Batch Slapped Brings Beer and Cider Together on the East Side, Opening Feb 4
A few years ago, a sign for Batch Slapped Brewery/Cidery appeared in the Powers Liquor Mart shopping center just East of Powers (a few blocks south of Nano 108) and we’ve constantly been getting messages from beer fans in the area asking if we knew what/who it is. Well, we know now.
Batch Slapped is the brainchild of Brian Shute, Jordan Oswald and Riley Shute, a brewpub that allows drinkers of beer, cider and wine to all co-mingle. Before you go worrying about the legality of having a brewery and a cidery under the same roof, Batch Slapped’s team jumped through the numerous hoops to get their concept off the drawing plan phase. They technically have two spaces in one, with separate liquor licenses for manufacturing and selling of their different types of alcohol. The brewpub hosts their small kitchen and brewhouse, while a small room off the front will house the cidery. It’s all by the book, thanks to some long-time consulting with Jeff Zearfoss of Local Relic Artisan Ales and some serious blood, sweat and tears from everyone on the build.
My first question for their team revolved around the name itself, and if they were ready for any backlash that may arise from the community. Brian said they were, and explained that the name came about after trying to work the word “batch” into their company name, not the other way around. Needless to say, I’m definitely not the biggest fan of the name and its connotations, and I hope their beer and cider quality will overshadow it.
Walking in the doors, there’s ample seating up front, but deeper back into the space is where folks will really find themselves at home. “Waterfall-style” butcher-block tables adorned with investor logos make up the center seating area and comfortable chairs are scattered around the central fireplace, so finding a spot shouldn’t be too hard. There’s only one television in the entire space as well, which will sport their Untappd-powered taplist. Batch Slapped’s team tells me they’re hoping people put their phones down and enjoy the company of others there, without needing to compete with sports games.
Batch Slapped has three distinct bars each with their own seating, plus community tables throughout. Front and center is the main brewpub bar, but venture a little further into the din and you’ll find the wine bar and their “members-only” bar, coined The Lab (More on that in a little bit). Service will be from each of the bars, with some servers running around as well, from what I’m told. There are plans later this year to install a patio and roll up garage door at the front as well, to allow people to bring their furry friends.
Batch Slapped three distinct bars (from left): The Lab, wine bar and main beer/cider bar
At the main bar, Batch Slapped has 16 lines ready to pour their creations—though only 8 beers and 4 ciders will be available at opening. Their brewing area is quaint, housing a 2 barrel Colorado Brewing Systems winch-style brewhouse.
Batch Slapped brewhouse is from the now-defunct Colorado Brewery Systems
Brewer Jordan Oswald has been brewing for over 9 years, and got some professional production experience at Rocky Mountain Brewery. He describes his brewing style as using “big bold flavors” so the small system they have definitely allows for that.
Jordan and Brian mentioned that the building owners have already offered to help them move up to something bigger as they need to grow. If you do get a peek through the brewery door, you won’t see a ton of stainless at the moment, as fermentation is currently happening in HDPE plastic fermenters. We’ve seen Battle Mountain and Smiling Toad work wonders using that style of vessel before graduating to a stainless setup, so fingers crossed it works here as well.
Tucked behind the main bar is the cooler and brewhouse
Beer-wise, we had a chance to sip a few of the creations that will be on tap at opening, among them a Zucchini Bread Brown and a Pancake Blonde were the standouts. Oswald says with their small system, they hope to not have too many traditional flagships on at all times, but rather rotate through new recipes and bring back crowd favorites, something akin to the model Nano 108 and Local Relic do quite successfully. Flavor-wise, expect some unconventional options, alongside more traditional offerings.
Brewer Jordan Oswald gives us a tour of the space
Ciders will be brewed by Brian Shute, who’s been crafting ciders for a long-while now. We tried a Raspberry Mint cider during our visit, and while it didn’t blow us away, the carbonation was on point and it was surprisingly well balanced despite the mint, so we’re excited to try more at their opening. We talked about mango habanero flavored ciders as well as standard McIntosh Apple Ciders, so the full gamut will more than likely be available.
The cider-making room is fairly utilitarian at the moment.
The Lab, which is the furthest bar from the front door, will be Batch Slapped’s own test batch laboratory/social experiment, though you’ll have to be a Lab Rat mug club member to join in on the fun. On any normal day, members will be able to try all the small batches and vote on their favorite, and also get a larger pour of that favorite to take back to their seat (or drink there). Small batch “test-tap” beers have always been very popular at FH and other breweries around town, so I’m interested to see how their members-only approach will work.
Food at Batch Slapped won’t be a full sit-down affair, I’m afraid. With the limited kitchen space they’ve currently setup, Batch Slapped will have share-ables as the focus(think antipasto and deconstructed hummus), along with a small dessert menu to start. Their focus is definitely the beer and cider, so it’s nice to see that they didn’t leave the menu creation up to a major food supplier, by sourcing all their ingredients themselves. There are plans for the future to invite food trucks and possibly allow outside food as well, if people are looking to eat more of a full meal while there. With what they mention is a killer Chinese restaurant next door (Moon Star II) and other restaurants in the same complex, it’s a smart move.
So when can you go? After a few years of hard work, the grand opening for Batch Slapped is Friday February 4th at 5pm (alliteration much?). After opening, their weekly hours will be Wednesday through Monday. Make sure to check out their website for the most up-to-date hours.
Maybe we’ll see you there.
Riley Shute, Brian Shute and Jordan Oswald
