Covering the craft beat in Colorado Springs is a sweet, but demanding, gig. Blink for too long, and you’ve missed another grand opening, another reason to celebrate the gift that really does keep on giving, in ever-more-creative ways.

Here are a few new(ish) entries to check out:

BATCH Slapped Brewery/ Cidery, 5859 Palmer Park Blvd.

BSB/C opened Feb. 4, pouring an array of libations aimed to please crafties of all liquid bents.

Consider yourself warned, though: If you find a favorite, enjoy it while you can. The family-owned and -run brewery and cidery — the first in Colorado to have “accomplished both licenses in one facility,” says cider maker and co-owner Brian Shute — is serious about that small batch ethos. There are no flagships. Rather, it features a rotating cast of four ciders and 12 beers, a menu that shifts roughly every two weeks in a bid to showcase the creativity of the three brewer/co-owners.

“We will bring back favorites from time to time, but we’ll always have something new on tap,” said Shute, who runs the operation with his son, Riley Shute, and son-in-law Jordan Oswald.

Antelope Ridge Mead, 3355 N. Academy Blvd.

We were sad to see Black Forest Meadery close its doors in early 2022, but happy to learn that local outfit Antelope Ridge has been slinging versions of the honey-based drink that launched a thousand D&D campaigns for well nigh a year.

The meadery opened at the end of June in 2021, offering a range of varieties with flavors you likely haven’t met before.

One of the bestsellers is a peanut- and-jelly mead.

“I know that a lot of mead is very traditional, it’s honey and water and that’s all it is. But we do a lot of really interesting stuff,” said Dan Kesterson, who describes his operation as “kind of like mead inspired by craft beer.”

Father & Sons Tap Room & Brewery, 7735 Gary Watson Point

An official opening is soon-to-come, as Father and Sons’ branded brews aren’t yet on tap. Until then, though, the taproom is open and serving guest beers on Colorado Springs’ east side.

Owner Paul Dunning said he’s putting off an official opening until everyone’s able to toast with an F&S beer. Brewing equipment arrived last week, so early May is looking good for that fete.

Dunning also helms the brewery’s older sibling, Private Label Distillery, three blocks away near U.S. 24 and Marksheffel Road. That operation is 16,000 square feet, and the temporary resting place of 7,000 barrels of aging whiskey.

“We have the largest inventory of whiskey aging in the state of Colorado, by far,” Dunning said.

It’s no accident the focus at F&S is on whiskey barrel-aged beers.

“We set up the brewery so we could fill the barrels with beer after we dump the whiskey out, for a second use on the barrels,” Dunning said. “It’s a little bit different from other concepts.”

Stay tuned for a grand opening announcement, and more about the formal debut of what I’m pretty sure is the 33rd brewery in Colorado Springs.

I mean, unless I missed something.

BATCH Slapped Brewery/Cidery opened Feb. 4, pouring an array of craft libations, most made in-house, at 5859 Palmer Park Blvd. in Colorado Springs.

Courtesy of BATCH/Slapped Brewery and CideryBATCH Slapped Brewery/CideryCourtesy of BATCH Slapped Brewery/Cidery

BATCH Slapped Brewery/Cidery is the first craft spot in Colorado licensed to make and sell both beer and cider, says co-owner Brian Shute.

Courtesy of BATCH Slapped Brewery/Cidery