Lafayette brewery is all about the BIKES, BEER and (pin)BALL

By Steve Graham

Many mountain bikers are all too familiar with an endo, or an “end-over-end” crash. Others are likely curious about the funny-sounding term.

“People either know what it is and they can relate, and it leads to a funny story,” said Bob Lichens, co-owner of Endo Brewing Co. “Or they don’t have any idea what it is and it strikes an interest.”

The name welcomes all comers, just like the brewery, which also has a bike repair shop and a pinball arcade. Some folks just want a beer and a snack. Others have a couple of pints while they get their bikes tuned up. Still others come for the regular pinball tournaments, and down a brew to loosen up the flipper fingers.

The other Endo co-owner, Kevin Van Winkle, had been home-brewing since about 2000 and working at IBM. When he got laid off, he approached co-worker and mountain biking partner Bob Lichens about launching a business.

“I had been watching the brewery scene for a while from the sidelines, thinking maybe I could do it,” Van Winkle said.

Lichens had also been considering leaving IBM and opening a bike shop. Add up the two plans, throw in some pinball and they had Endo Brewing Co. Lichens said beer had always been a part of their group mountain biking outings anyway.

“Some of us only showed up for the ride because we knew there was beer at the end of it, so it was kind of a natural progression to combine the two,” he said.

They quickly found their ideal location in a Lafayette strip mall. They met at a coffee shop across the street and started eyeing the space, which was built as a muffler shop but housed a Crossfit gym at the time.

The garage doors still remain, letting in plenty of sunlight and adding to the relaxed, blue-collar atmosphere.

The first thing you see coming through the front doors at Endo is a wall of bike tools and a basic repair stand. Endo doesn’t sell bikes, and focuses on simple tune-ups and fast fixes.

“We really wanted to focus on quick turnarounds,” Lichens said. However, both owners think of Endo as a brewery first. “We’ve got a pretty loyal following on the cycling side of things, but the bike shop was always going to be second fiddle to the brewery,” Lichens said.

They gave more attention to the bike side starting in the past year, organizing group rides and hosting bike-to-work-day events.

A third, less obvious aspect of the business is the pinball arcade tucked into a side room. “These are all limited-edition and special edition games,” Lichens said. “Some of these, there are only two in the state.” A pinball dealer services and rotates the machines, and the brewery has hosted some nationally ranked pinball players itching to play the silver balls on some rare machines.

Endo’s biggest-selling beers — most of the names reflect the bike obsession — are the Hop Cadence IPA, the Post-Ride Ultra Kolsch and the CPR Irish Red, made with Irish yeasts and malts. “We want to be super-inclusive of everyone,” Van Winkle said. “I try to do a wide variety of styles. I also do the very best due diligence on every style and try to do it very authentically.”

Endo also tapped a hard seltzer this year, expanding its mission of welcoming everyone. “It’s all about inclusivity,” Van Winkle said.

Steve Graham is a freelance writer and former newspaper editor who likes taking his two young boys biking, hiking and brewery-hopping in northern Colorado.