Last week, I made an overdue stop at Boxing Bear Firestone for a pint, and then ended up playing Iron Maiden and Foo Fighters pinball with members of the staff. The games from Road Runner Pinball are quite popular with the brewing team as well as customers, and this coming Friday will feature a full-on tournament organized by the brewery and Road Runner from 6 to 9 p.m. Registration for this free event starts at 5:15, and the final round will start at 8:15. They will also be showing the Women’s North American Pinball Championship, featuring New Mexico’s own Mandy Peel. Oh, yeah, and there is a beer listed below that Boxing Bear and Road Runner collaborated upon coming out on Friday, because of course there is, and that’s wonderful news, indeed.

New Draft:

Nexus tapped Class “M” Marzen. Sobremesa added Belgian Chronic, a new IPA. Thirsty Eye will bring back the wonderfully named Shut the Front Dort on Friday. Tractor will release Dreamsicle Ale on Friday. Turtle Mountain brought back TMBC IPL, a classic recipe that won the first IPA Challenge back in 2002, and have also tapped their special 25th Anniversary Ale, a barrel-aged Belgian red ale with Montmorency cherries that was inspired by the classic New Glarus Belgian Red. (UPDATES) Boxing Bear brought back Marzen. Cazuela’s tapped Hopacabra IPA.

Up in Santa Fe, Rowley Farmhouse Ales recently rolled out Grimace, a Belgian dubbel with plum.

New Package:

Boxing Bear will release Flip Around & Find Out, a hoppy wheat ale, in cans and on draft for the aforementioned pinball tournament on Friday. Ex Novo has a double release on Friday of Puff Puff Passion and Light Through the Trees, a pale ale collaboration with Indie Hops, in cans and on draft. Gravity Bound will bring back Maizey Train Mexican Lager in cans and on draft this Friday. Marble will release Cherry Limeade Lager in cans and on draft this Friday. (UPDATES) Canteen will bring back Irish Red in cans and on draft this Friday. Marble has also released Wheating Rainbow, an apricot-infused wheat ale, in cans and on draft. Second Street will release Southpaw Sour, a new apricot kettle sour, in cans and on draft this Friday.

Notable Events:

Friday — Gin & Jazz: Spring Cocktail Edition returns to Tractor Wells Park at 5 p.m.

Turtle Mountain is holding its 25th anniversary dinner this Friday at the North taproom starting at 5 p.m. We will have a lot more details on this in our Look Back/Look Ahead Series article on TMBC later this week.

Saturday — The Santa Fe Brewing taproom at Green Jeans will host Pedals & Petals from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. It is a celebration of bicycling and gardening, in case the name wasn’t a dead giveaway. There will be bike rides, special activities, and live music. Check out the SFBC Instagram for full details.

Kilt Check will host their first Comedy Night starting at 7 p.m. It’s $10 at the door, cash preferred.

Monday — Boxing Bear Corrales will host a free Funko Pop Swap Night at 6 p.m.

Tuesday — Trivia for a Cause: NBA takes place at Bosque Cottonwood at 6 p.m.

Quick News Bits:

The first medals of 2024 have been handed out at the Best of Craft Beer Awards annual competition, with three New Mexico breweries winning one apiece. Ex Novo and Flix both won medals in the Scottish Ales category, with the former earning silver for Sons of Scotland and the latter taking bronze for ABQ 10 Day. Steel Bender also snagged a bronze for Sparkfitter Amber in the English Ales category. Congrats to all three breweries!

Bathtub Row Brewing started their annual merchandise sale on Tuesday. All hats, beanies, hoodies, sweatshirts, socks, and most T-shirts (save for Hoppenheimer) are 30 percent off.

Truth or Consequences Brewing will be open for business even with the movie Eddington filming in the area over the next few weeks. Recent Academy Award winner Emma Stone leads the cast.

The New Mexico Brewers Guild officially announced their next event, Fete de la Funk. It will be held at Rowley Farmhouse Ales on April 13 from noon to 4 p.m. You can already buy tickets here and check out the lineup of breweries. We will have more on this event as we get closer to the date.

We promised everyone an update on the beer menu at the Craft Corner at Isotopes Park, and lo and behold, we remembered to snap a photo while grabbing a pint before New Mexico United kicked off its season with a 1-0 victory over Pittsburgh. Remember, these beers are always subject to change between now and the Isotopes’ home opener on March 29, or the next United game on April 6.

