Distillery 291 from Basement to Whisky Distillery
This is not a rags-to-riches story. It is an artistic journey of one of Colorado’s most unique single malt whisky from a home basement to a top-producing whisky distillery.
Michael Myers, a former fashion photographer, named Distillery 291 after Alfred Stieglitz’s New York gallery. The distillery uses Colorado-grown grain to produce its whisky, in an effort to contribute to the local economy. The whisky is finished with charred aspen staves after aging in American white oak barrels.
Colorado Distillery 291 Whisky’s Journey
In addition, he saves some stillage from each batch of whiskey for the next batch. The shape and material of the still lend a unique flavor to the Colorado-grown aspen. He notes that the whiskey “adds a touch of spice, smoke, and pushes walnut notes into maple.”
His first distilling operation was in his basement in 2011, when he used a 55-gallon drum for fermentation. Today, he has six 1,500-gallon fermentation tanks. His output has jumped from 60 gallons per month to 600 gallons every week. He plans to triple production over the next five years.
In spite of Distillery 291‘s success, creativity has not been stifled. The work of the former photographer continues its artistery. The company’s output has demonstrated its intrinsic value.
- The E (for experimental) series tweaks recipes and aging,
- the Bad Guy is a barrel-strength wheat bourbon, and
- the M series is aged in barrels once used to hold whiskey and maple syrup.
“He puts his maple syrup in there for a few months and then harvests that, sends the barrels back to us and we put rye whiskey in there for four months or so and harvest that,” Myers explains. “It’s a really nice product.”
Colorado’s in-state sales have declined by about 30 percent since grocery stores started selling full-strength beer and wine, Myers says, but he predicts a rebound.
“We’re working on owning Colorado again,” he says. “We’re in the middle of an equity financing raise, so that we can 3X our production and probably 5X our sales revenue. We are excited about that. That’ll be over the next five years.”
