By: Ya'el McLoud
Oct. 2, 2022
Erin Udell is a local to Fort Collins and a reporter for the Coloradoan. Udell covers art, entertainment, and culture for Northern Colorado and is an avid foodie. Udell is also a lover of local history, as I was calling her, she revealed that she was “holed up in a podcast cave.” She hosts a podcast on local history titled, “The Way it Was: A podpast.”
Udell graduated from Colorado State University in 2012 and admits to being somewhat of a local celebrity as she is charged with covering the annual Tour de Corgi. I would have to agree with her on that, because who does not just love a big fluffy Corgi butt? Unfortunately, that was not the topic of our conversation, rather we discussed the amazing, down-to-earth bar culture in Fort Collins. So, while I cannot provide you with the best Corgi butt breakdown of 2022, Udell does discuss some hidden gems, in Fort Collins, where you can get a drink.
Me: Was this just your assignment or is it more of a passion for you? Erin: I have been at the Coloradoan for 10 years this month, through those years I have covered a lot of different things and jumped through a lot of different beats. The one I am officially on now is arts, entertainment, and culture. Food, bars, and breweries are kind of under the umbrella of that. It was not something I picked, but it’s turned into something I do truly enjoy. I am a food is life kind of person. I do appreciate having the scoop on all the new restaurants.
Me: Why do you love covering Fort Collins food and bars so much? Erin: What I like about it is that Fort Collins is such a food and beer-soaked city, that there is always something new happening; there is never quite a dull moment. If there was only one new restaurant opening every few months then it would be more of an afterthought to me, but because there are always new restaurants opening and because restaurants, bars, and breweries are doing so many cool new things, that gives me a lot to cover, and a lot more to have fun with as a reporter. Me: What is your go-to place to get a drink, like, what is your favorite bar? Erin: Oh no! your kind of putting me on the spot here, I always liken these questions to people asking you what your, like, favorite movie is and you forget every movie you have ever seen. Me: Oh, absolutely. Erin: I really like the Colorado Room, I like their ambiance, they have some really good cocktails. I like a good unstuffy bar. But the Colorado Room is a go-to for me. Erin: Let’s see… I like a good margarita, the Rio kind of holds the margarita crown here in Fort Collins. But I do like a good jaunt over to Illegal Pete’s. I'm in my thirties so I am in my neighborhood bar era, so I like Maya’s Cove, which is off Drake and Taft. It is kind of like an Alabama bar, a Jimmy Buffett kind of bar. So they have tropical drinks and pretty lethal margaritas. It just has cool decorations and a cool vibe, and again I just love that it is tucked away from the hustle and bustle of Fort Collins.
Me: What is one place that is underrated that a lot of people do not know about, but you would suggest? Erin: I guess Maya's Cove does fit into that, it is a little unexpected it's not in Old Town. You may drive by it and not even know what it is from the outside. But it's an Alabama bar so it has its own barbeque, they smoke their own meats out on the patio. That is a good, hidden spot… Erin: Are you okay if I pull up my list here? Me: Of course! Erin: Oh! I've always loved Pour Brothers, I've gone there for years and covered a lot there. Oh, I have it. The Forge. Do you know about The Forge? Me: No, I do not know what The Forge is actually. Erin: The Forge is a beer bar, it's called the Forge Publick House, and it's in Old Firehouse Alley. It's right downtown and a lot of people do not know about it. It's in this little, spot that used to be a forge. It’s tucked away, it’s this little brick building with ivy growing up it. I call it the harry potter bar because it feels like you're walking into a Harry Potter-themed place. In the winter it's super cozy and has a wood stove going and it just feels very old world compared to everything else that is in Fort Collins.
Me: Oh that sounds, no pun intended, right up my alley. Me: What do you think about the culture and community regarding the food and drink culture in Fort Collins? What is your favorite part? Erin: So when you asked that question, I instantly thought of beer, and I've done so many stories on this. Fort Collins is a beer-soaked town, which goes back so far, I'm going to bring in local history, which I do with everything.
Me: No, go for it! I love a good little history lesson. Erin: My first opportunity of mentioning local history and I will take it! Erin: The culture around food and drink especially drink, dates back to I mean even before prohibition, Fort Collins was a dry town, before prohibition, during prohibition, and after prohibition. You could only buy 3–2 beers in bars, double-check this, but until 1969. This was in fact correct. If you want to learn more about this here is a link to a story on the Fort Collins prohibition, which lasted from 1869 to 1969.
Erin: You couldn’t get a cocktail somewhere. There was a grassroots fight to get the city council to change this, it was the 60’s so there were a lot of social movements going on. And Fort Collins kind of felt stuck in the past, according to the people that I've talked to. So they successfully did that and bars reemerged in Fort Collins, so there was this hard-fought battle to have liquor back in town.
Erin: However, it's funny now looking back, on this hard-fought battle because the thing that ended up shaping Fort Collins drink scene, was really what had been there all along, beer. Erin: So in the ’80s and ’90s, craft breweries started popping up, the big guys New Belgium and Odell obviously took off and had meteoric rises across Colorado, the country, and in New Belgium's case across the world. It's funny to look back on the history of how we got here.
Erin: Fort Collins just has that college town, brewery vibe. What I like about it is the unfussy nature of beer, while that is really present in some things, here there is something for everyone. So you can go get a craft cocktail, you can go have a beer on a patio, you can try really ritzy inventive things while still having that simplicity in food and drink that Fort Collins really grew up with.
Me: One last question, in that case, Odell versus New Belgium, what is your go-to? Erin: oh, I do not know, I feel like they are both so big for a reason. I am hesitant to pick, I do not want to say something bad like they are my children. I feel like that is a telling question here in Fort Collins, everyone has an answer to that and it is kind of wrapped up in your identity somewhat. Would you pick New Belgium over Odell or vice versa? I would say Odell’s patio is better and now you can get wine there.
Me: Well, thank you for that, I will let you get back to your podcast. Thank you for your time! Erin: Thank you, and if you need anything else just reach back out!
As any good reporter does, Erin did ask me what my decision would be between New Belgium and Odell and that’s when I outed myself as a non-beer-drinking Fort Collins transfer. In Erin’s defense, she took this information in stride and urged me to go to The Forge still and have one of their tipsy Italian sodas.
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