Highlands Ranch brewery to close and make way for another longtime beer maker to move in

In a one-two move in Denver’s southern suburbs, Grist Brew Co. said Wednesday it will close its 12-year-old Highlands Ranch taphouse, at 9150 Commerce Center Circle, at the end of the year, while Littleton’s Living the Dream Brewing will take Grist’s place in January.

Living the Dream is also moving into the small bar that Grist had been operating inside the Sterling Center, a building at 8155 Piney River Ave. that serves residents of Littleton’s Sterling Ranch neighborhood. That change will take place on Dec. 29.

Grist owners Chuck Norman and Jim Mack, both petroleum engineers by trade, had originally been “passive” investors and are now “ready to get back to our roots,” Norman said.

Living the Dream owner Jason Bell, on the other hand, “knows the industry and has spent many years in it. He’s on-site every day, and that’s an important part of success,” Norman added. And while Living the Dream is buying Grist’s assets and taking over its leases, it isn’t buying ...