Best Signature Cocktails In Denver

There is so much more to being a bartender than just pouring a beer or mixing vodka with club soda and a lime. A truly talented bartender is an artist, creating brilliant combinations that dance on your palate and evoke a different time or transport you to a far away location. A great cocktail is the best (and cheapest) way to have a mini-vacation without leaving Colorado, thanks to the work of the many amazing mixologists here. As you plan your weekend's activities, consider adding one or two of these joints to your agenda, so you can get a taste of these incredible signature cocktails.

The signature cocktails at Bar Fausto are numbered. It helps when you order, that way you aren't rattling off a list of ingredients (without really knowing what they are) when you try to order your drink. Here you just request a #33, which will get you Hndrick's Gin with Cucmber Cordial, Grapefruit Liquer and Lime Juice. According to Bar Fausto, it's the perfect drink for when you're not quite ready to get rid of summer as you savor the warmer days of fall. Another popular signature cocktail at this hip spot on Larimer Street is the #40 which comes with E.H. Taylor Bourbon, Manischewitz, Yuzu, lemon and simple syrup. Yes, the same sweet wine that is served at every Bar Mitzvah makes an appearance in this amazingly tasty grown-up cocktail.

The Green Russell is the kind of high-end cocktail bar that doesn't allow cell phone use at the tables. Everything here is carefully structured to provide the absolute best experience possible for every single patron. There's a dress code and a cell phone booth, plus a pie-shop door that acts as a front to the speakeasy-style joint. The featured cocktails here include options like Life on Mars, which comes with Johnnie Walker Red Label, Kirschwasser fruit brandy, honey and Angostura Bitters. Or, if you can't decide on a specialty creation, allow the talented bartenders here make you a Batender's Choice. You simply pick your spirit of choice and they will carefully craft a unique drink designed just for your palate.

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Located within The Source in RiNo, the RiNo Yacht Club is a cocktail bar that is totally centered around the creations from co-owners Mary Wright and McLain Hedges (who also own the liquor store in The Source, called the Proper Pour.) You'll find a truly impressive, global-style menu with lots of great-tasting concoctions. The signature cocktail here is called The Lipton Cup and it's a tea-infused bourbon mixed with RYC Multi Island Rum, Sercial Madeira with apricot, lemon and mint. Other cocktails include fun nautical-style treats like the Islands In The Stream, with vodka, pear brandy, Manzanilla Sherry, lemon, black tea and Marcona Almond. So grab a few friends and take a short vacation through your tastebuds thanks to the RiNo Yacht Club.

The Way Back is a fun new joint in North Denver offering a tasty menu that doesn't take itself too seriously. For example, try the I'd Buy That Drink A Drink, which is an Absolute Elyx Vodka drink served to you in a copper pineapple. There are several signature cocktails here, so try The Kind of Prague, which is Rieger's Kansas City Whhiskey with Becherovka herbal liqueur and ginger orgeat (a sweet simple syrup made from almonds, sugar and rose water.) It's the perfect taste of fall for a warm, cocktail treat any time of the year. Pair it with some tasty sweetbreads or some Gravlax and you've got a perfect blast-from-the-past evening at The Way Back.

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Williams & Graham is another speakeasy-style hot spot that skyrocketed to popularity in Denver thanks to the talent of co-owners Sean Kenyon and Todd Colehour. The food menu is small, because here it's all about these amazing cocktails. Signature cocktails include the Road-Runner, with Williams & Graham select barrel Plantation Trinidad rum, banana syrup, crème de cacao, lemon juice and Angostura bitters or the Breathless Mahoney, which is walnut infused Pierre Ferrand 1840 with Williams & Graham's Trinidad rum, orgeat, Capeletti Sfumato Rabarbaro, cream and Method Roasters cold brew. Different cocktails are featured regularly, so you'll want to add this amazing cocktail bar to your own rotating list of spots you visit.