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…

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…

Good beer for a good cause: Atalaya Search & Rescue

Good beer and good causes go hand in hand. It’s one of our favorite things as beer bloggers to write about, and one of our favorite ways for us, as beer drinkers, to help our fellow men, women, or puppies. Who doesn’t love drinking great beer, knowing that we’re supporting a real, local organization, and…

Brewing and judging better beer at State Fair Pro-Am and beyond

The annual State Fair Pro-Am has come and gone for the year, and no doubt you’ve seen the RESULTS, but from competitions like these we get to see some great brewers, both pro and amateur, show off their talents as part of our New Mexico brewing scene. I spoke with John Rowley, very near-future head…

Quick updates on upcoming Founders events

We might as well rename October as Founders Month, for the beloved Michigan brewery’s New Mexico debut is certainly generating a lot of excitement. For anyone who missed the initial announcement, the Kickoff Party is Wednesday, Oct. 7 at Nob Hill Bar & Grill, with a second KBS release party the following week on Oct….

So about that one missing beer from the Founders kickoff party

The Tuesday announcement that Founders Brewing was coming to New Mexico in October was greeted warmly by most of the people we interacted with online or in person. However, more than a few folks seemed a bit disappointed that one beer was missing from the (outstanding) lineup of nine Founders offerings that will be at…

Founders finally finds their way to New Mexico

Rejoice, craft beer lovers of New Mexico, one of the national heavyweights in the industry is at long last coming to our humble little state. Founders Brewing Co. of Grand Rapids, Michigan, will begin distributing to New Mexico this October via Premier Distributing. The news leaked out a couple weeks ago, though we were politely…