As a former Coloradan, I spent many a night in Denver in search of quality beer. However, I am certain things have changed drastically since I lived there back in the late 90's and 00's. I am heading back out there for work, and I will have one full day of freedom. So my question is: If I were to take a cab anywhere in the city, where can I tell the cab driver to take me for my biggest bang-for-the-buck? I don't want to walk all over town, but half a mile in any direction would be okay. So what street corner/spot is my best starting point?
Probably downtown + highlands (maybe just a tad over a square mile). http://beermapping.com/maps/citymaps.php?m=boulderdenver#lat=undefined&lng=undefined&z=6 Not totally "up to date" but pert-near-close
Downtown/Highlands/RiNo. Lucky Pie, Falling Rock, Great Divide, Wynkoop/ Breck all downtown. You can begin a walk to River North and start a RiNo cab ride portion to include Our Mutual Friend, Black Shirt, Epic, and Crooked Stave. I might include Hops and Pie/ Denver Beer Co/ Prost as a Highlands/ downtown area as well. From Lucky Pie to Black Shirt Brewing it is 2.1 miles. There are plenty of sports bars in the Downtown area as well if you wanted a quick break from Craft beer...
Falling rock, fresh craft, lucky pie. And for a few more blocks you can hit great divide and jagged Mountain wynkoop and chophouse are nearby as well but would be lower down on my list For breweries the epic, black shirt, River North, Crooked Stave combo in rino is always solid
While a hair over a mile, it's really easy to go from the Wynkoop, Chophouse, Sandlot, Jagged Mountain, Great Divide, River North, Black Shirt (a hair further), and come back by OMF, Epic, and Stem Cidery, too. The downtown Rock Bottom isn't too far either. That doesn't even count the bar options like Falling Rock, Freshcraft, Euclid, Lucky Pie, etc. My wife and I made that trek a couple weeks ago and the walking gives you a little time to level out between breweries. Some of those places are worth skipping (that's probably another discussion...), but all of them are easy to reach.
Prost is right across the river too, maybe a little out of the way. Zephyr is about to open in RiNo too (May/June).
forgot to mention that right across from Euclid hall is the kitchen and its worth dropping in there to see what they have on. only a few taps but they get some hard to find gems in there. and Euclid hall should be on the list as well. glad to hear you've got a full day (and a cab) available as it sounds like you're going to need it
if you drew a box with sides 1/2 mile in each direction from the corner of 16th & Blake, what would you get? Is there a google map function that does this? Because that's really the question as posed in the OP and places outside the square mile don't count, you know? I think you'd get Lucky Pie, Euclid, Freshcraft, the new World of Beer when it opens, maybe Star Bar, Mr. B's, Jagged Mountain, Great Divide, Rock Bottom, maybe Prost? Maybe Denver Beer Co? maybe River North... But I think Black Shirt and Epic and OMF and Cheeky Monk and unfortunately Crooked Stave would be outside the square mile centered thus. If you draw it so as to get Crooked Stave in (and you sort of have to)...who falls out from my list?
I think you'd get Lucky Pie, Euclid, Freshcraft, the new World of Beer when it opens, maybe Star Bar, Mr. B's, Jagged Mountain, Great Divide, Rock Bottom, maybe Prost? Maybe Denver Beer Co? maybe River North... Did you forget Wynkoop and Falling Rock?
Basically for an out of towner, if you parked near Coors Field (good reference point) has a great square mile of craft beer options!!
I think it you include Prost, Denver Beer, Amato's, etc. then you'll need to skip Black Shirt and the Source...as that's getting pretty far for a single day trek. I like the idea of using Coors Field as a starting point since it's somewhat in the middle. Once it comes time to branch out - choose a direction and go with it.
yeah not a deliberate dis! And I guess they still brew at the Chophouse, and Mellow Mushroom and Yard House are beer bars that would be within the square I think, as would Amato's. (Still talking about the square mile with the intersection of 16th & Blake as its center point. What I'm not sure of is how far away DBC or River North are, I think they'd both be in the square so described.) BTW I have been lately drinking very good stuff from DBC; have damned them with faint praise before (by focussing on the atmosphere and beautiful women that always seem to be there vs the beer) and got to say I am liking what I'm drinking from there, it's more than just the Graham Cracker Porter these days.
Beyond them finally getting their processes down, I think DBC hired a pretty respected professional brewer not too long ago. Consistently good beers were actually their only missing element. Hopefully their rep of being "poor man's DFH" will change.
