by Jen Reeder

Durango’s rumor mill switched into high gear early in 2012 when renowned local brewer Erik Maxson left Carver Brewing Co. after 12 years as head brewer (including seven as a partner). At 41, was he retiring? Planning to start a gallery featuring his artwork? Refining his skills at backyard games like washers and cornhole? Or would he fulfill the hopes of fans of his beer and open a brewpub of his own?

Beer lovers can rest easy: he’s chosen the latter. BREW Pub & Kitchen opens Thurs., March 7, at 117 W. College Ave.

BREW is the brainchild of Maxson and his wife Lainie (of Telegraph “Ad Aficionado” and “Haiku Movie Review” fame). The couple has years of restaurant industry experience. They met while working at Phantom Canyon Brewing Co. in Colorado Springs in 1996. Over the years, many of their vacations included travel to regional beer festivals like the Great American Beer Festival in Denver, or brewery tours in San Diego and the Pacific Northwest.

“Being a brewer, it’s extremely hard not to visit breweries on vacation,” Erik says.

Observations made from work and travel experiences helped the couple form a vision of what they hope will become a distinctive Durango institution.

“Our intention was to create and foster a place where people want to hang out,” Lainie Maxson says. “Where they can have a beer and great food in an atmosphere that feels like they’re at a friend’s house.”

Obviously, her husband’s beer is a big part of that equation. The tanks are prominently displayed, and can produce about 10 kegs of beer at a time.

“I love a brew day,” Erik Maxson says with a grin.

Three brand new, steel tanks, fresh from Vancouver, Wash., adorn the back wall at BREW. Owner Erik Maxson started brewing Feb. 19, and his first batch will be ready for sipping March 7./Photo by Steve Eginoire

While many microbreweries offer a beer selection distinguished by different beer colors (ambers, browns, etc.), BREW will have four to six of its beers on tap to highlight beer’s four main ingredients: malt, hops, water and yeast.

“So we will always have a beer on that highlights the malt quality, from a Scottish ale or a brown ale to maybe an Oktoberfest or a Marzen,” Erik says. “We will have a hoppy beer, whether it’s an American-style pale ale, or a double IPA – something where hops are the star.”

To highlight yeast, he’ll craft a Belgium-style beer or a Hefeweizen. In honor of water, he’ll brew beer with a lower alcoholic content of about 4 percent (but that has much more flavor than the featured ingredient).

“One of the first things I learned about beer was in order to make the best beer in the world, you have to start with the absolute best ingredients possible,” Erik says.

BREW will also offer guest beers from Colorado microbreweries, wine and spirits Unsurprisingly, beer has also made its way onto the menu in dishes like beer ice cream (“Brew Semifredo”). A lot of care has gone into developing the menu, which the owners want to feature both quality and affordability.

“‘Delicious’ is really our concept,” Lainie says.

And it won’t be hard to achieve, since the Maxsons hired Marcos Wisner as their head chef. The Durango native has been honing his skills in culinary school as well as in some of the country’s best restaurants in Austin, Texas (including Uchi, the city’s acclaimed sushi restaurant) and New York City’s Masa and Jean-Georges. So BREW offers more elevated pub grub than traditional offerings, such as seared sole with spaghetti squash, pumpkin seed and citrus-soy broth; and grilled chicken with guajillo chili, yogurt and bitter greens. Salads and small plates are also inventive, including the fried brussel salad with red onions, Granny Smith apples and cider vinaigrette; hand-pulled mozzarella curd with olive oil, sea salt, garlic and tomato bread; or the cured and fried pork belly with apple and barley caramel. Ingredients will be sourced locally as much as possible, according to Erik.

“The idea is that as the seasons change, as the offerings of the harvest change, so will our menu,” he says. “But there are some things we’ll keep on, like our hand-cut fries. The idea is to use Colorado potatoes and cut them in-house. We’re not going to open bags of frozen stuff and throw them in the fryer.”

Durango resident Chet Haring, who has been drinking Maxson’s beer for about a decade, says he is looking forward to BREW opening.
“I know there’s going to be some good beer available, and I think it’s great that Erik and Lainie are some local folks that are seeing their dream come to fruition,” Haring says. “The space that they chose is awesome – it’s been vacant for a long time and it’s great that they’re ultimately going to turn it into a new little hangout spot.”

Durango resident Jessica Denison sums up her support for the new establishment with: “I’m excited. It’s good beer. Period.”
Lainie says local support for the endeavor has been “amazing.”

“Every day I run into someone who asks: ‘When are you going to open? I can’t wait – I’m thirsty, I’m hungry! I miss Erik’s beer!’” she says.
Community members have also pitched in to help with construction or donate materials, such as wood scraps donated by local carpenters and artists for the bar, which features strips of wood of varying colors. (Erik also “donated” the tip of his left index finger while ripping the wood.) Work from local artists will grace the walls; Gunnar Conrad’s photography will be showcased for the opening.

“I feel like (Conrad) has what we’re looking for – he has an eye for the West that helps people to see what the lifestyle is out here without having anything kitschy or cliché,” Erik says.

In addition to supporting local artists, farmers and ranchers, the Maxsons hope to give back to the community by listening to requests, such as keeping the kitchen open later than Durango’s standard 9 p.m. BREW will initially be open from 11 a.m. – 11 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.

Erik says BREW’s space has been extensively remodeled since it was the infamous nightclub Solid Muldoon (and subsequently three other restaurants). For example, the front wall is essentially all windows to allow for views of Smelter Mountain and the train passing by. When locals hear about BREW’s location, they often share stories about when they were at Solids and “what they did too much of or whatnot,” he says.

“The place has memories of its own regardless of what colors we paint the walls,” he says. “Hopefully, when they come in, it’s somewhere new.”

BREW Pub & Kitchen will open Thurs., March 7, at 117 W. College Ave. For more information, call 259-5959 or visit www.brewpubkitchen.com.