Get creative with Colorado craft beer holiday gifts

Colorado breweries offer plenty of holiday gifts beyond the six-pack

By Steve Graham

You don’t need to go farther than your neighborhood craft brewery for all your holiday presents. Of course, you can always get their beer. I’d love to see one of these limited edition barrel-aged Gilded Goat brews Gilded Goat brews in my stocking, and I plan to gift myself a few more Hibernation Ales before they disappear along with the Elf on the Shelf at the end of the month. But breweries also have plenty of more creative gift ideas. Here are a few of my favorites.

Photo courtesy of Odell Brewing Co.

Odell ugly Christmas sweater

This time of year, Odell makes the Mountain Standard Black IPA, a dark and beautiful winter beer. On the other hand, it also sells a bright and ugly Christmas sweater that would be the hit of any office holiday party. It’s only available in the Fort Collins taproom. 

Great Divide also sells an ugly sweater featuring a yeti, of course, but I think the Technicolor Odell knit is even uglier. 

Great Divide skate deck

Instead of an ugly yeti sweater, save your money for a handmade Great Divide skate deck, made by Hegs Lab in Boulder. It has that beautiful GDBC logo with the outline of the Colorado Rockies, and a bottle opener for your Yeti imperial stout. But act fast, as there are only five of these boards available.

Photo courtesy of Upslope Brewing Co.

Upslope hammock

So maybe it’s not hammock season, but give someone an Upslope-branded double hammock and they can start daydreaming of cuddling in a hammock at the campsite and drinking some summery Citra Pale Ale. 

The hammock comes with a rope kit and can hold up to 400 pounds, even though it only weighs 20 ounces and compresses to the size of a grapefruit. The bag is also handy for carrying a book or a couple of beer cans.

Bristol Beer Soaps

If you enjoy this site regularly, you have probably also enjoyed a shower beer. Bristol Beer has a different way to incorporate beer into your shower.  

The Lotion Bar Café in Colorado Springs makes a wide range of soaps, balms and lotions with all kinds of interesting ingredients — including Laughing Lab and other Bristol beers. The Laughing Lab soap includes sandalwood, patchouli and ground apricot kernel seed. The Winter Warlock Oatmeal Stout soap has vanilla and, of course, steel cut oats. The Compass IPA has cinnamon, clove and cedar wood, and the Beehive Honey Wheat is made with local honey.

Photo courtesy of New Belgium Brewing Co.

Fat Tire hot sauce

Finally, New Belgium teamed up with the best local burrito shop in Fort Collins for a perfect stocking stuffer: Fat Tire Hot Sauce. Matador Mexican Grill put some of the town’s signature craft beer in every five-ounce bottle, along with lime juice, habanero peppers and garlic.