How to Drink and Do Denver with PubPass
Updated June 19, 2017
PubPass is a unique way of exploring 20 of Denver’s bars and breweries and getting a passport stamp to reward your travels at each destination. The curator’s of the Denver PubPass describe their list as “Some are fancy, some are gritty, some are popular and some are unsung. But they’re all legendary in their own way.” PubPass is a beer passport that costs $20, and gets you a free beer at each participating destination when you visit. When’s the last time you bought 20 beers for a $1 each? Users can select from any beer on the menu, although exceptions may apply. $1 from every 2017 PubPass sold goes to Metro Caring, a local charity providing food to people in need.
PubPass has vetted some of Denver’s best watering holes to ensure your enjoyment, and we’ve researched what to drink and do at each PubPass stop! Read on for PubPass inspiration, and join our Drink and Do Denver Meetup group to find friends to explore with.
Diebolt Brewing
3855 Mariposa St Denver, CO 80211
Diebolt Brewing produces award winning craft brews like the 2014 GABF silver medal winner, Braggarts Brown Ale American-Style Brown Ale. Pair your beer with bites from rotating food trucks. Diebolt hosts trivia Thursdays at 7pm, and has board games available to play with a game night the first Wednesday of the month. The brewery also has a ping pong table. Catch comedy night the 3rd Friday of the month and check their event calendar for classes like fly tying, brewery yoga and live music shows.
Hogshead Brewery
4460 W. 29th Ave. Denver, CO 80212
Hogshead Brewery is a SloHi brewery and taproom with a focus on English ales. Choose from three to four beers on tap via CO2 pressurized kegs and a properly conditioned Real Ale from naturally carbonated casks served from beer engines for those that enjoy this traditional British libation. The partially shaded outdoor patio is home to cornhole boards, a dart board, and special events like brewery yoga. The dog and kid friendly venue has board games to borrow and is popular among cyclists.
Chain Reaction Brewing Company
902 South Lipan Street, Denver, CO 80223
Chain Reaction is a South Denver brewery that is less focused on one particular beer style and more interested in using the brewing process to balance unique creativity and innovation. Speaking of creativity, Chain Reaction hosts comedy nights the second Friday of the month. Compete in trivia every other Tuesday at 7:30pm. They also host paint nights from time to time and are dog friendly.
Fiction Beer Company
7101 East Colfax Avenue, Denver, CO 80220
Fact: This brewery was inspired by beer and literature. Fiction Beer Company is a neighborhood brewery telling its story in brews. While food isn’t served, Your Deli across the street and local food trucks keep guests happy (bringing in your own food is cool too). This book themed brewery has plenty of books and board games to borrow, and has hosted events like paint night, sip and sewing classes, book clubs, and fundraising events for charities supporting the arts. Dog friendly patio.
Station 26 Brewing
7045 East 38th Ave, Denver, Colorado 80207
Station 26 brews and serves craft beer in the Capitol Hill neighborhood. Grab a flight and try their GABF medal winning Colorado Cream Ale. This family friendly brewery has food trucks every day and a large outdoor patio. Board games include Monopoly, Connect Four, Cards Against Humanity, Scrabble, and Deep Sea Adventure. Hold bluegrass brunch the 2nd Sunday of the month, yoga classes set to live music, and crafts classes by Build and Brew. The abundance of space to park your bike is one reason this brewery is popular among cyclists.
El Chapultepec
1962 Market st. Denver, Colorado 80202
Denver's oldest jazz and blues club, El Chapultepec, has been hosting live music seven nights a week since 1933. The Aztec translation of El Chapultepec is ‘the hill of grasshopper,’ which is why the signature Chapultepec shot features the insect. Take a shot at the eight ball on the pool table while you’re there, too.
Jackrabbit Slims
2222 Bruce Randolph Ave, Denver, CO 80205
Jackrabbit Slims serves hand tossed New York style pizzas and over 50 different beers. Play pool (3 tables), ping pong, pinball, darts (2 boards), giant Jenga, bar top foosball or board games.
Congress Park Taproom
833 Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO, United States
Congress Park Taproom has 75 coveted spots in its annual mug club. This neighborhood watering hole has 30 beers on tap with an emphasis on but not limited to Colorado, wines made by Infinite Monkey Theorem, local Colorado Bourbons and Rye Whiskey, and a signature house made barrel-aged Old Fashioned. The taproom also serves food, with weekend brunch featuring bottomless mimosas and a build your own bloody bar. Bring your four-legged friend along and play board games, foosball, darts, Golden Tee, or compete in team trivia Wednesday nights at 7pm.
Copper Kettle Brewing
1338 S. Valentia Street #100, Denver, CO 80247
Copper Kettle has a rotating tap list with a few year-round styles, like the Great American Beer Fest Gold Medal winning Mexican Chocolate Stout. Brews are made with a fifteen barrel system on premise. Every Tuesday, $1 from every pint goes to charity. The brewery has also hosted Yappy Hours and dog massage events for dog lovers, chili cookoffs, bend without breaking core workouts by Scorpion Fitness, and live music shows. Board games and cards available. Frequent food truck visitors.
