Denver Food Blog

​It's not too late to make a reservation for tonight's food and wine dinner at Frasca, the Boulder food shrine to all things brilliant.

Tonight's dinner, hosted by Kevin Pike of Terry Theise Estate Selections, is all about grower champagnes, often referred to as "farmer fizz," according to Bobby Stuckey, the master sommelier of Frasca. "These are the ultimate expression of terroir-driven wines in the region of Champagne, France," says Stuckey. "They're wines that have been nurtured from the vine to the bottle by a single person with a true connection to their land and the wines they produce. Each wine is expressive of a place and the family that grew it as well as a diversity that is often overshadowed by the larger houses and conglomerates," he explains.

​Time to toast a dozen students at the University of Denver School of Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management, who have organized the first-ever DU Vin Festival Grand Tasting.

The Grand Tasting runs from 2 to 6 p.m. today, in the HRTM Building at 2044 East Evans on the DU campus. Tickets are a deal at $52.80, since the proceeds go to a scholarship program. For more information, click here -- or just head to DU at 2 p.m.

Just another Tuesday night...

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In case any of the rest of you out there do need an excuse to come out and have a few drinks on a Wednesday night, we've invented one for you: the first-ever Cafe Society Contributors, Commenters, Readers and Sources Bachanal.

Yeah, we've been doing this whole bloggity thing for a while now. And you good folks have hung in there with us through all the ups and downs and virtual weirdness. Thus, we have decided to celebrate the best way we know how -- by drinking and carousing and behaving badly at the first bar that would have us: the legendary Fainting Goat.

Fans and haters, freaks and weirdos, working folk and angry loners -- everyone who reads and/or participates in this little online gastronaut commune we've got going -- is welcome to attend. We're all gathering from 5 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, November 11, at the Goat, 846 Broadway. We'll have drink specials ($12 for a bucket of five Coronas, shots of Wall Street whiskey for some ridiculously low price). We'll have special guests (well, I'll be there, anyway, as will Patty and Lori, maybe Tyler the Intern, possibly Nancy and the rest of the Cafe Society staff) and I'm hoping that some of our more outspoken commenters will make the scene as well and amuse us all by getting drunk and rasslin'. (By the way,
Weege, e-mail Patty at patricia.calhoun@westword.com -- she has a mission for you.)

And if all goes well--meaning if a bunch of you show up and the police, mercifully, do not--we'll be making these parties a regular occurrence.

​Westword and Drunk of the Week columnist Drew Bixby celebrated the release of Bixby's book, Denver's Best Dive Bar: Drinking and Diving in the Mile High City, at Club 404 on Thursday night. See Aaron Thackeray's photos from the party on the slideshow page, and read about Drew's ten favorite dives here.

Also: Relive our day and night at the Nob Hill.

​Westword writers recently covered a day at the Nob Hill Inn, a classic dive at 420 East Colfax Avenue, from open to close. Here's Jason Sheehan's nightcap to the project.

Sitting at the bar, off-duty weekend bartender Randy Malone pointed out the regulars, the friends, the off-duty employees drinking away their Tuesday nights and buying drinks. He gave me a little bit of the history of the Nob Hill; told me that it's the oldest bar in Capitol Hill, open since the 1930s, and that it used to have a restaurant attached once. A kind of diner.

"Guys would come here, get a cheeseburger or a sandwich next door, and then come to the bar for drinks," Randy explained. Then one day, the restaurant half of Nob Hill just vanished. A wall went up, and then there was just the bar. Of course, the place still serves food, he reminded me. Frozen Tombstone pizza for anyone who asks.

​Having trouble finding your favorite seasonal brew?

The Colorado Brewers Guild is working on that. And on Tuesday evening, the Guild -- a trade group representing the majority of the 110-plus craft beer-makers in the state -- hosted liquor store and restaurant reps at its second annual holiday open house.

