Poss Architecture and Interior Design carefully crafted Stranahan’s Whiskey Lodge to blend the best of old and new Aspen.
Stranahan’s Whiskey Lodge, sitting on a corner of Wagner Park in the virtual shadow of Aspen Mountain, provides the most authentic marriage of the ethos of old Aspen and the modern style of the current community. “We wanted the Lodge to have the feel of a living room where you could come in and feel like it had been there for years,” said Deana Juskys, senior interior designer at Poss Architecture and Interior Design, the longtime local firm tasked with curating the cozy confines of the Lodge.
Roots run deep at the Whiskey Lodge. Back in 1998, local volunteer fireman Jess Graber was summoned to silence an inferno at a Woody Creek barn belonging to Woody Creeker and Aspen icon the late George Stranahan. Once extinguished, the two formed a fast friendship, sharing a love for the outdoors and fine whiskey.
Stranahan’s impact in the Roaring Fork Valley is incalculable with diverse contributions including the founding of both the Aspen Center for Physics and the Woody Creek Tavern. His longtime relationship with writer Hunter S. Thompson is the stuff of legend and his founding of the long lamented Flying Dog Brewery and Pub was an Aspen highlight.
In 2004, Graber and Stranahan opened Colorado’s first licensed distillery since prohibition under the moniker Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey. Now, 20 years on, Stranahan’s has become an American craft whiskey powerhouse with a downtown Distillery and Cocktail Bar in Denver and, as of this past winter, the Whiskey Lodge in the heart of downtown Aspen on the Mill St. Mall.
Walking in the front door of Stranahan’s offers up a vision of an Aspen that used to be. And one where George Stranahan would have felt right at home. Reclaimed wood siding on the ceiling and walls, leather-backed chairs positioned at a leathered Capolavoro quartzite and brushed copper bar (evocative of the stills used to make whiskey), and a plethora of nooks and crannies invites whiskey lovers like a vintage saloon.
But it is the found pieces that create the mood.
“I spent a lot of time at the Aspen Historical Society researching the look,” said Juskys. “The beauty of this project is that it serves and celebrates a product that was literally born in the Roaring Fork Valley and is a part of the place. It is about the beauty of the outdoors.”
Inside is a collection of carefully chosen artifacts that, when experienced in totality, evoke the spirit and sense of place that mirror Aspen’s historic past. On one wall is a pair of wooden skis; over there sits the lunch box a miner might have taken on a shift in the Midnight Mine—a pickax and fishing gear round out the collection. “We wanted a cluttered and collected over-time look,” Juskys explained.
To enhance the nostalgic feeling Juskys filled old wooden picture frames with photographs and paintings, all sourced in Colorado. “I must have visited every antique shop and taxidermy in the state,” she laughs as she explains that many of the photos are of Aspen’s historic past. “Individually, the items might not mean much to someone sitting at the bar, but when they all come together, they create the special feeling of our town’s history.”
Of, course, the reason people come to Stranahan’s (in addition to the curated environment) is for the opportunity to sip classic cocktails, explore the award-winning whiskeys served in specialized flights and enjoy elevated bar food.
“A whiskey bar in the best location in the best ski town in the world? What could be better?” posed Juskys, gesturing with a Smoked Old-Fashioned in hand.
“WE WANTED THE LODGE TO HAVE THE FEEL OF A LIVING ROOM WHERE YOU COULD COME IN AND FEEL LIKE IT HAD BEEN THERE FOR YEARS”-DEANA JUSKYS
Stranahan’s has such a cool and relevant to the valley origins story and the staff are all very knowledgeable of the distilling process. So go on in, cozy up to the bar, and take it all in...cheers!
Photography by: courtesy of brand
