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A new brew

Can Durango support yet another craft brewery?
David Holub/Durango Herald illustration

Like wine before it, craft beer is having an American moment. Here in Durango, it’s having a celebration.

Yes, one more brew pub is coming our way – the second in two years and the sixth overall. Animas Brewing Co. is set to open this fall in the former For the Birds building on East Second Avenue, just off the Animas River Trail.

You’ve got to wonder, is this a good thing?

Can a town of barely 17,000 support that many beer makers? (For those of you who don’t know, they are: Carver Brewing Co., Durango Brewing Co., Ska Brewing Co., Steamworks Brewing Co. and Brew Pub and Kitchen, in order of their arrival on the scene.) No matter how hot a trend craft brewing may be nationally, the demand in our own little burg is constrained by our size.

But we do have an advantage.

“We have a college,” said Thomas Laren, head brewer for Ska, nodding knowingly about the positive impact almost 4,000 young adults can have on an alcohol-based industry. “That helps.”

Durango’s culture of independence and adventure make it a town tailor-made for trying new things, whether that’s an undiscovered alpine trail, a cutting-edge mountain bike or a new restaurant.

After all, that’s what a microbrewery is, at least here. Each one serves food to go along with that unique, seasonal brew. Animas Brewing owner Scott Bickert is pinning his hopes on attracting families coming off the river trail for a bite and a beer.

“We’re going to be as family-oriented as we can,” said the father of a 2-year-old. “It’s not meant to be a bar crowd.”

And to a man – all the owners of brew pubs in town are men – they welcomed Bickert, the former head brewer at Durango Brewing Co., to the fold. They believe the growth in the national market (almost 10 percent last year) and the appetite in the local market (seemingly endless) will keep all their boats afloat.

Just as many residents make a concerted effort to support local farmers and restaurants, they say, they also make an effort to support local beer makers. It isn’t out of the kindness of their hearts, mind you, it’s because they like the different beers the different brewers offer them.

Who knew there was such a thing as a Cru d’Etat, a dark Belgian sour ale with notes of figs at first and oak in the finish, perfect for fall, at Ska Brewing? Or a Christmas beer, a piney scented brew flavored with the needles of a blue spruce tree at Steamworks? Or a hoppy Ophelia, an American style India Pale Ale (IPA) at Brew, infused with fernlike yarrow and citrusy lemongrass, just right for right now?

Certainly not me. Those beers are a far cry from the Pabst Blue Ribbon my father drank or the Michelob (considered upscale then) I used to stash in my college refrigerator.

“People are looking at craft brewing because it’s fun,” said Mike Hurst, co-owner of Carvers. “A tasty brew is hard to beat, especially one with nuances you’ve never noticed.”

So variety is another point in favor of six breweries being a blessing not a curse in youth-oriented Durango, where most everyone is on the prowl for the next new thing.

Bickert is cagey about revealing what kinds of beers he’ll be brewing at Animas, and he’ll say nothing at all about the food he’ll serve when he opens sometime around Thanksgiving. He does allow, however, that he’ll make a hoppy amber red ale with a good caramel malt balance. Now you know.

Bickert also benefits from being a homey – he moved to the area in 2002, so that counts – well-known to almost every brewer and brewpub owner in town. A member of the Bootleggers Society, an informal group of locals in the beer business, he has crafted beers with many of his competitors for special occasions like the Apple Festival.

“I think it’s awesome,” said Brian McEachron, co-founder of Steamworks. “We know Scott and we know his partners; we’ve hung out with those guys. We wish him well.”

Even Erik Maxson, the newest guy in town as the owner of 18-month-old Brew, sees Animas’s entry as a good thing, a testament to Durango’s growing presence as a destination for beer-lovers.

His own place is doing very nicely, thank you, having survived the killer first six months and lived to see loyal customers bring their visitors with them in the second year. He chalks it up to Durangoans’ devotion to all things local and handmade.

“It’s quality over quantity. It’s artisanal and craft. This community is really keen to support that,” he said.

This community is really keen to support quality anything, and all the better if it’s local, add the other beer makers. It should be noted that the other four brewpubs (Ska also is a regional brewery, sending 35,000 gallons of beer to nine states and two countries) have been in business for between 18 and 27 years – success stories by any measure.

Meanwhile, brewpubs and microbreweries are opening at the rate of one a day across the nation, according to the Brewers Association. Durango’s masters of beer plan to remain in business by steadily getting better at what they do, matching or besting whatever the competition has to offer. Not that they’ll call it that. Years ago, the Bootleggers Society coined the term “co-opitition”, meaning that they compete but cooperate, too.

So they ship their entries to national contests together to reduce the cost. They’ll bail out a fellow brewer who’s short on grain, sort of like loaning your neighbor the proverbial cup of sugar because you never know when you’ll need a favor, too.

But no one is sitting on his or her laurels, either. Steamworks opened El Moro Tavern and Spirits this year, a smaller, posher bar and restaurant on Main Avenue with tasty, tapas-style small plates. Carvers spruced up its interior with new lighting and seating design and more space in the coveted back room. Ska, long just a brewery, opened a cavernous bar and restaurant serving pizzas, sandwiches and salads to serve their hungry fans.

“As long as it’s good, people will support it,” said Kris Oyler, co-founder of Steamworks. “To stay open, you have to stay good.”

That’s the best news for foodies and beer drinkers alike. Welcome to town, Animas Brewing.

phasterok@durangoherald.com

Scott Bickert’s last name was misspelled in an earlier version of this story.



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