One of the primary goals of the event, heldd upstairs at the Wynkoop Brewing Co., was to encourage liquor stores and restaurants to carry more Colorado craft beers on their shelves and on tap, says beer marketing whiz Marty Jones, who represents both the Wynkoop and the Guild. And the Guild picked the right time to push local product, because many brewers have released their big holiday beers.

The Rustic Tavern meets all the qualifications of a dive -- and then some.

​Sample one of Denver's best dive bars at 8 p.m. Thursday, November 5, when Club 404, 404 Broadway, hosts a launch party for Westword Drunk of the Week columnist Drew Bixby's Denver's Best Dive Bars: Drinking and Diving in the Mile High City.

A true dive can't be manufactured. It can't show up one day on Colfax or Broadway and expect to possess the ethos of a joint that's served drinks through multiple wars and to multiple generations. It has to open early so that shift workers and retirees don't have to drink alone, and it needs to keep overhead low so that draws of draft beer and well drinks are only a couple of bucks.

Nancy Levine

​I only have a few rules for bartenders. The number one rule? When people come in the morning after Halloween for Sunday brunch, don't make them wait fifteen minutes while you set up the bar. Serve them their drinks immediately, and then get your station in order.

So where was I desperately trying to get a little hair of the dog at 10 a.m. November 1? Here's a hint: The place also serves discounted margaritas at happy hour.

​Last night, Denver City Council unanimously approved a request by the Vine Street Pub that would alter the zoning code and allow the place to brew its own beer on site.

From here, the request will go to Mayor John Hickenlooper, possibly as early as Friday, says Paul Nashak, managing partner for the Mountain Sun string of breweries, which includes Vine Street at 1700 Vine Street. Nashak has been trying to get brewery approval since opening the restaurant in May 2008.

Mountain Sun plans to start out by brewing 3,500 barrels a year there, eventually movingup to 5,000 to 6,000.

Michael Beckerman

Vince Martinez, Hpnotiq victor at Suite Two Hundred.

​Vince Martinez of Maloney's Tavern nabbed first place at the Hpnotiq bartender competition at Suite Two Hundred in September, beating out eight other local bartenders. Each had to create a drink that featured Hpnotiq, a liqueur made from a blend of vodka, cognac and tropical fruit juices. Martinez got top scores in creativity, presentation, technique and overall taste with his Notiq Rupture concoction. But as he proves in this Q&A, he's not just a one-liquor guy.

Now serving: Vince Martinez.

Bartending competitions: Like them? Loathe them? I love bartending competitions; I don't know any real bartender who could hate them. I've done competitive flair bartending competitions and mixology competitions. At my first flair competition, I noticed one of the judges having a hard time sitting still. Turns out she was drunk, and at the end, she came up on stage and drunkenly kissed almost every guy and then fell -- and when she got up, she wet herself.

​ Drew Bixby, Westword Drunk of the Week columnist, has dedicated countless hours -- and his liver -- to researching the town's true dives.The result is a new book, Denver's Best Dive Bars: Drinking & Diving in the Mile High City, which will be toasted at a series of events this week.

First up: Bixby will be talking about his book at 10 p.m. tonight during Open Mic Comedy at the Squire, a bar at 1800 East Colfax Avenue that definitely qualifies as one of the town's classic dives. On Thursday, he'll be at another -- Jerry Feld's Club 404, at 404 Broadway -- for an official launch party that kicks off at 8 p.m.

The action moves to Sweet Action, 52 Broadway, for a "dive-flavored ice cream social" at 5:30 p.m. November 6. Then it wraps up on Saturday, November 7, with a downtown dive crawl that starts at 8 p.m. at El Chapultepec, 1962 Market Street, a bar so good you may never want to leave.

For more information on these events, go to www.denversbestdivebars.com. For information on dozens of other culinary calendar events across Colorado, go to our online Food & Drink listings.

Lori Midson

​I headed out to one of usual hangs on Sunday to watch the Donkeys get dicked over my daily dose of football, but there were apparently far fewer hangovers from the night before than I had envisioned, because my choice bar was ridiculously, impossibly busy.

