Local craft beers will begin flowing again at the corner of 7th Avenue and Sherman Street this weekend when a new spot, Out of the Barrel Taproom, turns on the faucets.
The bar will specialize in pouring beers from smaller and lesser-known breweries throughout the state, said Kyle Roche, who is opening Out of the Barrel with his wife, Samantha. “We’re looking for unique, small-batch stuff … and we’ll go anywhere in Colorado to find it.”
Out of the Barrel replaces three-and-a-half-year-old Counter Culture Brewery & Grille, which closed in March for renovations, according to a sign on the door, but never reopened. Counter Culture left behind all of its equipment, furnishings and supplies.
As a result, the Roches, who moved to Colorado a few years ago from northern California, didn’t need to do much to retrofit the space, at 205 E. Seventh Ave., to their needs. In addition, they are borrowing the name and concept for Out of the Barrel from a friend who owns four locations of the bar in Campbell, Los Gatos, San Carlos and Fresno – all in California.
Eventually, Roche said he may bring in someone to operate the kitchen and/or the brewing equipment that remains, but for now, he is focused on serving Colorado beers.
“We very much want to represent these brewery’s beers as if this was their own taproom,” he said, adding that he wants the taplines, glassware and other items “to be perfect when we serve it.”
So far, Out of the Barrel has signed up 25 breweries for its 30 taps, but Roche hopes to have a revolving roster of 60-80 breweries.
Out of the Barrel plans to open this weekend, pending permits and other items.