Central Virginia distillers create spirits honoring America's 250th
Distillers from Central Virginia helped develop a trio of spirits to toast the nation's 250th anniversary with homegrown Virginia flavors.
The limited-edition Virginia Spirits 250th Celebration Trio Pack was created by the Virginia Spirits Board in partnership with Virginia's American Revolution 250 Commission and the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority. The limited release of 2,400 sets will be available at Virginia ABC stores while supplies last.
The trio represents the coast with rum, the mountains with gin and the region in between, which organizers called the heartland, with whiskey.
"Whiskey starts with water, yeast and your grain, so, obviously, we started here," Amanda Beckwith, director of liquid development and lead blender for Virginia Distillery Co. in Lovingston, told The Daily Progress. "I always think that a good whiskey is a complex one. I wanted the grains to be the rock stars."
The limited-edition Virginia Spirits 50th Celebration Trio Pack includes a rum, bourbon and gin meant to represent the three regions of Virginia and celebrate the 250th anniversary of America's independence.
Beckwith led the team that created Four-Grain Whiskey, which honors the importance of rye, barley, wheat and corn to Virginia's agricultural history. All of the grain used in the whiskey was grown in the state.
"There's a tie between whiskey and farmers," Beckwith said. "The way to preserve their grain was to distill it."
Beckwith's teammates were Scott Harris of Catoctin Creek Distilling Company in Purcellville and Chuck Miller of Belmont Farm Distillery in Culpeper; also providing spirits to enhance the blend were Richmond's Reservoir Distillery and Ironclad Distillery of Newport News.
"I put the call out to any Virginia distillers who wanted to participate," Beckwith said. "We all had points of view."
The resulting blend, using 10 barrels from four distillers, is 35% 5-year-old bourbon from Ironclad, 25% 7-year-old American single malt from Virginia Distillery Co., 25% 7-year-old rye whiskey from Catoctin Creek and 15% 6-year-old wheat whiskey from Reservoir.
Norfolk artist Mark Todd works on a design for the the limited-edition Virginia Spirits 250th Celebration Trio Pack.
Barry Haneberg of Richmond-based Virago Spirits led the rum team, which included Pete Morgner of Charlottesville's Vitae Spirits, Miller of Belmont Farm Distillery and Chris Richeson of Chesapeake Bay Distillery of Virginia Beach.
The rum is 45% from Belmont Farm, $30% from Virago and 45% from Vitae.
Heading the gin team was Peter Ahlf of Mount Defiance Cidery & Distillery in Middleburg, who joined forces with Kimberly Nuckols of Mount Defiance Cidery & Distillery, Morgner and Haneberg. Beckwith said the gin made use of Virginia-grown juniper; the rum's London Dry flavor profile also includes angelica, coriander, orris root and lemon peel.
Norfolk-based artist Mark Todd designed a triptych-style box for the three-bottle set that depicts the James River flowing through the mountains, heartland and coast.
The end product gives people a chance to raise a glass to Virginia history and the value of teamwork, Beckwith said.
"I love the idea of making something that makes people take a deep breath and appreciate the good in each other," Beckwith said.
Jane Dunlap Sathe (434) 978-7249
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