In the first two months of 2016, five breweries opened across the Albuquerque metro area. It was perhaps the pinnacle moment of the growth of the local scene. Not all five made it to their 10th anniversary, but four did and two of those breweries are celebrating this weekend. Sidetrack will celebrate Saturday from noon to midnight. There will be a special beer release co-created with original co-owner/brewer Dan Herr, a photo booth from 3 to 6 p.m., anniversary merchandise, and food from Akemi’s Flavors of Hawaii. As for Starr Brothers, they were less specific on the times, but we will guess their usual opening hours Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. They will have live music from Gilbert Uribe and Melissa, beer and food specials, and the return of one of their original beers (see below). Both breweries will be great places to get out of the snow and cold that’s (allegedly) coming to New Mexico this weekend. Ten years is a major accomplishment, so we tip our caps and raise our steins to both Sidetrack and Starr Brothers. Happy anniversary!

New Draft:

Casa Vieja tapped their first Apple Cider. Sidetrack added Sol Brumoso, a hazy IPA. Starr Brothers will bring back Thunder Ale for the aforementioned anniversary party. Thirsty Eye brought back Huning Highlander Scotch Ale.

Up in Los Alamos, Bathtub Row brought back Prometheus Pilsner and Caldera Kolsch.

New Package:

Ex Novo brought back Ruminator Doppelbock and added No Quitters (Hazy DIPA) and Pamplemousse Stonefish (Grapefruit IPA), all in cans and on draft. La Cumbre will bring back Siberian Silk Baltic Porter this Friday in cans and on draft.

Notable Events:

Today (Wednesday) — Smarty Pants Trivia Night is at Tractor Wells Park at 7 p.m., with the top two teams winning an escape room adventure for four. Also, it’s the last chance to enjoy some Sol Cider, with $2 from every pint benefiting Saranam.

Friday — Gin & Jazz is back at Tractor Wells Park at 5 p.m.

The New Mexico Brewers Guild’s WinterBrew is back at the Santa Fe Farmers Market from 5 to 9 p.m.

Saturday — Canteen hosts Blind Date with a Book from 1 to 3 p.m., where $12 gets you a mystery book and a pint. They are still taking donated books through today (Wednesday). You get $1 off a pint for each book donated, up to three books.

Tuesday — Canteen is starting up the Pages & Pints Book Club at 6 p.m.

Quick News Bits:

This Saturday and Sunday, Ex Novo is holding Lagers for the Laundry Project at both locations.

Albuquerque metro area breweries

Boese Brothers Brewery — Featured seasonal: Drunk Astronaut (8% ABV), the annual seasonal DIPA is loaded with Galaxy hops. Get it?

Bombs Away Beer Company — Featured seasonal: Stockpile Stout (5.2% ABV, 52 IBU), an American stout that tastes bigger than its ABV.

Bow & Arrow Brewing — Featured seasonal: Buffalo Plaid (7.5% ABV), the wonderful Baltic porter is back in cans and on draft.

Boxing Bear Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Old Pugilist Barleywine (10% ABV), a delectable American-style barleywine now available in cans and on draft.

Brekki Brekki/Cantina Craftworks — Featured seasonal: As a reader pointed out to us, the beers produced at Brekki Brekki are sold at all the restaurants under the Cantina Hospitality Group umbrella, so we should note that here. Contact the various locations to see what they have on tap.

Brew Lab 101 Beer & Cider Company — Featured seasonal: Singularity (10% ABV, 55 IBU), a barrel-aged stout perfect for whenever winter comes back.

Calavida Cantina — Featured seasonal: Dia de los Dunkel (5% ABV), a dark lager that can raise the dead, or so some folks claim.

Canteen Brewhouse — Featured seasonal: Industrial District Porter (6.6% ABV, 33 IBU), a devilish robust beast of a porter.

Casa Vieja Brewery — Featured seasonal: Coyote Brown Ale (6.9% ABV), one of two seasonals currently on tap.

Differential Brewing — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated list of seasonals.

Dripline Brewery — Featured seasonal: Super Bloom APA (5.4% ABV), a sweet, floral pale ale that goes quite well with the new lineup of tasty smash burgers from the kitchen.

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

Ex Novo Brewing — Featured seasonal: Nevermore (12.1% ABV), a beautiful barrel-aged black barleywine, available for a limited time in bottles and on draft at both locations.

Flix Brewhouse  — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated list of seasonals.

Flock of Moons Brewing — Featured seasonal: Velé (8.6% ABV, 35 IBU), a special barrel-aged version of the Laume Baltic Porter available in bottles and on draft for a limited time.

Gravity Bound Brewing — Featured seasonal: Night Hike, a Czech-style dark lager.

High and Dry Brewing — Featured seasonal: Ace of Haze (6.2% ABV), a hazy IPA that’s become a favorite of the locals.

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

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

Kaktus Brewing — Featured seasonal: Through the Veil Pale Ale is one of several specialty beers available, though the others don’t rhyme as nicely.

