Ali vs. Frazer. Chocolate vs. Vanilla. Blue Ray vs. HD DVD. Jacob vs. Edward. They are the battles of our time. Now, add Beer vs. Wine. While wine has held the place of honor for hundreds of years next to fancy food and grub at well-set dinner tables around the…
Just because summer’s winding down to its inevitable end doesn’t mean that your rosé-filled days (and evenings) have to. Even if you aced this year’s rosé-drinking challenge with flying colors and have flown through cases of the five best rosés of summer 2010, no need to remove those rosé-colored glasses…
Blue Moon, the Belgian-style wit beer that was created inside Coors Field in 1995, is apparently also highly valued for its calming qualities. First it was requested by James Crowley during President Obama’s August 2009 beer summit on racial relations on the White House lawn, and now it has turned…
Boulder is about to go even greener. At the end of this month, Absinthe House will open in the former Foundry space at 1109 Walnut Street. “We want it to look like an absinthe house that’s been around before the ban on absinthe ninety years ago, but with an updated…
While I have my “go-to” cocktails, I often want to break out of my cocktail rut. And when I do, I have go-to bars where I know the mixologists can work magic. I’ll tell the bartender the spirit I want to imbibe, answer a few questions about the degree of…
It may not have all the amenities of Las Vegas or New Orleans, but the Colorado State Fair is starting to look more and more like Sin City and The Big Easy in the alcoholic beverage department…
It’s been a summer full of fantastic wines, but even a wine-drinking professional (or is it professional wine drinker?) can grow weary of the standard red, white or rosé decision. If you, too, are searching for a supremely drinkable, inexpensive and easy-to-assemble option to guzzle throughout the few remaining weeks…
A funny thing happened the other day on an exploratory trip to the new Mellow Mushroom , which just opened at 1201 Sixteenth Street, in the Tabor Center. Tempted by the sweet allure of lunchtime pizza, we were actually more impressed by the drink specials than the pizzas…
If Oskar Blues Brewery was a Girl Scout, we’d all be rolling our eyes out of our heads at the merit badges crowding her sash. Fortunately, the brewery’s accolades derive not from rescuing kittens from trees or helping grandma cross the street, but from the conscientiousness of the company and…
TINGK! The traditional metal bar bell’s sound is unmistakable. Even in a crowded spot with punk-rock jukebox blaring, the clang of the clapper, long rope tied beneath it, crashing a solo shot somewhere between the bell’s mouth and the sound ring — everyone hears it. But that’s the point. Most…
The Place: McCormick’s Fish House & Bar, 1659 Wazee Street, 303-628-5532 The Hours: Daily from 3 until 6 p.m. The Deals: Wine and cocktail specials, $4-7; food specials, $2-6. The Digs: McCormick’s is über convenient to just about every downtown attraction, plus it’s a handy spot in which to enjoy…
In 1976, to coincide with our country’s bicentennial celebrations, a wine merchant-turned-educator named Steve Spurrier organized an esteemed panel of wine cognoscenti to trumpet the (allegedly obvious) superiority of ultra-elite French wines over their Napa Valley counterparts. Spurrier got the shock of his life when the US snatched up the…
Breckenridge Brewery is marking its twentieth anniversary by making an exclusive gift to local Old Chicago locations: Buddha’s Hand Witbier. The beer, brewed in the Belgian tradition with an American twist, will be released at a special party at all Colorado Old Chicago locations at 6 p.m. tomorrow — and…
There’s good news and bad news about Swallows Video Lounge & Bar, the pre-party/happy-hour gay bar now occupying the former Tosh’s Hacienda/Kiva space at 3090 Downing Street. The good news is that – six months after launching and three months after I expressed “high hopes” for its success in a…
Randall Layman, a bartender at Vesta Dipping Grill, is just back from New Orleans, where he attended his first Tales of the Cocktail. We’ll be printing his dispatches all week (read the first installment here). Day five: Our last morning in New Orleans is probably the hottest. After a quick…
Randall Layman, a bartender at Vesta Dipping Grill, is just back from New Orleans, where he attended his first Tales of the Cocktail. We’ll be printing his dispatches all week (read the first installment here). Day four: Sleeping in again (don’t close your curtains if you want to wake up…
Randall Layman, a bartender at Vesta Dipping Grill, is just back from New Orleans, where he attended his first Tales of the Cocktail. We’ll be printing his dispatches — here are the first and second installments — all week. Day Three: With the curtains closed tight over the window in…
In September 2009, Denver’s convention and visitors bureau decided to piggyback on the success of the Great American Beer Festival and this city’s reputation as a beer Mecca by throwing Denver Beer Fest, a hastily organized but all-encompassing ten-day extravaganza featuring beer-related events of all kinds. This year, Visit Denver…
I am a creature of habit. In the past, when I found myself at the bar at Capital Grille — which was quite often, since this steakhouse in Larimer Square is both an easy spot to start an evening and a handy place to end one — I always ordered…
Randall Layman, a bartender at Vesta Dipping Grill, is just back from New Orleans, where he attended his first Tales of the Cocktail. We’ll be printing his dispatches — starting with this one — all week. Day Two: When I first visit a city, I always find my mind focused…
The Place: Elway’s Downtown, 1881 Curtis Street, 303-312-3107 The Hours: Daily from 2 to 7 p.m. The Deals: $3 draft beers; $5 select wines by the glass; $7 select martinis; select appetizers are half price. The Digs: The Ritz-Carlton is gorgeous — and so is Elway’s, the ritzy hotel’s in-house…
“No such thing as too many liquor licenses.” That was the word from Steve Whited, owner of Black Pearl, who stopped me on my way to Den Deli last night for some sushi and a bowl of ramen. Whited was just as excited as I was that the Japanese seafood…
