Since taking over our new space in the Aurora Arts district in 2021, we have been hard at work behind the scenes, eagerly awaiting the day we can open our doors to our friends and neighbors. Now that it’s 2023, we wanted to share the progress we’ve made.

During the summer of 2022, we were able to install a brand new 20 barrel brewhouse system. The new brewhouse was a significant upgrade in both size and quality from our Congress Park system. Our mash tun has automated rakes and grain-out, saving our brewers time and energy. Our system is also designed for very efficient water and energy usage, allowing us to recapture steam and hot water.

To keep up with our ever-growing distribution footprint and keep our taproom stocked, we needed to expand our brewing team. Adding a new brewer and a cellar team member to the crew helped us quickly increase our production and learn new techniques along the way.

Having 18,000 square feet of space opened up new packaging opportunities. Adding a depalletizer to the canning line brought over from our Congress Park location has greatly increased our efficiency. With the added storage space, we were able to switch Rare Trait into printed cans this year, which means we purchased 155,600 empty cans! Since receiving our cans in October 2022, we have already filled and sent 10% out into the market and to our taproom to-go fridge. Having such a tremendous amount of support behind one of the beers we have been brewing since the beginning means the world to us.

More space = more barrels. It’s no secret that we have a passion for barrel-aging, in wine and spirit barrels. Our new building allowed us to expand our collection of barrels, and the building is already overflowing with them. In 2022, we were lucky to acquire some rare barrels, resulting in fan-favorites Pappy Here Be Monsters with Vanilla and Here Be Monsters George T. Stagg, among many others. We’re already excited about the stouts that are resting in these barrels, and a unique new way that we’re planning to share some of them them with you.

When we moved to the new building, we took our two largest foeders with us. The two remaining at the Congress Park brewery are used exclusively for mixed fermentation projects, while the larger ones age all our lager releases in Aurora. We are looking forward to expanding our funky and wild offerings in 2023 by innovating with these styles through our Congress Park brewery.

Since getting settled, we have already started extending our community in the city of Aurora. As the most diverse city in the state of Colorado, we have an appreciation for the medley of other businesses in our neighborhood. Nestled between Mango House (a refugee resource center with several non-profits and an international food court), Banh & Butter (an Asian-French inspired eatery), and the Aurora People’s Building, we experience the richness of Aurora everyday.

As a neighborhood brewery, we can’t wait to make new friends in Aurora through our taproom community by providing an experience for all. Plans for the complete build out are underway, and we expect we will open our doors early next year. In the meantime, we have some exciting developments to share with you in the coming weeks.