Colorado Cider Company
2650 West 2nd Ave. #10 - Denver, CO 80219
Colorado Cider Company has its own orchard to brew its award winning ciders. The tap room opens its doors to the public Fridays from 4-8pm and Saturdays 3-8pm. Grab a flight from the 16 ciders on tap and take cider to go, and don’t forget to try the signature Glider cider or award winning Grasshop-ah and Ol' Stumpy. Play a game of Connect Four while you sip, and don't be surprised if you meet a friendly pig.
NOLA
2231 Bruce Randolph Ave, Denver, Colorado 80205
As the moniker suggests, NOLA is a New Orleans-inspired bar located in Denver’s historic Cole neighborhood. This restaurant and full bar serves Cajun favorites like Gumbo, Etouffee, Muffalettas, and from time to time you may stumble upon a crawfish boil. When it’s NFL season this is the best place to watch the New Orleans Saints play, and you can try your hand at football bingo.
Lost Highway Brewing
12741 E. Caley Ave. Unit 140 Centennial, CO 80111
Lost Highway Brewing started in Denver and has since moved its location to Centennial. Food trucks frequently visit to keep guests well fed. Board games are always available but Tuesdays are designated as board game night. Games to play include Galaga, Ripley’s Believe it or Not pinball, regular and jumbo Connect Four, Scrabble, dominoes, cribbage, giant jenga, and backgammon. Play team trivia Thursdays at 8pm, and check the schedule for yoga classes by Apres Yoga.
The Bluegrass
7415 Grandview Ave Arvada, CO 80002
The Bluegrass is a coffee lounge turned bourbon bar by night in Arvada. While coffee and bourbon are highlighted, there are plenty of brews to enjoy in their spacious beer garden, where you can play giant Jenga, toss some beanbags for a game of cornhole, or bring the kids. If you go at night, try a slice of their pizza, which was voted Best Pizza at the 2015 & 2016 Taste of Arvada. We’d grab a PubPass beer back to sample one of their bourbon flights, or to sip beside a bacon bourbon bloody and order of blue cheese bacon nachos at brunch.
Grand Lake Brewing
5610 Yukon Street, Olde Town Arvada
Grand Lake Brewing is a small craft brewery at the headwaters of the Colorado river with a tavern in Olde Town Arvada. Every month Grand Lake celebrates local artists at the First Friday Art Show. The tavern is also kid friendly, as kids eat free Mondays and Wednesdays.
New Image Brewing
5622 Yukon St, Arvada, CO
New Image Brewing is an Olde Town Arvada brewery that hosts running club events, yoga classes by Bender’s yoga, and local artist galleries.
The Brew on Broadway
3445 S. Broadway, Englewood, CO 80113
The Brew on Broadway is an Englewood craft brewery and coffee house resides in a renovated grocery store built in 1920. The 7 Barrel Brew House has 6 house taps, 8 seasonal taps, and 3 nitro taps, including the house favorite Social Club Milk Stout. Read more about what’s brewing here. You may bring in your own food or order from local restaurants. Food carts and trucks visit on weekends. Every Monday, $1 from every beer and 50 cents from every coffee sold at The Brew on Broadway are donated to a local non-profit organization. The whole family will enjoy relaxing in the south-facing brew garden, and there are drinks and treats for both dogs and kids, too. BoB hosts Open Mic Americana 1st and 3rd Tuesdays, live music on weekends, a Celtic Session group every Thursday night, and classes like paint a pot. The game room has a shuffleboard table.
2501 Sheridan Blvd Edgewater, CO 80214
Dog and kid friendly brewery with a run club that meets Wednesdays at 6:30pm. Board games available to play include Life and chess, weekly euchre tournament Thursdays at 7pm. Trivia night Tuesdays at 7pm. Have also hosted ukelele lessons, jam nights, and brewery yoga classes.
Brewery Rickoli
4335 Wadsworth Blvd, Wheat Ridge, CO 80033
One of the smallest breweries in Colorado, Brewery Rickoli brews gluten-free craft beer on a tiny 3BBL system but brews enough to keep their 16 taps ready to pour your PubPass pint. They also brew craft sodas such as Schrute Root Beer and Strawberry Kiwi soda. Snacks are available but you can also bring in your own food. Admire art by local artists on the walls and grab a board game to play including checkers, giant jenga, connect four, or chess. Dog friendly.
Ursula Brewing
2101 N Ursula St. Unit 10 Aurora CO, 80045
Ursula Brewing is a dog friendly brewery crafting Belgian, German, and historical beers. Sister restaurant, Cedar Creek Pub (across the street) will deliver their entire menu right to your table.
West Fax Brewing Company
6733 W Colfax Ave, Lakewood, CO 80214
Stop in for music video bingo every Tuesday from 7-9pm. Also host comedy shows and yoga classes. Dog friendly.