Glenwood Canyon Rock Garden Biere de Garde

The mountains of Colorado harbor many niches, nooks and crannies, within which lie a bounty of hidden mines, towns and even the occasional bakery (Silver Plume). Glenwood Springs is not what you’d call a quaint mountain town, exactly, but it’s not a global tourism destination either. Home to a therapeutic hot springs, it sees its fair share of visitors, and those who do go get a chance to visit the local brewpub: Glenwood Canyon Brewing Company. It is by no means an infamous brewery, or a landmark in craft beer, but it provides better beer to a town with one foot still in the past, and that makes it all the more charming. My family and I ordered a sampler to get a well rounded taste of the offerings, and I came away reasonably impressed, considering my expectations. The Biere de Garde came somewhere around the middle, striking a balance between the light-bodied lagers and pale ales, and the ruddier stout. The name provided no information about the beer’s flavor, aroma, or even its categorical style, so, with a completely mysterious jar of beer in front of me I took a plunge. Evidently, what I had thought was a mystery had turned out to be a familiar friend. The Biere de Garde, for all its veiled, incognito efforts and foreign titling was remarkably similar to New Belgium’s Fat Tire. The body of the beer is a mix of deep and light colors, synthesizing a deep dandelion color, clear and lucid, and a great cream colored head. The aroma, unlike any other beer in the sampler, had a very aged, mature feel to it. It was funky and cheesy, as any good cheese monger’s shop should be, but also skunky, suggesting it had suffered some UV abuse. The aroma is reflected in the taste where the skunkiness prevails over the gourmet flavors. Some of the skunk taste is hidden with an interesting combo of pistachio, peanuts, caramel and brown sugar, though it persists much to the detriment of the brew. A week later I called the brewer to ask what the style was, since it had reminded me of Fat Tire, and he told me it was a “French Farmhouse Ale”, while Fat Tire is classified as an Amber Ale. I know that classifying beers can often mislead, but the Biere de Garde and Fat Tire are very similar in taste, especially with the nutty and skunky flavors dominating the palate. Still, it was a reasonable beer, and was a big hit with the family. We took home a growler that evening and played a rousing pirate board game with it, calling out for hotel glasses of grog and growing ever merrier with each pour and each sunken pewter ship.