Raise a Glass: Finn's Manor Turning Ten This Weekend

Finn's Manor raised the proverbial bar for a backbar when it opened in 2015. Its unbelievable array of liquors came from every corner of the drinking world: obscure brands, micro batches (some produced exclusively for Finn's) and ultra-rare releases ranging from Caribbean rums and Mexican mezcals to a vast library of stellar scotches and fine whisk(e)ys, both local and international. The superbly curated, rotating draft list alone elevated Finn's to a divine level for beer lovers, and earned it a spot on the Top 20 best beer bars in the world list last year.

This weekend, Finn's is celebrating a decade in business at 2927 Larimer Street; it's one of a precious few steadfast presences in RiNo, a neighborhood in the midst of endless flux. Like the bar’s namesake in Mark Twain’s classic novel, though, the tale of Finn’s Manor is full of twists and turns, as well as plenty of adventure.

“My brother bought the building off of Craiglist,” recalls Thomas Taylor, co-owner of Finn’s Manor. Tyson Taylor acquired the land in 2013, and together with cofounders Noah Price and Robert Sickler, the brothers began renovating the property. It wasn't a quick job: The prior owners had operated a mechanic's shop and scrap yard, and Thomas Taylor says it took months to clean up the space.
A proficient home brewer, accustomed to creating micro batches of saisons and sours in his basement, Thomas originally envisioned the large, industrial space as a brewery. But after early conversations with Sickler, a renowned local spirits aficionado, the partners came up with a concept melding Caribbean culture, Deep South aesthetics and a globe-spanning liquor library.

Thomas proudly points out the signature paintings and stained glass inside Finn’s created by local artist Andi Todaro. “As soon as I got the bar in there, it felt like it had been there for years," he says. "The space is perfect for it. It’s built from the ground up. We opened it with no money. There’s not many places like that anymore.”

The Finn’s footprint is only about 20 percent indoor space (including that impressive backbar), with the rest comprising a sprawling, multi-use outdoor patio that hosts a smattering of food trucks, a satellite bar, larger tables and a deejay booth.

The finicky Colorado weather created uncertainty for such a layout, but the partners never had any desire to build Finn’s as “a warehouse with an HVAC system," Thomas remembers. “We wanted to try something funky, cool and outside.”

That outside emphasis helped when COVID hit and indoor spaces were closed temporarily. But the pandemic created additional financial strains, leading to the difficult decision to reorganize ownership, with the brothers buying out Price and Sickler.

“I’m very proud of what we’ve built and the relationships I’ve had," Thomas says. "Robert and Noah — I couldn't have done it without them. They’re incredible people.”

But Finn's is now dealing with fresh struggles. Property taxes have tripled in ten years, Thomas notes, and recent tariffs, shifts in the public’s drinking behavior and stiff, citywide competition for customers have been tough to navigate.
“On a macro scale, everyone is drinking less," he says. "We are in the middle of our hardest year.”

He laments the latest “soulless, cookie-cutter” bar industry fads that have veered away from the classic drinking establishment model, citing a new arcade bar in the neighborhood. “I can count the number of bars in town with no TVs on one hand," Thomas says. "People can’t just sit down and talk with each other. That’s how the revolution was made, by having drinks at the pub. That’s what I’m trying to do here.”

The anniversary activities are just the start of what could be a big fall, though. The busiest week of the year at Finn's always coincides with the annual Great American Beer Festival, when thousands of beer lovers descend on the city, and the bar, to drink an unrivaled selection of craft beers. Finn’s will pour dozens of small-batch, artisanal beers that second weekend in October, many of which are only available during GABF.

Thomas is excited about using Finn’s to highlight other categories, too. On October 4, it will host the second annual Queen City Sake Fest; in 2018, Finn’s was the site of the touring agave spirit tasting event Mexico in a Bottle. Thomas has taken staffers on three trips to agave spirit producers in Mexico, immersing his employees in a culture they're now very passionate about. “That proved how much we are into agave spirits and realized that Denver is an agave town and we love agave," he says. "We embraced it.”
Finn’s has also embraced its food component, offering a rent-free launchpad for food trucks on their way to becoming solvent brick-and-mortar spots. Som Dee Thai and Pit Fiend Barbeque are two notable examples, Thomas says: “It's cool to be a test space for rad food spots. It’s worth so much more to have them be successful. It feels great.”

The Larimer Street drinking scene of today, mobbed on the weekends with people flowing between barbecue joints and breweries by day and chic cocktail bars and thumping dance clubs by night, didn't really exist a decade ago, says Stephen Bramblet, an experienced service industry vet who's the general manager of Finn’s; he's =been there since day one. “Nobody was here," he recalls. "It was us and Ratio, The Populist, Matchbox. It was a ghost town. It was hard initially to get it going. It was the weekends that kept us afloat.”

As the neighborhood has changed, with new concepts drawing in different crowds, Bramblet has noticed the drinking habits of customers shifting, too. He's seen a disheartening move away from craft spirits, and fondly recalls the casual connoisseur who would come into Finn’s asking about “cool scotches.”

“People just aren’t asking for that anymore," he says. "I used to talk for five minutes about one spirit; now it's four vodka sodas and four tequila shots. We still have a lot of regulars, but it’s been a rough ride.”

Still, Bramblet makes sure that Finn's does not resort to the arrogant, type-A service industry personality he dreads encountering when he is on the civilian side of the bar. Rather, he continues to tout Finn’s as an inclusive and easy-going space that has kept regulars and staffers alike quite happy.

“We just try to treat people nicely. We keep it cool and friendly. I can’t imagine being anywhere else. It’s like my family," he says.

For Tommy Dumont, Finn’s is a real family affair. His sister Kimmy is married to Thomas. Dumont began working as a doorman at Finn’s in 2016, later moving over to barbacking and then bartending. He's also the resident DJ, and oversees the live music program as the Finn's events and media coordinator.

“It’s a part of my livelihood, and for my sister and brother-in-law," Dumont says. "Finn’s is the center of my community. I found a home with the bar.”
In Finn’s early days, the music was live and globally inspired, with Latin and Caribbean-style bands packing a patio lined with food trucks serving international fare, Dumont recalls. In that cultural swirl, Afrocuban rhythms would sound through the evening air redolent with spicy aromas of Asian or Cajun cuisine, punctuated by a silky Highlands Scotch or a funky sour beer.

That special alchemy of art, music, food and booze has been a definitive characteristic of Finn’s from the start, and it remains even as Dumont builds a new reputation and following with his DJ work. “We have leaned hard in a little different direction while still maintaining our identity," he says.

Dumont speaks of Finn’s as more of a mixed-media creative project than a bar, one operating as a platform to highlight the talented, the quality, the incredible yet obscure — whether an esoteric Old World rum, a phenomenal food truck or an up-and-coming DJ. “We’re a cultural hub in the community. It has been a platform to showcase many things. It is a bar that wears many hats, and fills the need for community in many ways, Dumont concludes.

For a decade now, Finn’s has curated a culture of appreciation for guests and staff alike. It was conceived as a space to cultivate connections, broaden understandings and create a place devoted to appreciating quality, craftsmanship and creativity. And it remains that today.

Finn is now a ten-year-old stalwart in a city and industry morphing at lightning speed. That makes Finn’s cultured, curated yet casual presence more vital now than ever.

“We put good shit on a pedestal,” Thomas says. “It feels great.”

Finn's Manor is located at 2949 Larimer Street; find details on tenth-anniversary specials here.