In order to broaden its grain-distilled faith, Laws Whiskey House is undertaking significant construction over the next year. Laws’ location at 1420 South Acoma St. in Platt Creek south of downtown Denver will grow from what’s now a 1,000 square foot tasting room and whiskey church (more on this later) into a 4,000 square foot plot by sometime in the fall 2023 (per Westword). Designed in concert with BOSS.architecture and the FLUX Partner Group, the extra space will allow for more elbow room for whiskey pilgrims to sip Laws’ “terroir-driven” whiskey.
“We are also aiming to create an experience that matches the quality of our whiskey. We make premium American whiskeys, and we want our guest experience to be as impactful as our bold and flavorful spirits,” owner Al Laws told Westword.
Laws founded the whiskey brand after 15 years in finance, according to Vine Pair. All the while he was surrounded by the oil and natural gas industry, whiskey was what was driving him. Whiskey remains the religion that drives Laws, and with, “There are no shortcuts,” tattooed on his forearm, the man is penitent and patient in his worship. While the distillery was founded in 2011, Laws made sure that the whiskey aged for three years before even bottling a batch (per the Laws Whiskey webpage).
The air and “the rugged growing conditions” brought Laws from Wall Street to Colorado in pursuit of the rarer and more prized grains grown in San Luis Valley and eastern plains soil, deepening the brew’s flavor.
“The heirloom grains we use are grown for flavor versus yield tonnage,” brand director Mark Erickson told What Now in an email. “The San Luis Valley rye grain we use has lower yields than commodity grains you could find elsewhere, but so much more flavor. The distinctive flavor character the grain provides is critical to our house style.”
In order to enjoy this distinct flavor, the Laws tasting room’s “whiskey church” will also be extending its service. A pillar of the distillery’s founding principles and a critical component to the experience Laws proffers for visitors, the church seeks to pass on the tenet that whiskey is more than just a spirit, but an ethereal obsession that drives the distillery team.
“‘Whiskey education doesn’t accurately capture the depth of knowledge or passion you’ll experience,” Erickson said. “It’s more spiritual than education; more like “church” and we are evangelists of this spirit that we love.”
This piety will also inform the new Laws cocktail program — an encompassing strategy to “complement and showcase our whiskeys” and another way for visitors to enjoy the whiskey experience. According to Erickson, the cocktail program is now underway with “internal and external resources to help build this part of our tasting room experience.”
By fall 2023, there will be more space for congregants to take this transcendent journey into the brown Laws nectar.
