An Ode to Dad: Men Share Their Favorite Core Fatherhood Memories

This article was published in partnership with Breckenridge Distillery

This Father’s Day, we’re looking back at special memories that remind us of what being a dad is all about. Whether it’s barbecues in Yellowstone, trips across the globe, or simply learning—or teaching—how to ride a bike, quality time spent between a father and their child leaves an indelible mark.

These moments shape our experience and become tethered to the essence of our being. Recalling and reminiscing on these memories for years—even decades—later is proof of their profundity.

This year, we took the time to sit down with a variety of fathers from different walks of life—chefs, travelers, comedians, and distillers—to learn about core memories of their fathers or the ones they’ve created with their own kids. To truly make it an ode to dads, we’re pairing each moment with a bottle of whisky to cheers and relish in memories of the past.

Bryan Nolt, Breckenridge Distillery Founder, CEO, and Distiller

A radiologist turned distiller, Bryan Nolt is a fan of the road less traveled and that includes family RV trips to U.S. national parks. He spoke to us about what he loves most about disconnecting and spending time in nature with family. 

The most important thing to me about camping is getting the family time because our lives are so hectic. I work two jobs, and the kids are in school and have all their activities. Then Breckenridge has an extra level of daily complexity because there are 10 months of winter here, so you can't schedule out your day without including shoveling snow and getting the snow tires on.

But when you're sitting around camping, it’s a good time to catch up on where your kids are at—what's going well and what's not for them. Honestly, the best times we have are just communal when we're around the table and when we're camping.

We make it a point to play card games and stuff like that because they're on technology non-stop. So, when you go somewhere like Yellowstone, everyone is forced to unplug. I just love getting detached on trips. What you experienced growing up is what your kids experience. We didn't have cell phones.

During the day you spend all your energy, then you're tired and that's honestly the best time. You round up, play a couple games of cards, then sit around the campfire.

You can't go camping without having a killer menu. We have all our favorite things to eat and we take it to a different level when we camp. For example, if we do a long trip, we’ll end the last night by pulling out a tin of caviar, popping a bottle or two of Champagne, and some chilled Breckenridge Vodka with it. It's a potato chip, a little crème fraîche, and a giant tablespoon of caviar. Then you sip your ice-cold Breckenridge Vodka. — as told by Nolt

What Nolt's Drinking This Father's Day

Nolt is looking forward to spending Father’s Day around a campfire, where he loves to break out Breckenridge Spiced Whiskey. In fact, that's the whiskey's inspiration. “You can sit around a campfire and drink bourbon, but you want something a little more complex since it's not like a high-end tasting experience where you're picking out subtle differences in whiskey," he says. "A campfire is more raw and rustic, so it's nice to have some of the Christmas spices you find in Spiced Whiskey, as well as it being a little sweeter.”

Joe Flamm, Chef

Chef Joe Flamm runs two packed restaurants—Chicago’s Rose Mary and BLVD Steakhouse—and won Bravo’s Top Chef Season 15, but what he cherishes most are the memories he’s made with his child and father.

My brother lives in southern Utah—St. George. He's been out there a couple of years. My son's four years old. His name is Luca, and we've been talking about going to Utah for a long time. Recently, it was my brother’s birthday. My parents were already going out, so I asked my son last minute, “Hey, do you wanna go to Utah and see Uncle Kevin? Just me and you, you know, our first trip without Mom. Our first boys' trip, ever.”

He said “Yes!” so we went out to Utah. One day my brother had to work, so me, my dad, and my son all went out. It's like 45 minutes from Zion National Park. We started driving and got 25 minutes out, but the traffic was so backed up. There was an electric bike place along the way, so I asked my dad, “Have you ever used those?” He hadn’t, but I said, “Let's pop in here and see if we can rent some bikes and take 'em up.” They were super cool and told us how to do it.

I had one of those double bikes where it had the pad on the back with just handles, so Luca hopped on the back of mine. My dad got a bike and the three of us just rode all the way up to The Narrows through the mountains. There's a beautiful waterfall that comes down at the top, and it was just one of those moments, you know? I took this picture of me, my dad, and Luca in front of this waterfall. I know we’ll think about this for the rest of our lives.

Hopefully Luca gets to go back there with his kids one day. — as told by Flamm

What Flamm's Drinking This Father's Day

Flamm is looking forward to spending Father’s Day grilling over an open fire in his backyard with his dad and son. He’ll be smoking a cigar while enjoying Breckenridge Whiskey Port Cask Finish, which he thinks makes an excellent old fashioned.

The Dumb Dads, Writers, Comedians, and Podcasters

The Dumb Dads, aka Evan Berger and Kevin Laferriere, wear a lot of hats, but the one they’re most proud of is being fathers. It’s evident in their name, but also the stories they share on their podcast. They each took the time to tell us about core memories of fatherhood.

