Lots of beer festivals, music and spirits (of all kinds) coming this week

By the Thirst Team

Get Out of Town is our weekly roundup of recommended events across Colorado. For even more happenings, check out our events calendar.

Feast of Saint Arnold

The Feast of Saint Arnold returns to the Chapel of Our Savior in Colorado Springs on June 14. The event includes live music, craft drinks and more, all in honor of the patron saint of beer, who said “from man’s sweat and God’s love, beer came into the world.” Amen to that.

It's also a fundraiser for Westside CARES

Vail Craft Beer Classic

Breweries across Colorado will compete for the “Best Beer of Summer” awards at the ninth Vail Craft Beer Classic, coming to Vail Village on Friday and Saturday.

The Friday tasting runs from 4 to 7 p.m., with live music from Scott Rednor Band, food trucks and unlimited sips. Saturday’s edition has music from Kory Montgomery Band, and runs from 2 to 5 p.m.

VIP tickets also are available for each day, including 30 minutes of extra tasting and a welcome pint from the 2024 award winners.

Leftapalooza tribute concert showdown

Left Hand Brewing in Longmont hosts its annual Leftapalooza music festival on Saturday. The event is a battle of the bands among some of the area’s best tribute bands. Last year’s winner, a Linkin Park tribute band, will return as this year’s headliner at 7:30 p.m. The music begins at 11:30 a.m., with a ZZ Top cover band.

Other bands will play tribute shows to Coldplay, Led Zeppelin and Van Halen, Beastie Boys, AC/DC and Rage Against the Machine.

Crested Butte concert series begins

The summer Alpenglow concert series opens on Monday in Crested Butte Town Park. The shows run from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. every Monday through Aug. 11. The first evening is a local music showcase with Floyd Butler and Big Love Car Wash, starting at 5:30 p.m. On June 23, Paul Hoffman of Greensky Bluegrass will play, and the lineup also includes Holly Bowling, JD Clayton, Easy Jim, the Galentines and more.

The Summer Classics in the Courtyard classical concert series also launches this week, with Chantil and the Dukes of Art at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. The shows are every Tuesday through Aug. 12.

Cask Fest for Father’s Day

Plenty of distilleries and breweries are toasting fathers this weekend, but Hogshead Brewery in northwest Denver is really catering to the dads who love their pork and beer. The Father’s Day cask fest runs from noon to 6 p.m. Sunday, with 10 cask beers from Colorado breweries, plus smoked pork butt each hour. A limited number of $40 tickets are still available.

Hogshead also hosts live music with the Flat Out Five on Friday night, as well as their weekly mountain bike ride on Thursday, bottomless beermosas and rap brunch on Sunday and the weekly dart tournament on Monday night.

Another kind of spirits at Ballmer Peak

On Tuesday night, Ballmer Peak Distillery in southeast Lakewood will conjure a different kind of spirit. At 7:30, the Rocky Mountain Paranormal Research Society will talk about haunted Denver spots. The event is free.

Save the Date: Logan County Fair and Rodeo

It’s hard to beat the Logan County Fair and Rodeo on the northeastern plains for old-fashioned Western fun. The fairgrounds in Sterling host PRCA rodeo, carnival rides, mutton bustin’, a parade, demolition derby, a concert with Joe Dee Messina, and more from July 24 to Aug. 3.

As always, please send us your events and announcements. We’re happy to share them. If they don’t fit in the Get Out of Town column, we will add them to our events calendar.