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Posts from the ‘Domestic Vodka’ Category

1
Jan

Review: District Made Vodka

District Made Vodka is crafted from 66% Abruzzi rye, 28% corn, and 6% malted rye.  College roommates Sandy Wood and Alex Laufer founded One Eight Distilling in 2013 in the Ivy City Neighborhood of Washington DC.  Sandy had a successful career as an attorney and Alex worked in Biotech.  They later changed the distilleries name to District Made Spirits.  In prepping for their own distillery both interned at Smooth Ambler Spirits and worked at Koval Distilling.  Sandy also interned with Springbank Distillers while Alex studied distilling at the Siebel Institute under Dave Pickrell, of WhistlePig fame.  District Made Vodka is made from 66% Abruzzi Rye, 28% Corn, and 6% Malted Rye.  It is crafted in column and pot stills, then charcoal and chill filtered before bottling.  The rye is sourced exclusively from Culpepper Virginia.  Not far from the farms once owned by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison. Read more »

30
Dec

Review: Nantucket Vodka

Nantucket Vodka is crafted at Triple Eight Distillery from organic wheat and pure water sourced from their well.  The well, numbered 888 was the inspiration for the distilleries name.  Triple Eight distillery was founded in 1998 and while they are probably best known for their award winning Notch Single Malt Whiskey they have been producing vodka since they launched the original Triple Eight Vodka in 2001.  That vodka was made from organic corn sourced from Holland.  Triple Eight currently produces The Notch Single Malt Whiskey, bourbon, rum, gin, 5 flavored vodka’s and most recently they launched a line of canned cocktails. Read more »

24
Dec

Review: Vinn Vodka

Vinn Vodka was the first vodka distilled from rice produced, distilled, and bottled in the US.  The Vinn Distillery in Wilsonville Oregon is a family owned distillery that opened in 2009.  The Vinn name comes from the middle name the five LY siblings share.  The family also produces Baijiu, the National drink of China.  Vinn is crafted from Non-GMO Calrose white rice grown in Northern California.  They use a seventh generation family recipe coupled with modern technology.  Vinn Vodka is made in small batches on a column still.  Once distilled the spirit enters a circulation carbon filtration system for 10-12 hours prior to bottling. Read more »

20
Dec

Review: Bellewood Farms Honeycrisp Vodka

Bellewood Farms Honeycrisp Vodka is crafted at Bellewood Distilling the first farm to bottle distillery in the state of Washington.  Bellewood Farms is the largest apple grower in Western Washington with over 62 acres and 25,000 trees.  They harvest 1.7 million pounds of 100% chemical free apples each year.  While the farm currently grows 22 varieties of apples, Bellewood Farms Honeycrisp Vodka is made from 100% Honeycrisp apples.  Over 30 pounds of apples are needed to craft 1 bottle of Bellewood Farms Honeycrisp Vodka.  The apples are pressed into a cider and fermented with a proprietary yeast.  The leftover mash from the distillery is put back into the orchard as fertilizer.  The spirit is triple distilled in a 24 foot tall 250 gallon column Vendome still custom built in Kentucky and bottled at 93 proof. Read more »

18
Dec

Review: Smugglers Notch Vodka

Smugglers Notch Vodka is crafted with winter wheat, corn and pure spring water from Mount Mansfield.  Instead of a traditional carbon filtration, the spirit is run through a particulate filter to retain the flavor.  It is produced at Smugglers Notch Distillery in Jefferson Vermont.  Father and Son, Ron Elliott a retired business executive, and Jeremy Elliott a research chemist in the pharmaceutical industry founded the distillery in 2006 at the foot of the famed Smugglers Notch.  They also produce an organic vodka made from organic corn, a Moroccan Rose & Grapefruit flavored vodka, 3 gins, 2 bourbons, rum, rye, 2 cream liqueurs and a few Limited Release spirits. Read more »

14
Dec

Review: Kristone Vodka

Kristone Vodka is crafted at Crystal Rain Distillery by Kristian Hristov.  The Crystal Rain Distillery opened in Lake Forest Illinois in 2019 but they recently opened their new distillery in Wheeling Illinois.  While they currently just produce vodka, their Facebook page shows images of oak barrels, hinting more is on the horizon.  Kristone is made from Organic Winter Wheat and water purified by both carbon and reverse osmosis.  It is slow distilled 6 times through a copper pot still with 24 plates and is filtered through silver and platinum. Read more »

3
Dec

Review: Elevate Vodka

Elevate Vodka is one of several spirits crafted at Mile High Spirits in the Denver Ballpark Neighborhood.  It was originally distilled on a glass still, but it is currently distilled on a custom German built Arnold Holstein copper still.  Following the same formula as Tito’s, Elevate is distilled 6 times from 100% corn.  Mile High Spirits sources locally grown Colorado corn.  Once distilled the vodka is proofed with pure filtered Rocky Mountain water.  When the last drop is gone, bring the bottle to their downtown Denver tasting room for a drink on the house. Read more »

9
Nov

Review: General John Stark Vodka

General John Stark Vodka is distilled from apples, primarily Macintosh grown on Apple Hill Farm in Concord New Hampshire.  The fresh apple juice arrives in 2200 gallon quantities.  The juice is fermented for 7-10 days using two separate strains of yeast.  The spirit is triple distilled on a 15 tray custom Christian Carl column still over the coarse of 24 hours.  It then rests for a few weeks before it is cut to proof and bottled.  General John Stark Vodka is named for the Revolutionary War soldier who during a speech uttered the phrase “Live Free or Die.”  This phrase is still the New Hampshire state motto.  The distillery sits on a former dairy farm that was switched to a vineyard in 1987 with the planting of the first grapes.  By 1990 they were bottling wine.  In 2004 the Flag Hill Distillery opened.  Today they also produce whiskey, gin, rum, liqueurs, and brandy. Read more »

28
Oct

Review: Sinpatch Vodka

Sinpatch Vodka is a true farm to glass spirit crafted in a former dairy barn in Wassaic New York.  John Dyson owner of Williams Selyem Winery and his Son in Law Joel Levangia founded the Tenmile Distillery.  Sinpatch is named for the road the distillery was build on.  Legend has it 300 years ago a local minister once described the area as nothing but a patch of sin due to the gambling houses, brothels, and saloons that populated the area.  Tenmile Distillery currently only sells Sinpatch Vodka, and Listening Rock Gin while their first batches of Little Rest American Single Malt Whisky, barrel age.  All of the spirits are crafted by Master Distiller Shane Fraser who joined Tenmile after serving as Master Distiller for Wolfburn Distillery, the most northerly malt Whisky Distillery in Scotland.  Tenmile is made from locally grown wheat.  The spirit is distilled through a pot still and a Coffey still with a special reflux condenser at the top.  It is then filtered through activated charcoal made from their own recycled oak whisky barrels. Read more »

21
Oct

Review: Blaum Bros Vodka

Blaum Bros Vodka is made at Blaum Bros. Distillery in the historic town of Galena Illinois, once the home of our 18th President of the US, Ulysses S Grant.  The distillery was founded by brothers Matt & Mike Blaum who found the only way they could get along together was to drink whiskey with each other.  So they decided craft spirits together.  They currently produce bourbon, rye, gin, absinthe, vodka, and Hellfyre Vodka, a vodka made with Jalapenos, Habaneros, and black pepper.  All of the spirits are milled, mashed, fermented and distilled on site.  Blaum Bros. Vodka has been on our radar for sometime due to their unique blend of local wheat and rye.  While their website still talks up this unique blend they have moved on from that blend, and now make their vodka from locally grown corn. Read more »