Evan Berger

Every day in the early parts of COVID, I would take my five-year-old son and 21-month-old daughter over to this big, empty parking lot near our house to play. We would load up the wagon full of snacks, water, and chalk to draw with. My son would ride in front of me on his brand-new bike, bobbing back and forth on his training wheels. I remember telling my wife, “If I come out of this pandemic with one accomplishment, it’s that I’m going to teach my son how to ride a bike—and maybe even potty train the two-year-old!”

Most days when we’d arrive at the parking lot, I’d remove the training wheels, and work with my son on his balance. I would run behind him as he pedaled, earning a little more trust each time, watching his face dance between fear and excitement. (On a side note: It’s so much harder than I thought it would be to run alongside a bike, hunched over in a crouched position.) Then one day, as I’m running beside him, he tells me he wants me to let go.

As we’re up to speed, I tell him he can do it and everything is going to be great. I let go, and he just takes off. No stopping, no hesitating, lap after lap he flies by his sister and me and he’s just got this look on his face like he’s flying. At least that’s how I remember it—might have been a bit hard to see his face through the tears pouring down my face. One-and-a-half years later, my little girl was out of diapers, and the memory of him riding a bike on his own was worth my 50 percent success rate, hands down. — as told by Berger

What Berger's Drinking This Father's Day

Berger usually spends time on his charcoal grill to slow-cook chicken while practicing putting and playing soccer with his kids. (And if a round of golf sneaks in there, he won’t be too upset about it!) He’s partial to Breckenridge High Proof Whiskey to make a timeless Sazerac.

Kevin Laferriere

A moment from becoming a father that really stands out to me is probably the one at the starting line. I was bartending nights when my wife was pregnant with our first and I was trying to get as much work in as possible leading up to the birth. The night our daughter was due, I was at work, prepared to get a phone call, drop everything, and leave if necessary. That day, my wife and I had been trying all the tricks to induce labor—walking, eating spicy food, and even doing that silly walk with one foot on the curb and one foot off that’s probably more ridiculous looking than helpful. Anyway, nothing. No contractions, no water breaking, no baby. That night I’m working and checking my phone every two seconds for my wife.

Close to the end of my shift, at 1 a.m., she calls and tells me her water broke. The highway was empty and it was a 15-minute drive home to my apartment, where I picked my wife up and took her to the hospital. That drive home alone is the core memory for me—knowing everything in my life was about to change forever. I didn’t know what the feeling of being a father would be exactly, but I knew I was never going to be the same person again. — as told by Laferriere

What Laferriere's Drinking This Father's Day

Laferriere enjoys being out back working on a rack of ribs in his smoker and having the kids run around playing handball and drawing with chalk. He’s partial to Breckenridge Rum Cask Finish and thinks it makes a nice twist on the classic old fashioned.

Josh Willink, Third Coast Tribe

Josh, Care, and their children go by the nickname Third Coast Tribe and spend their time adventuring through the great outdoors. It was Josh’s father who inspired him to fill his children’s memories with moments, and we spoke to him about one that made a particularly strong impression on him:

My grandpa was a pastor, then my dad kind of followed in his footsteps and was in ministry his whole life. He worked as a director for an after-school program for at-risk youth. He ran a camp for a while and worked with kids that struggled with addiction. I didn't realize at the time, but being in ministry, he hardly made any money. My mom stayed at home to homeschool all three of us kids.

I don't know how they did it, but when I look back at my childhood, there are so many trips we did. I think this might be a kind of a testament as to how little money we had, but we did a trip down to Florida and they so badly wanted to take us to Disney, but we didn't have the money to do that, so we drove into the Epcot area and just felt the magic of Disney—saw the signs, heard the music playing. We went and took a picture in the parking lot in front and you could see Epcot in the background. Then we did downtown Disney and stuff.

He gave us the Disney experience, even though we weren't actually able to go into Disney World. He was always doing stuff like that just to try and do whatever he could to get us to have these experiences.

My dad really instilled in me this idea that experiences are much more valuable than things. Those are things that when you're doing something outside of the norm, when you're doing something outside of your routine, you're always going to remember that.

It seems kind of silly to think that that's a core memory, but I just remember it so vividly because it really hit me at that point that you don't have to have money to travel. You don't have to make excuses. You can just go live the life that you wanna live and experience the things that you wanna experience and make it happen. — as told by Willink

What Willink's Drinking This Father's Day

On Father’s Day—after Willink wakes up to a full breakfast of bacon, eggs, and pancakes—the whole family, including Willink's dad, will continue their annual tradition of going to the LPGA golf tournament and spend the day watching the pros do their thing. After relishing the spoils of the "Culinary Grand Tastings Tent," Willink plans to sit back and relax while sipping a glass of Breckenridge Bourbon Whiskey, A Blend.