Artisanal Spirits, The New Wave by Matthew

After a brief summer hiatus, Matthew returns to "The Focused Palate" with an up-to-date take on artisanal spirits

American ingenuity and propensity for risk-taking have of late taken hold in the world of hand-crafted spirits, as many enterprising souls are mimicking the creative drive behind the microbrew industry. The initial success of distillers with small-batch bourbons has now spread to the production of local vodkas and gins. The surge is definitely on: there are today more than 200 small distilleries in operation, and that number is growing at the rate of 25-30 new facilities a year. More than half the states are home to artisanal distilleries, with Oregon, Colorado, California, Michigan and New York leading the way. Just this past week I was offered a locally-made vodka, a corn whiskey from Texas, and three different barley whiskies from Tennessee.

+/- Artisinal Spirits, The New Wave

Why is this all happening now? A little bit of history before I answer that question. Once upon a time, small distilleries were quite common in farming communities across America; then came Prohibition. After repeal in 1933, wine and beer production came back on line fairly quickly (some would say they had never really gone away), but the powers that be considered hard liquor more harmful than wine or beer and therefore set the fees for distilling licenses so high that only large-scale operations could afford them. Over the past decade or so, however, many states have considerably lowered the cost of these licenses and lessened restrictions in other ways, such as permitting on-premise tastings and sales of spirits at production facilities and retail outlets, thus opening the doors for the artisanal spirits movement. And interest has been further heightened by the arrival nationwide of the new breed of bartenders — mixologists, if you will — who make their reputations by devising trendy drinks using specialty alcohols.

What's the appeal? Local flavors, for one thing. Think about a single-malt from Oregon that has been aged in barrels made from air-dried Oregon oak, or a Minnesota vodka  made from wheat and rye from local farmers, or one from Kansas made from grain from the heartland. Another plus is variety: each distiller is making a unique product according to the dictates of his or her palate. And a third factor is limited production resulting in greater quality control: big distillers tend to keep every drop of alcohol they produce, on the assumption that it can be processed into something drinkable, while small producers are more likely to discard anything even slightly off in order to preserve their newly-established reputations. I'll conclude with a quote from Colin Levi, owner of Washington State's distillery, It's Five O'Clock Somewhere: "That's the beauty of being an artisan craft distillery. We're not bound to producing the same product day in and day out. Instead we're committed to unique, interesting liquors that are handmade from local ingredients. The big companies don't do it that way."

Is local better? Is smaller better? Is artisanal better? Try one of the following choices for yourself and find out!

Balcones Baby Blue Corn Whisky
This is a unique corn whisky from Texas made from atole, a roasted blue corn meal; it has the freshness and verve of traditional corn whisky but with a refined complexity. With a nose of melted butter, vanilla, and baking spices, it has a round nuttiness with toasty overtones and a smooth finish.
$49.99 (750ml)
Corsair Triple Smoke Whiskey
Operating out of Bowling Green, Kentucky, and now also Nashville, Tennessee, Andrew Webber and Derek Bell are mavericks at heart, dedicated to producing hand-crafted spirits using a combination of traditional distillation methods and innovative techniques. Triple Smoke is made from three different types of smoked barley, one smoked with cherry wood, another smoked with peat, and the third smoked with beech; this single malt is then pot distilled and barreled in new charred oak barrels. The result is deeply complex, smoky, buttery and rich, with nuanced flavors of fruit, toffee, and peat.
$47.99 (750ml)


Delaware Phoenix Distillery
Cheryl Lins, New York's very first producer of absinthe, has now turned her attention and skills to the distilling of grain spirits . . . and she is already pulling down gold medals for her efforts. Listen to Cheryl herself: "I personally believe that these awards acknowledge my hard work and some skill that goes into the making of these spirits where corners are not cut in order to make a buck. The production methods for my spirits harken back  to an era when people worked the land and the land provided people what they needed."


Single-Barrel Artisanal Corn Whiskey
Made from 80% organic cracked corn plus a mix of malted barley and malted rye, aged in used oak barrels, this is a distinguished, mellow corn whiskey meant for sipping.
$24.99 (375ml)

Single-Barrel Artisanal Rye Whiskey
Made from 100% local (Walton, NY) rye, 10% malted and 90% grain, each barrel of this whiskey is a unique expression combining grain, distillation, oak, and storage environment for a rich, deep, bold flavor.
$42.99 (750ml)

Rye Dog Artisanal Unaged Whiskey
This clear whiskey uses the same blend as the single-barrel rye but gets no oak treatment; it is full-flavored and highly focused, perhaps more like an eau-de-vie that a whiskey.
$39.99 (750ml)