There are only six all-natural, finest-quality kosher ingredients, including real malt syrup.

White sugar and chemicals are personae non gratae.

Each parve bonne bouche is boiled a full 2 minutes – never steamed or dry cooked.

Next, they are baked on a hearth stone.  Wire racks don’t cut it.

Finally, they are flipped onto burlap boards, which draw out any remaining water.

Voilá.  A hard-on-the-outside, soft-and-chewy-on-the-inside, hot and fresh Colorado kosher bagel, that can stand hole-to-hole with any of New York’s renowned deli machers (big shots).

Oh, yes.  To produce these fresh-baked delights each morning, a dutiful crew of bagel makers begins its routine the night before, reporting to work in shifts starting at 8:00 pm.

“It’s a labor of love,” says Beth Ginsberg, who purchased The Bagel Store four years ago, and is thriving in an industry that, in general, is faltering under the burden of the very costly, laborious and challenging job of turning bagel dough into spendable scratch.

An engineer by training, Ginsberg first became interested in making bagels commercially while living with her family in Singapore.  “I didn’t know how to make bagels,” she recalls. Nonetheless, during visits back to Denver, the previous owner of The Bagel Store, which has been in business for 37 years, mentored her on the process.

Ginsberg’s first foray into the bagel business, New York City Bagel Factory, based in Singapore, continues to provide New York-style bagels to Starbucks coffee shops and other outlets in the Asian nation.

In Denver, The Bagel Store, located at 942 S. Monaco Parkway (80224), does its briskest business serving the wholesale marketplace, including major hotels, dozens of local caterers and each and every Ink! Coffee location.

Ginsberg, who is a guest on this week’s edition of Radio Chavura, airing each Sunday at 6:30 pm on 990 KRKS AM in Denver, notes that among her wholesale and retail clients, Jews make up only a tiny fraction.

“Everybody loves a good bagel these days,” she tells Radio Chavura hosts Maxwell and Dean Rotbart.  “They’re not just for Jews anymore.”

The Bagel Store offers 13 varieties of fresh bagels during the week, expanding by two (Chocolate Chip and Cinnamon Sugar) on Fridays.  Moreover, Ginsberg says she and her crew are happy to make custom varieties – such as whole wheat and sesame – for customers who request at least a dozen made-to-order bagels in advance.

Ginsberg says her “everything” bagel remains the most popular of them all, followed closely by plain, poppy and sesame.

For those who live in Boulder and crave a great kosher, New York-style bagel, Ginsberg says she’s happy to ship bagels anywhere in the state or country.  Alternatively, those needing a bagel fix can join the parade of others who regularly make the pilgrimage to The Bagel Store from Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Greeley and as far away as Wyoming and Montana.

Ginsberg says these voyagers come, enjoy bagels fresh from the store, and return home with dozens and dozens of bagels to stock their freezers.

The Bagel Store is open Mon-Wed and Sat-Sun from 6:00 am to 2:00 pm.  On Thursday and Friday it is open from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm.  Phone: 303-388-2648.

In addition to its all-star lineup of bagels, The Bagel Store sells a variety of kosher challahs, breads, cakes and pastries.  All its products are certified kosher by Vaad HaKashrus of Denver, also known as Scroll K.

The Radio Chavura interview with Ginsberg will also be available to stream or download from the program’s website, www.Chavura.com.  Radio Chavura offers a free, weekly program guide, including an extensive calendar of Colorado Jewish events, at www.SubscribeChavura.com.