La Cumbre Brewing — Featured seasonal: Oktoberfest (5.9% ABV), one of our favorite annual releases from the brewery, still available in cans and on draft.

La Reforma Brewery — Featured seasonal: West Ghost IPA, the most appropriate spooky season beer even if spooky season is over (but is it ever over?).

Lasso Brewing — Featured seasonal: Schwarzbier, the first beer brewed beyond the original four at Gravity Bound’s sister brewery/lager house.

Marble Brewery — Featured seasonal: White Out (9% ABV), the big brother to Double White is back for a limited time in cans and on draft.

Nexus Brewery — Featured seasonal: Noche Negra (5.2% ABV, 25 IBU), a Mexican dark lager described by the brewery as “smooth and crisp with subtle toasted malt and caramel. Easy-drinking and well-balanced, it’s the kind of dark beer that shows up flavorful, behaves itself, and never over-complicates.”

Painted Lady Bed and Brew — Featured seasonal: A Naked American Man Stole My Balloons is not just a line from An American Werewolf in London, it’s also the name of their stout.

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: Mocha Hipster Bomb, one of the finest beers of the past year according to one of our Crew members.

Rio Bravo Brewing — Featured seasonal: Psychedelic Decade (5.5% ABV), a mushroom brown ale brewed for their 10-year anniversary.

Rumor Brewing — Featured seasonal: La Madera Mild (5.5% ABV, 22 IBU), a chewy little biscuit of an English-style brew that is perfect before or after a day on the hiking trails around Cedar Crest.

Sidetrack Brewing — Featured seasonal: Midnight Zephyr (5.4% ABV, 23 IBU), a tasty schwarzbier that is even available in proper mugs.

Starr Brothers Brewing — Featured seasonal: Brown Chicken Brown Cow (6.8% ABV, 25 IBU), one of their original rotating specialties, this double brown ale is a chewy delight on colder nights.

Steel Bender Brewyard — Featured seasonal: Brickie American Stout (8.5% ABV, 80 IBU), back for the season and better than ever in cans and on draft. There are also cans only of the barrel-aged variant.

Sunday Service Motor Company — Featured seasonal: Gingerbread Stout (8,1% ABV), the latest dessert you can drink.

The Tatted Bee Brewhouse — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated list of seasonals.

Thirsty Eye Brewing — Featured seasonal: Biscochito Liquido (5% ABV, 13 IBU), the seasonal favorite is back on tap and also available on nitro.

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

Tractor Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Turkey Drool (7.9% ABV, 20 IBU), the Crew’s seasonal favorite is still on tap.

Turtle Mountain Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Thunderbolt (9.3% ABV, 39 IBU), a powerful Belgian-style tripel.

Unhinged Brewing — Featured seasonal: A Ton of Fruit, a prickly pear wheat ale.

Santa Fe breweries

Beer Creek Brewing — Featured seasonal: Temporada (6.1% ABV), a Belgian saison brewed with 100-percent New Mexico-grown pilsner malt and Neomexicanus hops. Described by the brewery as “crisp and dry with hints of bubblegum. Not a Brett beer.”

Nuckolls Brewing — Featured seasonal: Coal Car (5.5% ABV), an oatmeal stout that’s just one of 11 house beers now available.

Rowley Farmhouse Ales — Featured seasonal: Second-String Loser (9.6% ABV, 26 IBU), a Belgian golden strong ale.

Santa Fe Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Oktoberfest (6% ABV), which continues to linger on tap and in cans until we drink it all up. Well, not just us, the rest of you have to help, too.

Second Street Brewery — Featured seasonal: Superior Porter, a robust dark brew perfect for the start of winter, now available in cans and on draft.

Travel Bug — Featured seasonal: This bookstore/cafe only has two of its own beers on tap, Sweetheart Ale (7% ABV) and English Bitter II (6% ABV), but if any seasonals ever pop up, we will list them here.

Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for an updated list of seasonals.

Other breweries you need to visit

Bathtub Row Brewing — Featured seasonal: Holiday Cheer Barleywine (9.5% ABV), it’s colder up in Los Alamos, so they gotta brew ’em big this time of year.

Downshift Brewing — Featured seasonal: Gratitude Pale Ale (5.4% ABV, 40 IBU), brewed to support local charities, and right now $1 from every pint sold goes to helping in the recovery efforts from the South Fork and Salt fires.

Jemez Mountain Brewhouse — Featured seasonal: Red Rocks IPA, one of those beers perfectly named for the area in which the brewery inhabits.

Red River Brewing and Distilling — Featured seasonal: Russian Imperial Stout (10% ABV, 30 IBU), which proves you just have to head north into the colder regions of New Mexico to find the big stouts.

Sierra Blanca Brewing  — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for what seasonals are currently on tap.

Truth or Consequences Brewing — Featured seasonal: Honey Winter Ale (9.5% ABV), described by the brewery as “a strong, sweet, deep amber beer, with rich flavors of caramel, toast, & dates. Fresh Rio Grande Valley honey adds a delicate floral sweetness to the beer’s malty foundation.”

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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