How to Brew Your Own Beer Tour at Great Divide Brewing Denver

Great Divide Brewing Company in Denver, Colorado, is more than just a craft breweryits a pilgrimage site for beer enthusiasts, homebrewers, and curious newcomers alike. While many visit to sample bold stouts, hop-forward IPAs, and barrel-aged specialties, few realize that Great Divide offers a unique, immersive experience: the opportunity to learn how to brew your own beer through a guided, hands-on brewery tour. This isnt a passive tasting session. Its a deep dive into the science, art, and tradition of craft brewing, designed to equip you with the knowledge and confidence to replicate the process at home. Whether youre a seasoned homebrewer looking to refine your technique or a complete beginner intrigued by the alchemy of malt, hops, yeast, and water, this tour transforms curiosity into competence. Understanding how professional brewers like Great Divide craft their award-winning beers provides invaluable insight into ingredient selection, fermentation control, and flavor balancingall critical to brewing exceptional beer at home. This guide will walk you through every phase of the tour, from preparation to post-tour application, ensuring you leave not just with a full glass, but with a full understanding of how to brew your own beer, the Great Divide way.

Step-by-Step Guide

To fully benefit from the How to Brew Your Own Beer Tour at Great Divide Brewing Denver, preparation and engagement are key. This step-by-step guide ensures you maximize every moment of the experience, turning observation into actionable knowledge.

1. Book Your Tour in Advance

Great Divides brewery tours are popular and often fill up weeks ahead, especially during peak seasons like summer and around holidays. Visit the official Great Divide Brewing website and navigate to the Tours & Tastings section. Select the Brew Your Own Beer Tour option, which is typically offered on select weekdays and weekends. Choose your preferred date and time, then complete the reservation with payment. Most tours accommodate 812 guests, ensuring personalized attention. Confirm your booking via email and note the meeting locationusually the main taproom at 2050 Arapahoe Street, Denver, CO. Arrive 15 minutes early to check in and settle in.

2. Prepare Mentally and Physically

Before arriving, mentally prepare to engage with technical concepts. Review basic brewing terms like mashing, lautering, boiling, hopping, fermentation, and carbonation. Familiarize yourself with common beer styles Great Divide producessuch as Titan IPA, Yeti Imperial Stout, or Hercules Double IPAso you can connect what you hear to flavors youve tasted. Physically, wear comfortable shoes; the tour involves walking on concrete floors and navigating elevated catwalks. Avoid wearing strong perfumes or colognes, as they can interfere with aroma evaluation. Hydrate well and eat a light meal beforehandtasting multiple beers on an empty stomach can lead to discomfort.

3. Arrive and Check In

Upon arrival, check in at the front desk with your confirmation code or name. Youll be greeted by a certified brewing guide who will provide a brief orientation. Youll receive a branded tasting glass, a tour booklet with brewing diagrams, and a small notepad. This is your personal brewing journal for the day. The guide will also explain safety protocols, including staying behind marked lines near fermenters and avoiding contact with hot surfaces or moving equipment.

4. Tour Begins: The Malting and Milling Process

The tour starts in the dry goods area, where grain is stored. Your guide will explain the importance of base maltstypically two-row barleyand specialty malts like caramel, chocolate, or roasted barley. Youll see the grain mill in action, where barley is crushed to expose the starchy interior without turning it into flour. The guide will demonstrate how the crush size affects extraction efficiency and wort clarity. Ask questions: Why do we avoid over-milling? How does malt variety influence color and flavor? Take notes on the ratios used for popular beers like Yeti, which may use 80% pale malt and 20% specialty grains. This is your first insight into recipe formulation.

5. The Mash Tun: Extracting Sugars

Next, move to the mash tuna large, insulated vessel where crushed grain is mixed with hot water. Here, enzymes convert starches into fermentable sugars. Your guide will explain the critical temperature range: 148158F (6470C). Lower temperatures produce more fermentable sugars, resulting in drier, lighter beers; higher temperatures create more unfermentable sugars, leading to fuller-bodied beers. Great Divide often mashes at 154F for balanced beers. Watch as the mash is stirred with a paddle to prevent dough balls. Youll learn how mash thickness (water-to-grain ratio) impacts efficiencytypically 1.251.5 quarts per pound of grain. Take note of how long the mash lasts (usually 6090 minutes) and how pH is adjusted with food-grade lactic acid or calcium chloride to optimize enzyme activity.

