Spirit Spotlight: Breckenridge Distillery

It’s been a loaded few weeks around here. Lots of tastings and classes that have come to an end, giving me a break to actually write again! At the end of March, I led a Bourbon/Rye/American craft whiskey session at Divine Wine, which included a whopping eight whiskeys. There is a lot to share with you from our session, which generated a lot of great conversation and debate. Today, I am going to give the pedestal to a distillery located right in the heart of Colorado’s ski resorts: Breckenridge Distillery.

Breckenridge is situated at the highest altitude of any distillery in the United States (9600 feet) and can be found as part of the Colorado Spirits Trail. The distillery was founded in 2007 by former doctor Bryan Nolt, who has (mostly) left a successful career in medicine behind to pursue his passion for spirits, and whiskey in particular. A trip to Scotland helped him adopt a Scottish mentality in whiskey production: valuing a local water source. In this case, Bryan had access to mountain snow melt that would be a major ingredient in his whiskeys. That, plus some education in distillation, has led to the creation award-winning Bourbon whiskeys. In fact, Bryan brought his distillation instructor, Jordan Via, to be his Head Distiller to help make this happen. The flagship product, Breckenridge Bourbon Whiskey, is actually a blend of high-rye Colorado, Kentucky, and Tennessee whiskeys and has been well-received by the whiskey-loving community.

From there, Bryan and Jordan have experimented with different cask finishes, such as Port and PX Sherry, and he has also released a Colorado take on single malt Scotch with the Dark Arts: Whiskey Distilled From Malt Mash. Additionally, Breckenridge has a gin and a range of vodkas (which for many craft distillers represents a quick way to get product on the market and establish some cash flow) among other products like spiced rum and liqueurs.

You should know that Colorado is really beginning to take off when it comes to craft spirit production; I would not be writing about Breckenridge Distillery if the products were not readily available. Several products are available in many markets across the country.

Try this flight of three whiskeys to get a feel for the Breckenridge style and enjoy! For more information, visit their web site.

Some darn fine whiskey from our class last month.

Breckenridge Bourbon Whiskey ($40): The flagship product has the caramel, vanilla, and brown sugar flavors you like to enjoy from the Kentucky Bourbons, but there is also a spicy, lively character that comes through with the high-rye mashbill and the use of some younger whiskeys in the blend. A pleasantly bitter/herbaceous edge on the finish that provides an extra layer of complexity.

Breckenridge Port Finish Bourbon Whiskey ($50): Breckenridge takes the Bourbon recipe from above and finishes the whiskey in choice Port barrels for a few months. There is an apricot and berry jelly-like fruitiness on the finish and the use of Port barrel also softens the texture, giving the whiskey a silky mouthfeel, but there is also a peppery kick on the finish.

Breckenridge PX Cask Finish Bourbon Whiskey ($50): So again, take the flagship Bourbon recipe and this time age the whiskey in PX (Pedro Ximenez) Sherry Casks. PX Sherry is a sweet style made from dried grapes, giving candied orange, date, and fig flavors. This has a very rich texture, but the spicy character of the rye in the whiskey provides balance.

Spirit Spotlight: Bowmore

We still live in a time where there is a constant need to push limits in order to get attention. Whether it is extreme political views, hot takes on NFL players, or the excessive use of hops in a beer, these things all command attention of consumers in different industries. But you know what I find to be refreshing lately? Being judicious. Careful. Thoughtful. Balanced. Louder doesn’t mean better, it just means louder.

Peat block cut from the earth and stacked up ready to use.

So this brings me to Islay, Scotland, a place that relied on peat for fuel for a very long time with access to coal being very difficult. This decomposed vegetation is now a marker of the type of whisky you get from here: peaty, powerful, smoky, and medicinal. It is most often associated with Scotch and the chief reason people who say they don’t like Scotch don’t like Scotch. But here’s the thing with peat…it doesn’t need to be over the top. I recognize that it is a legit style to go high intensity and folks go bonkers for these whiskies, but it is not a style of Scotch whisky that everyone likes the same way not everyone wants a fruity oak bomb of a red wine or a super-hoppy Imperial IPA. Peat doesn’t have to permeate malt whisky so much that after you have a dram, you can’t taste anything else afterwards.

Peat has its place and it adds a great dynamic when used smartly, and this now brings me to the coastal distillery of Bowmore. Islay’s oldest distillery, Bowmore has been around since 1779. It’s a very traditional distillery in that they still do their own floor maltings, so it has complete control over the type of malted barley that goes into the whisky (an overwhelming majority of Scotch distilleries outsource this process to malt houses to get their malt made to specification because doing this on site is labor-intensive). Bowmore dries its malt over a peat fire (imparting the signature smoky character). Bowmore’s level of peat tends to be a moderate amount; consider Bowmore to be a little peatier/smokier than Highland Park, but not nearly the peat level of Ardbeg, Laphroaig, Lagavulin, or the insane Octomore series from Bruichladdich.

