Always searching for balance
Today we're introducing Broderick Spirits: a Colorado-made Amaro, Aperitivo, and Crème de Violette, built for the people who love making cocktails as much as drinking them.
You may know us through Uncle Tim's Cocktails, or from an evening at Broderick, our tasting room in Wash Park. Everything we make starts from the same idea: a drink is only as good as the quality of its ingredients.
Broderick Spirits is where that idea gets its purest test. We focus on the sippers and the mixers, the bottles that sit on the back bar and quietly make a hundred classic cocktails possible. Each one is fully flavored, well balanced, and purposefully crafted to mix well. We started with these select spirits because we already make them for our Uncle Tim's Cocktails lineup. We knew we didn't want to compete with every other distillery that focus on bourbon, or gin, or vodka. Our intial search for locally made options also fell flat with only 1 or 2 in each category.
Uncle Tim himself spent the better part of 2 years crafting and refining these spirits, and they are currently only available at Broderick and select liquor stores and bars. The process started with creating over 60 individual herb and root infusions and testing each one after 1 or 2 days to see how the flavors change with time. Then the blending started and when we finally had a recipe we thought would work we would create larger batches that required even more refining of measurements and ingredients. Lastly, because these spirits have bitter roots or citrus in them, we aimed to great balance through natural sugars to create balance and mouthfeel. We hope you enjoy them on their own or in a cocktail as much as we do.
Meet the lineup
Amaro
Our Amaro opens bright and refreshing, with citrus and mint up front. Bitter gentian brings the backbone, cinnamon adds warmth, and an alpine finish of pine and chamomile ties it together. We sweeten it only with natural sugars and a hint of molasses, so the bitterness stays honest, and the finish stays clean.
Sip it neat after dinner, or let it take the lead in a Black Manhattan.
Aperitivo
Our Aperitivo is carefully crafted with orange, lemon, and blood orange, and grapefruit for a refreshing, citrus-forward backbone. It was made for a hot summer afternoon with nothing more than soda water and ice. It's just as happy as the bitter heart of a Negroni or a cocktail of your own creation.
Crème de Violette
Perfectly floral with light, earthy tones. The violet flowers add a touch of romance and elegance to everything they touch. A little goes a long way, and it's the key to one of the most beautiful classics ever poured: the Aviation.
Four cocktails to start with
Three bottles open up a whole shelf of classics. Here's where we'd begin.
Aperitivo & Soda
- 2 oz Broderick Aperitivo
- 4 oz soda water (or replace with prosecco)
- Build over ice in a tall glass. Garnish with a grapefruit or orange slice.
Negroni
- 1 oz gin
- 1 oz Broderick Aperitivo
- 1 oz sweet vermouth
- Stir with ice, strain over a large cube. Garnish with an orange peel.
Black Manhattan
- 2 oz rye whiskey
- 1 oz Broderick Amaro
- 1 dash Angostura bitters
- 1 dash orange bitters
- Stir with ice, strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a cherry.
Aviation
- 2 oz gin
- ¾ oz fresh lemon juice
- ½ oz maraschino liqueur
- ¼ oz Broderick Crème de Violette
- Shake with ice, strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a cherry.
Coming Soon from the Broderick & Company family...
If you'd rather we do the mixing, Uncle Tim's Cocktails has had a big end of year planned too. New this year: the Sazerac, and a Holiday Old Fashioned. Be on the lookout for upcoming announcements.
Come taste them
Stop by Broderick, our tasting room in Wash Park, to try the Amaro, Aperitivo, and Crème de Violette for yourself. Tell us which classic you're making first, or bring us a cocktail of your own creation. We're always searching for balance, and we'd love to see what you find.
