Amalga Distillery sits in downtown Juneau at 134 N Franklin Street, making it Alaska’s first legal whiskey distillery since Prohibition. Founded in 2014 by Jason Becker and Kelly McLennan, two longtime friends who left corporate careers to chase their distilling dreams in the Last Frontier. Becker, formerly in construction management, and McLennan, who worked in renewable energy, spent years perfecting their recipes before opening their doors in a historic downtown building that once housed mining supply operations. They produce bourbon, rye whiskey, gin, and vodka using Alaskan glacier water and locally sourced grains when possible. The distillery operates out of a 2,000-square-foot space with custom copper stills they designed themselves, producing about 1,000 cases annually. Their journey wasn’t easy—convincing Juneau city officials to allow distilling downtown took nearly two years of permits and presentations. But their persistence paid off, creating Alaska’s only grain-to-glass whiskey operation that’s become a genuine downtown attraction. The operation reflects Alaska’s independent spirit, with everything from label design to bottle filling done by hand. You’ll find a working distillery that feels authentic rather than polished, where the founders are usually around to talk shop and share stories about building something from scratch in one of America’s most remote state capitals.