The Great American Beer Festival really is one of Colorado’s marquee events. Thousands of beer fans jam the Colorado Conventions Center to sample the best beer this country has to offer. Earlier I previewed the GABF and I attended the Thursday night session and I (again) found myself amazed by this truly singular event.

If you have a ticket to the Great American Beer Festival , it’s good to be you.  

For the uninitiated, the Great American Beer Festival is a yearly gathering of brewers from around the country put on by the Boulder-based Brewers Association. You could say it’s the king of beer festivals. This year, 432 breweries will have more than 1,900 beers on tap, and thousands will filter through the Colorado Convention Center sipping one-ounce samples of some of best beer America has to offer.  

But if all that sounds daunting, don’t worry. As a seasoned veteran of the festival, I have a few tips for you that will keep your trip tasting great and more fulfilling.

I awoke at 1:30 a.m. and stepped into the bathroom, determined to keep my mind clear. A minute later I lowered myself back into bed and began breathing slowly to ease myself to sleep. Despite my efforts, thoughts of work penetrated my mind. I lay still, breathing more deeply and concentrating on the word sleeeeep. Finally, after twisting till my sheets were a wad, I turned on the light. An hour had passed. I picked up a book.

I was getting plenty of exercise, eating right and drinking enough water each day. No caffeine after morning, and no eating or alcohol after 7 p.m. I was relaxing in the evening, and life seemed well balanced. Yet almost every night I fought my job for possession of my mind. Had that been the first time—or even the first time that week—I may have thought different about it, but now it was ultimatum time: either I would learn to accept sleep deprivation, or something would have to change.

We’ve all heard that Denver is the birthplace of the cheeseburger and we’ve all attempted to treat our out-of-town guests to Rocky Mountain Oysters, but for being a city with such a history so enmeshed with beef and cattle, it may be slightly surprising that Denver doesn’t have a trademark barbecue dish.

Americans, it’s no secret, have long set aside a warm place in their hearts and stomachs for comfort food—meatloaf, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes with gravy.

Denver diners now have a new option to satiate their appetites when they’re craving what their Mamas used to make: Second Home Kitchen and Bar in Cherry Creek

I decided to expand my dining horizons by inviting myself to the Tuesday Night Dinner festivities at the African Community Center (ACC) in Denver. The weekly dinners are open to anyone in the community, with one pre-requisite: you must bring a dish you love from your culture.