Talented brewers from all over the United States will pack up their kegs and head to Denver, Colorado, for The Great American Beer Festival on September 21-23. There will be more than 500 craft breweries from all over the nation, pouring more than 2,000 different beers in over 100 different beer styles. With so many options, it’s impossible to try them all. To help you narrow down your options, here is a short list—that is by no means conclusive—of breweries that are serving up something a little different. 

Raíces, meaning roots in Spanish, is one of the few Latino-owned breweries in Colorado. Latinos own less than half a percent of all breweries in the US. That alone makes Raíces stick out. In such a competitive marketplace, owners José D. Beteta, Tamil Maldonado-Vega, who are spouses, and Martín D. Vargas leaned into that advantage. 

Homebrewing is a lot of trial and error, especially for the inexperienced. Collaboration helps with exponential knowledge gains. And camaraderie can save money, time, and heartache from big mistakes. Groups like Brewtubers, an online homebrewer club, allow members to exchange ideas and recipes and help each other out along their homebrewing journeys.