Transcript Wheat Ridge
WHEAT RIDGE 1.17.12 January 17, 2013
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A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourwheatridgenews.com
Jefferson County, Colorado • Volume 29, Issue 30
Rick Zanker, brewmaster at Rickoli’s, makes adjustments on a liquor tank while brewing three kegs of rye stout Jan. 11 in Wheat Ridge. Photos by Andy Carpenean
New brewery hops into town Veteran brewmaster opens site offering craft beers By Sara Van Cleve
svancleve@ourcoloradonews.com Colorado has one of the highest numbers of microbreweries per capita among all 50 states, according to the Brewers Association, and now Wheat Ridge can be added to the list of Colorado cities making that possible. Wheat Ridge is now home to Rickoli’s, 4335 Wadsworth Blvd., a craft beer microbrewery that opened Nov. 28. “We really like the area,” said Rickoli’s co-owner Deb Zanker. “It’s close to where our families are living, and there was a need for a small craft brewery in the area. We like the neighborhood a lot.” And the neighborhood likes Rickoli’s a lot, too. “The beer has been really well received,” Zanker said. “It’s really been attracting the local neighborhood.” Rickoli’s has more than 10 beers available, all of which are original recipes created by co-owner and brewmaster Rick Abitbol. The brewery offers several variations of IPAs, which have a hoppy flavor. Zanker said one of the most popular brews they offer so far is the Delta Pale Ale,
the first in the brewery’s single-hop pale ale series. Each batch of the Delta Pale Ale is brewed with a different hop variety, giving each brew a different taste. Even though Rickoli’s is new the neighborhood, Abitbol is a veteran brewmaster. Abitbol began his venture into brewing 15 years ago with a home brew kit. Though his first try didn’t turn out quite as well as he planned, Abitbol didn’t give up and tried again with a Mr. Beer kit. “I brewed it and it was really good,” he said. “I was hooked.” Not long after, Abitbol entered one of his IPAs into the state fair’s beer competition and was a finalist for the best of show. After he was hooked on homebrewing, Abitbol took his passion into the big leagues and worked for several breweries in Colorado, after working his way up from shoveling mash and moving hops while learning from some of the best, including Kevin Marley, current brewmaster at Chophouse in Denver. After spending time as the head brewer at Golden City Brewery and the Chophouse, Abitbol spent eight years at the brewmaster at Rock Bottom Brewery, where he perfected many of the recipes he uses now.
“At Rock Bottom, there were no company recipes,” Abitbol said. “We each had our own beer lineup and I made a portfolio of recipes. I kept notes on all of the recipes while exploring, so all of the beers here have been time tested and proven well-received and unique.” Among Rickoli’s unique beers are the Black Pline, an imperial black IPA, and Rickoli’s Rye Stout, a brew that combines the flavors of coffee roast and rye spiciness — both of which he was one of the first to explore. Customer Chris Wood said his favorite brew Rickoli’s offers is the Rye Stout. “I’ve followed Rick at his previous brewery, Rock Bottom, and he knows what he’s doing,” Wood said. “He uses a lot of hops and I’m a hops guy. As a craft beer geek, I’m always looking for seasonal and unique brews. Rye in a stout is something not found anywhere else. Breweries put rye in IPAs, but not in stouts.” All of Rickoli’s beers, except those with wheat, also have reduced gluten. The brewery is open 3-11 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 2 p.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday and 2-9 p.m. Sunday. Rickoli’s is also open from 7-9 a.m. Wednesday and Thursday to give night shift workers leaving their jobs a chance to try
the craft brews. The brewery has also partnered with Salsa Mexican Restaurant, 7620 W. 44th Ave., to provide breakfast burritos during morning hours. Rickoli’s also offers its own homemade soda, including Azathoth root beer and black cherry soda, as well as some snacks. For more information about Rickoli’s, visit www.breweryrickoli.com or call 303344-8988.
Beertender Collin Zanker pours a glass of Black Plime at Rickoli’s Jan. 11 in Wheat Ridge.
Tighe questions human service cuts New commissioner welcomed at first briefing By Glenn Wallace
gwallace@ourcoloradonews. com What was scheduled as a simple staff briefing to say hello to newly sworn in Jeffco Commissioner Casey Tighe turned into reconsideration of recent nonprofit
funding cuts. Democratic Tighe defeated appointed incumbent and Republican John Odom in November, to take the 2nd District seat on the commission. He was sworn in, along with other county officials, earlier that day (Jan. 8), and had then attended the first Board of
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County Commissioners meeting of the year, where he was greeted by his two fellow commissioners. ”You fought a good race. You won, and now you’re being punished,” joked 3rd District Commissioner Donald Rosier. “I have to tell you, I didn’t know what to expect, and I’ve loved it.” ”This is going to be fun,” assured 1st District Commissioner Faye Griffin. ”We can’t always please everyone, but we do the best we can.” On the subject of not being able to please everyone, later that day at the commissioner’s staff briefing, Tighe asked if it would be possible to revisit the county’s 2013 budget in hopes of reversing $688,000 in cuts to human services that has drawn criticism from service advocates and state legislators. The funding cuts were to three
nonprofit agencies, which all contract with the county to provide the public — Jefferson Center for Mental Health, Family Tree and the Senior Resource Center. ”When we have tough economic times, it’s counter intuitive, but those services are more in demand,” Tighe said. The request did not receive clear support from the other two members of the board, but did lead to a conversation about how the county funds nonprofits in general, when Rosier mentioned that the three nonprofits were specifically included in the county’s human services budget. ”When you look at all the nonprofits out there, why were those three designated? I don’t pretend to know,” Rosier said. County Administrator Ralph Schell said his staff would look into a formalized system, or set of
criteria for getting county dollars to nonprofits, instead of leaving them as line items within a county department budget. Rosier said he liked that idea because it would move nonprofit funding “out of the entitlement type of programs.” Schell cautioned that no matter the system, some of the services currently provided by the nonprofits have been mandated by the federal government, meaning the county would have to take over services if the nonprofits lost funding. He said the commissioners would receive a staff report on the subject in the coming weeks.
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