6. Lautering and Sparging: Separating Wort from Grain

After mashing, the liquid (now called wort) is drained through a false bottom in the mash tun. This is lautering. Your guide will explain how the grain bed acts as a natural filter. Then comes spargingrinsing the grain with hot water (168170F) to extract remaining sugars. Great Divide uses a batch sparge method for consistency, but some breweries use fly sparging. Understand the trade-offs: batch sparging is faster and less prone to tannin extraction, while fly sparging yields higher efficiency. Youll see the wort flow into the boil kettle, its color deepening as its transferred. Observe how the wort is filtered through a strainer to remove hop debris and grain husks. This step is crucial for clarity in the final product.

7. The Boil: Hopping and Sanitation

In the boil kettle, the wort is brought to a rolling boil for 6090 minutes. This is where hops are added in stages. Your guide will break down the three types of hop additions: bittering (early, 60+ minutes), flavor (mid-boil, 1530 minutes), and aroma (late, 05 minutes). For example, in Titan IPA, Great Divide uses Columbus and Centennial hopsbittering at 60 minutes, flavor at 20, and aroma at 5. Youll smell the volatile oils released as hops are added. Learn about IBUs (International Bitterness Units) and how theyre calculated based on alpha acid content and boil time. Also note how the boil sterilizes the wort and drives off unwanted compounds like DMS (dimethyl sulfide). The guide may show you how they use a whirlpool after boiling to separate hop trub before cooling.

8. Cooling and Aerating the Wort

After boiling, the wort must be cooled rapidly to yeast-pitching temperatures (usually 6572F for ale yeasts). Great Divide uses a plate heat exchanger, which cools wort from 212F to 68F in under 10 minutes. This prevents contamination and preserves delicate hop aromas. Once cooled, the wort is transferred to a fermenter, where oxygen is introduced via a sterile air stone. Oxygen is critical for yeast health and reproduction. Your guide will explain why over-aeration can lead to off-flavors and under-aeration can stall fermentation. You may even get to use a handheld dissolved oxygen meter to see the readings in real time.

9. Yeast Pitching and Fermentation

This is the heart of brewing. Great Divide uses proprietary yeast strains developed over decades. Youll see how they propagate yeast in a laboratory setting before pitching it into the fermenter. For ales, they often use their house strainsimilar to Wyeast 1056 or White Labs WLP001known for clean, neutral profiles that let hop and malt shine. Youll learn how to calculate yeast cell counts and the importance of pitching rates: 0.75 million cells per milliliter per degree Plato for ales. Watch as the yeast is gently poured into the fermenter, followed by a gentle stir to distribute evenly. The fermenter is sealed with an airlock, and fermentation begins within hours. Your guide will explain the three phases: lag (yeast acclimation), exponential (sugar consumption), and stationary (flocculation and cleanup). Youll also learn how temperature control is maintained using glycol jacketscritical for avoiding esters or fusel alcohols.

10. Conditioning, Carbonation, and Packaging

After primary fermentation (57 days), beer is transferred to a conditioning tank for 13 weeks. This allows flavors to mature and yeast to settle. Great Divide often cold-crashes their beerchilling it to near-freezing to encourage yeast and protein sedimentation. Then comes carbonation. Youll learn the difference between natural carbonation (priming with sugar) and forced carbonation (injecting CO2 under pressure). Most commercial breweries, including Great Divide, use forced carbonation for consistency. Finally, the beer is filtered (if needed), then packaged into kegs or bottles. Youll see the canning line in action, where nitrogen is flushed into cans to prevent oxidation. This step is vital for shelf stability and flavor preservation.

