by Regan Bervar | Dec 17, 2024 | Travel
by Regan Bervar
Walkable: Cherry Creek North is a walkable neighborhood with 600 stores from which to choose.
Denver has no shortage of sprawling neighborhoods across the city, and Cherry Creek North is no different. With hundreds of retailers, and a strong emphasis on small businesses, the district is home to a number of commerce stores and residents alike. With 300 days of sunshine in Denver, chances are it’s a good day to walk the tree-lined streets of Cherry Creek North.
Cherry Creek North has over 600 businesses, with 90% being small or micro businesses. According to Lisa Voss, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Cherry Creek North, Cherry Creek North is more than just a 16 block area, but a neighborhood, a community, and central vibrant district.
“You’ve heard the term the 15 minute city,” Voss said. “We’re not really a city per se, but we are a bit of a 15 minute neighborhood. What that means is everything can happen here. We’re loaded with merchants and services and all kinds of fun, but we also have a post office, a library, and an elementary school.”
Cherry Creek North emphasizes community, safety, and a diverse array of retail and service offerings, and the shop owners in the area bring a sense of community to the neighborhood, with 220 of the 600 businesses being retail and service businesses. According to the small business report, 90% of those 220 retail and service shops are small businesses, and 64% go even further, and are micro businesses with 10 employees or fewer.
“We have what I believe is the largest collection of small and local businesses in one area, probably anywhere in Colorado, so we super celebrate them,” Voss said. “Of course, along with all of our businesses, they’re all very important to us and serve the community in so many different ways, but the ability to really love on small and micro businesses is just really powerful. Small businesses make this beautiful country of ours go round.”
Natalie Statser is the manager of Organic S
Organic Squeeze: They have started their Healthy New Year Campaign with different options for cleanses and promotions to kick off a healthy start to the New Year.
queeze in Cherry Creek North, which opened just over two months ago. The Oklahoma-based company has expanded to open their first branch in Colorado, and found Cherry Creek North to be the perfect location, as the walkable and health-conscious community aligns with their philosophy. Although the company has been together for 11 years, their Denver location is their first out-of-state branch. With their slogan of “healthy tastes better” and their commitment to 100% organic, whole food ingredients, they have felt right at home in the Cherry Creek North community.
“Everyone’s super friendly, they’re active and care about health, wellness, and moving their bodies,” Statser said. “We’re very happy to have expanded here and it matches what our brand offers to people’s lifestyle. It’s a gorgeous neighborhood, I don’t know who wouldn’t want to be in Cherry Creek.”
Statser at Organic Squeeze says that the location is an amazing aspect of the business’ expansion to Colorado, and the people in Cherry Creek are vital to their operations. “Everyone’s very health-minded and lives an active lifestyle, and that makes it really easy for us,” Statser said. “We are 100% organic, and we are really big on doing things better, even if that’s just a little bit better each day. That means
Wine: Vineyard Wine Shop started in 1971 and has had a Wine of The Month Club ever since.
providing easy access for people to have healthy, wholesome foods, and cultivating an environment where it is family friendly and efficient with people’s time.”
Coming up at Organic Squeeze, you can look forward to their Healthy New Year Campaign with different options for cleanses and promotions to kick off a healthy start to the New Year. You can also find them doing pop-ups in local gyms and on their new Organic Squeeze app that makes online ordering for their house-made goods and smoothies a breeze.
A couple of blocks away on Fillmore Street, Cliff Louis is a local business owner in Cherry Creek North, and owns Vineyard Wine Shop which has been in business for 53 years. For the 43 years that Louis has been at Vineyard Wine Shop, he has had a unique look at how the neighborhood and its businesses have changed over the years. The impact of grocery stores selling wine has taken a hit on his local wine sales, but the sense of community you get from a small business is unmatched.
“Our philosophy is we make friends, not money,” Louis said. “Everyone is happy [who visits] and anyone who comes in the store gets personal attention. It’s not like a grocery store where you just grab it off the shelf, we’re a pretty classic, small mom and pop business with a great staff that knows all sorts of things about wine.”
Vineyard Wine Shop was started by Robert Wilson in 1971 and has since expanded from just the basement to the entire building as Louis took over. He values the community aspect of Cherry Creek North, with its mix of local and national stores.
