This post was originally published April 5, 2016.

Some great friends and myself had a ladies’ weekend in Glenwood Springs recently. If you don’t know, Glenwood Springs is about 3 hours west of Denver located in a valley deep in the heart of the Rocky Mountains. Located right next to the Colorado River, Glenwood offers some seriously beautiful sights and western mountain vibes. Glenwood is also known for a plethora of mineral hot spring pools– from the biggest and most popular located in town to smaller hot springs located a bit out of town in the middle of nowhere.

Glenwood Hot Springs Lodge: the largest hot springs pool. We didn’t have enough time to soak here unfortunately.

We stayed at an old haunted hotel called the Hotel Colorado. It’s really creepy and adorned with odd statues of Teddy Roosevelt and teddy bears. Additionally, the hot springs were AWESOME. We went down south to a spot on the Crystal River… To a little place called Penny Hot Springs. We soaked for hours and hours, feeling so rejuvenated. If you live in Colorado and are looking for a nice weekend trip, I highly recommend heading out to the Glenwood area to check out the hot springs, vapor caves, rivers, and much more. You won’t be disappointed.

Colorado folk hangin’ out at Penny Hot Springs.

We arrived late on a Friday night and woke up Saturday to have some Bloodies and brunch before we went on an adventure to a few different hot springs. We went to Smoke Modern Barbeque, a new-age BBQ spot located in the heart of town. For breakfast, I had the BBQ hash, which consisted of burnt ends, hash browns, eggs over easy, cheddar, scallions, and tomatoes. It was pretty good, but the Bloody was even better. Inspired and infused with BBQ roots, it was a great wake up cocktail. You can read the full review of Smoke Modern Barbeque’s Bloody Mary below.

BBQ Hash and Bloody Mary at Smoke Modern Barbeque.

AT A GLANCE 17/20

Smoke Modern Barbeque’s Bloody Mary looked pleasing and different upon its arrival at our table. The cocktail was garnished with pickled okra, lime, lemon, and two large green olives, while the top of the Bloody coated with a layer of foam. The Bloody was orange-red in color and had spices floating throughout.

GARNISH 15/20

The pickled okra was delicious and the rest of the garnish was composed of your classic Bloody Mary garnish ingredients. The appearance was average.

SPICE 20/20

The spice of Smoke Modern Barbeque’s Bloody was very unique and tangy. It almost had a pickled taste contrasted with some XXX BBQ sauce for a complex twist. Super, super tasty.

TEXTURE & ACIDITY 17/20

The Bloody was a little acidic and heat lingered in my mouth after each sip. The texture was light and the cocktail went down easily!

UNIQUENESS 17/20

Smoke Modern’s Bloody was noteworthy with its original flavor that was obviously BBQ inspired. The addition of the XXX BBQ sauce and pickled tang created great flavor depth. The foam or “espuma” on top of the cocktail added creativity points and a lighter texture as a whole.

FINAL SCORE 86/100

Headed out to Glenwood Springs and want a BBQ-inspired Bloody to start your morning out right? Check out Smoke Modern Barbeque, which is located at:

711 Grand Avenue, Glenwood Springs, Colorado 81601