• Bosque Brewing: Riverwalker IPA, Mr. Melon Gose to Work
• Boxing Bear Brewing: Chocolate Milk Stout
• De La Vega (Pecan Grill and Brewery): Pecan Beer
• Ponderosa: Blood Orange Wit, Italian Pilsner
• Rio Bravo: Summer Honey, Freak Juice IPA
• Sandia Hard Cider: Black Cherry, Pineapple
• Santa Fe: 7K IPA, NMX Standard, Social Hour
• Sierra Blanca: Alien Amber, Hard Tea
• Steel Bender: Raspberry Dynamite, Compa Blue Corn Lager

Albuquerque metro area breweries

Boese Brothers Brewery  — Featured seasonal: Irish Red (5.2% ABV), described by the brewery as “a classic red ale with caramel and toasted malt flavors.”

Bombs Away Beer Company — Featured seasonal: SNAFU Stout (5.2% ABV, 30 IBU), a chewy oatmeal stout.

Bosque Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Bosque Festbier (5.8% ABV, 25 IBU), a German-style lager perfect for warmer March days, now available in cans and on draft.

Bow & Arrow Brewing — Featured seasonal: Desert Punch Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 (4.2%), a pair of sours in cans and on draft, Vol. 1 is fruited, Vol. 2 is dry hopped.

Boxing Bear Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Bulldog English IPA (6.1% ABV), go back to the roots of the style with this hoppy ale, available in cans and on draft.

Brew Lab 101 Beer & Cider Company — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated list of seasonals.

Canteen Brewhouse — Featured seasonal: Panama Joe Coffee Stout (8% ABV, 33 IBU), this longtime Crew favorite is back for a limited run, in cans and on draft.

Casa Vieja Brewery — Featured seasonal: Cry of the Blackbirds Imperial Stout (8.6% ABV, 55 IBU), a very metal behemoth of a beer.

Cazuela’s Seafood & Mexican Grill — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated list of seasonals.

Differential Brewing — Featured seasonal: Wet Hopped Red Ale (6% ABV, 21 IBU), a malt liquor with a reddish hue, utilizing wet hops to cut down on any bitterness.

Echoes Brewery — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery to see what’s currently on tap.

Ex Novo Brewing — Featured seasonal: A Star is Bjorn (8.7% ABV), a delightful Baltic porter, available in cans and on draft.

Flix Brewhouse  — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery to see what’s currently on tap.

Flock of Moons Brewing — Featured seasonal: Quickening Moon (7.6% ABV, 24 IBU), a lovely Scottish wee heavy, and luckily for you, there need not be only one.

Gravity Bound Brewing — Featured seasonal: Strawberry Shortcake (6.2% ABV), a flavorful sour made with … well, you can guess.

Harmon Lane Brewing at Southwest Grape and Grain — Featured seasonal: Alebenezer, a seasonal barleywine that you need to help drink up as winter fades away.

High and Dry Brewing — Featured seasonal: Casual Car Fire (5.3% ABV), a grapefruit sour with an epic name.

Hops Brewery — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated list of seasonals.

JUNO Brewery — Featured seasonal: Vienna Lager, a smooth amber lager with a touch of sweetness.

Kaktus Brewing — Featured seasonal: Winter Scotch Ale, described by the brewery as being”with notes of molasses, toffee and banana bread this beer is designed to keep you warm and happy through the long winter nights. Medium bodied with a gentle sweetness.”

Kilt Check Brewing — Featured seasonal: Way of the Samurai, a Japanese rice lager that will become a staple at the brewery.

La Cumbre Brewing — Featured seasonal: La Negra Reserve (13% ABV, 70 IBU), a beautiful beast of a barrel-aged imperial stout, now available in bottles and on tap.

La Reforma Brewery — Featured seasonal: Bomba de Malta (8.3% ABV), another big old malt bomb of a Scotch ale.

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.

Lava Rock Brewing — The brewery is relocating to Moriarty.

Lizard Tail Brewing — Featured seasonal: Biscochito Brown (6.4% ABV, 25 IBU), a beer whose name is pretty self-explanatory.

Marble Brewery — Featured seasonal: Dark Lager (5% ABV), a beer that is exactly as described, but packed with flavor and available in cans and on draft.

Nexus Brewery — Featured seasonal: Albuquerque Kirk (5.1% ABV, 14 IBU), described by the brewery thusly: “This witbier is lightly spiced with orange zest and a pinch of coriander. New Zealand’s Pacific Jade Hops add a second layer of citrus, herbs and light spice.  Also, please feel even better drinking this beer knowing that some of the proceeds will benefit the Multiple Sclerosis Society.”