11. Tasting and Recipe Deconstruction

The tour concludes in the taproom with a guided tasting of 46 beers, including a special batch brewed that day. Your guide will walk you through each beers flavor profile, aroma, mouthfeel, and finish. Then comes the most valuable part: deconstructing the recipe. Youll receive a printed sheet showing the exact grain bill, hop schedule, yeast strain, and fermentation parameters for one of the beers you tasted. For example, you might learn that Hades (a barrel-aged barleywine) uses 12% crystal 120L malt, 2.5 oz of Warrior hops at 60 minutes, and a wine yeast strain for complex esters. This is your blueprint for homebrewing. Ask questions: Can I substitute this malt? What if I use a different yeast? Your guide will help you adapt the recipe for a 5-gallon batch.

12. Post-Tour Action Plan

Before leaving, request a copy of Great Divides Homebrewers Starter Kit guideavailable as a downloadable PDF or printed handout. It includes conversion charts, sanitation protocols, and a checklist for your first batch. Make a plan: within one week, purchase your ingredients and equipment. Use the recipe you received as a template. Schedule your first brew day. Keep your tour notes handy. This isnt just a memoryits the start of your brewing journey.

Best Practices

Successful homebrewing isnt just about following a recipeits about mastering consistency, cleanliness, and attention to detail. The practices observed at Great Divide are industry standards for a reason. Adopting them ensures your beer improves with every batch.

Sanitation Is Non-Negotiable

Every piece of equipment that touches post-boil wortfermenters, airlocks, siphons, bottlesmust be sanitized. Great Divide uses Star San, a no-rinse acid sanitizer that kills 99.9% of microbes in 30 seconds. Never use soap or bleach unless thoroughly rinsed; residues can ruin flavor. Sanitize everything twice: once before use and again before filling. Even a single contaminated batch can ruin months of effort.

Control Fermentation Temperature

Yeast is sensitive. Fermenting an ale at 75F instead of 68F can produce banana-like esters; fermenting a lager at 60F may stall. Great Divide uses temperature-controlled rooms and glycol jackets to maintain 1F precision. At home, use a fermentation chambera refrigerator with a temperature controlleror a brew belt. Monitor with a digital thermometer. Consistency is more important than perfection.

Measure Everything

Great Divide doesnt guess. They use scales, hydrometers, and refractometers to measure gravity, pH, and volume. For homebrewers, this means weighing grains, measuring water volumes, and recording original and final gravity. A hydrometer reading of 1.050 OG and 1.010 FG tells you your beer is ~5.3% ABV and fully fermented. Without measurements, youre brewing blind.

Use Fresh Ingredients

Hops lose potency after 6 months. Malt can go stale. Yeast has a shelf life. Great Divide receives hops in nitrogen-flushed vacuum packs and stores them at 34F. Buy hops in small batches, store them in the freezer, and use them within 6 months. Buy liquid yeast from reputable suppliers and pitch within 3 months of manufacture. Dry yeast is more forgiving but still best used fresh.

Keep Detailed Records

Great Divide maintains digital logs for every batch: grain weight, water volume, boil time, hop additions, yeast strain, fermentation temps, and tasting notes. Create your own brewing journaldigital or paper. Note what worked, what didnt, and why. After three batches, patterns emerge. Youll start to understand how changing one variable alters the outcome.

Patience Pays Off

Great Divide doesnt rush beer. Even their flagship IPA ages for 1014 days after fermentation. Rushing to bottle or keg leads to under-attenuated beer, off-flavors, or gushing bottles. Let yeast do its job. Wait a week after fermentation ends before packaging. Condition bottles for 23 weeks. Good beer cant be hurried.

Learn to Taste Critically

Great Divides brewers taste beer daily. Train yourself to identify flavors: diacetyl (buttery), acetaldehyde (green apple), phenols (medicinal), sulfur (rotten egg). Use the Beer Flavor Wheel as a reference. Taste your beer cold and at room temperature. Compare it to commercial examples. Over time, youll recognize flaws and fix them before they become problems.

Tools and Resources

Equipping yourself for homebrewing doesnt require a commercial brewery. With the right tools and trusted resources, you can replicate Great Divides quality in your garage or kitchen.

