Strange Brewing is starting up at precisely the place in which most great breweries do—slightly off the beaten path, quite literally.

Strange is located at the end of a short line of businesses along 13th and Zuni, just steps from the Platte River Trail. The month-old brewery has spruced up its small warehouse space, which consists of two small rooms of tables and a mammoth bar with encased hops leaves and flowers.

But as much as I appreciate the ambience, I go for the beer. While I was anxious to taste all the varieties—including a black pale and a cherry bomb Belgian wheat stout—my summer palate has been demanding hops, so I ordered the pale ale on a recent visit.

I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been so eager about a pale ale. It carries a mountain of hops in the nose—brewer Tim Myers says he adds many of the hops at the end of the process for aroma—and the flavor is similarly hoppy in the mouth, although endlessly clean. After drinking two pints of it, I still couldn’t detect any hint of an aftertaste.

I asked my drinking companions which pales compared, and we agreed that Strange’s falls somewhere between Dale’s and Mirror Pond—a very tasty place to be.

My last bit of advice: Grab a growler before you go. You’ll want to bring some brew home with you. (And, it’s just $10 if you bring your own.)

1330 Zuni, Unit M, 720-985-2337