“The location and community for me is perfect; we’ve got all the new apartment buildings, condos, and office buildings coming in, so hopefully we’re becoming their neighborhood wine store.” Louis said. “I’ve seen a lot of changes here, for sure, but pretty much our business has not changed as far as scope. We were a wine store back in 1971 and we’re still basically a wine store today.”
Vineyard Wine Shop has offered their Wine of The Month Club since 1971, which sends wine of all sizes, tastes, and regions to members all over the country. It’s a great way to subscribe to support a small local business, but also get great selections and recommendations from your neighborhood local wine shop.
Organic Squeeze is located at 180 Steele Street. For more information, visit www.or ganic-squeeze.com. For more information on Vineyard Wine Shop, visit vineyardwineshop.com. They are located at 261 Fillmore Street. Learn more about Cherry Creek North at www.cherrycreeknorth.com.
Cherry Creek North is a gorgeous community with hundreds of retail, food, and hospitality offerings, with a strong emphasis on shopping small and supporting small and micro businesses. It’s a great place to catch lunch with a friend, do some holiday shopping, or just wander around and take in the scenery that has been carefully curated to be a safe and beautiful space for the community.
by Mark Smiley | Nov 15, 2024 | Travel
Over 12,000 Hours Dedicated To Creating Colorado’s Largest Indoor Ice Attraction
by Mark Smiley
Thirty ice artisans from Harbin, China, arrived at Gaylord Rockies to begin the annual carving process for ICE!, a holiday attraction featuring ice sculptures that will bring this year’s theme, The Polar Express, to life. They have transformed 2 million pounds of ice into a 17,000-square-foot display, using chippers, tongs, handsaws, grinders, and chainsaws.
The artisans traveled over 5,700 miles from Harbin, China, famously known as “Ice City,” home to the world’s largest annual ice and snow sculpting festival. Since 2001, Gaylord Hotels has partnered with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Experiences and these talented artists to capture their extraordinary craftsmanship here in the U.S. At Gaylord Rockies, some of the same artisans behind the Harbin festival will sculpt 300-pound blocks of ice into larger-than-life scenes from Warner Bros. The Polar Express™.
The artisans, drawing on generations of expertise, work from a detailed 300-page design book to bring the ice spectacle to life. Each artisan contributes a unique talent — some mastering demolition with chainsaws, while others focus on intricate, precise carvings. Ice carvings range in size from details as tiny as a coin to scenes more than 30 feet tall. A cutting-edge chilling system will keep the entire space at a frosty 9 degrees Fahrenheit, and guests will stay cozy in the attraction’s signature blue parkas.
This holiday season, guests will embark on a journey through hand-carved ice sculptures depicting nine scenes from The Polar Express. In celebration of the film’s 20th anniversary, featured scenes include the Polar Express arriving at Hero Boy’s house, passengers enjoying hot chocolate aboard the train, an exhilarating descent through Glacier Gulch, and the enchanting arrival at the North Pole. The attraction will use colored ice, clear ice, and LED lights to create the breathtaking display.
In addition to the awe-inspiring ice sculptures from the beloved Christmas film, guests can take rides down the two-story-tall ice slides, traverse through ice tunnels and arches, and visit the carver showcase to watch artisans perform live carving demonstrations. The ICE! experience concludes
in a separate area dedicated to the Nativity scene, meticulously carved and shaped in a dramatic display of crystal-clear ice. ICE! featuring The Polar Express will run from Nov. 22, 2024, to Jan. 1, 2025.
Christmas at Gaylord Rockies packages that include special room rates and admission to select events are now available. Guests are encouraged to book their experiences early, as advance online reservations are required for all ticketed events, and prime dates are expected to sell out. For tickets, more information, or to book an overnight stay, guests may visit ChristmasatGaylordRockies.com.
by Mark Smiley | Oct 16, 2024 | Travel
Annual Beer & Brunch hosted by Boston Beer Company on October 11, 2024
By Mark Smiley, Jeff Stiglic, and Mike Turk
Boston Beer’s annual Great American Beer Festival Beer & Brunch event was held on Friday, October 11, 2024 at West of Surrender. The annual media brunch featured the introduction of Samuel Adams’ American Light as well as pouring familiar favorites such as Oktoberfest. Dogfish Head, a part of the Boston Beer portfolio also had their popular beers on hand including the 60-minute IPA.
Jim Koch, founder of Samuel Adams and Sam Calagione, founder of Dogfish Head Brewery addressed the capacity crowd on a beautiful Friday morning. They talked about the history of the Great American Beer Festival as well as talking about the future of the craft beer industry.
