Three hundred stainless steel cups are waiting at Angry James Brewing for the brewery’s anniversary celebration, the first of two Saturday fundraisers for the Summit Rescue Group in Silverthorne.
Summit County’s craft beer scene has come into its own with the opening of four new breweries since January 2017. Nine are now operating locally, and Breckenridge, Dillon, Frisco and Silverthorne each have two taprooms.
One of those new breweries, Angry James came online at 421 Adams Ave. in downtown Silverthorne when husband-and-wife owners A.J. and Darcy Brinkerhoff opened the doors on Jan. 26, 2018. The grand opening was so packed it almost blew the roof off the joint, and the place has fielded consistent crowds ever since.
“It doesn’t feel like a year,” A.J. Brinkerhoff said. “I can’t believe it to be honest. It’s a humbling thing (to be so well received) when there are eight other breweries in the county, you’re coming in as a new guy and you’re trying to carve out your space.”
The anniversary party, which is doubling as fundraising event, is being organized by the brewery and The Cycle Effect, a nonprofit that helps girls get into mountain biking and realize the benefits of participating in the sport.
The party kicks off at 10 a.m. Saturday. They’ve booked live music and will be holding raffles throughout the day in support of Summit County Rescue Group, as well as “a parking lot full” of other local organizations.
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Getting through the doors will cost $20. That includes a stainless steel cup made by Klean Kanteen for the first 300 people, a complimentary fill and one raffle ticket.
“It’s really kind of amazing how many local businesses we work with in some way that have donated to the raffle,” Brinkerhoff said.
Angry James will also close out its parking lot and Brinkerhoff said that KSMT The Mountain radio is going to be there with a DJ. Also, subsequent raffle tickets will be available for purchase, and all proceeds from the raffle sales will make their way to the rescuers.
“We have always liked to support nonprofit groups that we feel are really important to the community,” Brinkerhoff said.
With the brewery’s and the rescue group’s logos printed on the cups, he also thinks they’re looking “really sharp.”
“They don’t throw that logo around lightly,” he said of the rescue group, adding that the brewery had to explain exactly what they wanted to do with the cups and get the group’s permission to do it.
The brewery’s anniversary coincides with another community fundraiser, Brewers Rock For Rescue, which goes from 5-9 p.m. Saturday at the Silverthorne Pavilion, will feature over 20 breweries and will also raise money for the Summit Rescue Group.
Brinkerhoff said he doesn’t want to compete with Brewers Rock for Rescue, which his brewery is also taking part in. Rather, he hopes patrons will see his brewery’s anniversary as a nice “pre-game” for the larger fundraiser.
For the people at Summit Rescue Group, they’ll take all the help they can get. Charles Pitman, the spokesman for the rescue group, called the community’s support for the band of volunteers “first rate.”
“Community support means the world to us,” Pitman said, adding that the team went out on a record number of calls last year at about 130. “More missions means more wear and tear on our equipment. And, of course, training needs to keep pace with the latest techniques. These fundraisers, such as that being put on by Angry James, help provide us the funding to maintain our preeminent position as a top search and rescue team in the county.”