Colorado distilleries produce exemplary spirits that showcase the state’s one-of-a-kind terroir by using ingredients like Rocky Mountain spring water and locally grown heirloom grains and botanicals. Boulder County has its own roster of talented spirit makers, so you don’t have to travel far to enjoy everything from barrel-aged whiskeys to herbaceous gins.
Winter is the perfect time to spend a cozy afternoon inside a tasting room, playing games or catching up with friends while sipping a craft cocktail. Add these spots to your winter bucket list.
Dry Land Distillers
Dry Land Distillers’ spirits are a love letter to Colorado’s wild landscapes. A delicious example? This summer, the Longmont distillery released a 100 percent malted straight rye whiskey produced with regenerative grain sourced from the Jones Farms Organics in the San Luis Valley.
Other creations include a mezcal-like spirit made with smoked prickly pear cacti and a gin steeped with native elderberry, juniper, bee balm and other Colorado-grown botanicals. Drop by the distillery’s mid-century-modern, wood- and iron-accented tasting room to linger over a gin-forward Last Word with green chartreuse and a spread of seasonal snacks, such as mushroom pâté and house-marinated olives. drylanddistillers.com
Boulder Spirits at Vapor Distillery
Boulder Spirits’ whiskeys are inspired by the traditions of owner Alastair Brogan’s Scottish homeland. Brogan and his team distill malted barley and Eldorado Springs water in a Scottish pot still and age the result in charred, virgin American white oak barrels to produce ultra-smooth American malt whiskeys.
This past fall, the distillery released two coveted bottles: a Leave No Trace American Single Malt Whiskey (a combination of peated malt, sweet Pedro Ximénez sherry and local barley farmed and malted in Larimer County by Root Shoot Malting) and a 2024 Cask Strength Straight Bourbon Whiskey (a marriage of 15 different barrels). Sidle up to the bar at the petite, no-frills tasting room to enjoy a bourbon on the rocks or a drink shaken with one of the company’s other spirits, such as gin, vodka and Ginskey (barrel-rested gin). boulderspirits.com
DEKi Distillery
If flavored liqueurs are your forte, DEKi Distillery in Old Town Lafayette is a must-stop. The company, owned by David and Helene Synder, offers 10 spirits. That means you can elevate your bottle collection with staples such as bourbon and vodka and more unique DEKi spirits, like blackberry vodka, spiced rum and lavender gin. We love the caramel-scented coffee liqueur, the perfect base for any espresso martini. Grab a seat on the sunny patio or in the light-filled, industrial-chic tasting room to try a flight of four spirits or a pineapple- and coconut-kissed Island Mule. dekispirits.com
Spirit Hound Distillers
Spirit Hound was founded in 2011 by a crew of Boulder County pals, including Craig Engelhorn, the creator of Oskar Blues’ Dale’s Pale Ale. Since then, the distillery’s creations have won more than 70 awards, which are crafted in Engelhorn’s hand-made copper still. While Spirit Hound’s inventory includes stellar rums, vodkas, gins and liqueurs, its bourbons and whiskies have drummed up the most buzz. In fact, their Colorado bourbon earned gold at the 2023 Denver International Spirits Competition and their straight malt whisky won Whisky of the Year at the 2022 London International Spirits Competition. At the English pub-style tasting room in Lyons, order the flight of four straight malt whisky pours (it also comes with a taster of moonshine) with a cheese and charcuterie board. spirithounds.com
Abbott & Wallace Distilling
Grains grown by Longmont’s Schlagel Farms and Root Shoot Malting serve as the foundation of Abbott & Wallace’s products, which include rum, whiskey, amaro, gin and a line of canned cocktails. You can pick up bottles and cans to sip at home—but the distillery (named after founders John Abbott Young and HK Wallace) has a comfy bar and cocktail lounge that invites patrons to connect and savor the spirits together.
Check the events calendar for happenings such as game and trivia nights, plus live music and comedy nights. Sip classic cocktails like sazeracs or negronis, or choose something from their rotating, seasonal menu. abbottandwallace.com