Samuel Adams, which is always looking for ways to innovate and provide what customers seek introduced the launch of Samuel Adams American Light. This light craft lager is a crisp, refreshing, great-tasting, easy-to-drink beer perfect for everyday drinking occasions. Koch likens it to a Miller Lite or Coors Light but with more flavor. 
The brewers behind Samuel Adams spent countless hours perfecting the American Light recipe. With an ABV of 4.2% and 115 calories, Samuel Adams American Light is made with all American ingredients and is designed to be an easy-drinking beer that doesn’t compromise on flavor.
“We know beer lovers are seeking lighter, easier-to-drink options that they can enjoy throughout the day – whether it’s at the beach, at a friend’s party, or at a happy hour,” says Lauren Price, head of brand at Samuel Adams. “For those times they want to ‘upgrade’ those occasions with a great-tasting light beer, American Light is the answer.”
Samuel Adams American Light will initially be available in 12 oz. can six-packs, 12-packs, with national distribution expected in March 2025.
Dogfish Head also had Covered in Nuggs, an IPA that was introduced back in 2018 and is now available on a national scale. With notes of pine and citrus, Covered in Nuggs is an IPA that is delicious, with a sturdy base of Golden Promise malt. They piled on the Citra, Simcoe, Amarillo and Centennial hops.
For more information about Samuel Adams American Light and where to find it, please visit samueladams.com or follow @SamuelAdamsBeer on social media. For more on Dogfish Head, visit www.dogfish.com.
by Mark Smiley | Aug 23, 2024 | Travel
by Mark Smiley
With specialty coffee drinks approaching $6 without tip, many consumers are turning to brewing their own at home. There are a plethora of options depending on your budget. If you want one of the best on the market that money can buy, consider the Terra Kaffe TK-02.
The retail price comes in at $1,595 so it isn’t for everyone. But, the savings add up if you brew your own lattes and cappuccinos at home. In fact, the app you can download that syncs with the machine provides a running total of the money saved by brewing at home.
The TK-02 is easy to set up out of the box and takes less than 15 minutes to assemble and prepare for brewing. When asleep, in our tests, it took less than 3 minutes for the machine to wake up from the previous day’s brews. In fact, the app can wake the machine so you can tap “wake” from bed and let it warm up. Also, the TK-02 can brew your favorite drink the same time every day with its programmable settings. It also allows for you to name the drinks with what seems to be an infinite amount of options.
How does the regular drip coffee taste? With the ability to add coffee beans to the hopper, the drip coffee is one of the best ever tested on a home machine. You are getting an authentic coffee house experience as the machine grinds the beans with every cup. Also, you can add ground coffee to a separate hopper. Just don’t forget to press the “pre-ground” option on the display.
The TK-02 includes a 30-day/150-brew trial and a 2-year/5,000-brew warranty. It also includes a simple to use milk carafe for lattes. You add the milk and then connect the hose to the machine and the TK-02 produces a latte in less than one minute. We recommend playing with the temperature settings because the default setting likely won’t be hot enough for the average latte fan.
The TK-02 also does a good job of brewing iced coffee which is a new feature on this model. Set your cup of ice under the chute and the drip coffee will brew directly into the cup, eliminating the need for a 24-hour cold brew in the refrigerator.
Speaking of the chute, make sure you lower it to the cup/mug before brewing as it can get messy without lowering. The TK-02 also intuitively knows when it is time to add water to the carafe (which includes a filter), empty the water tray, and empty the ground coffee bin. It is one of the simplest to use yet best tasting coffees from home you can find.
For more information on the Terra Kafe TK-02, visit www.terrakaffe.com/products/tk-02.
by Mark Smiley | Jul 18, 2024 | Travel
by Mark Smiley
Bacon: The Keystone Bacon and Bourbon Festival celebrated its 13th year in June, 2024.
The 2024 Keystone Bacon and Bourbon Festival brought a dozen different food vendors, alongside four bacon companies, and 15 bourbon and spirits attendees to the mountains. Pairing with all this bourbon and bacon, guests were treated to an impressive band line-up. Twelve rock bands played over the festival weekend including Summit’s own CB3 and O’Connor Brothers Band, the world’s premier KISS Tribute Band STRUTTER, and the Bacon and Bourbon Festival staple AC/DC tribute band Hell’s Belles. In total there were three festival stages placed throughout River Run Village.
