Last year, the Halloween experience was spent indoors with the occasional virtual happy hour. This year, the Denver bar scene has become a catalyst for eye-catching pop-ups with spooky and whimsical themes. One of the many attention-grabbing spots is Spirits Halloween located in Larimer Square.
Located in a basement, the small flight of stairs leads to another one of Downtown Denver’s signature brick encapsulated spaces. It’s dimly lit with intimate seating and fake cobwebs. The bar is situated on the back wall next to a projection of Disney’s Hocus Pocus on the wall. The drink list is stacked with a few freaky tiki drinks, fall-themed spirits like a candy corn vodka or apple pie moonshine candy and a full bar. Some of the novel cocktails include a Caramel Apple Sucka ($13), Count Chocula Espresso Martini ($13) and Blood Bag ($13) which is a Red Bull mixed drink in a blood transfusion bag.
This underground bar, which formerly hosted the Crimson Room, is a spoof on the famous Spirit Halloween costume shop that quite literally pops up once a year. Though this is the debut year for Spirits in Denver, the team behind this bar is no stranger to themed watering holes. Handsome Hospitality — the concept group behind Slashers on Colfax, Hidden Gems, Drunken Bakery and many others — signed a long-term lease in the Larimer Street space with the hopes of switching out the dark and scary ambiance for a more warm and cozy holiday theme in December.
Spirits really captures the mysterious speakeasy aesthetic that every die-hard Halloween fan looks for in October. With an already well-desired horror-themed bar in Denver — Slashers on Colfax — the team wanted to play off that same idea but with a more relaxed experience that focuses less on the screening of horror movies.
Though there are only a couple of weeks left of October, there’s still time to add some scary bars to your list like Electric Cure’s Little Tiki Bar of Horrors takeover or Shriekeasy and Sub Zero at 13th Floor.
Spirits Halloween Pop-Up Bar is located at 1403 Larimer St., Denver. It is open weekdays from 4 p.m. to midnight and weekends from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. The pop-up will be running through October 31 on a first come, first serve basis.
All photography by Shelby Moeller.