ܲԱ:Downslope Distilling Inc.
Address: 6770 South Dawson Circle, Ste. 400, Centennial
Hours: 12-4 p.m. Friday-Sunday
Founded: 2009
Contact: 303-693-4300,
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Interview with Mitch Abate, head distiller
Q: How did you get involved in this business?
:We were homebrewers for a number of years, and the next step was to get into distilling. We had already made beers and it was just natural to distill it to make whiskey.
:We make all of our spirits in house, and we’ve also offered distilling school for the last five years. Over that time we’ve had more than 500 students take our class. They come from all over — from Europe and Africa and 40 states within the U.S. You can learn more about it by visiting our website.
Q: What do you like best about your line of work?
:What’s made it really fun is we’ve won awards throughout the United States. All of our spirits have won awards — our whiskey, vodka, gin, agave spirits and rums. It’s make us proud and happy.
Q: What is your business’ biggest challenge?
:There is a lot more competition than when we started. When we started seven years ago, there were just 16 licensed distillers in Colorado, and now it’s pushing 100. So marketing and branding are becoming more important.
Q: Something people might be surprised to learn about you or your business:
:Our whiskeys have gotten really good reviews in the Whiskey Bible. We have a single malt, 3-year-old whiskey aged in a sherry cask that had scotch in it for 20 years, and we also have a 4-year-old double diamond whiskey that was aged in a cognac cask that had cognac in it for over 40 years. It’s an honor to be recognized in the Whiskey Bible.