Jacqui Segura for the Cocktail Ambassador

Westword bar columnist Sean Kenyon just landed in New York City about an hour ago for the Manhattan Cocktail Classic, and once he turned his cell phone on, it started buzzing like a palpitating heart -- and Kenyon's heart just about dropped to the floor when he began reading his text messages.

See also:
- Barman Sean Kenyon's response to Jenn Wohletz's cocktail grievances
- Food & Wine names Williams & Graham one of the Top 10 Best New Bars in the U.S.
- Ten favorite cocktails (with recipes!) from ten favorite Denver bartenders

More »

Nick Touch behind the bar at the Squeaky Bean.

I'm a big fan of cocktails and have been drinking them longer than some of my coworkers have been alive. But for many people who have never had a real cocktail, ordering one for the first time can be intimidating. Big menus, unusual names, unfamiliar spirits...you get the point.

If you are going to start drinking cocktails, my advice is to begin with a classic. Classic cocktails are the foundation of all the new creations that bartenders/mixologist are now serving across the country. Without the classics, there would be no new cocktails. (Remember, you have to start with simple math before you can move on to differential equations -- and sometimes, 2+2 is just what you need.) I also use classic cocktails as a measuring stick to decide if I'd like to order a bartender's original cocktails. If a bartender has a solid grasp of the basics, I feel more comfortable consuming a more creative concoction.

To help get Denver drinking, I asked ten of my favorite bartenders what classic cocktails they love to serve. Keep reading for the results.

See also:
- Barman Sean Kenyon's response to Jenn Wohletz's cocktail grievances
- Ask the Bartender Archives -- musing from one of Denver's most reputable barmen
- Reader: Go ahead and slam daiquiris, but leave old-fashioneds alone

More »

Nine local bartenders -- Justin Lloyd (Star Bar); Joe Hines (Williams & Graham); Adam Hodak (Bonanno Concepts); Pat Ruberto (Gaetano's); Brandon Meyer (Crave Dessert Bar); Melissa Durant (Old Major); Anika Zappe (Punch Bowl - Social Food & Drink); Les Baker (Tom's Urban 24) and Randy Layman from Ace, who's pictured above -- braved the snow last night to compete in Patrón's Muddled XO Cafe Shakedown, a three-part battle that required the cocktail masters to come up with original stunners using XO Cafe, Patrón's coffee liqueur.

Layman, who won first place with his "Lefty Frizzel," a cocktail concocted with XO Cafe, lemon bitters and Glenlivet Nadurra Scotch whiskey and served in an absinthe-rinsed glass, will celebrate his victory with a trip to New Orleans, the site of Tales of the Cocktail, a week long homage to spirits. The Patrón showdown, which was judged by Chris Cina (exec chef of Breckenridge-Wynkoop Holding Co), Jessica Farmwald (copy chief at 5280 magazine) and yours truly, took place in the mixology lab on the Metro campus. Flip the page for a few highlights from the battle, and visit our full slide show for more photos.

See also:
- Randall Layman's Tales of the Cocktail, round one
- Randall Layman's Tales of the Cocktail, round two
- Randall Layman's Tales of the Cocktail, round three

More »

Next Wednesday, April 3, Denver will be raining small-batch spirits: vodka, whiskey, gin, bourbon, brandy, grapa, absinthe and more at DStill's American Craft Spirit & Cocktail Showcase, which runs from 6 to 10 p.m. and takes place at the McNichols Building at 144 West Colfax. There are 44 distilleries participating in the event, including Leopold Bros., Spring 44Distilling, Peak Spirits, Peach Street, Dancing Pines Distillery, Distillery 291, Downslope Distilling and Overland Distillery, and if you're lucky enough to snag a ticket, you'll undoubtedly be sloshed by the time the bottles run dry.

