The Block Distilling Co. - Another gold nugget in the Denver Distilling world.
Coming out of Denver Colorado, The Block Distilling Co. takes no short cuts and shows what it looks, and tastes like, when you take the long road to make delicious spirits. Founded in 2017 by brothers Kraig and Kameron Weaver along with Kraig’s Wife Michelle, The Block didn’t go out and purchase distilled spirits from another distillery and put their label on it while their own products were waiting to be made or aged. The Weavers decided to take that bold step and wait for their own distillate to be ready to go before putting anything out on the market. This seems to be a common trend for Colorado Distilleries, with Leopold Bros. and Laws Whiskey House in mind. Another thesis that The Block has that the prior mentioned Distilleries also have is attention to detail on the products they are using.
70% of the grains used by The Block Distilling Co. are overseen by the distillery. Meaning they get to choose which grain varietals are grown, what farming techniques are used in their fields, how their grains are stored and transported. No harmful chemicals are sprayed in their fields, and they practice crop rotation to ensure they have healthy fields. Happy grains come from happy fields and The Block Distilling Co. is all about happy grains. The 30% of their grains they do not have control of themselves come from like minded farmers and malt houses. So even if it’s not done by them, you know it’s done right.
The Block Distilling Co. Summer Gin
Starting with their base vodka (made with wheat, oats and barley), lemon, lime, grapefruit, pomelo, yuzu and orange citrus is added along with other botanicals. This just has a very summer like feel to it. The citrus is very vibrant, and the texture reminds you of citrus oils. The orange is very vibrant and there are hints of lemon all around. While there are some hints of spices, it’s citrus that is predominant.
The Block Distilling Co. Autumn Gin
The same vodka base with spices like clove, cardamon, peppercorn and cinnamon care added along with other botanicals. There’s a bit of a warming sensation with this gin given all the fall/winter spices. The juniper characteristic is light while the clove flavors are bold. Hints of cinnamon and a light floralness that remind me of chamomile. It starts out with a pop of spice and finishes with one too.
The Block Distilling Co. Four Grain Bottled-in-Bond Straight Whiskey
Made with oats, rye, red and white wheat and malted barley, this whiskey is aged in char level 3 American oak for at least 4 years. The oats give the whiskey a very distinct mouthfeel, vibrant rye spice pairs with peach fruit and toasted vanilla. Bold tea spice cereal grain and chocolate flavors come out on the finish.
The Block Distilling Co. Helluva Wheat Whiskey
The Waver Brothers are Colorado School of Mines Alumni. They donate $10 of every bottle sold to funding creative art projects at their former university. Made with white and red wheat along with malted barley, this whiskey is aged for at least 2 years. A rich coating mouthfeel leads to light spice characteristics and rich dark chocolate flavors. Subtle roasted coffee, floral spice and hints of vanilla. The coco and coffee linger on the palate.
The Block Distilling Co. The Night Sweats Straight Bourbon
This Bourbon is made in collaboration with Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, $10 of every bottle purchased goes to The Marigold Project. This Bourbon is made with yellow, red and blue corn along with millet and is aged for at least 2 years. This is a very balanced Bourbon, vibrant spice up front leads to notes of orange zest and milk chocolate. All the flavors take turns in the spotlight, no one characteristic outshines the others.
Cover photo provided by Sash Levitov