Fresh off the announcement that Melvin Brewing’s coming to town, we’re following that up with more big news for all you hop heads out there. This time it’s the arrival of La Cumbre Brewing, courtesy of Crooked Stave Artisans. La Cumbre’s an IPA powerhouse hailing from Albuquerque, NM and they’re set to hit our market on February 8th.

A little run down of the beers that will be available next week…

First up is La Cumbre’s signature beer, Elevated IPA, a 7.2% ABV, 100 IBU beauty that took Gold for American Style IPA at the prestigious Great American Beer Festival in 2011 and Bronze at the World Beer Cup in 2012. This is an everyday drinker, and will surely find its way into your heart and fridge if you love excellent IPA’s.

Malpais Stout rings in at 7.5% ABV, 60 IBUs, and is rich, roasty malt heaven. It has also taken home some impressive hardware, including GABF Silver in 2011 and WBC Silver in 2012 for Foreign-style Stout.

Also landing next week is Red Ryeot. a 6.5% ABV, 75 IBU Rye IPA. Per La Cumbre “Rich caramel and toasted malts team up with flaked rye and march to the beat of a big but balancing bitterness only to be overtaken by an onslaught of American hop aroma and flavor.”

Elevated, Malpais and Red Ryeot will hit here in both kegs and 16 oz. cans. Don’t fret if the first round of kegs dries up quickly. Over the next few months, expect to see more La Cumbre taps showing up and eventually becoming available year-round.

A little further down the road we expect to see 22 oz. bombers of Project Dank, an ever-changing Double IPA, where each recipe will be different, with new hops and exciting new flavors. Anything more than that, we can’t confirm at this time, however, previous special releases include La Negra Imperial Stout, Tres Padres Tripel, a Rye Barrel Aged version of Red Ryeot called Ryeot on Rye, and Fievre d’Abricot Apricot Saison. Time will tell…

Needless to say, La Cumbe likes to keep things interesting and delicious. The brewery’s been around for a little more than five years and has seen tremendous growth in the last two years, allowing them the opportunity to expand distribution into Colorado. As a Albuquerque native, I am unbelievably stoked to have easier access to these great brews and I believe your palate will agree!

By: Matt Morris