Back before the pandemic, the brewing scene in Las Cruces was booming. Icebox had opened and was rapidly expanding with multiple taprooms. High Desert was still kicking after 15 years. Spotted Dog had opened on the boundary of Las Cruces and Mesilla. Picacho Peak was open west of the Rio Grande and had an out-of-town…
Tag: travel
GABF 2026: New Mexico breweries bring home 3 more medals
The first outdoor edition of the Great American Beer Festival was held this weekend at Levitt Pavilion in Denver, including the annual awards ceremony. Three New Mexico breweries won one medal apiece, with another rare occurrence of two breweries winning in the same category. The last time that happened was in 2024 when Tractor took…
GABF 2026: The grand experiment of moving outdoors in Denver
The Great American Beer Festival kicks off in Denver this weekend, albeit for just two days instead of three and outdoors instead of inside the convention center. Yeah, it’s gonna be a bit weird. At least the weather is supposed to be good, right? (Apologies to anyone attending if that doesn’t hold up.) In many…
2026 Balloon Fiesta tourist guide to local craft breweries
The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is back in town starting this Saturday and running through the following weekend. This is the biggest annual tourism draw in Albuquerque, and while we realize this means the restaurants will be packed and the roads will be clogged, we recognize the massive economic impact it provides to the metro…
The Week Ahead in Beer: Oktoberfests and fundraisers fill up the weekend
Great googily moogily, this week is way more packed than we could have imagined, and it’s not just due to the Oktoberfes-a-palooza that’s breaking out this weekend. We’ll have all of those events listed below, and you can always check our statewide guide to all the Oktoberfest celebrations. We’re still updating that one as more…
Breweries running into backlash for using generative AI in social media posts
It was in the afternoon Tuesday when the Facebook algorithm fired a brewery’s post up to the top of our feed, which is usually part for the course when we are using that social media site as the Brew Crew instead of any of us as individuals. The surprising thing about that post was that…
Statewide Oktoberfest Guide 2026: So many fests and so little time
There are a slew of Oktoberfest celebrations coming up this season in New Mexico, so we decided to round ’em all up to help you best plan out your weekends for the rest of this month and part of October. From Red River to Ruidoso, from Carlsbad to Angel Fire, and of course Albuquerque and…
The Week Ahead in Beer: The calm before the fest storm
Warning, it’s kind of a slow week out there. Oh, sure, there’s still some low-key fun to be had at breweries (including some monthly favorites), and plenty of new brews to enjoy, but it still feels like this is the weekend that the craft beer industry takes a deep breath. Why? Because starting next weekend,…
The Week Ahead in Beer: Celebrate Labor Day with some new collaboration brews
Back before he left Thirsty Eye, head brewer John Kofonow told us that his final days would be spent working with other breweries on some new collaborations for all to enjoy. Well, two of those collabs dropped this week, and with a three-day weekend ahead, there is no time like the present to check them…
After 10 years Rowley Farmhouse Ales enters a new chapter
By now, you’ve probably already heard from one source or another that Rowley Farmhouse Ales is moving. It’s true, by early next spring, they will be closing the doors at their current space and turning the key on a new one, bringing a close to what has been a great, long run. It’s been 10…
