One Happy Chappy @ High West DistilleryWanship, UT
The entire reason we came to Utah was to go to High West Distillery. I'm sure there are a lot of other good reasons to come to Utah, some of which I might discover when we come back...when it is not so damn hot. But for now this is the only reason we want to be here.
High West make his favorite tipple, a blend of Rye and Bourbon called Bourye. It is getting harder to find in the shops now they have made it a seasonal offering. The boy has snagged a bottle for special occasions only, to be hidden in the back of the closet and forgotten about.
Which one to try first?
If you are planning a visit there is an excellent free tour of the distillery and an optional tasting after. The tasting is charged per shot, for up to five. You do not have to drink all five, and if you choose the more expensive blends you will be charged accordingly...and there are no prices in the tasting room.
We joined the tour a little late, so maybe the pricing was explained before they started, but we were expecting either a tour price that included the tasting, or a flat fee per head. I guess this way is much better as you only pay for what you want, it's just not what we were expecting.
As the designated driver and non-whisky lover I chose to sample my whisky at an earlier stage in the process - the pure fresh mountain water (before it gets all that nasty corn and rye thrown in) and so my tour was completely free. YAY!
There is a restaurant and some splendid mountain views from the distillery. If you prefer your tipple in a cute trendy mountain town with a wider choice of restaurants, art galleries and boutiques, then maybe visit their saloon in Park City instead. We enjoyed both.
There is a lot of expansion, building and upgrading going on, which will be an excellent excuse to stop by again when we are back in Utah, to discover all its other wonderful spots.
