Alley Brews — Restaurant in Denver

Wonderful small batch brewery with a very friendly vibe. Big Belgian beers at an affordable price! My wife and I were searching for something interesting on the eve of Denver's Great American Beer Festival when I received a DeSteeg text announcing some new barrel openings. As difficult as it it to find anything decent in a pumpkin beer, I cautiously but optimistically tried their rum barrel aged pumpkin ale (it just sounded too good not to try) and I wasn't disappointed! Smooth mild rum background with no hint of the pumpkin spices ordinarily found in anything containing the word, "pumpkin." Their cocoa nib pumpkin on nitro made for a very enjoyable second beer for the evening. My wife ordered the lavender citra beer--big lavender nose with a surprisingly light lavender taste. It was so good that she's currently on her second one!

Their staples, Het Huis (the House) and their French Saison, are consistently good, but be prepared to try some dangerously smooth high octane beers. Don't say I...

(Original post--updates below): I love this place. The beers and the brewers are awesome. Lots of Belgian style beers. Try the Het Huis. The venue is never too crowded, and it's got a good outdoor space.

Update (2019): I avoided this place for about a year because of an old bartender that I thought was...unfriendly. They now have 2 new, amazing bartenders. This is back to my new regular haunt. A special brewery in Denver.

Update (8/10/21): Under new ownership. It now features a board heavy on sessionable IPAs. There are still a few big Belgians up there, though you're unlikely to find the variety of big, experimental, and barrel aged beers they used to have. Also Chris is gone.

Update (2/8/22): At least 4 "core beers" at all times, plus a smattering of other good ones, plus the sessionable IPAs etc they wanted. A decent compromise has...

Came here with a buddy for the first time. There were only a couple people in the bar. The bartender was very friendly and fun to talk with. My friend and I both wanted to try the Whiskey Ginger beer, but the tap went dry before one cup could be filled. The bartender still let us have the half cup of beer and we ordered two other different beers. The Whiskey Ginger was by far the better tasting of the three. The bartender even gave us another sampler of the new keg he tapped to replace the Whiskey Ginger, which they did not have another keg ready. The bartender said that the next keg wouldn't be ready for several months for the aging process in the Woodford Reserve Barrel. I will definitely return to this place in April to try...