Stoutmeister

There are lessons to be learned from the closing of Broken Bottle

It is a bit trite to say, but for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. As more and more breweries open around the Albuquerque metro area, there has always been the possibility that some might not survive in an increasingly competitive market. Other brewery owners have said a sort of reckoning is…

The 2015 Balloon Fiesta tourist guide to NM craft breweries

It’s that time of year again, when lots of folks from outside Albuquerque and New Mexico descend upon the Duke City for the Balloon Fiesta. While a lot of us locals grumble about the increase in traffic, even we’re big softies for the Fiesta (assuming we wake up in time). Well, we are, our dogs…

Bosque basks in a golden glow from GABF

No one can dispute that Bosque Brewing is in the midst of a great year. They opened two taprooms, won the National IPA Challenge, won a second straight New Mexico IPA Challenge, have bottled two beers (with a third on the way), and, oh yeah, just won their first gold medal at the Great American…

The Week Ahead in Beer: Oktoberfest-a-palooza takes over the metro area

Greetings, New Mexico craft beer lovers. Stoutmeister here with The Week Ahead in Beer. This column covers all the breweries in Bernalillo and Sandoval counties, with Santa Fe’s four breweries and a pair of newcomers, one down in Socorro and the other in Los Alamos, also joining the party. The calendar is slowly turning to…

Quarter Celtic creeping closer to their full opening

The good guys over at Quarter Celtic Brewpub, a.k.a. the brainchild of former Canteen brewer Brady McKeown and company, had invited us over to visit their forthcoming brewery a little while back. After we were reminded again recently, Brandon and I trekked over to check on their progress, take a few pictures, hear lots of…

Firkin Brewhouse moving closer to opening

Greetings, everyone. Here is hoping all of those GABF hangovers have faded and you are all ready for another busy week involving our local brewing scene. Before we head off to talk to some of the medal winners, while also catching up on Red Door’s new taproom plans and saying good-bye to Broken Bottle, and…

New Mexico breweries endure a tough day at GABF but still earn 4 medals

New Mexico breweries were not able to recapture the medal haul of the past two years at the Great American Beer Festival on Saturday, but there were still a few impressive medals earned. This year saw four breweries bring home four medals. New Mexico breweries had earned eight medals apiece in 2013 and 2014. Bosque…

Santa Fe Brewing’s ABQ taproom opens its doors at long last

While trying to ignore the 8,000 happy people photos from Denver on Thursday, I jumped at the chance to attend an invite-only soft opening for the media and other assorted folks at the new Santa Fe Brewing taproom at Albuquerque’s Green Jeans Farmery. With beer tickets in hand and a number of helpful staff members…

Brace yourselves for a happy dose of serious Palate Fatigue

Hop harvest season is upon us, in case you have not noticed by all the pictures of brewers stuffing their noses in mounds of fresh-picked hops that are floating around social media these days. Of course, one could argue hop season is year-round in New Mexico, judging by IPA sales remaining steady even in the…

New Mexico breweries poised to storm GABF once again

In case anyone has been living under a rock of late, the Great American Beer Festival, that annual homage to craft beer, begins Thursday and runs through Saturday in Denver. In addition to the thousands upon thousands of beer served up at the Denver Convention Center, there will be hundreds of satellite events, special tappings,…