Boxing Bear settles into the new normal and aims to hit their stride in 2024

Boxing Bear is a growing brewery again. Oh, there are no new taprooms planned (yet), or anything like that. Things are expanding quickly on one side of the business, though, and that will be driving the brewery going forward. I recently caught up with the trio of Justin Hamilton, director of brewing operations/co-owner, Jay Knigge,…

The Week Ahead in Beer: Holiday markets conquer the brewing scene

They have arrived. They are infinite. They are all. Yes, we are talking about holiday markets, with at least five announced for this Saturday alone, and likely even more to come after that. Tis the season, and all that, but let’s face it, holiday shopping is hard, and being able to walk among the many…

Kaktus Brewing celebrates a decade in business with continued growth

The times are good on South Hill Road up in Bernalillo. Kaktus Brewing is preparing to celebrate its 10th anniversary after seeing some surprising growth this year. I caught up with owner Dana Koller to learn a little more about how things have been going, with the potential for even more growth in 2024 and…

Blackest Friday ’23 is upon us

It’s not always easy to tell when stout season has come to Santa Fe. Some might say it begins with the first seasonal closing of a taproom patio. Some might say it arrives with the first frost-covered windshield. Some, with the first obligatory swarm of “It’s Snowing!” posts on Facebook. And for the Dark Side…

The mostly complete guide to Thanksgiving hours at NM breweries

As we do for most significant holidays, as a public service we attempt to compile all the brewery hours of operation. It should come as little surprise that most places will be closed this Thursday, as the Thanksgiving holiday takes precedence. The good news is that no brewery has informed us that they are closing…

Lava Rock Brewing closing location on Unser and moving to Moriarty

It was a quiet end to a Saturday night after a metal show at Moonlight Lounge, with just the surprised voices on TV of the football announcers calling the Lobos’ upset of Fresno State, when a friend in the industry sent us a screenshot of interest. Brain Gang Trivia, which hosts events at breweries all…

Tractor Brewing aims to carry good momentum from 2023 into 2024

Well, here we are again, time for our annual Look Back/Look Ahead Series to commence as we talk to the breweries about how 2023 went and what they hope 2024 will bring. To kick things off for the second year in a row, I sat down with Tractor Brewing events coordinator Jeremy Kinter and head…

The Week Ahead in Beer: Getting festive a little earlier this year

The first holiday markets of the year are upon us. Yeah, we have reached that point already. Marble will host the first of two markets this Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m. at the downtown brewery. Vendors will include Moonberry Surprise, Tumblers by Jen, Darlene Ortiz Jewelry, Green Cap Therapeutics, Fairy Julz, Leon Lopez, and…