Liberati Restaurant and Brewery Served Its Last Oenobeer on March 1

Liberati Restaurant and Brewery closed its doors yesterday, after opening with grand ambitions in a huge space at 24th and Champa in late 2018.

“It was a natural decision to make,” says Roman-born owner-brewer Alex Liberati. “We have all absolutely grown fond of Liberati and loved it…but sometimes you have to change in order to take the journey to new heights and discover new treasures. Coping with change is inherently difficult for the human race, but in today’s world, it’s often the path that leads to the best results.”

It’s possible that Liberati got lost in Denver’s competitive Italian dining scene, but what the restaurant was doing in that cavernous Curtis Park space went well beyond its menu of Roman pan pizzas and from-scratch pastas. Liberati’s drink offerings were unique, centered around craft oenobeers made by adding wine grapes to the usual grain mash. Think Sauvignon Blanc meets a hoppy IPA, or an imperial stout tinged with jammy Merlot. With so many types of beer and varieties of grapes to play with, the options were vast, and Alex and the Liberati team explored all sorts of new and interesting flavor profiles.

“Moving forward, we’ll be putting all of our energy and efforts behind exploring the uncharted territory of oenobeers, furthering innovation and sharing our knowledge to educate others in this unique category,” he says.

Although Alex couldn’t say just yet where the oenobeers will be available in the future, the good news is that he’ll continue to tinker with them, meaning Denverites may not have to live without oenobeers for long.