From 5280.com By Riane Menardi Morrison & Staff

July 27, 2022

Over the past few years, many former Denver residents crossed city borders seeking suburban comforts such as spacious yards and lower housing costs. From 2020 to 2021, the population of Denver county alone declined by over 6,000 residents, while some of the fastest growing cities in the country in 2019 included Arvada and Highlands Ranch.

LUKI Brewery, Arvada

When Jeffrey Smith debuted Luki Brewery in July 2020, he set out to fill a void in west Arvada’s dining scene, which lacked spots to sip fresh suds, and honor his family’s circus history. His great-grandmother performed in the Ringling Bros. troupe under the stage name Mademoiselle Chloe, while his great-grandfather was a ticket taker for the traveling entertainment show. Smith honors their storied past through the brewery’s playful decor—a big-top tent hangs over the bar, and vintage posters line the walls—and rotating lineup of beers, which includes the Kettle Corn–inspired, caramel-zinged Poppin’ Off cream ale and the smooth, gently malty Monkey Business IPA. Smith kept the circus theme subtle (you won’t find any likenesses of clowns or glittery costumes anywhere) to ensure the venue would be more of a welcoming community gathering place than a gimmicky themed bar. We think the brewery’s steady stream of regulars and bustling ambiance is testament to his success. 14715 W. 64th Ave., Units A and B, Arvada —Patricia Kaowthumrong

New Image Brewing, Arvada

A collaboration radler with Lady Justice Brewing. A thiolized IPA (a recently christened subset of the hazy IPA) employing a powderized grape skin product called Phantasm. Stouts aged for years in bourbon and rye barrels. A strawberry-daiquiri-inspired sour. There’s always something, well, new at New Image Brewing, which launched its Olde Town Arvada taproom, with a kitchen, full bar, and dog-friendly patio, in 2016. The lineup is heavy on soft, fruity, crushable hazies you’ll want to bring home for backyard sipping. (The rad, hipster-pleasing can designs are simply a bonus.) And thanks to the beermaker’s newest brick-and-mortar addition—an expansive Wheat Ridge location, with a wood-fired pizza oven, that opened this past March—drinkers have even more opportunities to sample New Image’s creative, ever-evolving concoctions. 5622 Yukon St., Arvada

Resolute Brewing Company, Arvada

You can’t go wrong with one of the spot’s balanced and refreshing lagers (try the bright and lightly fruity Flatiron Dweller kölsch or the crisp, lemon-verbena-scented Italian pilsner), as well as more experimental brews like the Pyroraptor, a Bamberg-style smoked Helles made with beech-smoked German barley. If you’re in the northern ’burbs, save yourself a trek across town and head to the Arvada outpost instead. 18148 W. 92nd Lane, Ste. 100, Arvada

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