Highside Brewing’s Lift Line Barleywine Is 2026’s Top Wood-Aged Beer

Home to more than 400 breweries and the acclaimed Great American Beer Festival (GABF), Colorado has long earned its nickname as the State of Craft Beer. But GABF isn’t the state’s only major competition.

On Friday, January 23, the Colorado Brewers Guild (CBG) — a nonprofit trade association that promotes and supports independent craft breweries in Colorado through advocacy, education, and community building — announced the winners of its annual Colorado Brewers Cup. This year’s competition featured 772 beers across 29 categories, offering a snapshot of what’s resonating in the state’s brewing scene.

Notably, the Wood & Aged Beers category drew the highest number of entries, with 43 beers competing for medals.

The gold medal winner: Highside Brewing’s Lift Line Barleywine

Taking gold in the Wood & Aged Beers category was Highside Brewing’s Lift Line Barleywinean English-style barleywine aged for at least 23 months in Breckenridge Bourbon barrels.

Highside Brewing — which serves barbecue alongside its beers at locations in Frisco, Breckenridge, and Fairplay — named the beer for the queue to get aboard a ski chairlift. Head brewer Thomas Larsen says he has an affinity for barleywines, and Lift Line was one of the first recipes he developed for the brewery.

The brewery also earned a bronze medal in the Pale Malty Ales category for Kingdom Kolsch.

Small and mid-sized breweries of the year

Beyond individual beer categories, the competition also recognizes standout breweries.

This year, Small Brewery of the Year (producing up to 675 barrels annually) went to Glenwood Canyon Brewing Companya brewpub in Glenwood Springs that calls itself “Western Colorado’s most awarded brewery.”

WeldWerks Brewing in Greeley was named Mid-Sized Brewery of the Year (over 675 barrels annually). According to Carrie Wilson, communications manager of the CBG, these titles are calculated using a point system based on the number of medaled beers and the competitiveness of the categories in which they were earned. She also notes that brewery groups with multiple locations are evaluated based on medals won by each individual brewing location, rather than the brand as a whole.

Wilson says that Glenwood Canyon, which earned a gold and two silvers, and WeldWerks, winner of two golds and two silvers, exemplify the Colorado beer industry’s excellence in diversity, brewing everything from hop-forward ales to traditional lagers.

“Glenwood Canyon’s gold for Everflow (a helles bock) is very prestigious because it’s in the Pale Malty Lagers category,” a highly competitive field with 33 entries, Wilson says. “Traditional German-style lagers are notoriously unforgiving; there’s simply nowhere to hide brewing flaws. Winning here means perfect technical execution.”

WeldWerks, meanwhile, took the top two spots in the Strong & Imperial Hoppy Beers category with JuicyFish and Extra Extra Juicy Bits, respectively. The brewery also rose to the top of 35 entries in the Sour, Brett, & Wild Ales category with Grandma J’s Strawberry Rhubarb Pie, a limited-release Berliner weisse–style sour ale with lactose for sweetness.

WeldWerks owner and founder Neil Fisher says the bright, tart rhubarb balances the jammy strawberry character “with just enough graham cracker crust flavor to epitomize a decadent pie in a glass.” Wilson concurs: “Balancing that distinct lactic acidity with sweet adjuncts to create a refreshing ‘pastry sour’ is a true art form.”

Verboten’s medal sweep

Verboten earned the most gold medals in this year’s competition. Between its Brewing & Barrel Project location in Loveland and its North Brewpub location in Fort Collins, the brewery took home three golds, one silver, and one bronze.

“While taking home five medals is a rare achievement in a competition with nearly 800 entries, it is not entirely surprising given the high caliber of brewing we see from Verboten,” says Wilson.

The brewery’s name — German for “forbidden” — nods to its playful approach to the Reinheitsgebot (also known as the German Beer Purity Law), the formerly codified German purity law for beer. Under the Reinheitsgebot, beers could not be brewed with adjuncts such as fruit and rice.

At the Colorado Brewers Cup, Verboten’s adjunct-friendly philosophy was rewarded when Others in Darkness, a coconut vanilla imperial stout, took home gold in the Dessert or Pastry Stout category. Others in Darkness also earned gold in 2023 at both the U.S. Open Beer Championship and the World Beer Cup. “Our focus from day one has been exceptional beers that are full of flavor, crafted by people who love what they do,” says Verboten co-owner and COO Josh Grenz.

Ambassador of Craft Award

The competition also honors leaders within Colorado’s brewing community.

This year’s Ambassador of Craft Award — which celebrates community leadership — was presented to Tim Myers, founder of Denver-based Strange Craft Beer Company.

“Tim has spent the last two decades not just brewing great beer, but mentoring new brewers and actively lifting up everyone around him,” says Wilson.

Myers has been involved with the Colorado Brewers Guild for more than a decade, including serving on the board of directors and chairing the membership committee. “He’s a true pioneer and a pillar of our tight-knit brewing family in Colorado.”