My last visit to Denver was decades ago, so a trip was long overdue.
Noon, Union Station and Wynkoop
The first stop was Wynkoop Brewing‘s taproom and restaurant and Union Station directly from the airport. Current head brewer John Sims was a long-time Dallas craft brewer dating back to the 1990s before this Colorado opportunity opened up for him only a few years ago.
3pm, Lincoln Park brewery crawl
Perfect mild summer weather lent itself to a walking pub crawl through the Lincoln Park area, a revitalized neighborhood just south of downtown. The first stop was the streetside Renegade Brewing, operating out of an old warehouse that was once a local Dr Pepper distribution facility. A few blocks away was Crazy Mountain Brewing, another urban warehouse brewery.
7pm, Beer. Pizza. Metal.
My favorite Denver brewery of this trip was Black Sky Brewery, only a few blocks away. With a dedicated heavy metal theme, the brewery tapwall is filled with references to decades of music and the kitchen turns out some of the best slices in town.
I stopped briefly at The Intrepid Sojourner Beer Project on my walk back to my room. Interesting, modern craft brewing place, some innovative styles, worth a longer return visit.
8am, More than an omelette
One cannot visit Denver without enjoying a namesake omelette at Dozens, a local downtown breakfast house.
I intended to visit the US Mint but all tours were booked full by 8:30am, so that left me with a few hours to kill in the downtown area. Instead, I enjoyed the public art around Civic Center Park and the State Capitol and (when it opened) the Denver Art Museum. It was currently in the middle of a major expansion project that may triple its size when complete with some strikingly diverse architecture styles.
Noon, Genuine British pub culture
Walking directly north up Broadway covers a good portion of downtown, where I ended up at The British Bulldog. A genuine UK pub in the heart of Colorado, it includes an authentic English and Pakistani menu, complete with football schedules, booming reggae and some great chappli kabobs.
Not far from here is the Great Divide Brewery and Tap Room in the Ballpark District, the original downtown location for the national brewery. Also nearby is the Jagged Mountain Craft Brewery with a good mix of experimental and traditional styles, and one of the first really experimental breweries I’ve found here.
3pm, Lower Broadway pub crawl
From there it was off to the south end of Broadway for a local pub crawl. First was TRVE Brewing, more serious heavy metal than Black Sky Brewing, very experimental and style-defying with ancient ale influences. They also have a ton of brewing collaborations, including one recently with hometown Armadillo Ale Works.
Next was Baere Brewing, a fairly generic brewery in a strip mall with modern styles and an active barrel program. Further up Broadway (and one street over) is LowDown Brewery + Kitchen having another local connection with a brewer originally from Dallas.
7pm, Authentic Tex-Mex downtown
A quick stop was required to check in with the 40-foot blue bear at the Colorado Convention Center (“I See What You Mean”).
Afterward, I found some outstanding and much-needed truly authentic Mexican food at D’Corazon just a few blocks from Union Station. C48
City Forty-Eight 