cider Company — Featured seasonal: BBA Singularity Stout (10% ABV, 45 IBU), a beast of a barrel-aged stout, now available in 16-ounce cans, 22-ounce bottles, and on draft.
Canteen Brewhouse — Featured seasonal: Pond Hopper (6.3% ABV, 24 IBU), an English ale made in collaboration with Malteurop Malting.
Casa Vieja Brewery — Featured seasonal: Tripel Threat, a hefty Belgian-style brew.
Cazuela’s Seafood & Mexican Grill
Differential Brewing — Featured seasonal: Red Corn Rye Lager (4.8% ABV, 16 IBU) is a summer lager with a nice rye bite to it.
Downshift Brewing at Outpost 1706 — Featured seasonal: Gratitude Session IPA (4.2% ABV, 40 IBU), brewed to support local charities, right now $1 from every pint sold goes to the Shelter Fund of the Community Foundation of Lincoln County.
Echoes Brewery — Featured seasonal: Echoes IPA has now been joined by the three other core beers, a coconut stout, pilsner, and American pale ale.
Enchanted Circle Brewing Taproom
Ex Novo Brewing — Featured seasonal: Between the Spreadsheets (5.2%), a hoppy lager, it’s still available on tap and in cans, so get over there and help clear room for the next seasonal!
Flix Brewhouse — Featured seasonal: Contact the theater to find out what’s available.
Gravity Bound Brewing — Featured seasonal: Deep Coat (6.9% ABV), a decadent Baltic porter sure to keep you warm on the patio.
Harmon Lane Brewing at Southwest Grape and Grain — Featured seasonal: Pumpkin Porter (6.9% ABV, 21 IBU), a darker take on a traditional pumpkin ale.
High and Dry Brewing — Featured seasonal: Rusalka’s Kiss (3.6% ABV, 20 IBU), a Polish-style grodziskie (smoked wheat beer) made in collaboration with the Worthogs homebrew club.
Hops Brewery — Featured seasonal: Killer Bee Pale Ale (6.3% ABV, 23 IBU), this beer is made with actual honey from killer bee hives in Southern New Mexico.
JUNO Brewery — Featured seasonal: Vienna Lager, a smooth amber lager with a touch of sweetness.
Kaktus Brewing — Featured seasonal: Helles Lager, which is pretty much the closest beer they have to being a year-round offering, because the regulars in Bernalillo demand it all the time.
La Cumbre Brewing — Featured seasonal: Gilded Age Porter (5.7% ABV, 35 IBU), a most metal porter, available on draft only now, and we tested that metal status by consuming only this beer during the Wayfarer/Wake/Heretical Sect show at Sister. Hails!
La Reforma Brewery — Featured seasonal: Copper Canyon Pale Ale (6.9% ABV), which benefits two children’s orphanages in the Copper Canyon region of Northern Mexico. It is also available at Santa Fe and Tractor.
Late Shift Lager House at The Craftroom — Featured seasonal: Hop Villain (6.8% ABV, 102 IBU), a beastly IPA that is a change of sorts from the lager-dominated lineup.
Lizard Tail Brewing — Featured seasonal: Long Nosed Tripel (9.2% ABV, 30 IBU), the biggest beer on the menu.
Marble Brewery — Featured seasonal: Turkish Coffee Stout (7.5% ABV), a spiced coffee stout that will keep you warm inside. Click on the different taprooms in the menu for the updated beer lists for each location.
Nexus Brewery — Featured seasonal: New Mexico Snow Storm IPA (7.2% ABV, 36 IBU), the runner-up at the 2021 New Mexico IPA Challenge had another strong finish at the 2022 NMIPAC, coming in fourth.
Palmer Brewery and Cider House — Featured seasonal: Cockness Monster (13% ABV), a monstrous Scotch ale aged in whiskey barrels.
Ponderosa Brewing Co. — Featured seasonal: Italian Pilsner, the winner of back-to-back gold medals at the 2021 Great American Beer Festival and the 2022 World Beer Cup, is available on draft and in cans.
Quarter Celtic Brewpub— Featured seasonal: Irish Handcuffs, the annual imperial stout release, is back for a limited time.
Red Door Brewing — Featured seasonal: Hibiscus White IPA is still available on draft for a limited time.
ReSource Brewing — Featured seasonal: Smart is Sexy Mango DIPA (7.6% ABV, 92 IBU), it’s hoppy, but sweet, but hoppy, but sweet … you get the idea.