Palmer Brewery and Cider House — Featured seasonal: Cockness Monster (14% ABV), a monstrous Scotch ale aged in whiskey barrels for two years.

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: Capri-derhosen (5.3% ABV, 23 IBU), a past gold medal winner at the World Beer Cup, this tasty German-style red lager is back on tap.

Red Door Brewing — Featured seasonal: Wagoner’s Porter (7.2% ABV, 36 IBU), a tasty American-style porter that recently joined the draft lineup.

Rio Bravo Brewing — Featured seasonal: Welcome to the Show (6.7% ABV, 34 IBU), a no-frills American stout that packs a tasty punch.

Rumor Brewing (formerly Ale Republic) — Featured seasonal: Desert Monk (6.8% ABV, 21 IBU), a Belgian-style dubbel.

Sidetrack Brewing — Featured seasonal: Shinobi (5.3% ABV, 15 IBU), a crispy Japanese-style rice lager that also boasts an awesome can design.

Sobremesa — Featured seasonal: Face the Day Breakfast Stout (7.65% ABV, 40 IBU), a coffee-infused stout to wake you up after the long drive to the Westside (we kid, we kid).

Starr Brothers Brewing — Featured seasonal: Foggy Monocle (6.1% ABV, 17 IBU), an excellent oatmeal stout that has twice won the Crew’s Stout Challenge.

Steel Bender Brewyard — Featured seasonal: Double Berry Blast (10.4% ABV), one of the anniversary beers, this “liquid pie filling” has a blend of marionberry and boysenberry packed into a powerful brew that is available in cans and on draft.

Sunday Service Motor Company — Featured seasonal: Double Black IPA (8.5% ABV), a perfect winter ale.

Thirsty Eye Brewing — Featured seasonal: RIGor Mortis, an imperial coffee stout collaboration with Rust is Gold Coffee.

The 377 Brewery — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated list of seasonals.

Tractor Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Turkey Drool (8.4% ABV), which is our favorite annual seasonal release from the brewery, and yes, we will declare that publicly.

Turtle Mountain Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Old Oku Barleywine (9.2% ABV, 25 IBU), part of the 25 Years of Beers throwback line, this is an old recipe re-imagined.

Unhinged Brewing — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated seasonal list.

Vision City Brewstillery — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated seasonal list.

Santa Fe breweries

Beer Creek Brewing — Featured seasonal: Diablo Bock (7.7% ABV, 25 IBU), a hybrid of a dunkel bock and a doppelbock, it’s devilishly delicious.

Chile Line Brewing — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated seasonal list.

Hidden Mountain Brewing — Featured seasonal: De Péche Mood, a peach wheat ale with a tremendous name.

Rowley Farmhouse Ales — Featured seasonal: Ned Ryerson (14% ABV, 44 IBU), a bold, beautiful, barrel-aged barleywine.

Santa Fe Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Adobe Igloo, the winter seasonal is back in cans and on draft.

Second Street Brewery — Featured seasonal: Superior Porter (6.3% ABV, 34 IBU), a flavorful black ale for the waning days of winter, now available in cans and on draft.

Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery — Featured seasonal: Molé Stout (9.2% ABV), the seasonal beer with a lovely kick of spice is back on draft and in bottles.

Other breweries you need to visit

Bathtub Row Brewing — Featured seasonal: Mild & Lazy (4% ABV), a lovely English mild ale, perfect for slow sipping on the patio.

Downshift Brewing — Featured seasonal: Gratitude Pale Ale (5.4% ABV, 40 IBU), brewed to support local charities, right now $1 from every pint sold goes to Food4Kids.

Little Toad Creek Brewing and Distilling — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated list of seasonals.

Red River Brewing and Distilling — Featured seasonal: Cacao Fuego Chocolate Green Chile Stout. (6.5% ABV, 30 IBU), described by the brewery thusly, “Our oatmeal stout with a kick! Made with Hatch green chile and organic cacao nibs, it has an earthy start and a chocolate finish, It’s sure to warm you up on these cool evenings.”

Sierra Blanca Brewing  — Featured seasonal: Whiskey Stout is back for another seasonal run in bottles and on draft.

Truth or Consequences Brewing — Featured seasonal: Soakinator Doppelbock (9.4% ABV), described by the brewery as “a rich, malty, strong German lager. Sweet malt flavors dominate, including toast, dark fruit, & luscious caramel/honey. Stored cold (“lagered”) for more than a month, this coppery-brown elixir was known by the monks of the 17th century as “liquid bread”, as its nourishing qualities helped them through the long cold days of fasting during Lent.”

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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