STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — In September, Scott Yeates, co-founder of Colorado distillery Mythology, spent 10 days rafting the Grand Canyon with buddies he met in his new hometown. Naturally, he introduced a few of his product alongside for the campfire, which introduced everybody even nearer.
It was precisely the sort of folks he was trying to meet when he moved his award-winning distillery to Steamboat Springs from Denver this yr. Whereas the corporate has been profitable in Denver since its founding in 2018 — it’s one of many high 5 craft distilleries within the state — one thing was lacking. Seems it was a connection to his prospects.
“Mountain cities like Steamboat are simply smaller and make it simpler for us to provide native help and achieve higher connections to our prospects,” stated Yeates, who took over a constructing previously occupied by Butcherknife Brewery, which closed throughout the pandemic, and added a barrel storage room and an outside whiskey-tasting backyard. “It additionally provides us a deeper connection to the varied teams and nonprofits we’re supporting. It’s tougher to do that kind of factor whenever you’re not in a close-knit neighborhood.”
A living proof: Mythology hosted 5 occasions for various native nonprofits in September.
In addition to the ski resorts a lot of them provide, Colorado’s mountain cities provide a life-style that appeals to distilleries, for his or her manufacturers and homeowners’ sake. These small-scale liquor-makers are additionally changing into rural financial engines for these cities, offering jobs, tax revenues and a worthwhile attraction for guests.
Mythology isn’t the one one making such a transfer. Archetype Distillers, which began in Denver, is within the means of shifting to Gypsum. Small-batch aperitif-maker Atost is uprooting from its former headquarters in Denver to a small farm in California. And Denver’s Stranahan’s simply introduced plans to open a Stranahan’s Whiskey Lodge in Aspen this winter, marking its first outpost past its Entrance Vary distillery and tasting room.
“It’s in no way an exodus,” Yeates stated. “For each one in every of us that go away there are two or three that enter the market. However for these of us that do go away, it’s about an expertise rooted deep within the Colorado way of life.”
This way of life goes hand-in-hand with the craft distillery business. In line with the American Craft Spirits Affiliation, or ACSA, Colorado has 112 energetic craft distilleries, placing it at quantity six within the nation behind Washington. Colorado Distillers Guild treasurer Lee Wooden, who co-owns Wooden’s Excessive Mountain Distillery in Salida, places the quantity extra at 100 “producing” distilleries. “However when you have a look at it on a per capita foundation, we crush all people,” stated Wooden, who based his distillery close to the banks of the Arkansas River along with his brother P.T. Wooden in 2012. “There are a variety of them in Colorado, particularly in our mountain cities.”
Of the Guild’s 64 members, 41 are based mostly in smaller cities, away from the Entrance Vary, the place their homeowners can mix their liquor creations with the life-style they love. “I’d say that distillers select mountain cities due to the life-style it affords and the enjoyable nature of tourism,” stated Guild president Meagan Miller, who additionally owns Talnua Distillery in Arvada, the primary single pot nonetheless distillery exterior of Eire. “And having a neighborhood distillery provides character to these cities.”
Distilleries add character. And a variety of jobs.
It additionally provides to their financial system. The ACSA stories the variety of energetic craft distillers within the U.S. grew 17.4% final yr to 2,687, topping $7.5 billion in gross sales and using 24,255 full-time workers. Whereas not on the identical scale of their ski resorts, Colorado’s mountain cities are reaping their rewards, from revenues to giving vacationers one thing else to do.
Take the Roaring Fork Valley, as an example, which is residence to Aspen Distillers close to Basalt, Woody Creek Distillers in Basalt and Marble Distilling in Carbondale. “Their presence positively provides to our distinctive character,” Aspen Chamber Resort Affiliation president Debbie Braun stated. “They’ve cultivated a devoted following amongst residents and guests alike, enhancing our repute as a hub for artisanal craftsmanship and distinctive culinary experiences.” The chamber doesn’t observe the particular affect of the close by distilleries, however she stated “they contribute considerably to the realm’s financial system by creating jobs, attracting vacationers, and supporting native agriculture.”
For the folks behind the distilleries, it’s as a lot about mixing work and life as it’s bourbon. “Woody Creek is fairly slow-paced,” stated native resident Jess Graber, the founding father of Denver-based Tin Cup Whiskey who started distilling within the early Nineteen Seventies and in addition co-founded single malt pioneer Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey with namesake George Stranahan, who additionally lived in Woody Creek earlier than his demise in 2021. “The on a regular basis hustle and bustle of the town is changed by feeding time for the horses. It’s why I moved right here and began distilling first as a interest and later founding Stranahan’s and Tin Cup.”
Named after the Colorado mining city of Tin Cup, Tin Cup Whiskey and Stranahan’s guardian firm Proximo, just lately introduced plans to open a brand new Stranahan’s Whiskey Lodge in Aspen. “It’s coming residence, the place we blazed the path for our American single malt journey practically 20 years in the past,” Graber added. “It’s a method to say thanks to those that helped begin all of it.”
