A Rural Surprise: Elizabeth Brewing Company Opens Saturday

In what could be called the sleepy little town of Elizabeth, CO, the aptly named Elizabeth Brewing Company will open its doors to the public this Saturday. Housed in the 130-year-old Carlson Building, EBC will soon be one of the top places to grab a drink in town based on the outpouring of excitement we experienced.The Carlson Building has had many uses over the years, most notably it gained its namesake from sculptor George Carlson, who lived there in the 1970's. There still remains some remnants from his time in the building. Other known uses for the building were the Watts and Wortman General Merchandise store, the Elizabeth Chamber of Commerce and it even had been used as a church and library over the years.Walking in, you're greeted with what brewer Scott Roberts describes as "the biggest brew-in-a-bag" system. For you homebrewers, they are definitely using a BIAB-style system, albeit completely clad in stainless steel. Scott has three fermenters and a brite tank plus tons of keg storage for his creations.There's not much seating downstairs, but to fit into the ADA compliance, there is a great wooden table right by the front door, with a bell for service from the bar upstairs...I can see this being the popular hang out for everyone.Through a doorway in the back are some of the steepest stairs we've encountered in a while, which lead upwards to the taproom. There are stairs out back as well connecting their 8-space parking lot to the upstairs. Community tables are the theme in the EBC taproom, with lots of seating at the bar as well.For the opening, they'll have eight of their own beers on tap and a Gluten Free FH Beerworks beer for those who like their beer sans-gluten. We tried them all and are happy to report nothing tasted out of the ordinary. Brewery openings are always hard times to judge the true character of beer, so as long as there are no glaring off-flavors or infections, we consider it a great start! Our standout favorite was their Pineapple Pale Ale, which combines a nice hop character with a "significant" amount of pineapple to round out the flavor. It was tart and hoppy, with a good amount of bitterness.

So, take the kids out for a drive and head up to rural Elizabeth, CO for The Elizabeth Brewing Company's grand opening this weekend. They'll be doing a ribbon cutting at noon and will have hourly giveaways all day. They also have four craft cream sodas for the under-agers, as well as food trucks lined up! See you there? Event link