Artisan Spirit: Spring 2017

Page 106

MINING LIQUID SILVER & GOLD at TELLURIDE DISTILLING COMPANY WRITTEN AND PHOTOGRAPHED BY CARRIE DOW

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ellurium is the 52nd element on the periodic table, between antimony and iodine. While pure Tellurium is rare on Earth, the element is often found attached to gold and other precious metals signaling their abundance. Tellurides are what the prospectors were searching for when a vast gold strike was discovered in the San Juan Mountains of Southern Colorado in the late 1800s. That “Gold Rush” formed the town of Telluride, and lasted until the mine shut down in the 1950s. Then, in 1972 a different natural substance was used to rebuild the once-bustling mining town — snow. Over the last half century, the area went from mining precious metals to carving perfect powder at a ski resort. It’s that sort of entrepreneurialism that makes the town of Telluride so compelling and unique.

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