Editor’s note: This is part of The Know’s series, Staff Favorites. Each week, we offer our opinions on the best Colorado has to offer for dining, shopping, entertainment, outdoor activities and more. (We’ll also let you in on some hidden gems).

A full house packed with Cheeseheads intently cheering for their beloved Green Bay Packers at Wally’s Wisconsin Tavern last Sunday didn’t realize they were in the presence of Wisconsin royalty.

Kim Flitcroft of Lake Geneva, Wis., who was crowned Alice in Dairyland of 1990, was in town with her husband for a family visit. Naturally, they celebrated game day at Wally’s.

Where else in Denver would a former Alice in Dairyland go to watch the green and gold than Colorado’s best Packers bar?

Flitcroft was too humble to mention her reign, a year-long responsibility that involved representing the state’s agriculture sector at public appearances, but her 77-year-old mother was tickled to tell me. No big deal, you say? I grew up in Wisconsin, so I knew what it meant and was honored to meet her. Flitcroft also is one of the Packers’ 537,460 “owners” who hold 5.2 million shares of stock. It pays no dividends except bragging rights, which are priceless.

Flitcroft loved Wally’s, which is crammed with Wisconsin sports memorabilia and photos. A massive lighted Schlitz sign greets visitors at the front door. Flitcroft and I are old enough to remember when Schlitz was touted as “The beer that made Milwaukee famous.” Flags for the Packers and Brewers hang from the ceiling, along with another that says “Drink Wisconsinbly.”

“I like that you’re out of town, you walk into a bar and it feels like you’re at home,” Flitcroft said. “It’s amazing. When you’re a Packers fan, you’re almost a whole other family together. I don’t care where you go or who you are, it’s like you know each other. It’s just such a special relationship that I don’t think you feel from other teams.”

That’s why I love Wally’s so much. Even though the Packers let us down last week, falling to the Detroit Lions in a rivalry game, we had loads of fun.

Summer Koehn, who moved from Milwaukee to Denver 18 months ago, got to Wally’s four hours before kickoff to make sure she and her friends got a table.

“Everywhere you go, there are Packers fans,” Koehn said. “How fun is it that you come to Denver and there’s a bar specifically for that? It’s loud, it’s fun. We’re a different breed.”

They (OK, we) are. They poke fun at their image and never take themselves too seriously.

“No,” Koehn agreed. “We’re Cheeseheads!”

Located in LoDo at 1417 Market St., Wally’s is attached to the Rhein Haus German restaurant, which also is filled with Cheeseheads on game days. Rhein Haus was co-founded by James Weimann, a Sheboygan native who named Wally’s in honor of his father. A huge photo taken at Wally’s wedding hangs in the bar. When Weimann started the Rhein Haus in 2015, the space now known as Wally’s was a side bar for Rhein Haus. In 2017, it took on its own identity and Packers decor.

The menu has lots of Wisconsin foods, including bratwurst, cheese curds, potato pancakes, giant pretzels, fried pickles and the “Lombardi Burger,” an Angus beef patty with cheddar cheese topped with fried cheese curds. (Alas, no Schlitz.)

Flitcroft’s mother, Judy Nettesheim, and I were kids when Schlitz ruled and Vince Lombardi’s Packers won five NFL championships in seven years (1961-67). We like to remind fans of other teams that the Packers, founded in 1919, have won the most NFL championships (13).

“In our family, your blood ran green and gold,” Flitcroft said. “It was just our life.”

Darryle Brown grew up in Virginia but fell under the spell of the Packers when Brett Favre was quarterback. He was dressed for the game with a Packers hard hat, jacket and bib. A Packers medallion with a light inside hung from a huge chain around his neck.

“I like the fact that it’s a good atmosphere,” Brown said. “It stays packed with my tribe of fellow Cheeseheads. Every time we score a touchdown, the celebration here is electric. It’s just a wonderful experience.”

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Originally Published: November 8, 2024 at 6:00 AM MST

The Avalanche lost to the Jets 1-0 in Winnipeg on Thursday. Alexandar Georgiev made 27 saves for the Avalanche, who outshot the Jets 34-28 and were 2/2 on the penalty kill.

Gabriel Vilardi opened the scoring for Winnipeg with a shot from the right doorstep off a cross-ice feed from Mark Scheifele at 1:06 of the first period.

At the end of the opening frame, Winnipeg led 1-0 and outshot Colorado 15-9 through the first 20 minutes of play.

After a scoreless second period, the Jets took a 1-0 lead into the third period along with a 24-18 advantage in shots on goal.

In the third period, the Avalanche outshot the Jets 16-4 but weren’t able to score the equalizer.

The Avalanche will return home and face the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday on Altitude and Altitude+.

The Golden police officer who was struck and killed by a suspected DUI driver has been identified. Golden Police Officer Evan Dunn was just 33 years old when he was killed on Wednesday night. 

Dunn was one of two officers who were investigating a crash when they were struck just before 5 p.m. Wednesday in Golden. Dunn and a female officer were outside their Golden Police Department patrol vehicle on the Golden Freeway (Highway 58) near the intersection with Washington Avenue when they were struck by the suspect later identified as Stephen Robert Geer. 

The officers became trapped underneath that vehicle and Dunn died at the scene. The other officer, his partner Officer Bethany Grusing was injured and rushed to the hospital. She sustained serious injuries in the crash. 

According to the Golden Police Department, Dunn was previously an Army Aviation Officer and Blackhawk pilot before he joined the department as a code enforcement officer where he served for a year before entering the police academy. He also actively served as a captain in the Army National Guard. 

Dunn graduated in July and was partnered with Grusing.

Dunn is survived by his wife, Annalise, and their dog Remy as well as his parents and two siblings, according to the Golden Police Department. 

“We are a family,” said Golden Police Chief Joe Harvey in a statement. “We are very close with each other and with our community. Evan had a bright future and was destined to do great things, and we will never get over his loss. We can only continue doing the job he loved in his honor.”

Harvey said that Annalise shared that “Evan was, first and foremost, a man of faith, loyal, steady, quiet, and observant. The couple shared a deep love for the outdoors, often camping and traveling together in their free time.”

Geer is being held at the Jefferson County Detention Center after his appearance before the judge on Thursday morning. 

Geer is facing several charges including vehicular homicide while driving under the influence of alcohol or one or more drugs, two counts of vehicular assault while driving under the influence of alcohol or one or more drugs, failure to exercise due care when approaching a stationary vehicle resulting in death.