KUSA - Move over craft beer boom, it's time for Colorado distilleries to shine. To help bring you up-to-speed on the growing industry, Ryan Negley from Peach Street Distillers and the Denver Whiskey Club has complied this whiskey facts list.
1. Stranahan's was the first Colorado-born whiskey. It was a fun idea of making 100 percent barley whiskey (Scotch-style,) yet age in new American oak (bourbon style.) Stranahan's is now owned by Proximo spirits.
2. Though Stranahan's was the first whiskey, Colorado Straight Bourbon from Peach Street Distillers was the first legal bourbon made in Colorado.
3. More than 60 distillery licenses have been doled out; most of which have the ultimate goal of making whiskey. At this rate, Colorado could have 100 distilleries by the end of 2016.
4. The inside of the column portion of the still of Distillery 291's (CO Springs) is actually a lithograph of the Chrysler Building in New York.
5. A.D. Laws Whiskey House had a ghost name of Gargoyle Industries to keep the ever-piercing eyes and pens of the media at bay. They launched with their 4-Grain Bourbon in November.
6. Leopold Bros. new facility in north east Denver has the first kiln and malting floor of it's kind in the state.
7. As of this fiscal quarter, whiskey is the number one spirit (by dollars) in the United States. Vodka still sells more cases.
8.The Denver Whiskey Club will turn 6 years old in February. The original meeting was eight folks and the (then) head distiller at Stranahan's. Jake Norris then became an integral part of the DWC. He is now the head distiller at Law's Whiskey House.
9. Distilling is an art and science. But more importantly, it's an agricultural business. Farmers have changed what they are growing to support the recent distillation boom, specifically in the San Luis Valley.
And coming up Dec. 16 the Denver Whiskey Club is raffling off 100 bottles to benefit Brent's Place - an organization that helps provide housing to children with cancer and their families. These factoids will help you fit in with the whiskey aficionados in attendance. For event information,visit http://on.fb.me/1zWhzS4
(KUSA-TV © 2014 Multimedia Holdings Corporation)