I ended up less than a half mile down the street, where the bar was ridiculously, impossibly empty. In fact, there were exactly three of us hanging our heads, plus a seemingly trustworthy bartender who swore to me that the macaroni and cheese from the menu was "awesome." His words, not mine. Suffice it to say that he lied. But he didn't embellish the strength of the sixteen beers on tap, which include everything from Stone Levitation Ale, Guinness and Avery Karma Ale to Dry Dock and Colorado Kölsch. And on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., all of those beers, with the exception of Guinness, are $2.50 each. There are deals to be had if you know where I'm drinking.

​Vine Street Pub's Paul Nashak plans to raise a toast to Denver tonight if the city council approves his request for a zoning variance that would allow the brewery to make beer on-site.

A part of the Boulder-based Mountain Sun string of pubs, Vine Street has been open in Denver at 1700 Vine Street since May 2008 -- and has been trying to get brewery approval for just about as long. Nashak says his first attempt to get a zoning change failed because of neighbor concerns, but that this one should work.

​For the past fifteen years, the original Jax Fish House, at 928 Pearl Street in Boulder, has been feeding fish heads to the finicky (and spawning a Top Chef victor, but you already know all about that), a feat that's being marked through the week as part of a fifteenth anniversary celebration.

From now until Thursday, November 5, Jax-Boulder is making waves with a sea of specials, including 15 oysters for $15; $5 strawberry lemonades; $14 wine flights; throwback and modern cocktails for $6; and two prix fixe menus, one of which focuses on favorite Jax dishes from the past, while the other menu is all about Ho-Se-A Rosenberg, that guy (and the exec chef at Jax) who won a hundred thousand smackers on Top Chef and marshaled the University of Colorado's homecoming parade this past weekend.

To view the menus, or for more details on Jax's anniversary events, go to www.jaxfishhouseboulder.com or call 303-444-1811.

Marty Jones (left) and Andy Brown toast the Wynkoop.

​Beerman-about-town Marty Jones has landed a new gig.

The former Oskar Blues marketing whiz, Jones has taken a similar job at the Wynkoop Brewing Company, where he'll be guiding the brewery's fledgling canning project (the Wynkoop began canning its Railyard Ale last August and will follow up with Silverback Porter next month) and creating and promoting Wynkoop events and projects.

​If you're a tequila imbiber, boy do we have a dealio for you. Beginning Sunday, November 1, Zolo Southwestern Grill in Boulder, 2525 Arapahoe, is unleashing its love for tequila, a party that will continue for the next 151 days (until March 31), which is the same number of tequilas that Zolo stocks on it shelves.

The party officially kicks off at 8 p.m. Sunday with a Milagro cocktail contest to see which Denver/Boulder mixologist best struts their tequila knowledge, plus happy hour food specials, $4 margaritas and $1 Tecate cans and the opportunity to sample the competing cocktails.

Throughout Zolo's 151 Days of debauchery tequila sampling, you can order shots of the stuff to be entered to win a trip to Jalisco, Mexico, join the joint's Tequila Club to earn rewards as you taste your way through all 151 tequilas, or partake in Tequila Tuesday, when the kitchen rolls out a $35 prix fixe menu paired with -- what else? -- tequilas on the first Tuesday of the month.

For tequila cocktail recipes, complimentary tastings, event updates and reservations to special tequila-related events, go to www.zologrill.com.

And for more information on dozens of current culinary events around Colorado, go to our online Food & Drink listings.

Flickr

We think she went with tequila. If she punches us in the neck, our suspicions will be confirmed.

​When the lights come on, and the only thing separating you from Hammered Enough to Want Taco Bell is one last shot, it's good to have a plan. Hesitate, and risk the bartender reneging on his gracious offer to tack fifty more dollars on your tab. But: Know what you want ahead of time, and the night will be yours. (By "yours," of course, we mean "spent puking in your PS3 after mistaking it for your roommate's trash can.")

