My sister Susan, seen in the photograph on the left, and I stopped in at Denver's Wynkoop Brewing Company for happy hour this past Friday night. The Wynkoop is Denver's first brewpub, started by former mayor, governor, and current U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper (Hick to his friends) back in 1988. It is located in the J.S. Brown Mercantile Building, built in 1899, and this brewpub helped transform the Lower Downtown (LoDo) neighborhood into the Denver's top entertainment district. And sitting at a table in the bar area, you really do seem to be back in the 19th century, except for all those televisions over the bar, of course.
But I don't mind a few modern conveniences. Years ago, I visited the lounge on the second floor of the Buckhorn Exchange, which has been in business since 1893. It was Saturday night, and someone was playing authentic music from that era on, I believe, a harpsicord. I ordered a pint of beer and found out they had no beers on tap. Harpsicord music and no beer on tap might be authentic 19th Century experiences, but I much prefer the Wynkoop experience to that, where you can get a happy hour pint of IPA for $6.00 and enjoy a lively LoDo atmosphere. And I can't help feeling that if the Buckhorn Exchange truly wanted to recreate the atmosphere of the Wild West, they should go with candles and gas lamps instead of electricity, and have people use an outhouse out back when nature calls. As for me, I'm happy to stick with the Wynkoop.
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