This week, the Colorado Springs military-themed Red Leg Brewing Company launches its inaugural beer-naming contest. Colorado-based military units can send in videos, letters, and photos for a chance the brewery will pick their unit name to be on the label of Red Leg’s next seasonal brew.

According to owner Todd Baldwin—who served just over three years as an artillery officer in the Army, including a 15-month deployment in Iraq—about 35 percent of patrons are current or former soldiers. And the name, “Red Leg,” is a nod to military history: During the Civil War, Union Army artillery officers wore red stripes down their legs on the battlefield.

The brewery, which opened July 4, creates four seasonal beers a year, each named after a different unit (their mainstay beers like “Sargent Pilsner” and “Devil Dog Stout” are each a nod to a different military branch). A portion of the sales from the seasonal brews will benefit the unit’s Family Readiness Group (FRG), which helps out spouses and children of soldiers while they are deployed—including parties for the families and phone cards to stay connected to loved ones. “My intent is to have a great brewery that has been impactful on many people’s lives, not just our own,” Baldwin says.

Keep an Eye Out: Red Leg Brewery plans to sell six-pack cans at commissaries on local bases, and liquor stores throughout Colorado Springs in the near future.

Red Leg Brewing Company, 4630 Forge Road Suite B, Colorado Springs, CO 80907

—Image courtesy of Red Leg Brewing Company