Copper Kettle Brewing closes after 15 years in Denver, brand lives on

Copper Kettle Brewing poured its last beers on Saturday, June 27, ending a 15-year run at 1338 South Valentia Street near the Denver-Aurora border. Owner Jeremy Gobien said the economics of keeping the business open had become too difficult, and a lease negotiation with the landlord could not be resolved in a way that worked for both sides.

The brewery opened in April 2011, founded by Gobien and Kristen Kozik, and quickly built a reputation around its neighborhood taproom and its Mexican Chocolate Stout. That beer won a gold medal at the 2011 Great American Beer Festival. The stretch of Denver where Copper Kettle opened had been short on breweries when the doors first opened.

The brewery became part of the story around Alex Teves, one of the 12 people killed in the 2012 Aurora theater shooting. Teves was a loyal Copper Kettle patron and a Brew Club member, and the brewery organized fundraisers and a scholarship effort in his honor. Teves’ mug had become a visible part of the taproom’s identity, and Gobien said it will go to Teves’ parents.

Copper Kettle marked its 15th anniversary with a June 5 to 7 celebration, then shifted to a final day of service on June 27. After that, the brewery launched a GoFundMe seeking help with about $80,000 in closing-related costs, including money needed to restore the rented space to its original condition. Gobien said he was proud of the 15-year run and did not see the outcome as a failure.

Gobien will keep brewing and selling Mexican Chocolate Stout through distribution. More than 40 breweries, taprooms and brewpubs closed in the state in 2025, and total closures since 2020 passed 140, even with Colorado still home to more than 400 breweries.