Two Mile Brewing welcomes you to Leadville

As the road rises to meet downtown Leadville, it’s hard to miss Two Mile Brewing Company. 

Two Mile’s taproom has a prime location at the southern edge of the Leadville Commercial District. Leadville’s commercial block is small enough that most people can walk to Two Mile without extra fuss. I passed it the first time but a quick pass through Leadville turned me back to its location in a former gas station.

Two Mile Brewing Company was not the nation’s highest brewery when it opened in early 2020. But pandemic shutdowns soon made the nascent operation the only one brewing in Leadville, the nation’s highest incorporated city. Periodic Brewery closed without warning during the pandemic, having operated in Leadville since 2015. The lone time I visited Leadville when Periodic was open, its taproom was hopping.

The pandemic put a major strain on the newly opened Two Mile, but the taproom has endured the shutdowns and drew a healthy Saturday business, albeit with many opting for lunch instead of brew. 

The former gas station and has ample patio space with shades to protect again those extra UV rays at 10,000-plus feet. This Saturday found Doc Watson on the speakers and a laidback feel one expects of a mountain town. 

Silver mining nested Leadville among Colorado’s highest peaks, with Mt. Massive visible through much of town. The well-preserved downtown district draws hordes of tourists on weekends, and the brewery should see steady crowds. The tagline alone should draw them - “Blame it on the Altitude” fits a brewery in Leadville’s thin air.

Two Mile’s beer lineup steered toward session beers, not a bad idea two miles above sea level, as big beers can drastically affect those who live at sea level. They do have stronger rotating beers, such as Super Spreader Triple IPA and several Belgian styles, but none were tapped on this Saturday.The styles might not jump out, but it might be better to offer a slate of easy drinkers than shooting for the craft beer crowd wanting the latest cutting-edge IPA or sour. 

I went for a Camp Hale Pale Ale, which had some nice dry, piney aromas and good balance overall. Since time allowed, I also tried their crisp, citrusy lager, which was not too heavy. Other taps included brown ale and “Your Lightest Beer,” a blonde ale intended for visitors who make that request. 

The brewery sells plastic growlers, a perk for campers headed to Forest Service sites that don’t allow glass. Some visitors have taken issue with that, going so far as to give the brewery a one-star on beer rating sites. That criticism seems a little excessive but beer reviewers troll as savagely as any other online outlet. 

The staff were also quite friendly, eager to talk about their beer styles and their goals as the brewery evolves. I’ll be interested to see the brewery’s other offerings at some point, such as a porter regularly returns to the taproom. 

The winds of beer fortunes can shift rapidly. Pandemics can close doors. But the highest town in the U.S. needs a craft brewer all its own, and Two Mile has answered.