DENVER – Durango-based Ska Brewing Co. took craft beer “coopetition” to the next level Saturday in Denver at Collaboration Fest, proving that its thirst for something different seemingly is endless.
The beer festival – in its second year – featured more than 50 collaborative beer projects. About 70 beers from all across the nation were highlighted, shining a spotlight on creative brews from brewers who put their heads together for the unique event.
“That’s what’s cool and unique about our industry,” said Ska Brewing co-owner Dave Thibodeau. “We always refer to it in Durango, with all the breweries working together here, we always call it ‘coopetition.’”
The sold-out festival took place at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on a sunny and warm spring afternoon. Hundreds of beer enthusiasts wrapped their way around the club level inside the stadium where the Denver Broncos play, lining up at booths and around bars to sample the limited-time-only products that brewers from around the country had to offer.
Maintaining its tradition of staying loyal to ska music – the obvious inspiration for the checkerboard-patterned Ska Brewing – Thibodeau worked with three other breweries to develop three beers for the festival.
One of those collaborations was with Stone Brewing Co. in Southern California. The fraternization between Ska and Stone resulted in the Mighty Mighty Bastogne, a play on the ska band name The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, while highlighting the bastogne strain of yeast that was used in the process.
A second elixir that Ska collaborated on was with Wynkoop Brewing Co. in Denver. As if naming beers after ska music wasn’t enough, ska-punk band Reel Big Fish also collaborated on the session, with members of the band helping to make the beer. Some of the band members are known to have a love for brewing. The beer that came out of it was the Reel Big Stout, an oak-aged imperial stout.
“That’s the beauty of our industry,” said Greg Moore, lead brewer for Wynkoop Brewing Co. “There’s a lot of people in our industry that go by the idea that, a rising tide lifts all boats.”
The final brew from Ska was invented with TRVE Brewing Co. in Denver, which became an imperial brown ale. The beer was aged in Peach Street Distillers bourbon barrels, a Palisade-based distillery that makes a smoky-flavored bourbon, which yielded an interesting ale from the char of the barrel. Thibodeau also co-owns Peach Street Distillers.
Called Horns, the collaboration between Ska and TRVE served as a nod to the horns in ska music and the “sign of the horns,” a hand gesture that has become synonymous with metal music. TRVE Brewing emphasizes heavy metal at its brewery.
Telluride Brewing Co. also collaborated with a musical interest, making SpruceSKI with Kyle Hollingsworth, who plays keyboard for Colorado-based jam-band giants The String Cheese Incident. What was born was a rye pale ale.
“Music and beer, it’s the perfect marriage,” said Tommy Thacher, co-owner of Telluride Brewing.
All of the limited creations will be made available at select locations in California, Denver, Durango and Telluride though specific locations have not yet been determined.
“There’s always something to learn from your peers,” Thibodeau said. “The thing about brewing is the more you know, the more you realize you don’t know. Every time you work with a friend or a peer, you learn something, and it’s just so much fun – everyone has a thirst for more knowledge.”
pmarcus@durangoherald.com