Essential Equipment

Start with a 5-gallon brewing kit, which typically includes:

• Large brew kettle (810 gallons, stainless steel)
• Mash tun (a cooler with a spigot and false bottom)
• Wort chiller (immersion or counterflow)
• Fermenter (food-grade plastic bucket or glass carboy)
• Airlock and stopper
• Siphon and tubing
• Bottling bucket with spigot
• Bottle capper and caps
• Sanitizer (Star San or iodophor)
• Hydrometer and test jar
• Thermometer
• Long-handled spoon

Optional upgrades: refractometer, temperature controller, kegging system, and CO2 tank.

Recommended Ingredients

Use high-quality, fresh ingredients:

• Malt: Briess, Weyermann, or Great Western for base and specialty malts
• Hops: Yakima Chief Hops, Hopsteiner, or directly from Great Divides suppliers (Centennial, Cascade, Columbus, Chinook)
• Yeast: White Labs, Wyeast, or Fermentis dry yeast strains
• Water: Filtered or reverse osmosis water; adjust mineral content with brewing salts (calcium chloride, gypsum)

Software and Digital Tools

Modern brewing relies on software for precision:

• Brewfather: Recipe builder, logging, and brewing calendar
• BeerSmith: Advanced recipe formulation and brewing calculations
• YeastCalc: Calculates yeast pitching rates
• WaterCalculator: Adjusts mineral profiles for different beer styles

These tools integrate with your tour notes, allowing you to input Great Divides recipes and tweak them for your system.

Books and Online Resources

Deepen your knowledge with these trusted sources:

• How to Brew by John J. Palmer (the homebrewers bible)
• The Complete Joy of Homebrewing by Charlie Papazian
• Brewing Classic Styles by Jamil Zainasheff and John Palmer
• Homebrew Talk Forum: Active community for troubleshooting and advice
• BJCP Style Guidelines: Understand beer style parameters
• Great Divide Brewing Blog: Behind-the-scenes insights and brewing tips

Local Resources in Denver

Denver is a homebrewers paradise. Visit:

• Denver Homebrew Supply: Located near the airport; offers classes and ingredients
• Colorado Brewshed Alliance: Connects brewers for group events and competitions
• Denver Homebrew Club: Monthly meetings and judging sessions

Many local shops host Brew Your Own nights where you can brew alongside experienced brewers using Great Divides recipes as inspiration.

Real Examples

Understanding theory is one thing. Seeing it applied is another. Here are three real examples of beers you might taste on the Great Divide tourand how to recreate them at home.

Example 1: Titan IPA (Recreated for 5-Gallon Batch)

Original Specs: 7.5% ABV, 75 IBUs, 22 SRM

• Grain Bill: 11 lbs 2-row pale malt, 1 lb crystal 60L, 0.5 lb cara-pils
• Hops: 1.5 oz Columbus (60 min), 1 oz Centennial (15 min), 1 oz Centennial (5 min), 2 oz Centennial (dry hop, 7 days)
• Yeast: White Labs WLP001 California Ale
• Water: 5.5 gallons with 2g gypsum and 1g calcium chloride
• Mash: 154F for 60 min
• Boil: 75 min
• Fermentation: 68F for 10 days, then cold crash to 38F for 3 days

Homebrewer Tip: Use a hop bag for dry hopping to avoid clogging the siphon. Add dry hops after primary fermentation ends. This beer should be consumed within 3 months for peak hop aroma.

Example 2: Yeti Imperial Stout (Recreated for 5-Gallon Batch)

Original Specs: 9.5% ABV, 80 IBUs, 40 SRM

• Grain Bill: 12 lbs 2-row pale malt, 1.5 lbs chocolate malt, 1 lb crystal 120L, 0.5 lb roasted barley, 0.5 lb black patent malt
• Hops: 2 oz Magnum (60 min), 1 oz Willamette (15 min)
• Yeast: Wyeast 1056 or Safale US-05
• Water: 5.5 gallons with 3g gypsum and 1g calcium chloride
• Mash: 156F for 75 min
• Boil: 90 min
• Fermentation: 6870F for 14 days, then age 46 weeks at 55F

Homebrewer Tip: This beer benefits from extended aging. Bottle condition with 5 oz corn sugar. Store upright for 3 months. Flavors of dark chocolate, coffee, and molasses develop over time. Consider adding vanilla beans or oak chips during secondary for complexity.

