New Belgium Brewery
Fort Collins

One of the most well known Colorado breweries, New Belgium Brewery stands just north of Fort Collins’ Old Town. New Belgium is easily recognized by its red and orange bicycle logo. This symbol is an excellent representation of what this company is all about - the Belgian bicycle adventure that spawned the brewery, its promotion of bicycles as primary transportation, and its easy going attitude towards doing business. Employees of New Belgium are trained to say “we were spawned on the seat of a bike.”



Frequented often by both locals and tourists, New Belgium Brewery is a definite stop for anyone wanting to get a feel for what Fort Collins is about. Their happy-go-lucky attitude, compassion towards the environment, community involvement, and love of beer coincide with the general interests of the people of Fort Collins.

Tours, including free samplings, are offered Tuesday through Saturday. This is a great way to experience what this place truly stands for when compared to other breweries. The tour lasts for about 30 minutes and each guide does an excellent job of transferring the ideals of New Belgium Brewery to its visitors.

Over the course of the tour, jokes, games, and stories are shared as well as five nice sized samples. Afterwards, if you’re still thirsty you can hang around and purchase a pint and even a growler of your favorite beer, such as Fat Tire or Sunshine Wheat. Tour reservations are not required, but would be a good idea if you only have limited time to spend in Fort Collins.

When you arrive at the brewery and enter the front doors you are now in the tasting room. This is where you will spend your time while waiting for your tour to begin, or where you will remain if not participating in a tour. Visitors are currently allowed five tasters during the tour and one either before or after the tour. You will be given a slip of paper with a list of the current beers on tap and at the bottom of this paper will be an empty box. It is then that you will be asked some sort of whacky, conversation starter, e.g., “What are three things that you want to do before you die?“ or “What did you want to be when you grew up?” This is especially fun with a group of people because before you are served your drink, all answers will be revealed. This activity sets the mood for your New Belgium experience.

Another "notorious" activity in the tasting room is filling out postcards. There is a variety of free and quite odd New Belgium postcards that can be filled out while at the brewery. A few random books and some offbeat decorations will surely also keep you entertained while you wait for the tour.

As explained earlier, New Belgium Brewery does its best to decrease car travel. Their parking lot is quite small for the amount of guests that the building can hold, but as all the locals know, there is always an empty space at the bike racks. Don’t worry, if you came without a bike the Fort Collins Bike Library is located in Old Town Square. Any adult with a valid form of I.D. and a credit/check card and any minor with parental consent can rent a bicycle for free from one hour to seven days.

If you’re still in the mood for more beer, then you’re in luck because Odell's Brewery is just a two minute bike ride away.

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