Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey recently introduced Mountain Angel 10 Year Old, its oldest, rarest release to date. It is also the first and only American single malt aged 10 years in new charred American oak casks.
Mountain Angel 10 Year Old is comprised of 100% Rocky Mountain barley and Colorado spring water, made in small batches before aging for 10 years in new American oak barrels with a #3 char. Global single malts are traditionally aged in ex-bourbon barrels to allow for extended aging; however, the flavor profile of these single malts are influenced during maturation by the former bourbon that filled the casks and is saturated in the oak. By using new American oak barrels, Stranahan’s is able to balance the flavors of Mountain Angel 10 Year Old’s malt distillate and oak barrels without outside influences.
As a result of Denver’s high altitude and dry climate, Mountain Angel 10 Year Old saw a unique angel’s share loss, with several of the 10-year barrels experiencing a loss of up to 80%. Only a handful of these volume-reduced barrels made it to a decade of maturation, and as a result Mountain Angel 10 Year Old is available in very limited quantities with less than 500 bottles being released this year.
“Stranahan’s has produced single malt whiskeys for almost 20 years, allowing us to hold back casks for extended maturation to see how they evolve, but aging whiskey in Denver comes with certain challenges,” said Owen Martin, Head Distiller at Stranahan’s. “Water evaporates from our casks more quickly in the mountains than at sea level, which leaves limited supply and little margin for error. After a decade of maturation, the Mountain Angel 10 Year Old casks saw an average angel’s share loss on par with a Scotch over twice its age, resulting in a liquid with a stunning concentration of flavor.”
Stranahan’s Mountain Angel 10 Year Old is available in for $129.99 in Colorado, California and New York, as well as an exclusive offer to Spirits Network members.
