By Deb Risden
On May 22, Ascent Brewery opened its doors at 6630 Chief Road in Falcon. Joe and Stephanie Prue built the building from the ground up after purchasing 13 acres of land in 2021. Joe Prue said the brewery has 12 taps; its main focus is on the flagship beers — German, Belgian, British and Czech.
The Prues both retired in Germany from the U.S. Air Force. Joe Prue said they purchased a motor home and began traveling full time throughout the U.S. to check out breweries, particularly in Alaska, Maine and the New England states. They got the idea of a destination brewery after visiting a vineyard in New England.
Joe Prue said they knew they wanted to brew after retiring. He had been home brewing for 30 years and Stephanie is a certified brewer. The couple also spent time traveling overseas and tasting beers for inspiration.
They had been stationed in Colorado Springs three times during their military careers and wanted to make it their home, along with a brewery.
The Prues spent the first year cleaning up the land. “We spent all but two days — Super Bowl Sunday and one cold day — picking up 130.5 tons of trash on the property,” Prue said. He said an Amish builder from Westcliffe, Colorado, built the shell and the couple, along with subcontractors, finished the building over two years. “It was good manual labor after being in the military for 26 years, being out in the open air and working on the land. It was fun,” Prue said.
The result of three years of labor is a 2,900-square-foot brewery and a 29,000-square-foot beer garden. A master sculpture and woodcarver from Woodland Park, John Wayne Busby (Buzzsawbusby Chainsaw Arts), created 11 wood carvings replicating birds of prey and nature scenes.
The brewery has an indoor seating capacity of 60 and outdoor seating of about 120.
The brewery’s German beers adhere to authentic German beer purity law, called Reinheitsgebot, which requires the use of only four ingredients: water, yeast, malt grains and hops. Prue said no purees are allowed.
Prue said along with their European-inspired flagship brews, Ascent will have rotational beers that come from recipes he developed over the years. He said they also have Stem ciders from Lafayette, Colorado, kombuchas, root beer, wine and non-alcoholic beers, along with Josh and John’s ice cream and Rocky Mountain Pizza. They would like to have food trucks for every day the brewery is open. They will also have specialty brews such as IPAs, Christmas ales and pumpkin beer for Octoberfest.
Joe Prue’s family is from Wichita, Kansas, and Stephanie Prue is from the Orange County area of California. They own a home in downtown Colorado Springs, but live in a motor home on the brewery property in the summer.
Prue said, “We are a family friendly environment. We want people to have a place to come sit outside, enjoy the outdoors and enjoy a drink and socialize.”
Ascent Brewery is open Thursday and Friday, 3 to 9 p.m.; Saturday, noon to 9 p.m. and Sunday, noon to 8 p.m. They are available Monday through Wednesday for special events. Events and activities are posted on their Facebook page — Ascent Brewery.
