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Craft Distillery

including malted barley, sugar and labels, and some malt to give the whisky a Scottish twist. The prod-
product. The building was not damaged, but had to uct is double-distilled in two copper pots: In the
be stripped to the studs, dried and sanitized. Again, first distillation, the wash is run through a washing
the Spirit Hound Distillers folks were undeterred: or stripping still to separate the alcohol and other
They salvaged a half-submerged barrel of 150-proof flavorful compounds; In the second distillation,
rum, labeled it Flood Rum, and sold it as a vehicle the procedure is more refined, designed to slowly
for raising funds to rebuild the District’s Lyons Fire eliminate harmful impurities in the heads and tails,
Station #2 which was destroyed in the flood. “This keeping only the middle. The whisky then ages for
was a silver lining in the storm for us,” Engelhorn a minimum of two years in new-full-sized charred
reflected. “We raised $10,000 for the fire depart- American oak barrels. According to Engelhorn,
ment, plus we got some good press.” peat-smoked malt gives their malt whisky a smoky,
earthy character, like a Highland-
style scotch. “We compare well with
Glenmorangie Single Malt Whisky,” he
said.

Spirit Hound Distillers Single Malt
Whisky goes into barrel at 125 proof
and, because of Colorado’s high alti-
tude, water evaporates faster than
alcohol, so the whisky comes out at
127 to 130 proof. “I appreciate the
high proof,” Engelhorn told Beverage
Master Magazine, “because you get
enhanced esters and aldehydes, which
add flavor to the whisky.” All whiskeys
are cut to 90 proof before bottling,
except for their Cask Strength Malt
Whisky, which is only available in
375mL bottles in the tasting room.

As an added distinction, Spirit Hound
Distillers does not blend barrels: All
whiskeys or whiskies are bottled as
single barrel batches, with each bot-
tle marked with a barrel and bottle
number. According to Engelhorn, this
allows consumers to experience the
many nuances that make each barrel
unique. “We offer flights from four
different barrels in our tasting room so
Finally, in 2015, after years of planning and over- customers can experience these nuances. Rather
coming obstacles, Engelhorn and his partners than make a standardized product, we embrace the
released long-awaited bottles from five, 53-gallon differences, and because we’re a small distillery we
oak barrels of Straight Malt Whisky filled prior to can have more variation coming from small malt
the historic floods. The bottles quickly sold out. houses than the large guys can have.”
At the time of release, Spirit Hound Distillers was
probably one of only three makers of malt whisky Spirit Hound Distillers also produces — as a spe-
in Colorado. cial release — a bottled in bond malt whiskey; a
designation created in 1897 to protect the industry
Today, Straight Malt Whisky is the distillery’s flag- from unscrupulous producers of poor alcohol. With
ship product. Barley is both grown and malted in this designation, whisky (of any grain) must be aged
Alamosa, with addition of a small amount of peated at least four years, not altered by any means other

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