Denver is one of the top bar cities in the country, and the city’s cocktail establishments increasingly have the backing to prove it: a top 10 ranking in a drinks industry publication, three Denver spots nominated for Best New Bar in the country by Tales of the Cocktail, national recognition from North America’s 50 Best Bars and the James Beard Awards.
With that comes drinkers who generally know their way around a cocktail menu. Having an abundance of places for great drinks doesn’t mean every order shows off what we have going here, though. We asked eight bartenders and beverage directors — at Work & Class, Gold Point, MAKfam, El Five, FiNO, Linger, Root Down and Harry’s American Bar — what a drink order tells them about the person ordering it.
“There’s definitely ‘double IPA guy,’ but generally, when I try to ‘drink profile’ someone based on an order, I’m wrong more than I’m right,” says Ky Belk, bar lead at El Five. And people generally should just order what they like, says Stefan Zittel, lead bartender at Root Down. “I’m not gonna judge the bearded burly dude who orders a cosmo extra sweet. I got you, my guy.”…