Odell Brewing Company - Isolation Ale

Isolation Ale is Odell’s first winter warmer since the highly spiced Holiday Shilling of 1990. A break with microbrew tradition, Isolation Ale does not have the customary spices and herbs beers of its genre are known for. This blend is, however, a style of holiday brew prevalent in the English tradition, most notably due its malty, strong accents and coppery color. The Christmas card inspired label, featuring a single snow-covered cabin in the mountains at dusk, evokes thoughts of an intimate, cozy winter evening. Overall, a full, rich and flavorful holiday ale. We really liked it!

The Odell Brewing Co. of Fort Collins, Colorado was founded by Doug Odell in 1989 with his sister, Corkie, and wife, Wynne. Odell Brewing was the second microbrewery to open in Colorado which says a lot as the state is a literal hot bed for the industry boasting over thirty-five damn fine micros. The Odell trio undertook the creation of a microbrewery for several reasons. Doug and Wynne were living in Seattle at the time and were intrigued by the burgeoning microbrewing scene, but more importantly, they were bored silly with their respective landscaping and banking jobs. And if that wasn’t enought, Wynne was gettin’ mighty tired of Doug routinely emptying out their single closet to ferment his hombrews.

The brewery’s first five years were spent in an old, converted grain elevator where about 2,900 square feet on four different levels was leased. The facility’s design enabled them to use gravity for grain handling and beer transfers, thus reducing the need for physical labor and pumps. Doug brought ten years of homebrewing experience to the company along with knowledge gained from a stint at the Anchor Brewing Company. He chose an all draft format for the new brewery both to simplify operations and to guarantee the freshness of the beers. During the brewery’s 6 months of operation, Doug was the only full-time employee. He did everything from brewing, to kegging, to delivery, to paying bills. Corkie and Wynne helped out with cleaning tanks and handling the books, but Doug worked largely alone. Space was tight and as demand for Odell Ales increased, the original three story grain silo was converted into additional fermentation space.

Today, the family owned operation is happily settled into their new space. In 1996 the brewery sold 15,600 barrels and employed 22 people. The ales currently offered by the brewery include Easy Street Wheat, Levity, Cutthroat Porter, and this month’s Isolation Ale.

For more information about the brewery and scheduled tours, call (970) 498-9070 or check out their web site at www.odells.com.