Winter is a Great Time to Visit Both Denver Icons

Column by Ran Lee Russell

There comes a time in every young child’s winter weekends when summer is just too long to wait for a zoo visit. There is still plenty of time to get some use out of the coats, hats and gloves that Santa delivered at Christmas. Parents can be slow to grasp some of these glaring coincidences. Many kindergarteners believe it’s the dizzying altitude above five feet.

Whatever the case, this is often when bold measures are called for by the short set among animal fans. Parents are told once again that the animals get lonely without enough year-round visits. If this doesn’t do the trick, we’re reminded of all the warm and sweet refreshments the Denver Zoo’s concession stands offer. It’s so obvious to the young tongue.

When these clear-cut facts fail to penetrate the slow, reluctant adult mind, hard-core manipulation ensues, and we’re told what should have us fetching our keys on the run: there are no fewer than seven brewpubs and tap houses within 10 minutes of the zoo for our after-viewing pleasure.

The older the kids get, the more carefully they record our weak spots in tiny, hidden notebooks for emergency use.

At this point, discriminating parents realize that we’re being offered a reasonable bargain. For the cheap promise of snuggling with craft beer to cleanse our palates after inhaling 47 varieties of manure in the chilly air, everyone’s bundled, a thermos of piping-hot cocoa is in the backpack, and we’re off to the zoo.

Our poor, hustling children could have been spared all the salesmanship if the following enticements were better known so that we summer-bound trekkers could get another three seasons and our real money’s worth out of the annual pass. More on the beers later.

The first thing your kids and zoo officials will point out is that, in lower temperatures, the Siberian tiger, the Arctic wolves, Amur leopard, penguins, and Bactrian camels are much happier to come outside their lairs and barns to pose for your pictures. You’ll get a good long look at the shaggy mountain goats and Rocky Mountain Bighorn sheep, Przewalski’s horses (“Mongolian wild horse” is easier to say), and the massive grizzlies.

Who knew so many of the cold weather species have been dodging the sun most summer days that you’re there in your shorts and t-shirt with all the other comfortable humans ambling between available pools of shade? But now that you’re visiting in off season, there they are, ready for their close-ups.

And that’s not all. In addition to the animals of the upper climates being regularly out and about in the cooler seasons, don’t forget all the indoor facilities that are well heated and packed with visitors.

Photo: courtesy Denver Zoo Facebook page

Keep in mind that even on the chilliest of days, you have a wide range of indoor options and fewer visitors to impede your beeline for the next round of heated viewing. On the bigger end of the scale, the elephants, giraffes, hippos, and rhinos tend to be well featured in their lofty barns. But closer to the entrance, going east, you’ll find Feline House with large glass windows for comfortable viewing of the biggest cats on Earth. A little further on is Tropical Discovery, just as balmy as you’d expect a rainforest to be. It’s home to the powerful Komodo dragon, fresh and saltwater fish, varieties of snakes, crocodiles and turtles—for starters.

I have a particular fondness for Bird World, where you can see dozens of avian species from around the planet in every conceivable size and color. The Rainforest Room is the most luxurious of its spaces, with tall rock cliffs, sizable trees, a waterfall with stream, and a host of exotic birds all available for close photos without a zoom.

Naturally, the younger set seems to go for the Emerald Forest and Great Ape rooms to see behavior that most closely resembles their own.

By now, you and the family might have worked up an appetite, and you can easily warm your insides at any of the following toasty indoor dining areas: the Samburu Grille, Brown Bear BBQ and Smokehouse (you could get a jump on your craft beer quest here), Kamala Café and the Kibongi Coffee Shop.

Well, there you are. You’ve come, you’ve seen, you’ve conquered the cold. Now you deserve your draft rewards, and you’re only a few minutes away from your choice of craft tap options. As always, there are many styles to choose from, but as darker, more complex beers are well suited to cold weather, here are some local recommendations within 10 minutes of the zoo.

At the Vine Street Pub & Brewery, just four minutes away at 1700 Vine St., there’s always a dedication to stouts, but you can also enjoy the seasonal Olde Skiddy, an English barleywine-style ale that’s a perfect complement to brisk air.

At Cerebral Brewing, 1477 Monroe St., try the Dark Galaxie, an oatmeal milk stout, or the Nordic Noir (a Baltic porter) during this time of year.

Only 6 minutes away at 2895 Fairfax in Park Hill, you’ll find The Long Table Brewhouse. Try the Robust Porter or the Belgian Abbey Single to help bring feeling back to your cold fingers.

The Game Lounge is seven minutes southeast at 1490 Eudora St. The tap house will be your kids’ preference if you let them know that dozens of board games are available. You’ll enjoy listening to vinyl records and sampling rotating taps of craft beer.

The fine quaffing doesn’t end there. How many reasons do you need to see the Denver Zoo in the fall, winter and spring? You and the rest of the animals are less than 10 minutes away from Fiction Beer Company, Station 26 and Alpine Dog. It’s the neighborhood that just keeps on giving.

Whichever après-zoo pub you choose to wet your whistle, the whole day will be well spent, and it won’t be just your whistle that’s happy. A lot of wildlife will thank you, from the four-legged variety all the way down to the bipeds you brought with you.

- Ran Lee Russell teaches writing at Front Range Community College. He likes to pair Colorado craft beers with his wife's restaurant-quality cooking, only half of which interests his Border collies.