Cogstone Brewing ~ Colorado Springs, Colorado

Latest visit: Jul 2024

First visit: Nov 2018

Founded: 2015

A couple of nights ago I asked Mrs. RJG if she wanted to out for dinner Friday night, something we rarely do anymore. She said "Sure! How about a pizza and a couple of pints?" HUH!? My wife? I wondered what they did with Mrs. RJG. I asked the lady in front of me who she was, because Mrs. RJG wouldn't make that suggestion, especially in that way. I figured my real wife would eventually show up and scrap the plan, but nope, we're really doing this. And so it happened. We arrived early, around 5ish. This is just the kind of place that if it were 2019 it would be packed with patrons. But it was relatively quiet with a few regulars. We did just what Mrs. RJG suggested - pints and pizza. I had the Karni again, and this time she substituted mushrooms for onions, but otherwise the same as last year. Pizza came out perfect again, restoring Mrs. RJG's faith in the potential of the dish. Hooray! I did notice that they really don't have much rotation in their beer selection - it was pretty much the same as last November. They didn't (or don't) have a hazy IPA (Mrs. RJG's favorite style), something that is common nowadays. When I asked the waitress about it she wasn't even sure what I meant. Regardless, Cogstone remains in the rotation.

---original 11/1/23 review

Continuing our trek through the Colorado Springs breweries, I've been waiting for the right moment to reintroduce Mrs. RJG back to Cogstone. This is only the third time I've been here and all three times are within the same week in early November. Very bizarre as that certainly was not planned. On our first visit we came to try their beer and ended up really enjoying their pizza. I went a second time alone, and haven't been back since the pandemic. On this fine Wednesday night there was a decent crowd, and it appears they have a loyal local neighborhood following.

Like with our recent encounter at Blue Skye Brewing in Salina (Kansas), Cogstone doesn't just make a simple pizza as a supplement to the beer, but rather they have a special pizza oven. So they're very serious about pizza as much as beer. We each ordered a pizza for ourselves (they're 11.5 inches). I had the Karni (meat) pizza, and Mrs. RJG had a basic cheese and added mushrooms and jalapenos. Really delicious. Excellent sauce (just the right amount hooray), and superb crust. Slightly crispy just the way Mrs. RJG likes it. I finished mine and she took half of hers home. She already wants to go back. Alright!

Cogstone is a decent sized location and feels cozy inside (after dark). Plenty of TVs to occupy your eyes if so desired. Their beers are uniformly excellent, though on this visit they didn't have as much for me to try as I usually prefer, but I did find two new ones. See you next year, if not sooner!

11/3/18; 11/9/19; 11/1/23 (new entry); 7/5/24