So: Ten last-call shots, and what they'll help you accomplish.

​The String Cheese Incident's Kyle Hollingsworth is touring to push his new solo release, Then There's Now, but the keyboardist/songwriter isn't just an expert musician. He's also a home brewer, and is teaming up with local breweries along his route for Kyle's Beer Tour.

Although the tour won't hit Colorado until December, on November 11 you can watch a live Brew Tour Webcast (at www.magichat.net/drinkme) from the Magic Hat Brewery in Burlington, Vermont, where the Kyle Hollingsworth Band will be playing at Club Metronome.
Then on November 14, the Brew Tour stops at the Khyber in Philadelphia, where Hollingsworth and Dogfish Head Craft Brewery will host a tasting before that evening's show.

On December 12, the Kyle Hollingsworth Band will finally hit Colorado, and Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom in Denver. Then on December 13, the Brew Tour will land at the New Belgium Brewery in Fort Collins for "Holiday Folly for Charity," a benefit for the Food Bank of Larimer County that features "an intimate performance" by the Kyle Hollingsworth Band. Tickets start at $45, and VIP level includes a tour of the brewery with Hollingsworth.

For more info and to buy tickets, go to www.kylehollingsworth.com.

​The good people at Mezcal (3230 East Colfax Avenue), Tambien (250 Steele Street) and Sketch (101 Broadway) have declared a state of happy hour emergency, which is often the case when the streets and sidewalks are canvasses of white.

And so long as the snow continues to fall, all three watering holes will offer food and drink specials.

Choose your poison:

Mezcal:

Margaritas and mojitos, $4.50
PBR, $2
Tecate, Dos XX and Sol, $3
Well drinks, $3
$6 shots of Corazón and Gran Centenario tequila
Modelo Especial 24-ounce cans, $5.50
Half-price quesadillas
$3.95 nachos

Tambien:

Margaritas and mojitos, $4.50
PBR, $2
Tecate, Dos XX and Sol, $3
Well drinks, $3
$6 shots of Corazón and Gran Centenario tequila
Half-price appetizers and dollar tacos

Sketch

Sangria, $5
PBR, $2
Box wine, $2
$2 ham and cheese plates; half-price carpaccio

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The bad weather has put the Hendrick's Gin competition hosted by the Colorado Bartenders Guild at Lola tonight on ice. I was slated to be a judge, so I'm both relieved and disappointed by the postponement.

The contest has been tentatively rescheduled for November 16. In the meantime, you might want to hit the bars that follow to check out the competing bartenders, and their drinks, for yourself:

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On the first big snow day, restaurants and bars offer a flurry of cold-weather specials. But it's hard to beat the standing deal at McCormick's Fish House & Bar, the cozy spot tucked into the Oxford Hotel at 17th and Wazee streets.

Whenever it's snowing, this McCormick's offers Irish coffee for a buck. That's a deal guaranteed to make you warm all over.

​901 Silver Tequila, the ultra premium tequila brand that just launched this year, has sealed a multi-year deal with Live Nation that makes it the official tequila sponsor at Live Nation venues across the country. It's Live Nation's first spirits sponsorship on a national level.

"We are thrilled to be aligned with an entertainment industry leader such as Live Nation," said 901 Silver's President Kevin Ruder in announcing the deal. "They exemplify the forward thinking direction that the 901 Silver brand embodies."

"901 Silver has quickly established itself as a favorite among tequila aficionados and we are proud to provide Live Nation's sponsorship platform to help promote their brand," offered Michael Rapino, president and chief executive officer of Live Nation.

We'll drink to that.

Nancy Levine

Leigh Jones, behind the bar at Jonesy's EatBar.

​Leigh Jones, the woman behind Jonesy's EatBar and the Horseshoe Lounge (with partner Margaret Moore), was also the co-owner and designer of the Dish, B-52 Billiards, Brasserie Rouge, Atomic Cowboy and Buffalo Billiards in Nashville and Austin. But she really came into her own with the eponymous Jonesy's, Denver's first official gastropub.

