Spirit Hound's New Gin Honors Its 91-Year-Old Juniper Berry Supplier

On March 20, the first day of spring, Spirit Hound Distillers will re-release its seasonal Eleanor Gin, a tribute to its longtime juniper berry supplier, Eleanor Suttle. The 91-year-old forager formed a relationship with the award-winning Lyons-based distillery after learning it bartered its gin for locally sourced juniper berries, a key component of the spirit.

Suttle had no prior experience foraging but roughly seven years ago, at the age of 84, she decided it would be a fun way to exercise, support a local business and, of course, earn a free drink. At the time, she was living with her daughter and son-in-law, who own forty acres near Button Rock Preserve where Suttle would walk through the woods, picking berries with utmost care.

“Some people were just bringing a branch of a juniper tree. Well, to me, that's not correct. When I brought mine in, they did not have any little twigs or anything on them. They were just ready to use,” says Suttle.

“She'd come in and bring me this burpin’ full bag of juniper berries. Because she's a delightful person and a good supplier, she became a favorite of mine. We got to be friends,” comments Craig Engelhorn, Spirit Hound co-founder and master distiller.

Suttle would forage from spring through fall, collecting late into the year to help the distillery get through winter. “Craig likes them at all stages of ripeness. If they don't have any color, you wouldn't pick them. But they usually are sort of bluish or green, or if they get to be the red color, then they're really bright. I just picked all the colors. That makes a better gin,” she says. Dedicated to her craft, Suttle would even taste-test her harvest to ensure they were good berries. “They have a pine flavor and they're very strong.”

At one point, Suttle was the distillery’s largest juniper berry supplier but following a heart attack and stroke, she seldom forages these days. Suttle now resides in an independent living facility in Boulder. Her daughter and son-in-law still bring juniper branches to her apartment, where she continues to carefully remove sticks and stems.

To celebrate the Eleanor Gin release, Spirit Hound recently hosted a tasting event at Suttle’s independent living community, allowing her and other residents to sample the spirit. “She was beaming and it made me so happy,” comments Craig.

“I don't think my feet have touched the ground since I found out this was all happening,” says Suttle.
Eleanor Gin first debuted last Mother’s Day. This year, the product will be released early in honor of Women's History Month and the distillery’s Whisky Wenches Spirits Society. Founded by Amanda Engelhorn, Craig’s wife, the free-to-join women’s group developed the Eleanor Gin recipe as part of its educational programming, which is entirely devoted to spirits.

Amanda explains that during an early workshop, she brought in a foraging expert from Boulder-based Rebecca's Herbal Apothecary who spoke about what local botanicals would create a flavorful gin. “That's how we ended up with things like yarrow and rose petals,” she says, adding that like Suttle’s juniper berries, both are sourced in Colorado. Other fragrant ingredients featured in Eleanor Gin include coriander, angelica root, star anise and Ceylon cinnamon, as well as oranges and lemons.

The Whisky Wenches gathered at the Lyons distillery on Saturday, March 1, to create a batch of Eleanor Gin. As one member zested fresh citrus, another weighed out grams of juniper berries while Amanda explained the distillation log — a sheet detailing the batch number and the many factors involved in the manufacturing process.

“On the day of distillation, we have to catalog a lot of things, like how much alcohol we put into it, what the proof is, how much water we've added. Because we start with a [grain] neutral spirit, it's super high proof, usually 192 proof or so. That's too high to redistill, so that's why we add some water to it to take it back down. Then, we put the basket with all our botanicals in the column in the still. It’s basically like steeping tea,” she says.

Once the still is heated, it enacts a process of evaporation and condensation. In about 45 minutes, gin begins to drip from the attached pipes and into a large, cylindrical tank. “When we get about an inch and a half of gin in that drum, we're going to shut it off [and] pop in fresh botanicals [because] we want the lightest, brightest, best character,” explains Craig.

Throughout the distillation process, the Engelhorns and Whisky Wenches sampled the spirit, noting that as the temperature of the still increased, citrus-forward flavors developed into floral notes, followed by a spicy and herbal character.

After the second round of botanicals, “We'll run the still without any baskets in it for a period. Toward the end, we'll do two more baskets and end up with about 42 cases of gin out of today's run," Craig notes. In addition to the Whisky Wenches-made batch of Eleanor Gin, Spirit Hound distilled another. The full pallet totals 504 bottles, which will be sold exclusively at Spirit Hound’s Lyons distillery and its LoHi tasting room.

While supplies last, try the spirit as a cocktail or, as Suttle recommends, on the rocks. “It is a sipping gin. It has such a good flavor that I do not want to cover it with anything,” she says. Though long a fan of the distillery’s flagship gin and its double-distilled version, Suttle affirms that Eleanor Gin is her new favorite.

For more information about Spirit Hound Distillers, including tasting room hours, visit spirithounds.com.