Breweries that Distill or make other spirits

...and their old style whiskeys are quite good.

 

New Holland distills too.

 

Adnam's make their own gin ,it must be pretty good because it was judged the "World’s Best Gin"at the International Wine & Spirits Competition 2013.
http://adnams.co.uk/spirits/our-spirits/distilled-gin/#sthash.XfKI2HJi.dpuf

 

I have some of Ballast Points spirits. They are decent to good, but overpriced for what they are. I won't go near Rogue since they are trying to charge $40 for their Dead Guy whiskey and it's been aged for 1 month.

 

Rogue and McMenamins both produce various spirits.

 

Interboro NYC will be brewing and distilling soon!

https://www.facebook.com/interboronyc

 

If I'm not mistaken they make a bourbon aged in beer barrels?

Also a local brewery Kuhnhenn's, makes some good Meade and also Wine...

 

Unless things have changed, I'm pretty sure they just buy bourbon from MGPI and finish it in their own barrels.

Edit: that is just for their beer barrel bourbon. I didn't realize they distilled their own small batch stuff as well.

 

You talk to these brewers and one fact emerges. Pretty much everybody who brews beer *really* wants to distill alcohol as a main goal. Thats where all the sexiness is.

But you can't just start distilling alcohol. Its way too expensive. Any asshole can make beer. You can open a brewery tomorrow. But alcohol? Nope. Forget about it. To expensive for anybody except the big boys to play.

It takes maybe about 20 years of sitting on top of barreled stock to make a good spirit, 12 years of sitting on inventory for a mediocre spirit, and anything less than that is pretty predictably trash. So one smart option is to brew beer in order stay afloat while you gain your feet distilling. The other option, of course, being to buy stock from bigger companies and bottle it under your brand.

The one exception is vodka. You can distill a shitty vodka and teenagers will reliably consume the hell out of it. But there is no soul is making vodka.

 

I picked their Junipero Gin as my favorite in blind tasting from among 18 other gins, for what it's worth. I also have a bottle of White Christmas, which is a distilled 2012 Christmas Ale. It is decent.

 

I've thought of this as well as i'm starting to branch out into spirits.

To flip the question around, how does one go about finding craft distilleries (not associated with beer)?

 

Alltech Lexington Kentucky Brewery makes Town Branch Bourbon among a few others and uses the barrels to age their Kentucky Beers (BBA, BB Stout, Old Fashioned BB Ale, etc)

 

I am a big spirit and whisk(e)y fan but it's not what I look for when I go to a brewery, never mind that I am never buying vodka...

ever... except to stock the basics for my home bar

That being said some were alright, I dug some of the things I have had from Rogue and DFH. Ballast Point makes some things too but haven't had any of their spirits.

 

Can't speak for Canada, but check each states producers and products and selection on the shelf, somethings lead you to another as well, it all depends.

Found most of mine the same way I found everything else, Internet, Forums, interesting shelf items and so on.

Are there any independent distilleries in Quebec? I am curious how licensing there would be, my first impression is that it would be really hard to start something up like that there on anywhere else in Canada but maybe things have changed?

 

Three Floyds is building a massive distillery alongside their brewpub. Interested to see how that will turn out!

 

I believe there is a vodka one and i think i heard of a whiskey one. You are correct though, i would think the laws here in Quebec would be complex. It's easier to start a brewpub here

 

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They sure do. I remember the first time I saw a bottle at one of the local shops and it took my brain a minute to process what I was reading. Haven't had it myself, but a couple friends who drink the hard stuff gave it a resounding "meh."

And speaking of breweries in Warren, Dragonmead does meades and wine, too. For my birthday last year I drove out to Warren and grabbed a growler of Russian Imperial Stout from Dragonmead and a growler of Creme Brulee from Kuhnhenn's.

 

I wish Anheuser Busch would do a watered down vodka.