Colorado’s Todd Olander, 5th Generation Farmer and Founder of Root Shoot Malting, Joins the Imbibe 75

Todd Olander, farmer and founder of Colorado’s Olander Farms and Root Shoot Malting, is honored this month as a member of the 2024 class of the Imbibe 75. Curated by the leading national publication celebrating liquid culture, Imbibe Magazine’s annual best-of list showcases the “people and places that will shape the way we drink in 2024 and beyond.”

Olander leads the 5th generation, 112-acre family farm in Loveland and the Root Shoot craft malthouse that supplies the Rocky Mountain region with craft malt and grains. Located on Olander Farms and approximately 1500 leased acres, Root Shoot is working to ensure that farmland remains available to grow grains for the beers and spirits of tomorrow through its conservation easement with Colorado Open Lands.

While Root Shoot has been innovating the supply chain for craft brewers and distillers with a unique focus on sustainable agriculture since its launch in 2016, Olander launched a new venture in 2023 that has been gaining national attention: Root Shoot Spirits.

Root Shoot released its first-ever spirit, made with 100% Colorado-grown and sown ingredients, in August 2023. As an extremely limited release, Root Shoot American Single Malt Whiskey (50% ABV) was five years in the making. From field to bottle, the bottled-in-bond American Single Malt Whiskey travels only about 30 miles, representing a uniquely hyper-local and sustainable supply chain journey.

“It’s really an honor to be considered by Imbibe this year,” said Olander. “We’re super proud of Root Shoot Whiskey. It’s Colorado in a bottle, and it is awesome to bring that story and our state, which has such a robust beverage industry, to the national stage.”

Root Shoot Whiskey earned a Gold Medal at the prestigious New York World Wine & Spirits Competition.

Root Shoot Malting is a 5th-generation family farm and craft malthouse that supplies the Rocky Mountain region with craft malt and grains. Founded by the Olander family in 2016, the farm is committed to the regenerative agriculture movement. Root Shoot harvests barley, wheat, rye, and corn to give craft brewers and distillers a high-quality taste in every glass. Located on the Olander Farms’ 112-acre farm in Loveland, Colorado, and approximately 1500 leased acres, Root Shoot is working to ensure that farmland remains available to grow grains for the beers and spirits of tomorrow through its conservation easement with Colorado Open Lands. Find this craft maltster online at rootshootmalting.com.

To guarantee a taste of Root Shoot’s first American Single Malt Whiskey, snag a bottle from a local retailer before this limited release is gone forever. Find it on shelves across the colorful state of Colorado using the Whiskey Finder at rootshootspirits.com.

Root Shoot Spirits brings Root Shoot Malting’s craft malt from grain to glass. Sown, grown, and malted in Colorado, all ingredients for Root Shoot Spirits are sourced from the 5th generation family-run Olander Farms and malted by the sustainability-minded craft maltsters at Root Shoot. Root Shoot Whiskey launched in August 2023 and is available throughout Colorado.

Follow along at rootshootspirits.com.