Sparked by the mash-recycling moonshiners at Stranahan’s who forged Colorado’s first microdistillery more than 13 years ago, Colorado has become the birthplace of Rocky Mountain Whiskey, a hand-crafted movement injecting youthful vigor into the centuries-old whiskey business.

For fans of whiskey and other spirits seeking a tour, here’s an assemblage of distilleries where inventive whiskey peddlers are tweaking grain profiles to fuel a new era of Colorado distilling.

1. Feisty Spirits, Fort Collins

Starting up north, the small batch whiskey artisans at Fort Collins Feisty Spirits — the city’s first distillery — conjure up bourbon, rye and malt whiskeys in a copper still called Aphrodite. Try the nutty Blue Corn Bourbon, the award-winning, more sugary Red Corn Bourbon or the unique, clear Quinoa Whiskey for a different twist.

2. Stranahan’s, Denver

Denver is a hotbed for whiskey-making. Credit for that goes to Jess Graber, the firefighter who met beer-maker George Stranahan when his Woody Creek barn was aflame. The barn burned but the duo brewed up a plan to use Stranahan’s Denver-made Flying Dog beers — and leftover mash — as a spark to start distilling whiskey. Though the beer (and Graber) are no longer part of Stranahan’s whiskey, the barley-mash single-malt is still hand-produced in small batches in Denver. East Coast liquor distributor Proximo Distillers bought Stranahan’s in 2010, sparking, no doubt, hope among fledgling whiskey-makers that they too, someday, could walk away rich like Graber. Despite the new owners, Stranahan’s remains the benchmark for quality Colorado whiskey. 

3. Laws Whiskey House, Denver

While everyone knows about Stranahan’s, the genre-defining whiskey that paved the way for dozens of Colorado distillers seeking something more from their distilled grains, some of the state’s most ardent whiskey lovers avow allegiance to A.D. Laws. The Laws Whiskey House, where Al Laws and his team copyrighted the phrase “Whiskey Above All,” is a must-stop for anyone with a fondness for bourbon. The Four Grain Straight Bourbon, made with Colorado-grown wheat, rye and barley, is aged three years in white oak barrels. Law’s Single Barrel Secale Straight Rye packs a creamy, chocolatey punch and deserves every gram of its gold medal from the 2016 World Spirits Competition in San Francisco. For a real treat, get over the Laws Whiskey House for a Thursday whiskey flight night to sample the array of Law’s whiskeys. Otherwise, book a 90-minute tour on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday at lawswhiskeyhouse.com.

Read more at source: The Denver Post