Rio Bravo Brewing — Featured seasonal: Black Sparrow (13% ABV, 60 IBU), a rum-barrel-aged imperial stout.
Rumor Brewing (formerly Ale Republic) — Featured seasonal: Love (4.4% ABV, 12 IBU), a smoothie sour with sweet and tart cherries.
Sidetrack Brewing — Featured seasonal: Side-Eye Peppermint Porter, a collaboration with Thirsty Eye.
Sobremesa — Featured seasonal: Dos Años, a barrel-aged Baltic porter brewed for the brewpub’s recent second anniversary.
Starr Brothers Brewing — Featured seasonal: War Face (9.6% ABV, 100 IBU), a behemoth DIPA.
Steel Bender Brewyard — Featured seasonal: SereniTEA Now! (6.5% ABV, 10 IBU), the annual collaboration with Canteen and High and Dry benefits Agora Crisis Center.
Sunday Service Motor Company — Featured seasonal: No Brainer, a very tasty coffee stout, is the first beer made at the new brewery to reach the taps.
Thirsty Eye Brewing — Featured seasonal: Biscochito Liquido, a winter brown ale brewed with cinnamon and anise, it hits all the right spots for the season.
Tractor Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: El Dorado Gold (5.8% ABV, 50 IBU), a slightly hop-forward ale featuring El Dorado and Wai’iti hops, it offers up an alternative to the big beers of winter.
Turquoise Trail Brewing — The brewery is closed at its original location, and is aiming to reopen out in Moriarty. We will have more on this move when they’re closer to opening.
Turtle Mountain Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Mandy Pale Ale (5.1% ABV, 38 IBU), a pale built around the tasty Mandarina Bavaria hop variety.
Unhinged Brewing — Welcome to the listings to this new brewery at 98th Street and Central! Go check out the opening lineup, which includes Non-Linear IPA, Jest-a-Lager, Foolin’ Around Brown, ScRew lOose StOuT, and Off the Rails (Red IPA). There may be some small-batch specialty beers available, too.
Vision City Brewstillery — Featured seasonal: Double Vision (7.1% ABV), a strong Belgian wheat, is one of several beers on tap at this new brewery/distillery, but due to its size of operation, the styles tend to change frequently.
Santa Fe breweries
Beer Creek Brewing — Featured seasonal: Black Wedding, a black IPA, if you could not guess, is available for the winter months.
Chile Line Brewing — Featured seasonal: A Huevo (5% ABV, 20 IBU) is a Yerba Matte-inspired beer.
Hidden Mountain Brewing (formerly Blue Corn Brewery) — Featured seasonal: Naughty or Spiced, a winter warmer with mulling spices, nicely balanced for the holidays.
Rowley Farmhouse Ales — Featured seasonal: Sepia Effect (5.3% ABV, 30 IBU), a tasty Vienna lager.
Santa Fe Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Adobe Igloo is back in cans and on draft for the winter months.
Second Street Brewery — Featured seasonal: Boondock Skye (4.8% ABV, 35 IBU) is a crushable session IPA that everyone needs to drink up to make room for new seasonals. It’s down to the last of it at the Railyard only.
Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery — Featured seasonal: White Rabbit Wit, the first in a series of new witbiers.
Other breweries you need to visit
Bathtub Row Brewing — Featured seasonal: See the news above about BRBC. It’s all guest taps for a while.
Little Toad Creek Brewing and Distilling
Red River Brewing and Distilling — Featured seasonal: Steam Coffee Porter (6.5% ABV, 30 IBU), from the brewery: “Smooth and malty with a solid creamy head. Roasted grains are well balanced with base malts and just enough hops to offset any residual sweetness. Add in some coffee from Steam and it’s winter in a glass.”
Sierra Blanca Brewing — Featured seasonal: Peanut Butter Porter, because let’s face it, there aren’t many NM breweries using peanut butter in their beers, but it’s still a very popular adjunct.
Truth or Consequences Brewing — Featured seasonal: Mastodon (12.6% ABV), a Belgian-style quad with flavors of banana, dried fruit, and caramel, then aged in whiskey barrels to add hints of toasted oak and rich honey, available in bottles and on draft.
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That’s all for this week! If you have any questions or comments, leave them below or contact us on our Facebook page.
Keep supporting local!
— Stoutmeister
DARK SIDE BREW CREW 