Additionally, you can nerd out with Bowmore by picking up a bottle each of the 12 Year, 15 Year, and 18 Year and get a great feel for what happens when peated whisky spends more and more time in a barrel. The peat softens and harmonizes into the other flavors and aromas derived from distillation and barrel aging.

Now even though Bowmore holds on to longstanding traditions, the ownership transition to Beam Suntory has led to modern, interesting expressions such as Mizunara (Japanese Oak) Cask Finish. The limited edition range features the Dorus Mor, a small-batch 10 Year expression, whose tropical fruit, salty smoke, and youthful edginess make for a killer cask strength dram (thank you, Greatest Wife In The World for this Christmas gift!). Also of note, Bowmore’s 54 Year luxury product from 1957 was auctioned for a record price north of $170,000…damn fine indeed!

So if you have not yet had a chance to introduce yourself to the Bowmore range, do it today. Let’s get you started with these expressions:

Bowmore 12 Year Old 40% abv ($55): citrus and chamomile with maritime peat smoke. The peat hits up front but mellows on the finish. This whisky spends its life in ex-Bourbon cask

Bowmore 15 Year Old 43% abv ($75): dark chocolate, figs, raisins, and meaty richness. Toffee notes really show up on the finish with a salty/smoky lift. This whisky finishes in Oloroso Sherry casks and used to be known as Bowmore “Darkest” due to its deep reddish golden color.

Bowmore 18 Year Old 43% abv ($140): caramel, chocolate, crème brûlée…yeah, it’s like drinking a dessert with a gentle smokiness. Rich and luxurious with a complex finish that gives you something different with every sip.

Bowmore 10 Year Dorus Mor Release III 54.9% abv ($100): papaya, raspberry, pineapple, dried oranges, brown sugar and cured meats. A floral peatiness pops on the nose. Lively on the finish, where the fruit tastes more caramelized (think grilled pineapples here). I’m drooling and ready to eat everything in my fridge just writing this.

Spirit Spotlight: Saxtons River Distillery

Craft distilling is exciting. I am happy to see these small-scale producers, who put all their efforts into making something that tastes good, have success. I also enjoy when these folks are local/regional; it means we have an easier time getting them to come visit us in the Divine Wine Classroom to introduce themselves and share their passion with us.

For example, several years ago we welcomed Christian Stromberg, Founder and Head Distiller at Saxtons River Distillery in Brattleboro, Vermont. At that time, he presented his Sapling line of maple whiskeys, a maple liqueur, and PERC coffee liqueur. Now, maple syrup certainly has a distinct flavor to it and it shows up in their spirits when used, but it isn't overpowering. It's a smart use of a different ingredient and, most important to me, it was something unique that told us these spirits are definitely from Vermont. 

Founder and Head Distiller at Saxtons River Distillery, Christian Stromberg

I have actually had one visit to Brattleboro. The Greatest Wife In The World and I took our eldest (and only at the time) on a business trek to this town just over the Massachusetts border. The boy and I actually spent a lot of time driving away from Brattleboro to visit places like King Arthur Flour, Dartmouth, and the Basketball Hall of Fame. As a family we even found ourselves heading to Keene, New Hampshire to Elm City Brewhouse for dinner. Aside from the killer roadside BBQ joint Top of the Hill Grill, we didn't do a ton in town.

Little did I know, a guy was working out of his barn to develop this distillery that moved to Brattleboro a couple of years later in 2011! Since then, Christian has done very well for himself, gaining tremendous press for his work. Additionally, the new product added to the range of spirits does not involve maple or coffee, but rather botanicals.

Yes...gin! As you may have guessed in reading my posts, gin goes over incredibly well here. It was my lucky day when I was able to get my hands on a sample of Saxton River Snowdrop Gin (Thanks, Boss!). This is an American Dry Gin (patterned after the London Dry style) with a total of 18 different botanicals using vacuum distillation.

The usual coriander and juniper are present, but check out the rest of them on the bottle's inside label:

This is a darn good gin, too. We tested this out in a cocktail with Fever Tree's Mediterranean tonic and lime. The Italian herbs stood out when mixed with this specific tonic and even brought out an impression of lavender; Fever Tree does mention that the Mediterranean tonic is "made with floral botanicals" so it wouldn't surprise me if lavender is one of those flowers in the recipe. The other thing I like about the Snowdrop Gin (about $35, by the way) is that it is bottled at 89 Proof. It may seem trivial, but bottling higher than the usual 80 or even 84 Proof allows the delicate botanicals (such as citrus) to hold up better in a cocktail when diluted by the tonic. It makes a difference.

Saxtons River also has a very informative web site, including info on which states carry their products. I encourage you to visit them.

What are your favorite local distilleries that have made a name for themselves already, or should receive more recognition? I would love for you to comment below or post to my Facebook page.