See also:
- How different does Spring44 vodka taste from its competitors?
- Leopold Bros. reveals plans for expansion, a tasting room and a new spirit
- Deerhammer Distilling Company mixes the old with the new in a craft spirit movement

More »

Danielle Lirette

Gary Lee's Motor Club and Grub.

With the additions of everything from neighborhood taverns to high-end lounges, Denver's bar scene got even better in 2012. Residents and tourists alike have many more options when they're looking for fun after the sun goes down -- or even before that. Here, in no particular order, are Cafe Society's picks for the ten best new bars that opened in metro Denver in 2012.

See also:
- Here it is! Punch Bowl - Social Food & Drink opens to the public on Saturday
- Slide show: Behind the Scenes at Ace
- Foodography (cobras and scorpions count as food, right?) from Adrift

More »

Kendra Anderson.

For the past three years, certified sommelier and chef Kendra Anderson has penned a weekly "Swirl Girl" wine column for Westword, giving readers -- novices and bona fide oenophiles alike -- crash courses that detail her love for the grape, and now she's taken her passion one step further. Anderson has just been tapped as the wine director and sommelier at PastaVino, an Italian restaurant in Boulder helmed by chef-owner Fabio Flagiello.

See also:
- Four top wine trends for 2013
-Five stellar South African wines
- Three of the biggest wine-marketing WTFs!

More »

Ken Kodys after his win.

Bartender Ken Kodys left Colorado on September 3 for the 42Below Cocktail World Cup in New Zealand with one mission... to bring a third title back home. The bartending competition is our craft's version of the Olympics, in which 21 of the world's best bartenders representing six countries (and one all-star team comprised of past competitors) come together to compete in a weeklong challenge, with national pride at stake.

Team USA (aka Kodys, Steve Schneider and Beckaly Franks) dominated the competition from the beginning, winning the first two challenges and leading in points all week long. And after six days of competitions, seminars, parties, adventures and a whole lot of drinking, Team USA beat out second-place New Zealand and third-place Great Britain to emerge victorious and claim the 2012 42Below Cocktail World Cup.

Last week I finally caught up with Kodys to talk about the experience.

More »

Lori Midson

From the street, Harold's and the Bayonet Room doesn't look like the kind of place you'd expect to find Noah Heaney, the former beverage purchasing agent for Big Red F and the current adviser to the president of the Colorado Bartenders Guild. In fact, Harold's is attached to the modest Plaza Hotel in...Longmont, a significant detour from the trendy vibe of Boulder and Big Red F, the prolific restaurant group founded by Dave Query, who owns, among other joints, the Bitter Bar, where Heaney spent two and half years behind the shtick, collecting local and national accolades from fellow bartenders.

See also:

- Behind the Bar: Noah Heaney: Show up early

More »

Ken Kodys is off to New Zealand for the Cocktail World Cup finals.

Ken Kodys is a beast -- and I mean that in the most complimentary way. No, I'm not referring to his size, although he is a large man at 6'6". I mean that creatively he is a beast, and a stone-cold killer in cocktail competitions. Ken is also one of the most energetic bartenders I have ever met. He has many projects in the works, and still finds time to compete and thoroughly enjoy his life outside of work. Perhaps as a result he is one of the most genuine and true people in this wicked business.

Ken recently won the local 42Below Cocktail World Cup finals, and a trip to Miami to compete in the US Finals against our country's top bartenders. In Miami, he took top-three honors and the right to represent the USA in the CWC finals in New Zealand. When he leaves for the land of the Kiwis on September 3, he will become the third Colorado bartender to represent team USA in five years (only New York and California have managed similar feats). Cafe Society last interviewed Ken in October 2009, and the time seemed right to catch up with him again...

More »

It shouldn't be about what you wear, right? According to Sean Kenyon, the barman behind the Squeaky Bean and Williams & Graham, it absolutely should be about that, especially if you're one of those tenders who takes to wearing a "hipster" tank top when you're slinging drinks behind the stick.

More »