Audacity Brew House is currently Denton’s only (Armadillo Ale Works has yet to open their facility) craft brewery. This comes as a bit of a surprise, as much of the city’s distinct character comes from its college town culture, a culture that, given the choice, embraces locally sourced products over big chains every chance it gets.

Scott Lindsey, Audacity’s owner and co-founder, understands this about Denton. A UNT alum himself, Scott tells us that part of his attraction to making craft beer a career was embracing this locally sourced culture, this culture of self reliance. As he puts it, “we love Sierra Nevada, we love Stone, we love Dogfish Head, but if those closed down, could Denton survive? Yes, because we can make our own beer.” As Scott sees it, Audacity is a part of this growing community of conscious consumption, of people knowing where the products they enjoy are coming from: “There’s a reason why, besides flavor profile and experimenting with different styles, more and more people are moving away from the macros every day to their local craft brewer. This beer, I was actually there on Saturday, I touched the tank, and shook the brewmaster’s hand. That’s why it’s cool.”

Before founding his own brewery, Scott spent some time managing a restaurant in Fort Collins, Colorado, and was blown away by the craft beer community he discovered there. “That atmosphere that I saw living in Fort Collins, how cool it was, how involved the entire community was, and how vital a part of the culture it was; I want to create that in Denton.” Scott tells us.

As Audacity rapidly grows they’re keeping the notion of craft beer community at the forefront. In collaboration with the owners of two beloved Denton restaurants, LSA Burger and Barley and Board, Audacity is currently working to create a 10 barrel brewpub on the square, complete with a full service kitchen, and of course, their own lineup of beers made onsite. In addition to chef driven eats and Audacity beer to go, this brewpub will include a specialty market as well as a space for live music. It’s all part of what Scott describes as a culture of “I don’t what we’re doing on Saturday, but I know it involves craft beer”; a culture that emulates what he first encountered living in Colorado.

The brewpub doesn’t launch until later this year though, and in the meantime, Audacity has been hard at work cultivating community out of their current facility. The Audacity Brew House taproom is open for business six days a week, providing patrons with a relaxed environment where they can enjoy the brewmaster’s newest concoction, and maybe kill some time with a board game. They also offer free brewery tours every Saturday at 3pm.

The way Audacity prioritizes community lends them a down to earth affability fitting of the city they’re brewing in. Visiting the taproom sort of feels like going over to your homebrewer friend’s place to sample his latest creation. There’s nothing amateur about the quality of the beer though (as a matter of fact, Texas Motor Speedway recently tapped Audacity to create their own race day beer), as we spent an afternoon discovering for ourselves. Brewmaster Doug Smith has over eight years of experience in the industry, and his expertise shines through in Audacity’s lineup. Scott actually met Doug while living in Fort Collins through his roommate who happened to be dating “a guy who works in the brewery”. Turns out this “guy” was the brewmaster himself. Scott and Doug struck up a friendship, eventually becoming business partners, and so, Audacity was born.

We loved all the beers we tried at Audacity, but a few personal favorites stood out from the rest. One of them, the Audacity IPA, we noted as one of the more balanced, drinkable IPA’s we’ve encountered while covering DFW craft beer. The El Dorado hops in this brew provided a great mix of both bitterness and fruit flavor. Also meriting a special mention was The Evil Cream Soda. This beer tastes exactly like you’d expect; a creamy, easy drinking treat that can easily sneak up on you at 6.9% ABV. We also got a chance to try the newly brewed Spring Break, Audacity’s take on the Belgian style witbier. Like their IPA, we found this to be a great example of the style; an unfiltered, refreshing, and flavorful poolside beer.

If you’d like to try Audacity beers yourself, their brews are available in cans all over North Texas, or you can stop by the taproom for a pint or two. Pro tip: on Wednesdays in the taproom all their beers are half price for loyalty club members, so plan your Wednesday nights accordingly going forward.