Telluride Brewing, Counter Culture team up

The past 12 months have been busy, and productive, for Telluride Brewing Company. Other than celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2021, the local staple won another Great American Beer Festival medal for its Face Down Brown American Brown Ale in September, and recently announced the first-ever Winter Jam event, which includes the release of five new beers.

With 2022 weeks away, the brewery isn’t done making moves, as the business recently announced a partnership with restaurant Counter Culture.

The Lawson Hill neighbors will work together at the brewery’s Mountain Village brewpub, with Counter Culture providing food.


Brewery cofounder and president Tommy Thacher explained the latest endeavor came together after getting to know the Counter Culture folks over the summer and needing to find another food option for the Mountain Village location.

“Well, our partnership with Counter Culture came to fruition when they took over Ameono's space in Lawson last summer. Though we had seen Taylor, Grace and Steve around town for many years, we did not know them personally,” he said referring to Counter Culture co-owners Taylor Landry, Grace Mayer and Steve Hertzfeld. “Right from the start, the Telluride Brewing team admired their dedication and passion for making unbelievable food that is primarily sourced from the valley. Their strong work ethic and dedication to their craft aligns exactly with the vision of how Telluride Brewing operates. After an amazing summer working together, and when our taco partners decided not to return, it was an easy ask to see if Counter Culture wanted to move into the space in the Village. We were ecstatic when they decided to move in and double down on furthering the Counter Culture and Telluride Brewing partnership. Everything is off with a bang, so come by and get this party started.”

Since opening in May, Counter Culture has been a restaurant focused on elevating classic American dishes using quality, locally sourced ingredients.

The brewpub menu was designed to complement Telluride Brewing’s lineup of core and experimental beers, according to a news release announcing the partnership. Menu prices range from $4 to $14.50, including options that meet most dietary needs and utilizing local food as much as possible.

Ingredients are sourced from all over the Western Slop, and go into creating vegetarian grain bowls, loaded Hammer Fries and house-made brioche buns for Counter Culture’s freshly ground, grass-fed burgers. Companies like Vicki’s Fresh Food Movement and Farm Runners visit area farms weekly, making local food accessible to both restaurants and consumers in Telluride.


“Our food is crafted by more than just our hands,” Mayer explained. “The farmers, ranchers and artisans of the Western Slope cultivate each ingredient from the start. We get to honor these ingredients by using a fine dining approach to create wonderful, casual food.”

The menus also compliment each other, as people can enjoy a Tempter IPA with Counter Culture’s “beer-chos,” which are made with brewery beer cheese, or the award-winning Face Down Brown alongside the CC Burger.

“To be honest, everything on Culture Culture's menu is delicious and pairs perfectly with your favorite style of beer. The Tempter IPA beer cheese is off the charts, the Hammer Fries are to die for, and the burgers are simply fantastic,” Thacher said. “We couldn’t be happier to further our relationship with Counter Culture. We’ve really enjoyed watching them grow in their flagship location, so when the opportunity to work together presented itself, we were grateful that the pieces fell into place. It’s two sets of locals who are committed to their community, dedicated to their respected crafts, environmentally conscious and equally passionate about putting out the best products for our customers.”

Both businesses share the same sentiment, as Hertzfeld previously explained Counter Culture’s mission to the Daily Planet.

“Basically, it’s local food for local people,” Hertzfeld said. “We want to be that place in town where the average person can eat multiple times a week, without skimping on quality.”


Located in the Mountain Village Core, the brewpub is open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., while the taproom in Lawson Hill is open from 2-7 p.m. daily. Counter Culture’s Lawson Hill location is open Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. They also offer catering.

For more information about the brewpub offerings, including the new food menu, visit telluridebrewingco.com.


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