Blueberry Arnold Palmer

The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers. Even that quote from Shakespeare wasn’t enough to drown out the long-winded lawyers (is that redundant?) sitting near me at the bar at Wyman’s No. 5, rehashing the case they had tried and won that day. After much self-congratulation, one…

Chinaco Blanco Tequila

As I drove up, I was blown away by the recent changes along 32nd Avenue east of Zuni Street. While I’d been aware of all the gentrification further west, I couldn’t believe that this stretch — which a politically correct person would have described as “urban” three years ago –…

Shot of Shillelagh

Bring out the Irish Spring! As my date and I sat down at the bar at the Irish Snug, a guy next to me gave me a dirty look. “I’m sorry, was this seat taken?” I asked, and he mumbled something inaudible and walked to the door. That’s when his…

Backpacking Through Europe

During college, I studied in Spain for a semester and then backpacked through Europe for a month with a ragtag group of ramblers from the university I’d attended. The trip included a lot of walking, train riding, museum/church exploring and experiencing the different cultures of Europe (e.g., drinking wine in…

Top Shelf Margarita

You’re not in Kansas anymore, honey. In a tourist town like Vail, how can service people who rely on tips afford to be rude? Not all of them are, of course, but when I asked the Tap Room’s bartender to add a shot to my drink (because the original pour…

Trailer Park Mimosa

When I walk into a bar, I always ask the bartender for his or her specialty drink. This is the equivalent of asking a waiter to suggest the best thing on the menu, and most of the time, the tactic results in a very good cocktail. At a divier locale,…

Mojito

Every time I walk into Cuba Cuba, I can’t help but think of Matthew McConaughey. Naked. While I realize the Failure to Launch star’s nude bongo incident was back in 1999, I know he would love the bongo tables in the tiny bar at Cuba Cuba. Actually, I’m pretty sure…

Gummy Bear

When most people hear the start of “We Three Kings,” they think of those Oriental kings bearing gifts from afar. Until recently, when I thought of three kings, they were Elvis, Martin Luther and Burger. But after a visit to 3 Kings Tavern, I now know they’re co-owners Jim Norris,…

Pisco Sour

Welcome to www.matchmycocktail.com. Uncommitted drinker who loves to laugh and imbibe looking for unconventional cocktail at new hotspot of chef Alex Gurevich, also of Café Bisque. Turn-ons: big glass containers filled with rum and vodka infused with ginger, coconut, honey and citrus. My perfect first rendezvous would include delectable drinks…

Scorpion Bowl

Party like my grandma! When I asked my mother if she wanted to try Steuben’s, she wondered aloud, “Why does that name sound so familiar to me?” And when we walked into this new restaurant on 17th Avenue, it came to her: When my mom was a little girl growing…

Cherry Squirt Martini

I’ll have the bread pudding — hold the bread. A male friend of mine recently told me that, knowing what he knows about men, he’d eat only two Ritz crackers a day if he were a woman. During lunch at Bambino’s with a girlfriend, we took his misogynistic advice to…

Sloth

I’m well aware of the seven deadly sins, and while exploring Slim Seven, I saw them all. Pride: The lack of signage for the new bar seems to indicate a certain amount of self-importance, which I love. In fact, finding Slim Seven is part of its charm, since the entrance…

Le Citadelle Martini

In the summer, sitting on a patio drinking a martini is the adult equivalent of going to the pool as a kid. The first sip always gives me the same delicious feeling I had as a child when the lifeguard screamed, “Adult swim is over! Kids can re-enter the pool!”…

China Poblana

The Rooftop Lounge at Tamayo is one of the most pleasant places in town to grab a cocktail — both for the view and for the margaritas. When I took my first sip of the peculiar yet tasty China Poblana ($10), made with Jose Cuervo Tradicional, fresh tangerine juice and…

Jet Lag

Behind the velvet ropes: When I lived in New York, I loved making up stories that would get me past the bouncer at a crowded bar. In a city full of professional doormen, I quickly learned that “My friend is inside and has my keys” only worked if they were…

Blueberry “Martini”

Blueberry “Martini” Chama 425 South Teller Street, Lakewood 303-935-5170 When I suggested that we go to Chama for cocktails, I heard audible gasps from my friends, followed by the typical urbanite questions: “Isn’t that far away?” “Isn’t that in Lakewood?” “Isn’t it all chain restaurants out there?” Somehow I managed…

Pineapple Mojito

Oh! Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? SpongeBob SquarePants! Ocean, the reincarnation of Mao that opened earlier this month, may be the bluest place in Denver. Not sad blue, but true blue. And with a bubbling sign, blue-tinged everything and a very upscale yet tranquil feeling, this restaurant…

Jose Cuervo Oranjo, Orange Juice & Soda

Jimbob always looked like a caged tiger behind the bar at the Denver ChopHouse. It was clear to everyone that while he was a good — no, a great — bartender, these were not his people. As polite and teddy-bearish as he was, you could tell that Jimbob was a…

190 Octane

Gas prices are over the top, but alternative-energy folks say we can save fossil fuels by harnessing energy from such sources as the sun and the wind. I recently set out to absorb some energy from both on the rooftop deck of the Tavern Downtown and wound up making my…

Apple Rosewater Martini

Anyone who has lived in Colorado for more than five minutes has heard of the People’s Republic of Boulder. According to Wikipedia, the label “People’s Republic of” is placed sarcastically before the name of a left-wing university town and most likely “derives from the late 1960s, when The People’s Republic…

Nigori Cold Unfiltered Sake

From the outside, Mori looks slightly bunkerish, and with its weird VFW sign, I thought I might stumble into a concrete room filled with bitter WWII vets smoking and talking about “the big one.” But the minute I stepped inside the bright, streamlined space, my fears were assuaged by a…

Towering Inferno

The Pinnacle Club occupies the 38th-floor space that housed the swanky Petroleum Club back in Denver’s go-go oil days, and not only does it give a feel for the past, but it provides phenomenal views of the Front Range — all 360 degrees, if you want to walk around and…