My New Favorite American Single Malt Is Just as Good as Big-Name Scotches—At Half the Price
When I lived in London, I was always amazed at how much Brits loved Jack Daniel's. Everywhere I went, the Tennessee whiskey's iconic black-and-white label was on bar shelves, posters, T-shirts, clubs, and pubs. It was an import for them and, in turn, was something of an American legend—an icon that everyone was at least aware of, if not drinking.
In America, single-malt Scotch has the same allure. Scotland is held in high regard as the home of single-malt whisky, a designation meaning it's the product of a single distillery (blended Scotch is made from the whisky of multiple distilleries). Surely, such a sacred distilling process can only happen in some ancient far-off foggy highland distillery next to a bog or roiling dark sea, right?
Technically, yes; the liquid must be distilled in Scotland to qualify as single-malt Scotch whisky. However, Breckenridge Distillery, in collaboration with an undisclosed Scottish distillery, has made an American single malt whiskey that stands up to Scotch competitors: Two Drams.
Two Drams is an 102-proof Colorado pot still blended whiskey. Straw-colored, it has notes of apricot, honey, caramel, and toffee. The finish is short, smooth, and burn-free, and the peat is muted, not overpowering the whiskey. It won the San Francisco World Spirits Competition Double Gold Award in 2023 and the 2023 World Whiskies Awards U.S. Blended Malt winner. (The whiskey was originally named Two Clans, but Breckenridge only recently rebranded it).
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While fly-fishing outside of Breckenridge in the Colorado high country, I spoke with Bryan Nolt, who founded Breckenridge Distillery in 2008, about Two Drams. Nolt has always had an affinity towards Scotch and Scotland, and this creation is his way of honoring that storied history.
Nolt took his award-winning Breckenridge Dark Arts Malt Mash Whiskey and blended it with undisclosed peated Scotch. Dark Arts is a towering whiskey itself with deep rich malty characteristics. He then invested 10 years of his life trying different Scotches before settling on the right one to blend with Dark Arts to make Two Drams. He was particularly inspired by Highland Park—his favorite Scotch—in complexity and mouthfeel, but made sure Two Drams' flavor was all its own.
"It’s not a super light, elegant, delicate whiskey," he says of his creation. "The bigger, deeper notes make you think of fall and winter in Breckenridge, and how we feel when we're here. It feels like it’s from the Earth.”
For just $75—a fraction of the cost of similar whiskies made overseas—I recommend picking up a bottle or two of Two Drams. The next batch is slated for release this October at the distillery in Breckenridge, CO.