This year, the festival featured more bacon, bourbon, and beer than in years previous. More partners joined the bourbon tour tradition with 15 bourbon suppliers showcasing numerous brands for Hungry Hog ticket purchasers to enjoy. Local mountain man, Bacon Bill, made his debut heading up the event’s kid-centric Camp Bacon.
“After 13 years of a festival you’d think it may be tough coming up with new ideas.” says Maja Russer, Director of Events and Marketing for the Keystone Neighbourhood Company. “The highly creative events and marketing team at the Keystone Neighbourhood Company sat in a room and threw every idea at the wall. The new Harley the Hog mechanical pig, as well as a revamped Camp Bacon were just two of the many items that will make the weekend all about the bacon. A 2023 Festival guest provided feedback in a survey saying, quote: “Draw in the crazies, draw in the committed. Blow me away with bacon.” We are doing our best to fulfill this guest’s and many more enthusiasts’ visions.”
Hell’s Belles: The all-female AC/DC tribute band Hell’s Belles closed the fest with an over 90 minute show that had the crowd dancing and singing the entire time.
The 13th Bacon and Bourbon Festival supports the Colorado mountain community by featuring local businesses, restaurants, and supporting the non-profit Friends of the Dillon Ranger District, the Festival’s beneficiary. For 2024, organizers are working with another prominent community partner, Climax Molybdenum, who this year is helping to power the entire summer festival series volunteer base.
Upcoming festivals in River Run Village include Bluegrass & Beer, August 3-4, 2024; Mountain Town Music Fest, August 17, 2024; and Oktoberfest, August 31, 2024. Visit www.keystonefestivals.com for more information and to purchase tickets.
Photos from KNC Events
by Mark Smiley | Jun 20, 2024 | Travel
2024 Summer Events Calendar Packed With Events
by Mark Smiley
Kickoff Event: Caroline Matz enjoyed the kickoff party for the Cherry Creek North In Bloom summer season on the rooftop of the Jacquard Hotel.
Cherry Creek North unveiled a calendar of events for the 2024 Cherry Creek In Bloom summer season. This year, Cherry Creek North In Bloom offers a destination for a summer filled with more than 70 days of music, arts, and culture.
“Cherry Creek North’s summer line-up will bring together local musicians and performers on our tree-lined streets,” said Lisa Voss, VP of Marketing, Cherry Creek North. “Visitors look forward to our summer events as a way to connect with the Colorado art and culture scene with their friends and families. This year we are excited to host Bastille Day, a three-day festival July 12-14th, that embraces and celebrates French culture, along with a long-time favorite, the Cherry Creek Arts Festival.”
Cherry Creek North is bringing back some long-time favorites this year, including the popular Cherry Creek Sidewalk Sale, now in its 53rd year. Additional events scheduled include:
Smash Fine Arts Festival
The summer Smash Fine Arts Festival returns for two weekends this summer, June 8-9, and again on August 10-11, on Cherry Creek North’s Fillmore Plaza. This festival features top national artists as well as live violin, piano, and guitar music.
Cherry Creek Arts Festival
The annual Cherry Creek Arts Festival takes place Friday, July 5 – Sunday, July 7. This free festival features 250 national and international juried artists, 13 performing artists, Creation Station with children’s activities, food, and interactive art experiences throughout the district. The Cherry Creek Arts Festival is one of the country’s largest and most respected arts shows.
Bastille Day
Cocktails: The cocktail menu at the Jacquard Hotel is impressive.
Bastille Day is a free three-day festival the weekend of July 12-14 that celebrates French culture. With 40-50 local vendors offering the “la creme de la creme” of French and French-themed products, there is something for everyone to enjoy.
Cherry Creek North Sidewalk Sale
On Thursday, July 18, to Sunday, July 21, Cherry Creek North’s famous boutiques bring their racks to the sidewalks for CCN’s 54th annual Sidewalk Sale. With over 16 blocks of discounted high-end fashion, style has never felt so good.
Top Of The Town
5280 magazine’s annual, all-inclusive bash celebrating the best in and around Denver is back at Cherry Creek North on Thursday, July 18, from 6-9 p.m. This will be an evening filled with tasty menus from Top of the Town. Tickets allow all-inclusive access to the event, including the food vendors, bars, spirit sampling stations, enter-to-win giveaways stations, photo activations, and more.
Photos courtesy of Cherry Creek North
