A Colorado whiskey recently turned heads at a global spirits competition where it was named the best American-made single malt.
Loveland-based Root Shoot Spirits earned the accolade for its flagship product, Root Shoot Whiskey, at the London Spirits Competition, which announced the winners of its eighth edition in late April. Notably, the four-year aged American single malt whiskey is made from barley grown exclusively on Colorado’s Front Range. In fact, the makers grow the grains themselves.
The award comes just months after American single malt whiskey became an official spirits designation in the U.S. Local distillers believe the designation will allow them to compete with single malt powerhouses like Scotland and Japan, which make some of the most coveted whiskey in the world.
Colorado, they say, is the best place in the country to find single malt whiskeys right now – and they may be right.
Root Shoot Spirits is a sister company to Root Shoot Malting, which is owned by 5th generation farmer Todd Olander. The company grows about 700 acres of barley that it then kilns and roasts for brewers and distillers throughout the state. In 2023, it debuted its first whiskey — the recent award winner — to “express the farm and the malthouse through a spirit,” Olander previously told The Denver Post.
Root Shoot’s single malt whiskey wowed judges at the London Spirits Competition, earning an impressive 98 points out of 100. Judges evaluate each spirit’s quality based on aroma, flavor, body and other tasting notes, as well as the value for cost. Unlike beer competitions, this contest is not judged entirely blind, as labels and shelf appeal are also factored into the score.
“Recognition for Root Shoot Whiskey is also recognition for the soil, sun, sweat and stubbornness that went into making it,” Olander said in a statement. “Whiskey, especially single malt, is as good as its raw materials, and ours have been carefully cultivated for generations using lots of hard work, dedication and regenerative agricultural practices.”
This is the second year in a row that a Colorado whiskey has been recognized as the best American-made single malt at the London competition. In 2024, the title went to Colorado Honey, made by Spirit Hound Distillers in Lyons.
