Wilding Brands has struck its third big deal of 2025, acquiring the production side and brand portfolio of Upslope Brewing Co. in Boulder, Colorado. The transaction covers Upslope’s beer and beverage brands and shifts production to Wilding’s Denver facility. Upslope’s three taprooms in Boulder and Silverthorne remain outside the deal. Those locations stay with the previous owner and keep operating under existing management. Production for packaged and draft product moves into Wilding’s Denver Canworks brewery, which already produces beer and cider for other brands in the group.
With Upslope onboard, Wilding’s annual output climbs above 80,000 barrels. That volume makes Wilding the second largest independent craft beverage company based in Colorado, according to the press release. Financial terms remain undisclosed. Also from the press release:
Upslope’s Boulder roots and canned-beer focus
Upslope Brewing launched in 2008, when founders Matt Cutter, Henry Wood, and Dany Page opened a small brewery and taproom at the Lee Hill location in North Boulder. The team leaned into cans from day one, emphasizing portability for outdoor use, full recyclability, and better protection from light and oxygen. Rapid growth led Upslope to open a larger production brewery and taproom in Boulder’s Flatiron Park in 2013. Lee Hill shifted into an experimental facility, with Flatiron handling most volume and packaging. Upslope’s identity developed around two themes:
- An “après everything” mindset built for skiers, hikers, bikers, and anglers
- A strong sustainability focus, including exclusive use of aluminum cans and work with environmental partners
That sustainability commitment culminated in Certified B Corporation status in 2018, signaling audited standards around social and environmental performance. From the press release:
“Seventeen years in, you want to know the brand you built will keep thriving with people who care as much as you do,” said Matt Cutter, Founder and President of Upslope Brewing. “Eric and the Wilding team share that same passion for quality and community, and we really appreciate their vision for the future and their plan to keep evolving Colorado’s craft beverage industry. I’m also glad our taprooms will continue to be part of that story.”
Beers that built Upslope
Upslope’s lineup has always mixed approachable trailhead lagers with hop-forward and seasonal beers. Highlights include:
- Citra Pale Ale — A bright American pale ale built around Citra hops. It delivers pungent grapefruit and tropical fruit aromas with a semi-dry finish.
- Craft Lager — A malt-only American lager in cans, built as a clean Colorado-style session beer. It earned a silver medal at the 2019 Great American Beer Festival in the international-style pilsener category.
- India Pale Ale — A copper-colored IPA with a firm malt core and classic citrus-forward bitterness.
- Mary Jane Ale — A ski-area partnership beer designed as an après-ski staple.
- Non-Alcoholic Craft Light — A low-calorie, non-alcoholic lager that mirrors the flagship Craft Lager’s profile.
- Hop-Boosted IPA — A hop-saturated IPA that uses an in-can widget to release hop extract and boost aroma at opening.
Rotating seasonals and series beers add variety. Recent standouts include Italian Style Pilsner, Spruce Tip IPA, Pumpkin Ale, Oktoberfest, and Oatmeal Stout, each tailored to specific seasons and food pairings. Taken together, Upslope’s portfolio hits several key segments: session lagers, classic IPAs, seasonal specialties, hard seltzer, hard tea, and non-alcoholic beer. That breadth likely made the brand attractive for a portfolio-builder like Wilding.
Wilding’s origin story: From merger to multi-brand platform
Wilding Brands formed in 2024 through the combination of three existing players: Stem Ciders, Denver Beer Co., and Funkwerks Brewing. The founders, all longtime Colorado beverage operators, set out to create a local, founder-led craft platform spanning beer, cider, and hospitality. From that base, Wilding added brands and venues across the Front Range and beyond. Before the Upslope deal, the core lineup already included:
- Stem Ciders
- Denver Beer Co.
- Cerveceria Colorado and its ¡Venga! Mexican lager brand
- Funkwerks Brewing
- Formation Brewing in Arizona
- Howdy Beer Co.
- Easy Living Hop Water
On the hospitality side, Wilding operates food and drink concepts such as Acreage in Lafayette, Ghost Box Pizza, and Outpost on Platte in Denver.
A busy 2025: Great Divide, Station 26, and now Upslope
Upslope is Wilding’s third high-profile brewery deal in 2025. The platform has moved quickly:
- April 2025 — Great Divide Brewing Co.
Wilding acquired Great Divide’s wholesale business and production rights, shifting core production to the Denver Canworks facility. Great Divide’s existing taprooms and roadhouse locations in Castle Rock, Lone Tree, Lakewood, Denver, and Denver International Airport continue to operate under the brand. - June 2025 — Station 26 Brewing Co.
Wilding then acquired Station 26, a Denver brewery known for Juicy Banger IPA, Tangerine Cream Ale, and 303 Lager. The deal included the brewing and canning operation in the converted Park Hill firehouse, and Station 26’s founder joined Wilding’s leadership team. - November 2025 — Upslope Brewing
Upslope becomes the third major beer brand to roll into Wilding this year and the first Certified B Corp brewery in the portfolio. After the acquisition, Wilding’s combined output crosses 80,000 barrels per year, cementing its role as a regional platform rather than a single-brand producer.
The wider Wilding portfolio now spans multiple categories, from cider and Mexican-style lager to hop water and Belgian-style beer, along with a growing hospitality footprint.
Consolidation meets a difficult craft beer market
Wilding’s spree sits squarely in a broader consolidation wave. The Brewers Association’s 2024 figures showed U.S. craft brewer volume down about 4 percent, with more brewery closures than openings for the first time since 2005. The number of operating craft breweries declined slightly, a symbolic turning point after a decade-plus of expansion. Midyear 2025 data suggests continued pressure. The Brewers Association estimates craft volume down roughly 5 percent year over year, with distribution-focused breweries hit hardest and taproom-led models faring slightly better. Wholesale demand also looks weak. The National Beer Wholesalers Association’s Beer Purchasers’ Index has kept the craft segment in contraction territory through much of 2025, with craft readings in the mid-teens.
High-profile closures underscore the stress. 21st Amendment Brewery and Iron Hill Brewery recently went under. We just heard Rogue Brewing ceased all operations last week. At the same time, new alliance models are emerging. Left Hand Brewing and Dry Dock Brewing formed an independent craft platform earlier this year, consolidating production in Longmont while keeping Dry Dock’s Aurora taproom open. Wilding is building a similar platform, but with a mix of beer, cider, and hospitality brands under one regional umbrella.
For independent breweries, Wilding’s acquisition of Upslope is another marker of the moment. The easy-growth era has ended. Volume is shrinking, costs remain high, and wholesalers have become more cautious. In that environment, some breweries will stay small and hyperlocal. Others will look for local partners, shared platforms, or strategic mergers to gain scale without selling to global conglomerates. Upslope’s move into Wilding’s portfolio shows one path forward: a regional network of brands with pooled production, still rooted in Colorado but built for a tougher, leaner craft beer landscape.
