The Lyons-based craft brewery MainStage Brewing Company has expanded into Gunbarrel and established its own brewery, taking over the Beyond the Mountain brewing space that opened in 2017 and is now closed.
The move builds on an existing partnership: MainStage founders Sam Scruby and Eric Kean had been contracting with the Gunbarrel brewery to have their beer brewed there since 2021.
“We did a collaboration with the guys at Beyond the Mountain,” Scruby said. “We started talking with them and just said, ‘Hey, do you guys have room to get some extra contract brewing for your spot?’ And they did.”
Scruby is an Upslope Brewing alum with five Great American Beer Festival medals and a World Beer Cup award to his name. Kean previously worked in events management at Left Hand Brewing and Planet Bluegrass and headed the Left Hand Brewing Foundation. After deciding to open their own place, they began an ill-timed fundraising push in February 2020. Because of the Covid pandemic, they wound up having to shelve the idea of launching a larger music venue and brewery.
Instead, they found a space in the former Lyons Fork restaurant, where they were still able to incorporate music and an outdoor beer garden.
“Our original plan was to build a brewery onsite there [in Lyons],” Scruby said. “And then after getting the reality check on construction costs and some other factors — during that time, two-by-fours would double in price every two weeks. So it just ended up being cost-prohibitive for us to build a facility onsite.”
They knew Beyond the Mountain’s lease was up in 2027 and reached out to see what the owners, Morgan Way and Chuck Hixon, were planning. They wanted to get ahead of any changes.
“If we’re gonna figure out where to go or do something different, we want a head start on that,” Scruby said.
Hixon and Way were interested in handing off control of the space, and the two groups came to an agreement. Beyond the Mountain didn’t give an official reason for closing. The new brewery is now in a transition phase while licensing and other regulatory aspects are finalized. MainStage will pour through the remaining kegs of Beyond the Mountain beer alongside its own, and Scruby expects the taps to be all MainStage by the end of the month.
He noted that Beyond the Mountain isn’t the only small brewery to close in Gunbarrel in recent years, and said he’s glad MainStage can help keep the community space alive.
“It’s definitely an interesting time in the industry, and this was an opportunity — I think especially for the community. It’s nice that it isn’t just another brewery closing,” he said. “We’re excited to continue what they had done really well here.”
The transition remains in the hands of licensing authorities, but Scruby hopes to have it fully completed by the fall. Once MainStage fully takes over, they plan to expand food options — currently limited to pizzas and similar foods that can be heated up in a pizza oven, like pretzels and empanadas. Scruby said they also plan to add more drink options to appeal to a wider audience.
“Our liquor license will allow us to offer wine and some canned cocktails as well, which I think is a nice addition for people who maybe aren’t beer drinkers,” he said. “We do find that is increasingly more and more important for people when they’re trying to choose where to go.”
As a brewery with a stage and a focus on live music, Beyond the Mountain’s vibe aligns well with MainStage’s. Scruby expects to continue and expand that part of the experience.
“I still think that’s a little bit of an underserved space in Boulder — just finding some good spots for live music, local artists, that kind of thing,” he said. “I think that’s something that we’ll probably, especially in the wintertime, be leaning into a little bit more.”
So they will be serving food? I thought they weren’t going to at the Gunbarrel location. That’s good news.