The 20th annual Lavender in the Village Festival will run from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. this Saturday at Balloon Fiesta Park, and the (brewing) price of the Village of Los Ranchos de Albuquerque will be there in full support. Steel Bender will have a booth on site (No. 111) and will be offering up quite the unique treat. They went and took fragrant lavender grown by Silver Leaf Farms and infused it into their DebaucherMead. Steel Bender also teamed up once again with Sage Valley Pottery to create special mead tumblers. You can get pours of mead, bottles, and tumblers ($34) at the festival. As a bonus, there will be special bundles back at Steel Bender. You can get a pour of the mead and a tumbler for $40, or get a 750mL bottle to go with a tumbler for $75 or two tumblers for $90 (if you’re in a sharing mood). Slather on that sunscreen and head out in support of local agriculture, local vendors, and one local brewery in a grand setting!

New Draft:

Boxing Bear tapped Hybrid Theory Lager. Flock of Moons still has some of The Bookhouse Boys on draft, a barrel-aged version of their imperial pastry stout that is oh so good even in the summer. Nexus will tap Kyoto Gold Summer Lager, a Japanese-style rice lager, this Friday. Ponderosa will tap Just a Lager: Motueka on Thursday. Sidetrack added Dimestore Cowboy, a West Coast IPA. Starr Brothers recently brought back their fruited sour, Cherry Bombed. Turtle Mountain tapped Triple Play Pale Ale and Sex in a Canoe, a light lager.

Down south, Open Space tapped Cosmic Campground, a kolsch, and NM-15, a hazy IPA.

New Package:

Ex Novo released Penny from the Block, a sessionable lager, in cans and on draft. Second Street did the world a grand favor and put their Helles Lager in cans for the first time, plus it’s on draft if you’re in Santa Fe.

Notable Events:

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

The Albucreepy Haunted Trolley Tour kicks off at Painted Lady at 8 p.m.

Saturday — The aforementioned Lavender in the Village Festival runs from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Balloon Fiesta Park.

Head over to Kaktus from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. for a pet adoption event with Bosque Buddies.

Canteen hosts a Book Swap on the patio from noon to 2 p.m.

Painted Lady hosts Creepy Craft Night at 6 p.m.

Quick News Bits:

Good news, the Calavida Cantina kitchen is open again, serving up a whole new menu of delights. Check out their social media or click on the link below under Featured Beers.

Ponderosa now has 32-ounce crowlers, so you can take your favorite beers home without having to dig up and wash out that old glass growler anymore.

Sunday Service Motor Company once again extended their temporary closure for renovations through this Sunday. Normal service will resume next week, we (and they) hope.

Albuquerque metro area breweries

Boese Brothers Brewery — Featured seasonal: Zeus Juice White IPA (8.3% ABV), loaded with Citra and Centennial hops, it is a big and flavorful seasonal IPA.

Bombs Away Beer Company — Featured seasonal: N/M38 Lager (4.8% ABV, 30 IBU), a Mexican-style lager made with all locally grown malts.

Bow & Arrow Brewing — Featured seasonal: Midnight with a Chance of Coyotes (9% ABV), the flavor bomb of an imperial stout is back in cans and on draft.

Boxing Bear Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Lager Shot First (5.3% ABV), a Star Wars-inspired lager made with Mandarina Bavaria hops, on tap for a limited time.

Brekki Brekki/Cantina Craftworks — Featured seasonal: The beers made at Brekki Brekki are for the entire restaurant collective under the Cantina Hospitality Group banner. Contact each location for what’s on tap.

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

Calavida Cantina — Featured seasonal: Celtic Hermano (6.1% ABV, 42 IBU), this stout (not this batch) was the first one they brewed on the system in the old Boxing Bear space.

Canteen Brewhouse — Featured seasonal: Liberty Lager (4.8%, 8 IBU), a crushable lager that will help you beat the heat in cans and on draft.

Casa Vieja Brewery — Featured seasonal: Duke’s Red Irish Ale (5% ABV), a brewery original back on tap for a limited time.

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.

Ex Novo Brewing — Featured seasonal: Twice in a Lifetime (6.6% ABV), a hoppy hybrid of a cold IPA and a West Coast IPA is back in cans and on draft for a limited time.

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

Flock of Moons Brewing — Featured seasonal: Neumond (4.7% ABV, 26 IBU), an absolutely brilliant interpretation of the German schwarzbier (dark lager) style.