Example 3: Hades Barrel-Aged Barleywine (Recreated for 5-Gallon Batch)

Original Specs: 11.5% ABV, 60 IBUs, 20 SRM

• Grain Bill: 14 lbs 2-row pale malt, 1.5 lbs crystal 80L, 1 lb Munich malt, 0.5 lb torrified wheat
• Hops: 2 oz Warrior (60 min), 0.5 oz Saaz (10 min)
• Yeast: Wyeast 3787 Trappist High Gravity
• Water: 6 gallons with 1g gypsum
• Mash: 158F for 90 min
• Boil: 120 min
• Fermentation: 70F for 10 days, then transfer to bourbon barrel for 6 months

Homebrewer Tip: If you dont have a barrel, use 1 oz of medium-toast oak cubes soaked in bourbon for 2 weeks. Add to secondary fermenter. This beer should be aged for at least 1 year. Flavors evolve from caramel and toffee to vanilla, tobacco, and whiskey.

FAQs

Do I need prior brewing experience to join the tour?

No. The How to Brew Your Own Beer Tour is designed for all levelsfrom complete beginners to experienced homebrewers. Guides tailor explanations to your knowledge base, ensuring everyone walks away with practical insights.

How long does the tour last?

The tour typically lasts 90 to 120 minutes, including the tasting session. Plan for an additional 30 minutes for questions and purchases.

Can I bring my own equipment to brew on-site?

No. The tour is observational and educational. Youll learn techniques, but brewing is done by Great Divide staff. However, you can purchase starter kits at their gift shop to brew at home.

Is the tour suitable for children or non-drinkers?

Minors are permitted on tours but cannot participate in tastings. Non-drinkers are welcome and will still benefit from the educational content. Non-alcoholic samples are available upon request.

What if I cant attend the tour in person?

Great Divide offers virtual brewery tours and online brewing classes through their website. While not as immersive, these include video walkthroughs of each brewing step and downloadable recipe guides.

Can I use Great Divides recipes for commercial brewing?

No. Their recipes are proprietary and protected under intellectual property law. However, they are excellent learning tools for homebrewers to understand professional techniques and flavor profiles.

How do I store my homebrewed beer?

Store bottles upright in a cool, dark place (5055F). Avoid temperature fluctuations and direct sunlight. Most ales are best consumed within 36 months; stouts and barleywines can age for 13 years.

Whats the most common mistake homebrewers make?

Skipping sanitation. Even a small amount of bacteria or wild yeast can turn a great batch into vinegar or swamp water. Always sanitize everything that touches post-boil wort.

How do I know when fermentation is complete?

Take gravity readings 23 days apart. If the reading stays the same for two consecutive days, fermentation is done. Dont rely on airlock activityits not a reliable indicator.

Can I replicate Great Divides water profile at home?

Yes. Use a water testing kit to analyze your tap water, then add brewing salts to match their mineral profile. Great Divide uses a high-calcium, low-sulfate profile for IPAs and a balanced profile for stouts. Online calculators can help you adjust accordingly.

Conclusion

The How to Brew Your Own Beer Tour at Great Divide Brewing Denver is more than a tourits a masterclass in the craft of beer. From the precise crush of malt to the quiet hum of fermenting yeast, every step reveals the science and soul behind exceptional brewing. You dont just taste beer on this tour; you learn to think like a brewer. Armed with the knowledge of ingredient ratios, temperature control, yeast management, and sanitation practices observed at one of Americas most respected breweries, youre no longer a passive consumeryoure a creator. The recipes you receive, the techniques you witness, and the questions you ask become the foundation of your own brewing journey. Whether you brew your first batch next week or refine your process over years, the lessons from Great Divide will guide you. Brewing is a craft that rewards patience, precision, and passion. And now, with the insights from this tour, you have everything you need to begin. So grab your notebook, your ingredients, and your fermenter. The next great beer you taste? It might just be the one you brewed yourself.