Coopersmith’s Pub & Brewing, Fort Collins CO

This was a good choice 🙂 It’s smack in the middle of a bustling, upscale downtown area chock full of shops and restaurants, making parking a bit of a challenge, but it was worth it. The only thing I found odd was that people were willing to wait a half hour to get a table outdoors where it was 95º in the shade, but that worked for me, who likes to sit indoors where it’s cool!

I started, as usual, with a flight, although I was disappointed to find out that the Existential Porter had kicked (I figured I just had to try a beer with that name).

From left to right, then:

Poudre Pale Ale, 5.4%. It was good, but with a lower hop content than I expected (although I should have seen that coming as the IBU was just 24). It was well-balanced and easy-drinking, though.

Columbine Kolsch, 5.5%. This is the only one of the four I didn’t really care for. It was too bland for my taste – I prefer my Kolsches to have more flavor.

What-a-Melon, 5.4%. I tried this on a whim and actually rather liked it, although I don’t know that I could have done a full pint. It was fruity (watermelon) and tasty and fun.

Albert Damm Bitter, 5.2%. To my surprise, this was a very mild ESB but it was definitely well-executed and I could have drunk it all day. I almost had a follow-on pint of this one, but first, the food, a pretty-good reuben and an excellent salad:

The reuben was definitely in the top 50% of all that I’ve had, so I certainly enjoyed it, down to the last bite.

But finally, the pint (although this was a shorter pour because it was a 7% beer):

This is their Belgian Style Kriek Ale and the photo barely does the color justice. It’s fermented with wild yeast and cherries in oak barrels and is aged for two years. There’s a bit of a tartness to it, but overall, it’s just an incredibly pleasurable and smooth beer. I only wish I’d had room to squeeze in one more.