Partners in Provenance: Coldfoot

There is a certain quality of those who see beyond what is known or widely understood, those unique individuals who ask why things are the way they are. It’s a unique way of seeing the world, conceptualizing the possibilities of what life can become versus what has been done before. This unconventional approach applied to business, building brands that last and are by design operating outside of the commodity system, is the exact ethos that has fused Westland and Filson together for many years. Both brands push boundaries, one in the apparel industry and one in whiskey, two industries that have long-known static systems impacted by the industrial revolution. The love and admiration of the Pacific Northwest, the boundless pursuit of quality, and the rich depths of storytelling are the additional motifs repeated throughout the Westland and Filson brands.

Both Westland and Filson are Seattle originals built around the belief that good things are worth making carefully, with quality materials, skilled hands and a respect for where those materials come from. Both operate under the understanding that the slow approach pays off later, and cutting corners will not suffice.

At Westland, provenance is at the heart of our approach to American Single Malt Whiskey. We began with a simple question: What would an American whiskey taste like if it truly belonged to the place where it was made? The answer led us to Washington-grown barley, the flavor implications via the climate of the Pacific Northwest, building a new supply chain to source native Garryana oak, all in the name of exploration in whiskey. This has helped Westland spin a web showcasing a localized network of farmers, maltsters, craftspeople, and tastemakers who understand the depth of flavor from these things. Rather than treating ingredients as interchangeable commodities, we look for ways to preserve their character and allow the Northwest to become part of the whiskey itself.

Filson has long approached its own handiwork with a similar conviction. Since its beginnings in Seattle, the company has built its reputation around products designed for the demands of the outdoors, with an emphasis on durable materials, practical design and making things that are meant to be used. Westland and Filson headquarters are located just one mile apart from each other, and while the proximity is close, there is an even greater closeness in a shared appreciation for making things with purpose. Over time, the relationship grew from physical proximity into likeminded partnership. This collaboration culminated into an eventual whiskey release.

In 2020, Westland and Filson introduced Coldfoot American Single Malt, a limited-edition collaboration inspired by a seldom known and extremely remote chapter in the history of the American West. The story begins during the Klondike Gold Rush. In 1897, thousands of prospectors packed their bags to travel north in search of gold. Some followed the expected routes toward Dawson City. A handful of others chose a vastly more difficult path into the remote interior of Alaska, eventually reaching a mining camp called Coldfoot, sitting about 60 miles above the Arctic Circle.

Coldfoot became a place defined by wherewithal and determination. The people who remained had chosen a difficult road and committed themselves to seeing where it led. Many travelers never reached the final destination due to the incredibly harsh conditions. Filson has described Coldfoot as “a place that represented independence and clarity of purpose”, a fitting inspiration for two companies that have built their identities around following their own paths.

The gumption required to explore the unknown became the foundational concept for the whiskey. The notion that travelers were unsure if they’d return home but set out anyway to face risk for the chance of gold at the end was the very feeling that inspired creative direction for this brand collaboration. Coldfoot became an opportunity to tell a story that belonged to both brands, a story about choosing the road less traveled.

The first and only edition of Coldfoot brought together several elements of Westland’s house style into a limited American Single Malt, including whiskey matured in dry-style sherry casks. A total of 978 bottles were made. Coldfoot represents a strongly held belief at Westland: resisting the pressure to make whiskey faster, easier or more conventional will create the opportunity for more interesting and delicious whiskeys in the future. Doing things the slow way will pay off.

American whiskey has a long history, but American Single Malt is still writing its story. From the beginning, Westland has believed that the category does not need to imitate what came before, namely the long-held traditions of single malt in northern Europe. American Single Malt can draw from tradition while being shaped by its own landscape, ingredients and culture.

This approach permeates the way of doing business at Filson. A Filson jacket is deliberately designed for multiple seasons, to use over the course of multiple years, sometimes even decades. This is a departure from the consumerist, fast fashion movement that permeates North America and beyond. Filson’s products are made with use in mind, and their relationship with the people who buy them is built over years rather than moments.

There is something fundamentally compatible about that philosophy and whiskey. A bottle of whiskey is emblematic of slowing down, it begs appreciation for the years of maturation that shaped it. There is no shortcut around time.

When it came time to create the West of Tradition documentary, the filmmakers knew highlighting the brand connection between Westland and Filson could not be skipped. In the film, you’ll see an interview with Filson's own Alex Carleton, Chief Creative Officer. This discussion gives viewers a peek behind the curtain and illustrates the harmony between both Westland and Filson, which culminated into the release of the Coldfoot Whiskey.

Both Westland and Filson are rooted in the Pacific Northwest, but neither is particularly interested in staying still. The Northwest has always been a place of movement: people heading into the mountains, boats set out to traverse the sea, farmers cultivating new crop varieties, craftspeople developing new techniques and makers asking what might be possible if they approached familiar traditions from a different direction.

Coldfoot captures that spirit; it’s a story about the people who kept going when the easy road ended. And sometimes, the best way forward is to take the long way.