Students, faculty and staff hoping for a quick brewski after a long day of classes at the Auraria Campus have been out of luck the last few months.
The Tivoli Brewing Co. taphouse in the Tivoli Student Union has been closed since mid-December.
The taphouse, where the first iteration of Tivoli Brewing Company opened in 1864, has become a popular spot for sports fans. Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche fans can grab a pre-game drink before hopping over to Ball Arena.
However, since Dec. 16, the doors have been locked.
‘The Auraria Campus (AHEC) and Tivoli Brewing Company are currently engaging in discussions regarding a potential extension of the brewery’s lease,” an Auraria Campus spokesperson said.
Ari Opsahl, the CEO of Tivoli Brewing Co., said they’re renegotiating the lease to account for the challenges of operating on a college campus.
“Parking can be a challenge. Most of our business is driven by either students on campus, obviously above 21, or events at Ball Arena,” Opsahl said. “When those two things are not there, it is extremely difficult to pull consumers and customers into the taphouse.”
Tivoli stopped beer production at the site years ago, but that’s not to say there isn’t any beer being brewed on-campus.
To complement its brewery operations programs, Metropolitan State University of Denver opened a new student brewing lab in 2023 named after one of the Great American Beer Festival’s founders.
