Briar Common Shares Pairing Knowledge and Brews at the Belgian Brew Fest

A Jefferson Park Denver neighborhood brewery and pub with a penchant for pairing, heads to the fest for a second time

Tell us about Briar Common. What’s the backstory?

In March 2013, Kent, my brother and business partner, gave me a call. I was living in Seoul, South Korea at the time and he said that he was ready to move on in his career. We kind of talked about what a small business would look like. We threw around a couple of ideas, and we’ve always had this passion for craft beer. So we went for it and spent the next 6 months formulating our business plan. We met some good people, and found a great location. The Jefferson Park neigborhood in Denver is central to a lot of other places, and a fairly young neighborhood. We’re thrilled to be in a place where we can have our regulars and take care of them. Our business model was originally set on the idea of pairing. That’s really where our passion lies, to give this table service to where there is always that explicit conversation of “Why don’t you try this beer paired with this dish?” We now walk the line where we offer refined entrees, but also with snack and sandwich offerings. So, instead of pairings every night, we have special events where people experience a 5-course meal.

So many beer festivals these days to promote craft breweries. Why Belgian Brew Fest?

With Belgian Brew Fest, we participated as a vendor last year after meeting Ryan and Charlie at another beer event earlier the same year. The thing that most intrigued us, and one of the reasons we’re heading back this year, is the smallness of the event. We get to have conversations with participants about the beer we’re brewing.

Taster trays, “intelligent” taps and more; how can events like Belgian Brew Fest and tech marketing apps like Spigot Labs’s Taste Tracker, help promote your brand to the growing audience of craft brew enthusiasts?

It’s interesting for us that you can use the data to see what may help you make decisions about your beers since you can see what’s tasted or not. What’s nice about it is that with a chip on each individual glass, we can see if we have repeat customers or success with our brews.

A lot of work goes into attending these festivals. What’ll make it worth the effort?

I think with any festival, it’s how well it’s organized, and the amount of support that the vendors get by being a part of the festival. There’s a lot of work in organizing the festival itself. With Belgian Brew Fest, because it’s Ryan and Charlie, it’s also about supporting them as friends. At the end of the day, it’s about broadening your brand and connecting with as many people as you can.

Brews from Briar Common to look forward to at the Fest

We’re taking our Belgian Dubbel, our Saison + Brett, and our dark sour. The Dubbel is 7.5% ABV content, and it has a dry finish. The Joyce + Brett is lighter in color with less alcohol content at 6.5% ABV. It has notes of stone fruits, pears, and it’s really earthy. The dark sour is our anniversary imperial stout grain bill, but kettle soured with the addition of soursop fruit at the end of fermentation.

Your personal favorite brew at the moment

Depending on the mood, I gravitate to different types of beer. I think deep down, though, I’m an IPA drinker at heart. IPAs and Pilsners.

Our annual Belgian Brew Fest is coming up April 28th. Get your tickets now before they sell out! 10+ breweries, food trucks, live bands, killer time!