A Rock & Rails favorite wins GABF gold following turbulent Covid 19 experience

Blood Orange Kolsch, brewed by Crystal Springs Brewing Company in nearby Louisville, took home gold at the recent Great American Beer Festival awards ceremony, held earlier this month in Denver. Often served, and appreciated, during the Rock & Rails concert series, it's the second craft beer with a Niwot connection to take home top prizes in its category. The other medal winner was Bootstrap Brewing's Sticks Pale Ale, another crowd favorite at Rock & Rails.

This was the first GABF win and first entry into the biggest competition in craft beer for Crystal Springs. Owner and brewer Tom Horst said, "We're pretty excited about it," while adding that the competition category wasn't easy. "It's one of our best-selling brands, but there are 133 entries in the category."

Horst said the beer is the second Kolsch that they've brewed. The first was a Summertime Ale which came out when the brewery first opened in 2010. While they were happy with it, he looked to see how it could evolve.

"Most people use fruit in IPAs, but that approach doesn't appeal to me because I think that the fruit conflicts with the hops. Instead, I suggested we try it in the Kolsch and I really liked it." The beer debuted in 2017 and became a customer favorite as well as something Crystal Springs sold through distribution in kegs and at liquor stores.

As expected it's been in hot demand following the win. It's nearly sold out, but there is some available at the historic Louisville taproom for drinking and finishing in the fermenters for availability during the last week of September.

Though Horst is humbled about the win, it was more than welcomed after what has been a difficult 2020 for himself, his wife and the brewery. The pandemic was incredibly hard on restaurants, breweries and many others in the hospitality industry. For Horst, his wife Kristy, and the Crystal Springs staff, their experience was no different, but it was all made worse when Horst and his wife had to be hospitalized for Covid 19 shortly after the March 17 business shutdowns.

"We weren't feeling well, and we called our doctor who told us that we had better get ourselves to the emergency room. And we did," he said.

Horst was in the intensive care unit for 10 days, and his wife, though not in the ICU, was also hospitalized for 10 days. "My primary care doctor didn't think I'd make it, that's how bad it was," Horst said. Though the oxygen monitors kept going off and his levels were dropping, he was never put on a ventilator.

Horst and his wife weren't able to be present for many of the business operations during some of the most stressful times of the pandemic. When he left the hospital, he was placed in isolation at home and his recovery period took time. He was confined to home until the end of July, which meant even more time away from the brewery.

The staff came through, taking over everything related to the business from daily operations, to shifting to a take-out to-go model, to finding a restaurant to partner with when things did reopen. They also took care of the heavy work of figuring out how to manage against ever-changing business regulations and applying for PPP loans.

"Our employees just took over," Horst said. "They are all like family, so loyal."

A visit to the taproom provided a firsthand look at their employees' focus during this difficult time, their loyalty to the Horsts, and a level of pride in how they were able to band together to help. But hopefully, those days are past. Certainly, everyone is ready for something brighter.

And a brighter future was led by their shiny gold medal at GABF. But, The medal comes along with other joyful family milestones: engagements and future weddings for two of their daughters.

Horst confirmed the events with a short laugh, "Yup. These are some bright things happening after some tough times." With a medal in hand, the Horsts and the whole Crystal Springs family are ready to turn the page from Covid-19 to better days.