Beaver Creek celebrated on Saturday and Sunday with their Blues, Brew, and bar b cue Memorial Day festival. The festival served bar b cue from at least eight different vendors. Each vendor offered a one dollar to four dollar sampling. It was the perfect size allowing you to sample from so many chefs. Many had their own bar b cue sauce or sauces. Meat included everything from chicken, burnt ends, sausage, and much more. So you’re probably wondering, was there any snow at Beaver Creek? There sure was and is. There is tons of snow left and Arapahoe Basin is still open. On Sunday, we traveled to the Arapahoe Basin beer festival. Backcountry Brewery in Frisco has the best selection of beer from a single brewery. Their Telemark IPA is no doubt my favorite beer in Colorado. It’s even better at the Arapahoe Basin altitude!!! I tried their Pilsner and Porter. Those too are fantastic. It has been a while since I’ve been able to declare a beer as my favorite, but the Telemark IPA is simply perfect.
On Friday and Saturday evening’s we stayed at the Arrabelle. My review of the Arrabelle in Vail Colorado is as follows. Staff was extremely friendly and helpful. They had a decent bar serving Samuel Smith beers. The location is great because you are so close to the gondola. The King Bed with a balcony room was very nice for a weekend. The bathroom was large with heated floors. The water pressure in the shower was excellent. They had an outdoor lap pool that was a nice feature. However, I would prefer an outdoor/indoor pool so I don’t freeze when I get out. There were two hot tubs. Same issue as I had to go in the cold before going inside. The hot tubs were very nice. We were there during the off season, so not much was open. The TV was excellent being a large flat screen. They had a nice gas fireplace in the room. Most importantly, it was quit being in the room. I would go back, however, if spending that type of money, I’m torn between there and the Sonnenalp. The Sonnenalp has an indoor/outdoor pool, although it’s not next to the Gondola which is a great feature.
