David Wondrich, one of the world’s top cocktail historians, included the two Denver bars on a list that includes Danny Meyer’s Porchlight in New York and the Teardrop Lounge in Portland, Ore., a pioneer of America’s craft-cocktail bar scene.

Wondrich said he chose the Occidental in LoHi (1950 W. 32nd Ave.) because it’s “a modern, thrilling dive that happens to be owned by Sean Kenyon, one of America’s top mixologists.”

Kenyon also owns the speakeasy next door, Williams & Graham, which was named one of the 50 best bars in the world in 2014.

Wondrich’s suggestions for the best experience at the Occidental is to grab a seat outside on the deck, with its view of the Denver skyline, and order a shorty of Genesee cream ale and a caballito of Los Monjos mezcal.

Where the Occidental is new and hip, Shelby’s Bar & Grill (519 18h St.) is a veteran of the local bar scene, opening in 1979.

When the Carolina Panthers played in the Super Bowl, its fan club met there, and the Denver Post described the place as “much like the Carolinas themselves: hospitable and unpretentious, warm yet sassy, with a proud, 37-year history that hasn’t changed to accommodate moody hipsters or a rainbow of craft beers.”

And Esquire’s cocktail historian likes it because, standing outside, “you’ll look around — all the way around — and you’ll remember that Denver used to be an ornery frontier town, full of crust and character. And then you’ll step back inside and call for another round, and the bartender will tell you to shut up and wait your damn turn like a human being.”

And, he says, you should definitely order a Jameson.