COLORADO

Four Corners
Mesa Verde
Police Run-In
UFO Tower
Police Museum
Trail Ride
Garden of the Gods
Largest Hercules Beetle
Celestial Seasonings Tea
Morrison Ghost Tour
Coors Brewing Co.
Off-Roading

Coors Brewing Co. Factory Tour

(Golden, Colorado)

Excerpts from Beth:
Roadchicks love beer. It's a plain and simple fact. We love brewery tours and finding new favorite beers (although to this day, nothing beats a Pyramid Hefeweizen). Colorado was an exciting choice for a trip because it boasts the "most microbreweries per capita."

So why, amidst our favorite microbreweries, did we make the trip to Coors? Well, how many people would know about Golden, Coloardo if it weren't for Coors? We learned that Golden was first-runner-up to be the state capital. . . guess when they lost that vote everyone needed to sit back and have a drink. . . ergo, Coors.

We were greeted at the entrance to the parking lot by a smiling chap who happily directed us to a parking spot and the shuttle bus stop. Yes, a shuttle bus. We got a quick tour around downtown Golden and then were taken to the brewery and issued our "ticket" (beer label). Even though it was the end of the day, a steady stream of tour groups passed through the building. Our tour was about 25 people strong and led by a baby-faced Coloradoan.

The tour started like any brewery tour: history, name-dropping, and a fine display of cans and bottles. The first surprise came during the requisite "how beer is made" section. We were told that the Rocky Mountain Spring Water was by far, the most important ingredient in the beers. Funny, we thought, Sam Adams always told us it was the hops. Kristy and I have determined that the only appropriate course of action is to have a fight to the death between Peter Coors and Jim Koch of Sam Adams.

The brewery is huge. . . we definitely got our exercise unlike some microbrewery tours. We also learned fascinating trivia. Did you know that Blue Moon, Killian's Irish Red, and Zima are all Coors products? Or that beer used to be an inappropriate beverage for banquets until Coors began marketing itself as a high-quality "banquet beer" or that if you put a Jolly Rancher in your Zima, it makes it taste fruity (our guide was giddy as he told us about this one).

We also got a chance to taste the freshest Coors Light ever (right from the tanks). I guess I don't have a very seasoned palette, because it tasted just like every other Coors Light I've had. The tour finished up in the tasting section. . . our favorite.

It looked just like your favorite bar: low tables for sitting, high tables for standing, snack machines full of pretzels and peanuts, and several frantic bartenders trying to serve everyone and make sure that we only got our allotted three samples. And of course, there was a gift shop packed with Coors/Blue Moon/Killian's/Zima merchandise. The verdict? Great tour, but I'll definitely stick to drinking my Pyramid, Magic Hat and Sam Adams.

http://www.coors.com/