Colt & Gray sets the swank stage for a Craft Cocktail Powwow with Colonel Hector Bravado & Mark Antonation, Pt. 1

Coming from Boston where the bartending revival had been in full swing for some years, I squirmed a bit upon arriving in Denver in August '07 to find that the average bar didn't know its bitters from its amari, never mind have the chops to pull off the likes of a Vesper or a Corpse Reviver. Most cocktail lists were of the candified froufrou variety, not having evolved far beyond Cosmos. But I had a sneaking suspicion that this town was too cool & too boozy to be in the dark for long—that there must already be glimmers in corners, & that bright light would soon shine therefrom throughout the land. In no time the bar would be set mile-high. 

Sure enough, by early '08 there were stirrings of a movement. To fondly recall some of the strongest evidence I encountered for a mixological renaissance btwn. then & now (links to original posts with full descriptions):

Steuben's bacon vodka; Osteria Marco's Chartreuse Siero; Root Down's spiced pear mojito; 

Beatrice & Woodsley's Tiptoe Through the Tulips; LoHi SteakBar's caviar martini

But it wasn't until I got an e-mail from Kevin Burke, "head barman" (his term, & I like it as opposed to bar manager or what have you—very earnestly old-school, no?) at Colt & Gray, that I thought: this here's the turning point. As an alum of NYC's much-ballyhooed hooch hubs PDT & Pegu Club, Burke assured me that "Denver has a new cult cocktail bar; we're just a little bit under the radar."

While I think he might have been looking at the wrong screen—the one I've been eyeing has consistently shown Colt & Gray at the front & center of all kinds of blips—I heartily agree based on my 1st impression that the excitement surrounding the place is going to be sustained largely by Denver's chowhounds & connoisseurs, not its glosstitutes & flash-in-the-pan "foodies." As swank as it is with its black-&-white lacquer, it's best entered in the spirit of at least a modicum of dirty adventure. 

Which is precisely how I entered it recently, accompanied by Denver Drinks Examiner Mark Antonation & Denver Six Shooter's Colonel Hector Bravado, where we discussed the fledgling local scene amid sips & snacks galore.

Galore's certainly the right word for our 1st round, proving the Colonel's observation that "you can tell right off the bat that they're gonna be good, because they're wearing vests."

On the left: my Lasagna 4,1 with Fernet, OP Anderson aquavit, Strega, Lillet Blond & verjus. On the right: a Violet Hour—the Barman's Choice for Mark, who was asked about his tastes when he ordered it. At least that's what I believe we were told it was, although the recipe in the link doesn't match the description we got—"basically a Manhattan, to which I've added a little blackstrap." So I may be mistaken. Regardless, it was less sweet & much more potent than I expected, whereas mine was a bit juicy-sweeter than I expected—just this side of too, for my tastes, but not. It stuck its landing on refreshing.

I didn't try the Colonel's blush-colored Nuestra Paloma with tequila, elderflower, Cointreau, grapefruit juice & "bubbles," so I don't know whether the latter was soda H20 or sparkling wine. But he seemed to dig it. 

If that sounds neglectful on my part, I can only protest that I was paying far too much attention to the crispy trotters. Expecting them to resemble themselves—pig's feet, yes—my assumptions were again confounded by the arrival of what were essentially trotter croquettes.

But my hopes for their flavor were more than met—rich & a little gamy & chicken-fried, they popped against a whole-grain mustard aioli.

Meanwhile, I was also concentrating on my notebook as my companions held forth on a bit of context.

Mark: A couple years ago I was traveling to Chicago and New Orleans a lot & going to all these great bars. Chris McMillian in New Orleans is probably one of the top 10 bartenders in the country, and he's in the birthplace of the cocktail. I watched him as he was making Pimm's Cups & Sazeracs & just spouting these stories. I was just amazed at his knowledge. 

So when it's my turn, I ask him what his favorite drink to make is, & he says "Mint julep." So I order a mint julep. He gets out the silver cup & as he's making the drink, he launches into this 10-minute prose poem [about it]. The first sip was just a pure hit of bourbon, but as the ice started to melt & I got the mint, it all came together. 

What I remember thinking at the time was, "When it's gonna hit Denver?" The first thing you saw was just higher-end liquor in bars. Now you're seeing the things you read about in other cities.

The Colonel: I woke up to it [gradually]. First I was looking online to see who did stuff like Denver Six Shooter around the country and there weren't many. But I did come across a huge group of cocktail blogs. I've been a kind of 2-cylinder drinker. If it's hot, I have a Ketel One martini, up, dry, with a twist; if it's cold, a Maker's Mark Manhattan, up, dry, with a twist. But the guys at Whiskey Forge & A Dash of Bitters were approaching cocktails like  a chef would a plate. I'm a smoker, but I thought, "OK, I don't know if my palate gets it, but I get it." Then I was chauffeuring Luke Jaywalker on the Six Shooter he called "Six Martini Lunch." During our conversation with the bartender at Steuben's, he starts bringing out all these cocktail books from the 1930s. 

At that point Mark noted that Steuben's makes its own maraschino cherries, & we talk about Sean Kenyon's general ability to rock. "So is Steuben's the ground zero of this thing?" The Colonel asked. My take: if it hasn't been alone at the forefront, it's certainly been one of the few.

...To be continued

Comments

[Mark Antonation]

He did indeed call my drink a Violet Hour, and you are right - it wasn't at all like the standard recipe you found. It was still a great drink though.

[Col. Hector Bravado - Denver Six Shooter]

Yes! In your hands, my rambling makes some kind of sense. Thanks again for inviting us down, and the chance to be a part of it all. Looking forward to Part Two...an honor, as always.

[rebecca]

A typical Paloma in Mexico is Squirt+Tequila--Nuestra Paloma=interesting twist!

[Bitchilla the Hun]

Glad I'm not the only one who expected the trotter in full foot shape glory. I thought maybe I was just a rube.

Loved these pieces and really loved Colt and Gray too.

[Beth Partin]

I told Todd about the maraschino cherries at Steuben's and he hmmmmed at me. Just another excuse to go there.