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Has Colorado become cocktail crazy?
The state has long held a well-deserved reputation as a beer destination, and now our cocktail scene might be entering its Golden Age. In the last year, the Yacht Club was named Best U.S. Cocktail Bar by the prestigious Spirited Awards. Another three local establishments are in the running for Best New Bar honors from the same organization this year. And even Food & Wine is giving our city its due.
A pair of recently released reports rank both Colorado and Denver highly in cocktail-related research, hinting at growing national interest in what’s happening behind some of our best bars.
For starters, drinking-culture media outlet VinePair just listed Denver as one of the nine most exciting places to get a drink in the country.
“Some cities simply outperform the rest when it comes to shaking up a cocktail or curating an excellent wine list,” the industry insider publication writes. “Since bars open and close all the time, the best cities to visit for booze enthusiasts are always in flux — and it can be tough to pin down which are veritable drinking destinations.”
The outlet polled 11 bartenders nationwide to learn where they would go for a pour if given the chance. Denver was a frequent answer, along with such choices as New York, San Francisco, Chicago and New Orleans.
“Denver is the city I have been dying to visit,” says Gabe Sanchez, a cocktail expert at Midnight Rambler in Dallas. “Its bar scene could be one of the best in the country.” He lists Lady Jane, Peach Crease Club, Semiprecious, Yacht Club and the Occidental Bar as standouts.
Of course, bars like these and others need customers, and another study found that Colorado has plenty of them. According to research conducted by a social casino platform, Colorado ranked fifth in the nation for the most web searches on cocktail-related terms. It came to this conclusion by analyzing cocktail-related Google data across all states, combining searches for cocktail names, recipes and ingredients, and ranking states by searches per capita.
Colorado generated 212,029 monthly cocktail searches, for a rate of 3,607 searches per 100,000 residents. Ranking higher per capita: Hawaii in first place, followed by New York, Massachusetts and Vermont.
Beyond the math, what’s interesting is the kinds of cocktails searched in each state. In Colorado, the top search was for old-fashioned cocktails, followed closely by mimosas and Aperol spritzes. In Hawaii, the tropical mai tai was on top, followed by margaritas. New Yorkers searched for general cocktails, with old-fashioned cocktails further down the list. Massachusetts mostly searched for margaritas, with espresso martinis a close second. And in Vermont, the Bramble led the way.
“These search patterns reveal fascinating regional preferences across America,” reads a statement announcing the results. “In Colorado, interest spans both brunch-style drinks and more spirit-forward classics, with recipes playing a particularly prominent role, suggesting a strong inclination toward making cocktails at home as well as enjoying a range of different drinks.”
Ranking last among the states was Mississippi, with only 1,468 cocktail searches per 100,000 residents.
Want to enjoy Denver’s craft cocktail scene firsthand? Visit one of Westword’s Top Bars in Denver to find the right one for you.
