Region’s many beer makers are brewing profits, growth plans

If Colorado is to beer what California is to wine, then Northern Colorado is the heart of craft brewing country.

Why else do you think they call it the “Napa Valley” of beer?

Colorado was named the nation’s top beer-producing state by the Washington, D.C.-based beer institute in 2007, but the local brewers’ philosophy and imprint on the community extend far beyond production numbers.

Local breweries routinely bring home medals from the Great American Beer Festival, held annually in Denver and heralded as the largest beer festival in the nation.

The region’s breweries and brew pubs range from giant Anheuser-Busch Inbev to…