Disclaimer: As a member of the Santa Fe Brewing/Pivot Cycles mountain bike race team, I get free beer. Somewhat frequently. I was, however, in no way obligated, requested, guilt-tripped or otherwise manipulated into writing this post. I did so of my own free will and, as always, all opinions are my own.

On Thursday, Macky and I made the trek down from Taos to visit Santa Fe Brewing Company in Santa Fe. We do this somewhat frequently when we’re in Taos because beer. Really good beer. We also like visiting Santa Fe Brewing because we always manage to talk someone into giving us a behind the scenes tour and feeding us freshly canned beer. There really is nothing quite like the taste of a beer, moments after it’s been poured into the can, before the lid is even on.

Thursday was extra special because they had ten pallets of IPA (approximately a gagillion cans) due to go out the next morning, so the canning machine was whirring at full speed. You’d think that they might not want visitors underfoot on one of their busiest days, but not so. Santa Fe Brewing employees have to be the friendliest, chillest people on earth. I think this might have something to do with the fact that their job all but requires them to drink delicious craft beer all day. But beer or no beer, they all seem to love their jobs. And they love telling us about their jobs. Win win.

In addition to the canning, they had already bottled 20,000 bottles that morning.

“20,000????” we asked our unofficial tour guide Matt. “How long did that take?”

“Oh, five hours.”

This should give you some idea of the machinery used in a brewery. If you’ve never had a chance to do a brewery tour and see these machines in action, you should. It’s wicked cool. Here’s a little video Macky caught of the canning machine:

Between their delicious beer and friendly attitude, it should be no surprise that Santa Fe Brewing Company is doing well. They currently produce about 30,000 barrels annually but have recently purchased new property and made plans to expand that number to 200,000 barrels in the next five to seven years. This means they’ll be expanding their reach and hopefully coming to a grocery store near you. Check out their beer locator to see where you can find them today.

Smiles and safety glasses –here I am with my Happy Camper IPA straight off the canning line!

THE DETAILS:

Where can I taste Santa Fe Brewing? At the tasting room attached to the brewery off of Highway 14 south of Santa Fe or the taphouse in Eldorado. More details here.

Which beers should I try? Obviously, you should try them all. However, my personal favorite is the classic Happy Camper IPA (pictured above) and the Stovepipe Porter is excellent if you like a darker, richer beer. And if you get a chance, the Chicken Killer Barley Wine has a really unique flavor, as does its cousin, the Kickin’ Chicken, a barley wine that is aged for 10 months in a bourbon barrel. However, if you’re a lightweight like me you should probably share, as these beers are 10% and 12% respectively.

Where can I buy this beer? Santa Fe brews are available in your local grocery store in NM, CO, TX, AZ, KS, OK, MO and NV. To find specific locations, check out the beer locator here.