Artisinal Spirits
I guess Food and Wine magazine was right when, in their January 2006 issue, they declared this to be the year of the cocktail. I might even say it’s the year of spirits. I’m not quite sure if it’s my own personal observations since I started writing for this blog or if there really is an upswing in information but it seems every time I turn around there’s something new and interesting going on.
It appears the U.S. spirits industry, while being dominated by larger and larger corporate giants, is seeing a surge in artisinal producers much like the beer industry did many years ago. The first microbreweries were grouped geographically and, in theory, these new small spirits producers are spread across the country, although so far I’m seeing groupings here, too.
Some time ago I became aware of Crater Lake Vodka produced by Bendistillery in Bend, Oregon. I love the sparkling, clean taste of this vodka and order it when I see it displayed at a bar. They now make several flavored vodkas and a gin and all are small batch produced.
But I really started thinking about this topic when I read about a bartender, I believe in NY, who mentioned that he looked for all small producers to stock his bar. I remember thinking that was so interesting and wondered how it went over with his clientele. It seems more and more people these days like to call their liquor and in today’s world of personal preference you’d need to have patrons who either didn’t care or were willing to experiment. But I thought it was a great concept and I’m surprised I don’t remember where that was as I’m sure I’d like to check the place out!
Then, another article in the January 2006 Food and Wine profiled a Portland (Oregon) restaurateur, Michael Hebberoy who is producing his own gins. His idea is to produce seasonal gins and the first, a summer gin, is supposed to launch this month. Another is due in the fall for the winter season. And, not only was he producing these gins but he was doing it with the help of a local artisanal vodka producer, Medoyeff Vodka. I’d made a little note to look in my local liquor stores or in Oregon loquor stores on my next trip down for these gins.
The latest article I read was on my flight to Phoenix in the in-flight magazine. This article profiled their list of Ten Great Artisinal Spirits. The article states there are currently 60 artisinal producers across the U.S. I need to get that list and start checking these out!
In the meantime, the ten profiled might be where I start. The author starts off with Clear Creek Distillery Apple Brandy. This is another local producer who’s products I’ve grown to love, although they can be pretty pricey. They have an extensive line of fruit brandies and one of my favorites is the Pear.
The only other producers’ names familiar to me were Charbay and Hangar One. This list is heavy on California producers, not suprising when you realize the author was the wine critic for the San Francisco Examiner, although he now appears to be based in Miami.
The full list includes:
- Clear Creek Distillery Apple Brandy, Portland, OR
- Domaine Charbay Vanilla Rum, Napa Valley
- Germain-Robin Select Barrel XO Brandy, Ukiah, CA
- Hangar One Mandarin Blossom Vodka, Ukiah, CA
- Jepson Signature Reserve Brandy, Mendocino Valley
- No. 209 Gin, San Francisco
- Old Potrero 18th Century Style Whiskey, San Francisco
- Prichards Fine Rum, Tennessee
- St. George Spirits Aqua Perfecta Raspberry Liqueur
- Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Texas
This list appears to be a good place to start the exploration of the world of artisinal spirits!
I’m rather fond of Junipero - a small batch gin made in San Francisco by Anchor Steam.
The Mandarin Blossom Vodka sounds pretty good, too.