Outer Range Brewery – Expanding Their Territory
The couple behind one of Colorado’s favorite craft breweries have spread their love to the Alps
By Shauna Farnell
Lee and Emily Cleghorn have covered a lot of ground in eight years. Since opening one of the most beloved craft breweries in Colorado, they’ve recently expanded the operation into the French Alps.
In every way, their territorial reach is perfectly on brand for Outer Range Brewery.
Opened in December 2016 and sporting the motto, “leave the life below,” Outer Range was named after Rudyard Kipling’s poem, “The Explorer.”
“It spoke to the spirit of why people go to the mountains,” Lee says.
The first iteration of Outer Range occupied a small space in Frisco crammed with brewing equipment and a cozy yurt outside. Among craft beer lovers, especially connoisseurs of East Coast-style (hazy) IPA, it became an instant favorite.
“I have always loved Belgian styles,” says Lee, whose father was in the armed forces and stationed in Brussels when Lee was a teenager. “My mind was blown by the flavors of Europe. I went back to the U.S. in college. I couldn’t buy good beer, so I started making it. I worked with Other Half Brewery in New York, learning how to approach IPAs and what a great IPA tasted like.”
Lee and Emily met while stationed in Colorado Springs.
“Before homebrewing was a thing, a friend said, Do you want to go to this guy’s house and learn how to make beer?” Emily says. “We got engaged four months later.”
As the army moved around, Lee and Emily were often apart. After getting married and having a daughter, they decided it was time to settle and open a brewery. They loved that Frisco wasn’t a resort town, but a local community in the midst of several resorts.
“Just as we did, our vision was for people to enjoy their day on the mountain and come to the brewery to reflect on it,” Emily says. “We want our beer to always be a reminder of savoring an experience with friends and family.”
In 2020, Outer Range expanded into the large space nextdoor. The taproom releases multiple new brews every week and hosts weekend parties – Western-themed, ski and snowboard tuning, fundraisers for local nonprofits, etc.
Last year, the Cleghorns opened a new location in Sallanches, France, relocating to get things up and running. The French Alps brewery also became a quick sensation. Integrating European and American cultures into both locations, they split their time and creativity between the two.
“It’s really rewarding to be able to mentor both teams,” Emily says. “Learning about different approaches is really going to elevate both programs. For Outer Range, it’s not just about the product for us, but perpetuating our love of the mountains through beer. That is what drives us to where we are today.”
The Tap Room is Open Daily 11am to 10pm
182 Lusher Ct
Frisco, CO 80443
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