The Gilded Goat Brewing Company is a family owned Fort Collins micro brewery with its foundations in the European beer traditions and the influence of the Colorado beer culture. We treat our beer-making mission as a complementary blend of art and science using Colorado mountain water and fresh ingredients. Our local Colorado craft beer, like the goat, is adventurous, bold and balanced in its environment; comfortable on the edge.
Our Story
It is difficult to pinpoint a particular event or decision that led us to this point. It began with a Hoxmeier family adventure cruising Europe in a small motor-home, visiting pubs, guesthouses, and breweries across the continent and England. We loved pubs like the Black Swan, King's Arms, the White Horse and the Eight Belles. Pubs with atmospheres so rich and warm and inviting, and a culture that uses beer to bring the community together. Each pub had its own charm, its own story, its own distinct beer, and there perhaps the seed was planted, in the back of our minds, to one day create something similar.
In the years that followed we sampled a lot of great beer from pubs and breweries in Germany, Canada, Kenya, Ireland, Belgium and the U.S. Charlie, our head brewer and oldest son, was studying for a PhD in Microbiology when he began experimenting with all the different iterations of home brewing, from brewing on the kitchen stove with extract to building a 3-vessel mini-brewhouse in the garage. So that's when it got serious. Charlie continued to apply the science of beer-making to innovative styles right here in the Napa Valley of beer. Combined with Colorado water and fresh and innovative ingredients, our small batch approach led to some amazing beers with simple pleasures of quality, color, and flavor. And we began to believe more and more in what the author Isaac Asimov once said, that art and science are not mutually exclusive - they're two sides of the same coin, and must work together for each to be successful.
Eventually the perfect storm of interest, knowledge and passion came together. During one Belgian Quad-infused session on the driveway with family and friends, we began discussing the feasibility of creating the kind of experience we had in Europe - the inviting pub with terrific drinkable local brews served up by friendly, knowledgeable beer tenders. We challenge you to find a family team anywhere with as much energy, skill and dedication.
So, our Fort Collins micro brewery was born, influenced by the characteristics of the Colorado Mountain Goat; independent, bold, balanced, comfortable on the edge. We pooled up an investment, pulled together a team of really smart, hard-working people who are also passionate about making local Colorado craft beer that is adventurous and balanced. Golden beers that, like the Gilded Goat, are leaders of the herd.
Our Team
