Being back in the states has given me a new appreciation for the things of Boulder, especially one of my favorite local breweries: The Mountain Sun.
The Mountain Sun is the quintessential Boulder establishment. It has all things heady, and provides the liberal hippie town of Boulder with a beating heart. With over 20 Mountain Sun brewed taps, this is beer paradise. Throw in the best bleu-cheese bacon burger, dreadlocks, facial hair, and the spirit of the Grateful Dead and their jamband brethren... and voila, you have "The Sun". February happens to be Stout Month, so The Sun has over 10 stouts on tap, including their own 8 beers and several guest taps from places like Young's (England) and Dogfishhead (Delaware). My favorite stouts include the Coconut Cream Stout, The Korova Cream Stout (or the tangerine zest version!), Old School Stout, The Trickster Stout (think IPA meets Stout), The Stoked Oak, The Ladies Man (my friend Brady's homebrew winner).... shoot, they are all my favorites! Not to mention all the other beers including my favorite hoppy beer of all time, the FYIPA. FY does not stand for "For Your", they abbreviated another saying to decribe how amazing this beer tastes. Like I said, this is Beer Heaven.
The employees are also a wonderful group of free-spirited people... they share tables, share cooking responsibilities, share tables, and share beers during the busy hours. I have come up with 3 requirements that one must have to work here, in no particular order... only one needs to be met, but all three are preferable:
1. Dreadlocks. Either you have them, or have had them at one time in your life. Dreadlocked Rastas for sure.
2. Hops. You must have an insatiable thirst for Hops! The IPA is king here.
3. Stash. You must have a nice little stash of "herb", or at least some at home awaiting your arrival.
I don't think most employees have a problem meeting one of these requirements, and for this we are grateful because if this were not the case, it would not be the Mountain Sun.
Here are a couple photos of one of my favorite hippie Boulder places:
"Jerry" chillin from the rafters
Best nachos in Boulder, and of course the best quesadillas...
When you sell 18 million pints in 3 hours, you must wash them quickly.
Support your local brewery... err, bartender.
Mikey, one of my favorite people at the Sun, and all the amazing selection behind him
The Guest Tap: Young's Double Chocolate Stout on Nitrogen Tap
Now, I have an M.A. in Beer (aka, I've lived in Boulder for 2 years) and I have also traveled through Europe on different occasions and tasted some of the best beers the old world has to offer. Given that, I am willing to issue a challenge to any city in the world... pick the best of every beer genre (IPA, Stout, Porter, Pale Ale, Hefeweizen, Amber Ale, Etc...) and compare those to Boulder's selections. With the Mountain Sun, Avery Beer, Boulder Beer, Twisted Pine, Oskar Blues, B.J's, Walnut and other breweries... I don't think any city in the world can touch Boulder, which is why I love this place.
Cheers to that!
-RUSTAFARI
2 comments:
Cheers to the mountain sun!
And yes, quesadillas . . . Do you know what a quesadilla is?
Great photos! The washing of the pint glasses is my favorite, I think.
You did forget to mention two things:
1. Mountain Sun's gift of love to Boulder, which they will be tapping tomorrow: the Cherry Chocolate Dip!
2. One particular waitress's favorite stout: a mixture of the coconut cream and the tangerine sex.
And just think . . . we still have another two weeks of February!
I am presently trying to get a job serving beer at the 4th ranked beer bar of the world. that's right, the world.
i would love to have any suggestions for books or websites on beer. and i also plan to claim my "M.A. in Beer (aka living in Boulder for 2 years)" on my resume.
Enjoyed the pictures! Miss the place!
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