Left Burbank International Airport early in the AM and despite a little turbulence into Denver, everything went smoothly and by early afternoon, I was in Colorado Springs sipping beer at Ivywild an old school converted into food and drink with a brewery (Bristol Brewing) and distillery on site.
Over a bacon and bleu burger, I tasted four beers. A pale ale, a fresh hop IPA, a nitro IPA and for a change a pumpkin ale too. All four were above average which is not bad for a brewery that I had never researched at all. So good that I got a big ol’ bottle of their saison, which also rang true. A good start to the trip.
Next up was a drive south to the Cristo de Sangre mountain range town of Westclifffe, where the beer choices were a tad slim but luckily the stovepipe cans are around and I found a reliable Colorado choice in 90 Shilling Ale and flagship IPA from Odell Brewing and also a not so mini whiskey from Laws Whiskey House.
