DISTILLERY TASTING ROOMS

In 2017, The American Distilling Institute called Colorado one of the “most favorable” of the United States for distilleries who want to take their products direct to consumers.

Because of that fact, some of the best places to try local gins in Colorado are at the distilleries themselves. You just might even step up to the bar and either sit down next to a member of the distillery team, or meet one of the distillers behind the bar.

BOOZ hall RiNo

(tasting room for Rising Sun Distillery, State 38 Distilling and Woods High Mountain Distillery)

2845 Walnut St. Denver, CO 80205

Local Gin Tip: Tour the world of Colorado barrel-rested gin. Three gin distillers have tasting rooms and cocktail bars under one roof. Start with State 38 Distilling’s Agave based barrel reserve gin. Move on to try Rising Sun Distillery’s Organic Oaked Gin. Then finish the tour with a Barrel Aged Old Fashioned at Wood’s High Mountain Distillery tasting room.

Brooklyn’s on Boulder St.

(the Lee Spirits Co. Speakeasy)

110 E. Boulder St.

Colorado Springs, CO 80903

Local Gin Tip: Get the Aviation. It’s made with the excellent Lee Spirits Co. Gin, but when paired with their orris root heavy Crème de Violette, it has a beautiful sky blue colour that stands apart from the purple and mauve hues imparted by other available violet liqueurs.

Golden Moon Speakeasy

(The Golden Moon Distillery speakeasy)

1111 Washington Street Golden, CO 80401

Local Gin Tip: Distiller and founder, Stephen Gould, is perhaps at his most passionate when talking about his absinthe.

That’s why the Reverse Corpse Reviver, although a touch heavier on absinthe than the original, is a beautiful showcase of not just this gin as well, but also Golden Moon’s Curacao which is a beautiful and incredibly complex bitter orange spirit that will quickly make you forget that the blue version ever existed.

Idlewild Spirits Brewpub and Restaurant

78737 US Highway 40 Winter Park, CO 80482

Local Gin Tip: Idlewild Spirits is pretty adventurous with their gin. At last check they featured four. There’s an Alpine Gin, a Hibiscus Gin, a barrel Aged Gin and a violet infused Purple Daze Gin. Their Hibiscus Gin is a tad spicy and warming, with complexity that makes it not-yourusual-pink gin. Try it in their French 75, made all the more rich by using honey instead of simple syrup.

Vapor Distillery

5311 Western Avenue Boulder, Colorado 80301

Local Gin Tip: Bartenders around the world seem to have been reluctant to experiment with aged gin cocktails, but the Vapor Distillery tasting room is not one of them. Their Ginskey was one of the earlier aged gins on the market and they’ve had plenty of time to experiment. But their Boulder Gin Basil Gimlet is a real standout, especially on a summer day.