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Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/580366
www.cheersonline.com 38 • October 2015 WHISKEY WITH LOCAL FLAVOR W hiskey is now made locally, everywhere in America. Numerous distilleries have popped up in the past three years. And the fl avors differ from state to state, based on the terroir. The founders of Hudson Whiskey had not intended to produce craft spirits. The company operates on New York farmland originally purchased 10 years ago to become a rock-climbing ranch. But neighbors balked at that proposal. So Ralph Erenzo and Brian Lee instead established the fi rst distillery in New York since Prohibition. This required a lengthy legal process. Erenzo and Lee worked with politicians to fi nally change state law, easing the prohibitively expensive distillery-license fees. They opened Tuthilltown Spirits Farm Distillery in Gardiner, NY, in 2005. Erenzo and Lee also achieved a mandate that all spirits made by New York farm distilleries include at least 75% local agriculture. Today, their top products Baby Bourbon and Manhattan Rye—full of local fl avors—are both available nationwide in 750-ml. bottles for about $50 each. The genesis of Hudson Whiskey is a story—albeit a bit longer and circuitous—now playing out nationwide. Whiskey production has branched out far beyond its American roots in Kentucky. Distillers across the country are releasing new expressions, distinct for their use of local resources. WATER, WATER EVERYWHERE Water fi lls a number of critical roles in whiskey making. It's used in steeping, mashing, cooling and dilution. So it's no surprise that distilleries across the country count their local water as a differentiator. Kentucky's limestone water, of course, is much celebrated by whiskey enthusiasts. The high PH level stimulates fermentation, while the minerals aid in spirit composition and taste. The limestone helps fi lter out impurities such as iron, which can badly damage the tast of the fi nal product. Kentuckians are justifi ed to point out the high quality of their water. But they do not alone boast such a resource: Excellent water exists elsewhere. Wyoming Whiskey is a craft distillery in Kirby, WY, that launched its fi rst expression in 2012. Craft expressions of the American spirit take on the taste of their terroir By Kyle Swartz