Gravity Bound Brewing — Featured seasonal: Night Hike (5.4% ABV), a delectable Czech dark lager.

High and Dry Brewing — Featured seasonal: Humble Neighbor (4.9% ABV), a cold brew coffee stout made with Humble Coffee (naturally), this beer packs quite the flavorful kick even with such a low ABV.

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: Lion Hearted IPA (5.9% ABV, 60 IBU), a quaffable English-style hoppy ale.

La Cumbre Brewing — Featured seasonal: PLS German Pilsner (4.8% ABV), a smooth lager with a that’s perfect for the middle of summer, available in cans and on draft.

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

Marble Brewery — Featured seasonal: Paako Ridge Pilsner (4.8% ABV), a unique lager collaboration with the good folks at the Paako Ridge Golf Club.

Nexus Brewery — Featured seasonal: Beam Me Up (Higher) Scotty (10.2% ABV, 35 IBU), a big, beautiful Scottish Wee Heavy that was brewed for the recent 15-year anniversary. It’s final day on tap at the brewery location will be Thursday, after that it will just be at Nexus Blue until it runs out for another year.

Painted Lady Bed and Brew — Featured seasonal: Boogedy Boogedy Boo!, a robust porter that’s excellent for spooky nights.

Ponderosa Brewing Co. — Featured seasonal: Bellamah Detour (6.7% ABV, 30 IBU), an imperial brown ale named for the recent road construction in the Sawmill District.

Quarter Celtic Brewpub— Featured seasonal: Ortmunder: The D is Silent, Fool! (5.8% ABV, 25 IBU), a perfect lager for the warming patio season.

Rio Bravo Brewing — Featured seasonal: Somos Brewnidos (5.2% ABV, 18 IBU), a New Mexican lager perfect for patio days or United games, with a portion of the proceeds from draft and can sales going to the Somos Unidos Foundation.

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: Modus Touch (5.6% ABV), an English golden ale made with American hops, now available in cans as well as on draft.

Starr Brothers Brewing — Featured seasonal: Tamale Wood Nights (4.8% ABV, 27 IBU), an international amber lager that goes great with World Cup matches this summer.

Steel Bender Brewyard — Featured seasonal: Oktoberfiesta (7% ABV), because autumn is a state of mind, and this beer will get you there early in cans and on draft.

Sunday Service Motor Company — Featured seasonal: Still closed for renovations.

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

Thirsty Eye Brewing — Featured seasonal: Shut the Front Dort, a good lager with one of our favorite beer names of all time.

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

Tractor Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Old Wizard Fingers Doppelbock (7.2% ABV), a delectable dark lager.

Turtle Mountain Brewing Company — Featured seasonal: Turtle Claw Hard Seltzer (7% ABV), and yeah, they requested we highlight the seltzer, so that’s what we’re doing because we’re nice. It’s not our thing, but it might be yours.

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: Premium Pilsner, available in cans and on draft.

Second Street Brewery — Featured seasonal: Butterfly IPA, a true session IPA with an ABV under 4 percent, available in cans and on draft.

Travel Bug — Featured seasonal: A reader tipped us off that this brewery in a travel bookstore has started rotating beers now, and currently on tap are Suelo Red Ale, Flaxon Ale, and Pale Ale.

Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery — Featured seasonal: Dry Irish Stout, a perfect brew for the season that you all need to drink up before the next season.

Other breweries you need to visit

Bathtub Row Brewing — Featured seasonal: Baltic Porter (7.9% ABV), a big beast of a beer that keeps thoughts of glorious winter alive.

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: Señor Lager, which as you may have guessed from the name is a Mexican-style lager.

Open Space Brewing — Featured seasonal: Skeleton Ridge (10% ABV), a Belgian dark strong named in honor of one of the more difficult, but totally worth it hiking trails in the Gila Wilderness. Welcome to the listings, friends! Open Space is located at 11990 U.S. Highway 180 in Santa Clara, just east of Silver City.

Red River Brewing and Distilling — Featured seasonal: Contact the brewery for what seasonals are currently on tap.

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

Truth or Consequences Brewing — Featured seasonal: 6-7 IPA (6.7% ABV, 67 IBUs), a collaboration with Tractor Brewing from the recent Beer Prom event at Ex Novo.

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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