We had purposely planned our ski trip so that before we came home we had an opportunity to also explore some of Denver. Our designated home-base was a prime location in the LoDo neighborhood at the Kimpton Hotel Born. It is a boutique hotel with somewhat smaller rooms but very nice amenities. When reserving the hotel Joe had let them know that it was our 5 year anniversary and they had a bottle of champagne and a fruit and cheese plate waiting for us when we got to our room!
Later on that first night we partook in the hotel’s nightly happy hour for guests. They offer complimentary local beers and wine for one hour between 5-6 PM. While lounging in the lobby with our drinks we befriended a local couple who gave us suggestions on things to do around the city. (Everyone we met in Colorado was so friendly!)
One of our favorite things to do when exploring cities is to find hidden bars, speakeasies, or cool secret spots – which led us to the Green Russell. This Prohibition style speakeasy is found inside Russell’s Steakhouse in Larimar Square. To get in you walk down into Russell’s and you will see their register. When you’re facing the register there is a door to your left that looks like an employee or kitchen entrance. Just walk through that door, turn to your right and you will be in Green Russell! The bartenders create delicious hand-crafted, original cocktails for you to enjoy in a relaxed, dimly lit setting. We each tried one drink, Joe had the Becky With The Good Pear while I had the Shochu Think So? The Shochu Think So? was not exactly what I was expecting as it didn’t really have the green tea flavor I was looking for. But overall the drinks were good and the atmosphere was relaxing.
For breakfast we were told (by many) that we had to try Snooze. Snooze is a restaurant originally from Denver geared towards breakfast, brunch and lunch. They opened a location in Austin a year or so ago but every time we tried to go there, it was at least an hour wait. We decided if we were ever going to try it out why not in Denver. The couple that we met at the happy hour the night before had sent us a text saying they were already there waiting and to come join them. Thankfully they did all the waiting for us and our table was ready shortly after we arrived. I can give you a quick review on this one: not worth waiting an hour or more for. But for all you Vermonters out there – they do serve real Vermont maple syrup!
Next up on our list was a visit to Red Rocks. Since it was winter they didn’t have any concerts or shows that we could go to but we still wanted to check out the surroundings. We checked out the amphitheater first. Since we got there early there were only a few people poking around. Both of us like to attend concerts frequently and this place looked like a stellar spot to see a show! It was very cool to see it with a small blanket of snow. After we walked around the amphitheater a bit we hiked around the park for a short time on the way back to our car. It was a great place to visit with some really awesome views!
Most of the rest of our day was spent in the surrounding area exploring a few different breweries. We made our way towards Boulder since we had heard good things. We parked near Pearl street and walked around for a bit. Eventually we settled on West Flanders Brewing Co. to grab a beer and some snacks. We tried the house-made pretzel bites (everyone seemed to be getting them) which were fine and some pigs in a blanket. We only had a beer each, one Angry Mong Belgian Abbey Ale and a Hoffmeister Pilsner. Everything was good but nothing to write home about. From there we decided to make our way to Avery Brewery as the couple we had met the day before had recommended it to us. The place was huge and had an upstairs dining room area, a downstairs bar area and a large gift shop. They had a ton of beers so it was difficult to decide. We tasted quiet a few and then decided to share a Maharaja IPA, one of their year round offerings. The beers were all good and we stayed for a little while to walk around. It was starting to get late and we still wanted to hit Oskar Blues taproom so we headed out.
As we were planning the trip we knew that we wanted to go to the colored Oskar Blues taproom. They are originally from Colorado but had opened up a brewery in Austin about a year ago. Although their beer is just ok and not my favorite by any means, we frequent the Austin taproom often as they have good specials and events. Since we like the one here we figured we should make it a point to go to the original. After a quick stop at what we thought was the taproom (turns out they have a restaurant too) we finally arrived about an hour or so before they closed. It had a similar atmosphere to the Austin taproom and there was only a few people there so we got to talk with the bartenders a bit. They had mostly the same beers, Dales Pale Ale, Pinner, Old Chub, and some others but we ended up staying for a while and hanging out. Turns out one of the bartenders was even heading to Austin a few weeks later! Overall it was a good spot to hang out if you want to relax and have a couple of brews.
Our last day in Denver was spent getting cultured at the Denver Art Museum and the Denver Mint. Both are centrally located and within walking distance from each other. The Denver Art Museum (DAM) is a large building with a variety of art so there is something for everyone. They are currently undergoing an expansion which one of the rooms was dedicated to so it was interesting to see the museums plans for the future. They had all the plans laid out for you to peruse and some history on the architecture of the current buildings. The museum also aims to be very interactive so they have stations of sketch pads and pencils around the exhibits encouraging people to draw and analyze the artworks. They had some great exhibits but because of the upcoming expansion a lot of parts were closed down.
It wasn’t until the day of that Joe remembered that Denver was home to one of the U.S. mints. We found out it was near the Denver Art Museum so we went to see about getting tickets for a tour. The Denver Mint gives six free tours Monday-Thursday where guests learn about coin manufacturing and the history of coin currency. You have to go to the Tour Information window the day of the tour you want and hope to get tickets as they are first-come first-serve. Arriving 30 minutes prior to your scheduled tour time is required. As this is a federal property you must have your ID, empty your pockets and go through a metal detector. Once inside the tour guide goes over some history of the mint with you and your off! The mint deals strictly with coins. We were able to see some coins being made and learn about how they make them. We even got some uncirculated pennies as souvenirs! The building itself and its history were actually one of the coolest parts of the tour. They used to have a sentry guard on duty at all times above a staircase near the front door! The Mint also houses a large part of the U.S. Gold Bullion.
When we finished the Mint tour we headed to Black Shirt Brewing to meet up with an old co-worker of Joe’s. We chose it because it was in a different part of the city. It wasn’t until we walked in and grabbed a table that we realized the brewery was centered around Johnny Cash. If you didn’t get that from the black shirt name (we didn’t) you certainly will when you walk in! The walls have Johnny Cash posters and memorabilia all over, some of the beers have Cash related names and the food menu is littered with references to the man in black. We ordered the Cash pizza (it had chicken, mango and BBQ sauce on it) and a couple of beers and sat down to visit with our friend. The pizza and beer were delicious, one of the drafts we tried was the Blood Orange Overdrive Double IPA. We would go back since this is a place with good food and a good atmosphere. The only real downside is that parking was not well thought out so we had to drive around the block a couple of times to find a good spot.
The last thing on our list for the day was to hit TRVE Brewery. It was closer to our hotel so we headed that way. It was getting late and we had a flight the next morning so we only stayed for a couple of drinks. The brewery itself was very small and dark. They call themselves a heavy metal brewery so it was dark on purpose. True to their word, they had metal blasting the whole time we were there. We tried the Exhumation NE Pale Ale, the Stout O, and the Void Masquerading as Matter – a mixed culture Saison. Everything was great and it was certainly a very interesting brewery to visit. We said our goodbyes to Jay, bought a glass and headed back to our hotel to prepare for our early flight the next morning.
Fun Fact: A large part of the Grand Hallway in the Denver Mint is made with marble from Vermont!
Thanks for sharing your experience. I’m driving from California to Missouri and Colorado is on the way. I may have to check the Denver mint out, I never realized they made coins in CO.
Thanks for reading and being our first commenter! Its a very cool little tour they do. Just make sure to show up early the day you want to do the tour so you can be sure to get tickets. We went a couple hours early, got tickets, and then explored some other things until it was tour time. Have fun on your trip!