Hawaiian Sun Margarita at the Flagstaff House

I lived in New York City after college and longed for the day I could go to one of the many expensive restaurants I read about in New York magazine — but I was barely able to pay my rent, much less splurge on an expensive meal. That, of course,…

Five wines that say “viva la vin” this Bastille Day

Every July 14, Frenchmen and francophiles alike revel in Bastille Day celebrations around the world. They’re all fêteing that historic day in 1789 when French liberal political groups staged an infamous uprising against Louis XVI and the French monarchy at the Bastille prison in Paris. To you, this may seem…

Elk Mountain Brewing opens in Parker

With a bar made from beetle-kill pine and a beer list that specializes in German styles, Elk Mountain Brewing became Colorado’s newest microbrewery on July 1 when it opened at 18921 Plaza Drive, Unit 104, in an industrial part of Parker. The brewery and tasting room – complete with a…

Boulder breweries Asher and Twisted Pine expand tasting rooms

Two of Boulder’s successful small breweries are adding to their tasting rooms and helping to pump up the city’s already strong beer culture. Twisted Pine Brewing Company — which was founded in 1995 and moved into its current location at 3201 Walnut Street in 2003 — will expand its production…

Panzano: The happy hour dreams are made of

The Place: Panzano, 909 17th Street, 303-296-3525 The Hours: Everyday from 2:30 to 6 p.m. The Deals: $3 draft beers; $4 wines by the glass, $5 specialty cocktails; $3-4 happy hour small plates The Digs: Panzano is cool. Panzano is chic. And, most important, Panzano is comfortable. This corner restaurant…

TAG introduces its new bar staff and summer cocktails

Mike Henderson may have jumped ship for other projects, but the cocktail show at TAG must go on. TAG tender Brian Melton will take over lead mixology duties, while floor manager Travis Plakke will take care of the behind-the-scenes details. And in TAG’s dark basement lounge on Tuesday night, the…

Coors history: the top ten moments

Priviett Moskva! Coors recently began distributing Coors Light in Russia, where the Silver Bullet will take on the former Iron Curtain. But without Rocky Mountain Spring Water: the beer will be brewed in Moscow by Moscow Brewing Company. That’s big news, but it barely ranks in the pantheon of milestones…

Is drinking at Brothers a good deal? It’s all relative

Sometime around my junior or senior year of college — the details are hazy, as they should be — I began blacking out on Wednesdays. Every Wednesday, for years. That’s because a few friends got bartending and kitchen jobs at a massive bar/club in downtown Iowa City, which meant the…

Denver’s excise and license hearing site falls down (drunk?)

Wanna know who’s applying for a liquor license in town? Tough. You’ll have to wait The City of Denver’s excise and license hearing web site hasn’t been working in a while. Instead of seeing what the next happening spot is, interested parties can only see the message: “Unknown Error. The…

The Wild West: Table Mountain Inn likes us unsober

The Place: Table Mountain Inn, 1310 Washington Avenue, Golden, 303-277-9898. The Hours: Daily from 3 to 6 p.m. and 9 to 11 p.m. The Deals: $5 Honcho Mesa margaritas; $3 select wines by the glass, cocktails and Colorado microbrews; $2 Coors and Budweiser; $4 and $5 appetizers…

Do you have your Great American Beer Festival tix yet?

If you haven’t already bought tickets to the Great American Beer Festival – which will make Denver the center of the beer universe September 16-18 – there is still time. But not much. Tickets went on sale Monday – at $55 a pop – and the Boulder-based Brewers Association, which…

Four unexpectedly fab wine and barbecue pairings

Do you ever feel like July might as well be renamed “barbecue month”? Even though this ancient cooking method hails from the Caribbean, we Americans have utterly claimed the summertime ritual for our own. Like with so many traditions though, they can get a bit – um — old if…

The Mudcat at Q Worldly Barbeque

I avoid perky waitresses. I can handle friendly, even cheery, but perky annoys me the way that a tennis-ball-obsessed golden retriever annoys me. With so much panting and slobbering around me, I find it hard to relax and enjoy myself. So when I sat down at Q Worldly Barbeque and…

Ten things that can make a good wine bar a great wine bar

What separates a good wine bar from a great one? More than you’d think. It’s an elusive mix at best: Easy-to-pinpoint characteristics can surely make you love a place at first glance, but it’s the more subtle, nuanced elements that will ultimately bring you back. Here’s how the best are…