Having a tasting room, just like the one Stranahan’s is constructing and Mythology’s new whiskey backyard in Steamboat, is vital, added the Guild’s Wooden. “Most each profitable distillery has a extremely energetic tasting room,” he stated. “You need to. In any other case, you could have all of the disadvantages of proudly owning a distillery in a small city with none of the benefits. It’s essential to surviving.”
Crested Butte’s Montanya Distillers, which ships rum to 44 states and 7 nations, is aware of this nicely. Founder Karen Hoskin, who launched the corporate in a stone, turn-of-the-century brothel in Silverton in 2008 (her first batch was distilled in a lobster pot), has since moved the operation to Crested Butte, together with a well-liked tasting room on Elk Avenue downtown in addition to a distillery, bottling facility and barrel home two miles exterior of city. It’s gained nearly each main award within the spirits world and just lately turned the primary distillery to obtain funding from the Concentrate on Feminine Founders Enterprise Fund at Constellation Manufacturers.
“Rum has an extended and storied connection to snowboarding,” stated Hoskin of her base in Crested Butte, “and what higher rum to make use of than one made within the Rocky Mountains.”
Some distilleries have been born and raised within the small mountain cities they name residence. Such is the case with Vail and Gypsum’s tenth Mountain Division Whiskey & Spirit Co., named after the tough-as-nails skiers who educated exterior Vail for mountain warfare in Europe throughout World Struggle II.
Based by Ryan Thompson and Christian Avignon, whose grandfather was a medic within the tenth Mountain Division, the corporate pays tribute to those schussing troopers with spirits it feels are each bit as daring. And so they couldn’t see it being based mostly wherever else. “Not solely is it a tribute to the tenth Mountain soldier, but in addition to people who benefit from the mountain way of life, residing it totally, day by day,” stated Thompson, including the distillery’s spirits — together with bourbon, rye, cordials, vodka, moonshine and extra — are all constructed from regionally sourced elements, paying additional homage to the valley and its early explorers.
Breckenridge Distillery was additionally born and raised within the mountains. Billed because the “world’s highest distillery” at 9,600 toes, it was based in 2008 by Bryan Nolt, a Entrance Vary radiologist and former “scotch nerd” who noticed the city as excellent for his distilling thought of constructing a high-rye mash, blended bourbon whiskey, that has since gone on to win 4 World Whiskies awards. Led by the corporate’s flagship Breckenridge Bourbon, the corporate now produces 23 barrels a day, 5 days per week, in a ten,000-gallon mash kettle and a number of fermentation tanks, bottling 1.5 million flagons of booze yearly. The enterprise is rising about 40% every year.
“I admire giant cities and metropolis residing, however I’m happier spending much less money and time on driving and the actions of each day residing,” he stated. “I choose spending time with folks or being exterior. My love of the outside makes Breckenridge an amazing match. It additionally forces you to enhance your work-life steadiness. I’m wired to be a workaholic, so the fixed reminders that there are nice issues to do exterior is nice for me.”
He additionally stated you may’t discover higher water for his operations. “Our water comes from snow melting off the Continental Divide, permeating via the mountains,” he stated. “Its purity, excessive mineral and low iron content material pairs nice with ethanol and lends a mouthfeel I haven’t discovered wherever else. And something that doesn’t soften we get to ski on.”
However he admitted there are drawbacks to operating a distillery in a city like Breckenridge. “The draw back is that residing right here is difficult,” he added. “The price of residing is troublesome for most individuals and the winters are lengthy. And from a enterprise perspective, logistics may be troublesome, particularly with the present state of I-70, which might make getting supplies out and in of city laborious.”
He stated it’s additionally difficult selling a “high-performance tradition” within the office. “That takes a variety of finesse up right here as most residents didn’t decide this extraordinary setting as a result of they wished to spend their time grinding out work,” he stated. “We’ve managed to seek out the candy spot, however it took over a decade to make that occur.”
From Deerhammer Distillery in Buena Vista to the Telluride Distilling Co. within the San Juans (San Miguel County’s first authorized distillery, opening its doorways in 2015), a lot others are discovering a method that works as nicely, placing up with the drawbacks of settling in a mountain city to distill spirits and life again all the way down to the fundamentals.
“Our model was grown out of having fun with whiskey whereas tenting,” stated Mythology’s Yeates, who received the brainstorm for the distillery whereas on a ski journey in Alaska’s backcountry. “Steamboat is such a greater, extra genuine model match for us. Denver was a small neighborhood once I grew up there, however it’s grown and has misplaced a few of its character. It’s nice to get again to a decent neighborhood the place we are able to have a more in-depth reference to our prospects and the place we may be larger fish in a smaller pond as a substitute of simply one other fish. In Denver we have been simply one other distiller, and one in every of a thousand cocktail bars. Right here we’re a singular place to go to.”