A Review: Grimm Brothers Brewhouse beer tasting at Pourhouse Bar & Grill

Last Tuesday, we attended a free beer tasting at Pourhouse Bar & Grill in Loveland, Colorado. The beer in question was that of the Grimm Brothers Brewhouse, currently brewed by the owners in their garage.

The Grimm Brothers Brewhouse was seeking feedback on their brew, and what better way to get the public to participate than by offering free beer.

We arrived at 7 p.m., planning to have dinner before the main event. Promptly sat, we ordered a round of  Left Hand  brewery beers and settled into our dinner. While Ryan and I ordered hamburgers, our friends went for the special, a bratwurst made special for the occasion. Despite the over 200 people in attendance, service at the Pourhouse was actually fairly good.

The Grimm Brothers aren’t brothers at all, and in fact, the two founders met only a handful of years ago through the Liquid Poets home-brew club in Fort Collins. Don Chapman and Aaron Heaton decided to go into the beer brewing business after winning local and national home brew contests. They plan to open a brewery in downtown Loveland, Colorado in 2010.

Before the beer was served, each table received a pile of feedback cards. The cards had the name of each beer to be tasted and an area to write down opinions of the beer and rate them on a scale of 1 to 5.

As their name suggests, the brewers specialize in German style beers, and they name each beer after a famous Grimm Brothers Fairytale.   The night got underway with heavily laden trays of Iron Henry Kolsh.  

While  I do know a thing or two about beer, I do not  claim to be a beer aficionado. However, I will share with you my thoughts on each of the Grimm Brothers Brewhouse beers served that evening. Other people may have differing opinions, and if so, I’d love to hear them.

Iron Henry Kolsh – To me, this beer had a sort of honey taste and reminded me of Mead. I gave it 3 out of 5.

Rumpelstiltskin Hefewiessen – I am a big fan of Hefewiessen beer. This one had a strong banana flavor with a touch of orange and a lingering background taste of cloves. I liked it a lot. I gave this beer a rating of 4 out of 5.

Seven Eights Roggenbier – I felt this one was rather non-descript, but Ryan thought it was a good “sipper” beer. Our friend Doug absolutely loved the name and continued to say “Roggenbier” throughout the rest of the night.

13^th Door Munich Dunkel – This one had a roasted, nutty flavor. And I thought it was an excellent winter beer. For some reason (perhaps it was the beer), I forgot to write down what rating I gave this beer, but I think I gave it a 3.5, even though that wasn’t an option on the card.

Big Bad Wolf Altbier – The Grimm Brothers Brewhouse blended both American and German hops in this beer and at first sip I didn’t care for it, but it grew on me. Our table of four declared this to be their favorite beer, though I still preferred the Hefewiessen, I gave this beer a 4 out of 5.

All and all, this was a great night at the Pourhouse Bar & Grill and I think the Grimm Brothers Brewhouse has a bright future in Colorado. To keep an eye on their progress, check out their Web site at www.GrimmBrothersBrewhouse.com.    

The Pourhouse Bar & Grill are avid supporters of locally brewed beer and plan to offer a Grimm Brothers Brewhouse beer on tap, just as soon as possible.

Visit the Pourhouse online at www.pourhousebarandgrill.com.

Did you attend this tasting or are you familiar with Grimm Brother’s beer? If so, please leave your thoughts!