Sipping Through The High Country -
A Beer-lover's Journey Through Grand County
By Cyril Vidergar

There are few things more fitting in this community, self-hewn from the cold stone of the Rocky Mountains, than beer that is brewed right here in Grand County. Beer – social adhesive and enlightening experience – is not only found in small batches within Middle Park’s hallowed grounds, but a couple of commercial outfits have staked a claim to largescale production of this liquid gold (or amber, as the case may be).

Grand Lake’s Claim to Fame
One may easily stumble past The Grand Lake Brewing Company’s unassuming doorway on the town’s boardwalk. Though one knows not the soul of this community until one tastes of its spirits, and the spirits served on tap and bottled for distribution carry one to another place and time.

Of nine Colorado State Fair medallists that are brewed in Grand Lake, eight are readily available on tap and six sold in bottles throughout Colorado. On the light end, White Cap greets the tongue with ghostly grain and hop flavors. A refreshing aprèshike brew, the unassuming American-style wheat sports a swirl of the sediment while revealing the true gentility of its proprietary yeast and citrus nuances.

Going darker, the signature American amber, Responsibly Red Ale (please drink Responsibly!), greets the eyes with a ruby hue, the nose with caramel, and the tongue with a touch of mediumroasted nut flavors. Four types of American hops express a balanced bitterness that tapers to an initial sweetness. Well into a pint, one senses this brew has just enough rigors to remind you that the high country offers more than just thin air to lighten the mind.

With the door to enlightenment open, in steps Wooly Booger Nut Brown Ale, styled like traditional English brown ale. Don’t be fooled by its dark color – this ale is not heavy, and those who do not care for dark beers usually love its toffee and honey-like malt flavors when they drink it with their eyes closed. This is one not to pass up.

Also on the must-sip list is Grand Lake’s Scotch Ale, an Old Style brew served in a snifter so the hands can warm up and accentuate its brandy-like nose and dark cherry and peat background flavors. And don’t miss Super Chicken, a smooth, highly hopped American Barley wine with hints of raisin that has a hefty alcohol content weighing in at 11 percent. A step above the average brewpub fare, real oven-baked pizza, gourmet salads and homemade calzones pair exceptionally well with their beers.

Emerging on the Right Side of the Tunnel
Few beer halls can better the bevy of intercultural brews found at Moffat Station Restaurant and Brew Pub. On the western side of its famed namesake tunnel, the brewery is located within Winter Park Mountain Lodge. Stepping beneath its modest lintel from a bustling hotel lobby, one would never expect to be treated to a geisha’s delight, a roguishly sweet Irish gentleman, or a stout Belgian Belly-Rub.

The recent first batch release of Tokyo Night Lager truly opens the eyes to Japanese-clone lagers using brown rice syrup and American hops. The ruby hints of caramel and cinnamon in Titty Peak Irish Red Ale dance across the tongue and conjure up emerald visions, and the traditional Robber’s Roost Belgian Ale fuses English and Czech hops in a continentally smooth brew that tempts the customer to wade deeper into Belgian-style ales.

A tour of local beers today may not be as rugged as in the frontier days, but the spirit that forged this county has not drifted too far downstream. Our beers define who we were, what we are good at, and perhaps where we are going.

Then again, that last glass of enlightenment may have left this writer a bit overly philosophical.

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