Call it the long goodbye.
Pete Meersman, President and Chief Executive Officer for the Colorado Restaurant Association, recently submitted his six-year plan to terminate his duties as “chief cheese” of the trade organization that represents roughly 4,500 eatery members and more than 200 allied trade members that provide products and services to the food service industry.
Pete Meersman, President and CEO of the Colorado Restaurant Association. (Blacktie-Colorado photo)
In a recent email blast, Meersman said that, “The Colorado Restaurant Association (and I) have implemented a six-year leadership transition plan. This plan will provide for the orderly transfer of leadership responsibilities to a new president and chief executive officer. We will begin a search for a chief operating officer immediately.
“The plan is to hire a COO by mid-October 2013, and then have that person become president and CEO on year later … I will remain as president and CEO until October 2014, and then I will continue to be employed by CRA as chief strategy officer until October 31, 2019.”
After a 31-year career with the CRA, Meersman’s transition into retirement isn’t surprising, albeit more methodical than most. With the hiring of the new COO, Meersman’s intent is to reduce work hours while training
the newcomer and facilitating introductions with key members, legislators and other government officials.
“The CRA officers and I determined this was the best course of action for (the) CRA, and for me, since I have worked for CRA for the past 31 years and have a huge investment in its continued success,” Meersman wrote.
When the COO takes over in October 2014, Meersman will work on special projects as needed. I, for one, will miss Pete’s position as the CRA leader. We have enjoyed a respectful relationship for roughly 20 years. Best of luck, Pete, and maybe you’ll finally have time to work on your golf game!
New brews at The Brown
The Brown Palace Hotel and Spa and Wynkoop Brewing Company are sharing suds to create a series of special-edition traditional cask beers using the brew house’s know-how and ingredients from the hotel.
The first beer to debut in the Palace Caskcraft small-batch beer series is a version of Wynkoop’s London Calling IPA. Wynkoop head brewmaster Andy Brown incorporates lemon grass into the mix — a featured component of the hotel’s namesake spa line.
As the series continues, additional recipes will use honey from the hotel’s rooftop bees as well as water from The Brown Palace’s artesian well.
The cask beer tradition dates back several centuries to when beers were carbonated naturally in wooden barrels and at a slightly warmer temperature. As the process evolved, the beers were stored in stainless steel casks and served with old-fashioned hand pumps, also known as beer engines.
With the guidance of Marty Jones and his Wynkoop team, The Brown Palace purchased two beer engines for the hotel’s Ship Tavern to create its own house cask beers. More information: www.brownpalace.com or www.wynkoop.com.
The first beer to debut in the Brown Palace Caskcraft small-batch beer series is a version of Wynkoop’s London Calling IPA. (Brown Palace and Wynkoop Brewing photo)
Brown Palace bees growing buzz
The venerable Brown Palace Hotel in downtown Denver launched its rooftop beehive program to harvest honey, the buzz has grown to the point where the hotel added a fifth hive recently.
“The addition was indeed due to demand and the BP team wanting to expand on the hotel’s offerings made with rooftop honey,” said hotel spokeswoman Ashley Cothran.
Here are some of the “sweet” ways that The Brown uses the homegrown honey:
* Brown Palace Rooftop Honey Saison – the original summertime beer with the Wynkoop will return this fall in time for the Great American Beer Festival. The beer was created using 75 pounds of rooftop honey.
* Honey Infused Bourbon – a new barrel-aged honey infused bourbon created with Breckenridge Distillery.
* Cocktails – signature drinks such as the BP Bees’ Knees or the Honey Brut can be found in all of The Brown’s dining venues.
* Afternoon Tea – Rooftop honey is used during The Brown’s famed afternoon high tea.
* Queen Bee Body Scrub – a spa treatment that combines organic brown sugar and The Brown’s own “sugar” honey from the hotel’s bees.
* Bee Royalty Signature Products – The Brown Palace Spa Boutique is home to a line of products including lip balm and honey lavender soap.
The Brown Palace Hotel recently added a fifth hive to its rooftop honey production. (Brown Palace Hotel photo)
Marvin leads Poets for Change event
100 Thousand Poets for Change, the Denver event from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Sept. 28 at the Oriental Theater, will feature former radio talk show anchor, poet, flash fiction writer, artist and progressive thinker Jay Marvin as the keynote speaker and poet as well as a FreespeechTV videotaping.
Other poets and performers include Tom “Wordwulf” Sterner; Roseanna Frechette; Adam Roufberg; Ken Greenley; Mike Romoth; Sonia “Mother Jones” Skakich-Scrima; Michael Annis, founder of Howling Dog Press, and the spirit of Gregory Greyhawk. Howling Dog Press is the acting host, and the roaring metal band Illicit Sects will provide musical entertainment. For more information, visit www.100tpc.org.
Doors open at 44th & Tennyson at 10 a.m. There’s no admission charge. There will also be an exhibition of 100 Thousand Poets for Change posters from around the world at the venue.
Subscribe to my column and earn beer here
From today through Wednesday at 6 p.m., anyone who’s a veteran or newbie subscriber to this column will be entered in a drawing to win two Denver Beerathon VIP tickets. The first Denver Beerathon, on Sept. 14, features a self-guided tour of 26 downtown-area bars, pubs, taverns and restaurants offering special deals for ticketholders.
The VIP ticket directs beer lovers to check in between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. is at Fado Irish Pub and Restaurant (1735 19th St.), and includes a VIP-only party with a buffet, prizes and giveaways and a $20 Uber car service pass plus a $25 day of event pass (new Uber users only), Altitude Peak Fitness two-week unlimited pass, $99 room rate at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel among other goodies.
The link for $99 rooms at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel (regularly rooms are about $350) is: https://www.starwoodmeeting.com/Book/denverbeerathon. More information on the Beerathon at www.denverbeerathon.com.
Eavesdropping on Twitter feed of Lindsay Jones (former Denver Post Broncos beat writer now at USA Today) on an interview with Broncos TE Julius Thomas: “He said it would sink in once he talked to his parents.”
(Jones asked): “Have you checked your phone?”
JT: “I haven’t even put on my pants.”
Did you hear that I have a new column, “Mile High Life,” in Colorado Community Media’s 17 weekly newspapers circling Denver? Be sure to like my Facebook page! Also, here’s where you go to get my column emailed to you Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. My email: penny@blacktie-llc.com. Want to advertise your business here? Contact Trisha at trilind@hotmail.com.
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