Now serving: Leigh Jones.

How does the bar fit in with your vision of the restaurant? My vision of the restaurant is a bar! When I closed the Dish and reopened as Jonesy's last year, it was my goal to capture that wonderfully inviting and warm spirit of the perfect corner bar or neighborhood pub. It just so happens that as I was researching ideas for the new place, the term "gastropub" appeared on my radar. Love the word or hate it, that's what we are...a restaurant as comfortable as your favorite pub, with a higher level of quality in our food, wine and beer selections than typical pubs. Oh, and our bar stools are the most comfortable in the city!

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Chili Verde, the Mexican restaurant that opened this summer at 3700 Tejon Street, has a lot of things going for it. It has a lovely space, friendly service, and a menu that's like a dream for anyone looking for a real taste of Southern Mexican and Pueblan cuisine. One thing it doesn't have? Liquor.

Actually, it does have a liquor license, finally. And it even has a bar all set and ready to go -- except for the booze. There's no liquor yet because the owners, brothers Eder and Hanzel Yanez-Mota, are still waiting for one last inspection before they're allowed to start pouring.

I just got off the phone with Eder, though, and he told me the inspector "should be coming in today." Provided that visit goes well, Chili Verde ought to start pouring, "tomorrow, maybe," he said. "Hopefully no later than Friday."

We'll drink to that.

The once and future El Charrito

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You could once find the city's best dive bars along Larimer Street, but gentrification has claimed most of those, leaving only the Star Bar at 2137 Larimer and now El Charrito, which has made a comeback at 2100 Larimer. This longtime Larimer haunt is only open after 7 p.m., and a sign on the door reserves the right to change hours at whim -- but when that door's unlocked, it leads to one of Colorado's classic dives.

(For the record, although we love Herb's, just across and down the street at 2057 Larimer, in no way does this live music and martini mecca qualify as a dive, as its fans suggest.)

Don't worry, she sees you standing there.

​Osteria Marco bartender Michael McGill hates being whistled at when someone wants his attention. As he told Westword's Nancy Levine in this week's Behind the Bar column, "I'm not a dog."

Not every bartender is as cool as McGill. Still, no matter how he or she acts, that barkeep holds the keys to your happiness. So use the social skills you've acquired over the years when you try to flag one down.

And in case you have no social skills, here's a list of other things not to do when you want to bring over the keymaster.

1. Spill your last sip all over the place so he has to clean it up.
2. Shout, "Hey, douchebag!"
3. Wave your credit card in the air while you look in the other direction.
4. Fling a coaster at her.
5. Text in your order: 2 PBS and 1 tqila

Can you think of some others? Let us know below.

​Michael McGill grew up in Kansas City and moved to Boulder for college, where he poured his first drinks. He has been behind a bar since 1998, and today can be found managing the bar at Osteria Marco in Larimer Square.

Now serving: Michael McGill.

How did you get into bartending? I was serving tables at a sports bar in Boulder when one of the bartenders was sick and I got thrown behind the bar on Super Bowl Sunday 1998, when the Broncos won their second Super Bowl. It's still the most money I've ever made behind a bar. We had people buying pitchers of beer to pour on each other's heads after the Broncos won. Took two days to clean up the mess.

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Hosea Rosenberg may have won last season's Top Chef, but his luck didn't hold for Big Red F colleague James Lee, the Boulder mixologist who placed fourth at this weekend's Iron Bar Chef contest at the annual Santé Restaurant Symposium in New York.

Which means Lee didn't get the $1,000 prize, or the chance to move on to the 2009 Shake It Out competition. But he's not bitter -- despite the fact that you can usually find him shaking things up at the Bitter Bar, the very hot bar within Happy, the Big Red F Asian restaurant at 835 Walnut Street in Boulder. That's where you can sample a Scottish Sunset, the drink that took him to the finals; you can read all about it here.