What's Happening with Stranahans?

[coop]

At the last 4 events I was at, Aspen, Vail, Durango and Grand Junction I heard from suppliers, liquor store owners and bar owners. 1, that they could not get any more product. 2, it was sold and production moved back east. 3 there were problems with production and they lost 2 years worth of whiskey? Any one know anything about this? Coop

[stevenstone]

Could it be they're having difficulties after the sale?

http://blogs.westword.com/cafesociety/2011/09/stranahans_bartenders.php

[Curtis McMillan]

Jess was in Whiskey Mag last month, and everything looks green as grass. They had a little shake up with the head distiller, but I'm not sure why. I like jess, and I grew up in Colorado also. So I root for the home team. Thats not a tebow joke

[cowdery]

I've talked to Jess Graber and to the folks at Proximo, the new owners. They are keeping everything in Colorado. Go here and here for more information.

Here is what Proximo CEO Mark Teasdale said when I talked to him two weeks ago. "We consider Stranahan's a jewel," said Teasdale. "It's a special thing and a Colorado brand." Although Proximo is expanding the Stranahan's operation and increasing production, the brand's strong growth in Colorado has limited their ability to distribute it outside the state. "We want to be loyal to the base," says Teasdale.

Distiller Jake Norris has, indeed, departed and indicated some unhappiness with the way things were going, but he's a member here and can speak for himself.

I think Proximo is recognizing that it lost some goodwill during the transition. They're trying to make up for it. They do have supply problems but it's mostly because of demand growth. The 'lost two years of whiskey' nonsense is the kind of silly rumor they need to get ahead of. They're keeping distribution mostly in Colorado and don't plan to expand until everyone there has all they want.

[cowdery]

Another major milestone has been achieved in the evolution of the micro-distillery movement. For the first time, a micro brand has been licensed by another company for use on another type of product. In this case, the micro is Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey and the other company is Breckenridge Brewery, which is not only buying used barrels from Stranahan's, but is also licensing the name to brand the beers it conditions in those barrels. It's another income stream for Stranahan's and shows the importance of branding. More here.