Sunday, May 11, 2008

Yard Beer: a yard of Ale

I've stayed in many Colorado resorts and the Broadmoor is far-and-away our favorite spot for a yard beer.



A very popular spot in the early 1900's, they even have a Maxfield Parrish original oil paining, very art deco:



It's quite a place, and they are dog friendly with their "Pitty Pat" club, an amenity which Noel appreciated:




They even provided a room service menu for Noel:




The Broadmoor also has an amazing colection of entique liquor bottle, many from the 1800's with the booze still intact:





A Yard of Beer

One of my favorite places at the Broadmoor resort is the Golden Bee, an authentic 19th century British pub which was relocated from England to Colorado Springs. It has a great Victorian feel, and they continue the tradition of the "yard beer".


The Golden Bee - A genuine British Pub in Colorado

True to their name, a yard of ale" is three feet tall. Designed for British stagecoach drivers, the yard-long beer glass was used to allow safe drinking and driving:

"The glass had to be long enough to hand to the driver without his having to leave the stagecoach. The design of the glass meant that the stagecoach driver could drive without losing control and drink at the same time. He could also have his glass refilled without letting go of the reins."

At 64 ounces, a yard of ale takes awhile to finish, and it's quite impressive when served:




The yard beers are somewhat tricky to drink, especially after about 48 oz, the most difficult part comes into play, the tipping-up of the yard beer to get the remaining beer at the bottom of the bulb:




See my other notes of the Baoadmoor hotel:

http://www.dba-oracle.com/golf_travel/broadmoor_resort.htm