Rayback Collective is one of those rare venues that is perfect for nearly any occasion. RMM Most Congenial Rayback Collective – Boulder Then get comfy at a bar seat, couch, or cafe table (the roomy back patio is also lovely) to soak in the surrounding greenery’s life-giving oxygen and mood-boosting tunes, courtesy of records spun by the bubbly bar staff. Grab a sweet or savory house-made pastry or a plate of creamy Brie, accompanied by toast and seasonal jam. Here, you can visit while the sun is high for a barista-crafted caffeine hit or shrug off your 9-to-5 worries with wine, beer, or a complex elixir, like the taste-bud-tingling Holy Molé made with tequila, mezcal, Averna, ancho chile, and chocolate. RMM Most Likely to Brighten Your Day Hudson Hill – Capitol Hillįor a pick-me-up morning, noon, or night, Hudson Hill is a plant-filled bar and cafe that selflessly gives its energy to anyone who might need it. Take the music in from the custom-built bar, where your host-usually a music-savvy bartender-selects tracks from the 800-strong record collection. The concept, a nod to traditional Japanese jazz kissas (cafes) that serve tea and tunes, is an audiophile’s heaven, with vinyl-only sets-from jazz to disco-resonating through vintage Klipschorn speakers. Its soundtrack is meticulously curated for the energy of the room (think: atmospheric sounds in the morning upbeat, energetic beats for the Friday night crowd). But as the name (a reference to extra sensory perception and high fidelity) suggests, it’s the delights the Lincoln Park spot crafts for your ears that set the daytime cafe and self-described listening bar apart from other Denver venues spinning vinyl. Riane Menardi Morrison Most Musical ESP HiFi – Lincoln ParkĮSP HiFi serves coffee, highballs, natural wines, and digestifs in a cozy single-room space birthed this past September. But don’t ask the bartenders about the meaning of B&GC’s name: Some secrets can never be revealed, no matter how well you think you know someone. Finally, you’ll emerge into an elegant, dimly lit bar, where you can settle in and order a cocktail like the Chartreuse-laced Diamondback or a house creation like the scotch-heavy B&GC Sazerac. Ring it and follow your host through a maze of service hallways. When the day comes, you’ll wander through alleyways to an unmarked door with a small brass doorbell, the only indicator you’ve arrived. B&GC will eventually respond with two or three suggested times, and when you choose one the enigmatic speakeasy will send ambiguous directions to its location. You’ll have to text to coordinate a meetup and wait a couple of days to hear back. Like your most aloof, hard-to-pin-down friend, Cherry Creek’s B&GC takes a lot of work to get to know. Most Mysterious B&GC – Cherry Creek B & GC. The Past, Present, and Future of Abortion in Colorado.Why You Should Try Flouwer Co.’s Crackers Made With Edible Flowers.The Making of Beaver Creek’s Birds of Prey.A Former Lumineer Brings a Snake-Killing Colorado Legend to the DCPA Stage.The Pandemic Helped Yonder Mountain String Band Create Its Most Cohesive Album Yet.
Where to Buy Local Lingerie for Your Valentine.The Museum for Black Girls Brings Joy to a World of Black Women.For example, the Commander Manhattan-a potent blend of toasted sesame rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, oloroso (a sherry), Bénédictine, and celery bitters-is described as such: “Curls a soft, quiet smile then drops the straight flush.” Whether or not the bar’s mysterious muse was a poker-faced gambler, the menu of delectable dough-wrapped parcels from Denver’s Samosa Shop suggests Parker’s fondness for Indian food, a trait we find irresistible. Fittingly, the gorgeous, expertly assembled cocktails have names and phrases that offer tantalizing glimpses into Parker’s life and personality. Once you pass through the velvet curtains at the entryway, the soft glow of salon lights illuminates kaleidoscopic pastel wallpaper and a gallery of subtly sensual paintings, giving the whole place the feel of a sleek, 1920s New York City supper club. It’s impossible not to fall for nearly two-year-old Room for Milly, where every romantic touch hints at the adventures of a (potentially fictional) heroine named Milly Parker, who traveled the globe 100 years ago. Here, we’ve awarded superlatives to this year’s most outstanding bars. Enduring seemingly endless pandemic-related hurdles has only made the Mile High City’s watering holes more inventive and enticing than ever.