Lone Tree Brewing Company, Lone Tree

Lone Tree Brewing Company, visited on 5/13  (http://www.lonetreebrewingco.com/)

Holly and I have visited Lone Tree Brewing Company on a number of prior occasions, but I had never sat down and put pen to paper (or finger to iPhone, as it were) as it relates to the brewery's beer offerings. LTBC holds a fairly special place in my heart as it was the location where I asked Holly's dad for her hand in marriage. Let's just say Sunday's visit was a little less stressful than that fateful visit back in February.

LTBC is yet another brewery operation posted up in a nondescript commercial strip, really close to Park Meadows but thankfully off the beaten path of other strip malls and PM Mall. The bar room is pretty sprawling with ample table spaces and a really big soft-L shaped bar. The tanks and fermenters are all visible, as is the general working space for those lucky employees who are regularly tasked with creating what I drink. There are a few TVs in the bar, a stack of games in the corner, and a popcorn machine to help wash their tasty beers down with something salty. Strike that though, and reverse it...Willy Wonka style.

Here's what we drank, this time. I've enjoyed every one of their flagship beers and the February-to-May carryover, Cherry Chocolate Stout, on prior visits:

Hoptree IPA - 80IBUs, 8.0%ABV; dark amber in color; very minimal head; light lacing; 'soapy' bubbles present; grassy on the nose; hoppy and citrusy, almost orange or tangerine smelling; great balance up-front; overall, heady grapefruit and smooth hop flavor; bitter and slightly piney; easy-going 8% abv beer...borderline sessionable; probably the best LTBC beer, although I'm always sympathetic to IPAs.

Hoptree IPA in foreground, with a line of yummy taps behind

Toots Oatmeal Stout - 31IBUS, 5.2%ABV; very dark colored...almost tar-looking; small head; light lacing; lightly sweet and oatmeal-y on the nose; nutty, almost coffee-pungent aromas; nutty on the front when drank; again, lightly sweet and cocoa smooth; good, well-balanced stout.

Das Bart Dunkelweizen - 15IBUs, 5.8% ABV; I originally ordered the Hefeweizen, which I've tried and liked on prior visits, but the keg was getting changed and the barkeep recommended this tasty number; great 1-inch head; nut-brown looking; smells a bit like a burnt banana; spicy bubblegum on the nose and mouth; kinda tastes like roasted banana bread in liquid form; hints of clove and all-spice; German-malt-laced Hefe, by all accounts; good beer!

I always enjoy my visits at LTBC, and while it's a bit far away from the city and well in to the suburbs, it's absolutely worth a visit. There's quality beer getting made here...and as far as I know, short of a few local restaurants, you can only get it on-site.

Elk Mountain Brewing, Parker

Elk Mountain Brewing, visited on 1/31/12  (http://www.elkmountainbrewing.com/)

After cancelling a gym membership in Parker (oh the irony), I felt the distinct need to visit the town's only brewery. Elk Mountain is a simple little brewpub tucked away in an obscure commercial strip in Parker. The place still manages to feel like a neighborhood bar. There's no food offered but there is a little popcorn machine, games and several mounted TVs for 'sports-watchin'. Elk Mountain, at about 4PM on a Tuesday, had a row of 8 or so men and women enjoying their brews. There's a blue-collar feel here despite the fact Parker isn't really all that blue-collar. The barkeep was friendly and I chatted up a man sitting next to me who's son works back east in small-arms training/physical security in MD. Small world.

I tried three beers, all of which were quite good. I walked out with a growler of the last one I tried, and after finishing the growler last night with Holly, vowed to return for a fill or two of the same beer. Or another...

Wild Wapiti Hefeweizen Wheat - 5.5abv; good yellow/golden hue; cloudy, but not full of sediment...I imagine this is not unfiltered; good quarter inch head, light lacing; as with many hefes, there is a VERY noticeable banana flavor; crisp taste; smells a little bitter, doesn't taste bitter at all; smells 'wheaty'; good beer, very easygoing; lack of overall complexity, but a great summer beer I'm sure. Despite always trying hefes, and usually never being overtly impressed, this was an impressive beer to session for the lighter-palate crowd.

Elk Horn Oatmeal Stout - 7.2abv; debated on this or Vanilla Caramel Porter for a second pint; this beer is dark; there is no head, almost no lacing; coffee and cocoa on the nose; strong oatmeal flavor; a touch of sweet that almost goes unnoticed; a little bitter on the back end; I'm curious about any hops used; hardy beer perfect for winter; I'm almost instantly full; overall a great stout flavor with an abv wallop you can't even taste. Good beer, great oatmeal stout.

Vanilla Caramel Porter - 6.3abv; I took town a 2 oz taster of this and LOVED it; ultimately left with a 64 oz growler; growler was a reasonable $5, fill of this winter season was $12...worth it! Good quarter-plus inch head; again, very dark; companion at the bar says 'dessert beer'; smells exceptionally like caramel and vanilla; great nose overall; heavy on caramel in flavor; despite the flavor and color, this beer isn't overly heavy; repeat sips really brings out the caramel; delicious beer. Not quite dessert, but certainly sweet and yummy, perhaps nonetheless an 'apertif beer'. H and I really enjoyed the growler...and I think I've found a beer lineup she can really get behind: slightly sweet, but definitely dark...she's a porter/stout girl.

Good stuff Elk Mountain...I'll be back for a growler fill soon!