Bear Creek Distillery is an American craft distillery located in the heart of Denver, Colorado, and is the brainchild of a small group of friends focused on producing exceptional hand crafted premium spirits. Each spirit is produced, grain to bottle, in our Denver facility and distilled using our German built, state-of-the-art Kothe still. Our commitment to quality and our community goes beyond the four walls of the distillery. Whenever possible, we use local ingredients and materials sourced from Colorado companies. These ingredients, coupled with a keen eye towards detail, help ensure each small batch is of the highest quality, time and time again. We spoke to Jeff Dickinson, one of the Co-Founders for Bear Creek.
Jeff, I would like to kick off by asking what the backstory is to setting up the Bear Creek Distillery, how you came to be involved and what drew you to the project? Please tell me how the distillery came about?
JD: The idea of starting a craft distillery was presented to me in the summer of 2012 by a childhood friend of mine with a strong love of bourbon. Coincidentally, I had just returned from a weekend getaway with my wife in which we toured Peach Street Distillers in Palisade, Colorado; so the vision of a proper craft distillery was fresh in my mind. From there, my friend and I began to research the rapidly growing craft beverage industry. We liked what we learned and approached two other childhood friends to bring on board. They were “in” and before we knew it we bought a building and had distilling equipment on order.
Wow Jeff, it’s great to have partners that are also childhood friends. What have been the main challenges involved in setting up a new distillery?
JD: The biggest challenges we faced setting up the distillery were mostly centered around working our way through the local fire and building permitting. Denver is and was bursting with new construction so construction delays were unavoidable. We began construction in early 2013 and didn’t get our Certificate of Occupancy until late summer 2014. Definitely a hurry up and wait kind of project.
And what has been the part you’ve enjoyed most?
JD: Definitely the people. Both our wonderful customers and our peers in the industry. I met so many great people during the process of getting our doors open. I can honestly say I’ve not come across one person involved in the industry who wasn’t willing to help us out. Offering info, advice, whatever. In my mind there’s a strong sense of community within craft distilling. We want to help each other out simply because we need each other to survive. The idea being, if the average whiskey drinker tries a craft whiskey and it’s not any good then they are unlikely to try another. They’ll likely just keep buying whatever brand they’re partial to.
What exactly does your job entail?
JD: As both a partner of the business and the head distiller I wear a lot of hats. All of us do really. I’m a very hands on guy so in addition to daily production which generally involves mashing and distillation, I also select the barrels for each batch, down proof the spirits, fill barrels, bottle, etc. Basically I’m involved with all aspects of production. Additionally, I handle the label approval process, federal and local compliance. building maintenance, etc, etc. Then I also help with outside events, brand marketing, buying supplies. I could go on and on but I’m sure you get the idea.
What whiskey expressions do you currently produce?
JD: Currently we make 4 different styles of whiskey. Our single barrel rye and wheat whiskies have been available for a little over a year now. Then, we have two styles of bourbon laid down in our rack house. Bourbon is our primary focus so we are super excited to release a 3 plus year old straight bourbon late this year. Also, we’ve also been playing around with finishing our rye whiskey in used stout beer barrels. So far we’ve had one beer barrel release that we did with a home brewer and it turned out really well. For our next beer barrel release we finished our rye whiskey in Great Divide Brewing Yeti Imperial Stout barrels. Look for that late February early March.
What attributes do you feel a Head Distiller should posses in order to create a great dram?
JD: That’s a tough question. We’re all so different and there are many many ways to create a great glass of whiskey. But, I think you’ve got to have great work ethic, a passion for the craft and a very strong attention to detail. I think the best American distillers are the ones who are creative enough to try something others have not but then also have the organization and attention to the little details that transform a good new make distillate into a great glass of whiskey. Oh, and patience, lots of patience.
Apart from the weather (if relevant), why did you set up a distillery in Denver, CO?
JD: The weather didn’t really influence us to set up shop in Denver but I certainly believe it positively influences the maturation of our barrels. We choose Denver because my partners and I were raised in the Denver area (we attended Bear Creek High School, which is where the distillery’s name comes from) and we wanted to be close to the action the city provides.
Is there a flavor profile that you aim to achieve when malting, mashing, fermenting, distilling and maturing?
JD: When I first started out I knew what I liked and what I wanted our products to taste like but I wasn’t totally sure how to achieve those results. Now that I’ve been doing this a few years I have a better understanding of what factors have the biggest influence on the taste of the final product. Like quality ingredients, yeast selection, keeping the alcohol content for the fermentation where I want it, slow reduction during cuts, barrel selection etc. But as far as our flavor profile, we mash everything (except our bourbons) from a single grain source. In other words, our mashes are 100% wheat and 100% rye. I did this because I like the flavor of the grain to stand alone and not be influenced by other flavors. When sampling our barrels I look for the fruity floral notes to standout and be complimented with hints or tobacco, leather, vanilla, and oak.
Why did you start production? Did you see a gap in the market or was it to fulfill some passion?
JD: For us it was definitely more about the passion. The passion to fulfill our dream of making not only great whiskey but also great rum and vodka. And equally important, was the desire to work along side my best friends whom I’ve known most my life.
Walk us through the distillation process. From grain to glass? Is there a flavor profile you’re looking for before bottling the whiskey?
JD: As far as the distillation process, we have a Kothe hybrid column pot still. We selected this still because it allows us to make not only whiskey but also vodka and rum. So, depending on which spirit type I’m distilling I can set the still up in various ways to reach the desired end result. For example during a rye whiskey distillation I’ll close a few more plates on the column than I will during a bourbon distillation. I do this because I want our rye whiskey to be slightly lighter in character than our bourbons. Plus we lay the bourbons down for a longer time period so as the spirit matures in the barrel the heavier character of the bourbon marries well and becomes smoother with time. As far as flavor profile before bottling I definitely sample the barrels as they mature and then select the barrel I think best matches what I’m looking for. Which again is, fruity and floral notes complimented by tobacco, leather, vanilla, and oak. But to date, all of our whiskey releases have been single barrel batches which allows me the freedom to select barrels based on the flavor and aroma of the spirit and not necessarily hold on to one specific flavor profile.
JD: Our straight bourbon is definitely the big one and our main focus for the year. So, look for it late 2017. Otherwise, we’re working on a collaboration with a local brewery named Black Shirt Brewing. I don’t want to give anything away just yet but basically we’re going to distill one of their beer recipes and then lay it down in barrels for a few years to see what we come up with.
Would you say now is the most exciting time to be a whiskey lover?
JD: I don’t know if this is the “most” exciting time but it is certainly an exciting time to be a whiskey lover. Especially if you’re a fan of American Whiskies. There’s just so much good whiskey coming out of American distilleries, it’s exciting to see what someone will come up with next.
Anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
JD: I’d just like to say thanks for reading and continuing to support the craft beverage movement. If you find yourself in Denver stop by and pay us a visit. We have a top notch tasting room that looks into the production floor and a fantastic cocktail menu. Tours can be booked online at bearcreekdistillery.com and our spirits can be found online at Davidson’s Liquor, Total Beverage Westminster and Total Beverage Broomfield. Thanks again.
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