The brewpubs of the New Mexico craft brewing scene have certainly endured a lot since the pandemic lockdown of 2020-21. Many are still searching for the new normal, while a few lucky ones have managed to regain a measure of staffing stability. Quarter Celtic Brewpub is one of those lucky ones, as I learned while…
The Week Ahead in Beer: Music and belly dancers and markets galore
Before Christmas takes center stage, this weekend will be a big one at a lot of breweries, with quite the variety of events on deck. There will be last-minute holiday markets on Saturday at Boxing Bear Firestone, Brew Lab 101, Bosque Nob Hill, and Unhinged, plus two more at Gravity Bound and Canteen on Sunday….
Ex Novo enjoys a solid 2023 before some big moves get underway in 2024
The good news for Ex Novo Brewing was that this year, one not filled with any sorts of huge developments, was nonetheless solid and productive. The better news is that it will help prepare everyone on staff for what figures to be a busier, bigger year ahead. I recently caught up with founder Joel Gregory,…
High and Dry stays aloft at brewery while working on Public House upgrades
Sometimes just having what one might describe as a typical year is rather welcome. At least that is the case with High and Dry Brewing owner/brewer Andrew Kalemba, who said it was a solid year for the brewery at Adams and Lomas. The offsite taproom, on the other hand, continues to be an evolving challenge,…
The Week Ahead in Beer: Indulge in the darkness at La Cumbre all week
One of the best parts of December is that La Cumbre decides to make its anniversary a week-long celebration of the biggest, and often darkest beers on their menu in years past and present. This year is no exception, and there is more on deck leading up to Saturday’s shindig. For today (Wednesday), they are…
Metal and Beer Fest was exactly the type of off-site festival the world needs
A while back, we brought up the question of what is the future of the off-site craft beer festival. Many of you, as well as folks in the industry, responded with all sorts of ideas as to how to keep these things going. One that we thought had promise was the themed or specialized off-site…
Boxing Bear settles into the new normal and aims to hit their stride in 2024
Boxing Bear is a growing brewery again. Oh, there are no new taprooms planned (yet), or anything like that. Things are expanding quickly on one side of the business, though, and that will be driving the brewery going forward. I recently caught up with the trio of Justin Hamilton, director of brewing operations/co-owner, Jay Knigge,…
The Week Ahead in Beer: Holiday markets conquer the brewing scene
They have arrived. They are infinite. They are all. Yes, we are talking about holiday markets, with at least five announced for this Saturday alone, and likely even more to come after that. Tis the season, and all that, but let’s face it, holiday shopping is hard, and being able to walk among the many…
Kaktus Brewing celebrates a decade in business with continued growth
The times are good on South Hill Road up in Bernalillo. Kaktus Brewing is preparing to celebrate its 10th anniversary after seeing some surprising growth this year. I caught up with owner Dana Koller to learn a little more about how things have been going, with the potential for even more growth in 2024 and…
Lava Rock head brewer delves into all the reasons for moving to Moriarty
After our last post on Lava Rock Brewing generated a whole ton of conversation on Facebook, we knew it would only be proper to continue to follow up on the surprise decision to shut down the Westside location and move the brewery to Moriarty. Head brewer Dan Cavin was able to meet up at his…
DARK SIDE BREW CREW 