Tall Pines Distillery Releasing Peach Moonshine

Tall Pines Peach Moonshine

Tall Pines Distillery, which has locations in Pineville, Missouri and Salisbury, PA is releasing its Peach Moonshine this Saturday, August 29th. Made with fresh and local peaches, this moonshine is available in 375ml and 750 ml sizes. Bottles can be purchased at the distillery or shipped across the Commonwealth.

If you make the trip to Tall Pines, be sure to look for their custom Bootlegger car, which combines a 2010 Camaro and a copper still.

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Out of State Report: Cooper River Is Back (kind of)!

Cooper River Straight Bourbon

One of the first craft distilleries I went to was Cooper River Distillers along the River Line light rail line in Camden, NJ. The old garage was a ramshackle setup and the epitome of bootstrapped endeavor. But the bartenders were friendly, the cocktails were great, the setting sun blinding, and the promise of something new and exciting was real.

Unfortunately it didn’t work out for James Yoakum and his fledgling distillery. He shut the distillery down two years ago and sold his barreled inventory to Recklesstown Farm Distillery in Columbus, NJ, about 27 miles north from Cooper River’s location. There, the spirits have continued to age and on Saturday, August 29th at 12 pm, the first batch (300 bottles) of Straight Bourbon Whiskey will be placed on sale.

Recklesstown has another connection to Cooper River as head distiller, Ben Donia previously worked at Cooper River and played a part in the production of the bourbon.

The whiskey is described as having sweet vanilla flavor, rye spice and “plenty of age.” The 15-gallon barrels were rested for more than two-and-a-half years.

The bottles are $55 each and there will be a limit of two per customer.

Wigle Releasing Suffragette Rye

Wigle Suffragette Rye

In celebration of the 100th anniversary of women’s right to vote with the ratification of the 19th Amendment, Wigle Whiskey is releasing a special edition whiskey, Suffragette Rye. The limited release features an eye catching colorful label designed by local Pittsburgh artist, Dakota Rethage. Over the next couple of weeks, Wigle Whiskey will also be celebrating its female employees through a social media campaign, #womenofwigle.

Inside the bottle, Suffragette Rye features an 84 proof, straight whiskey aged a minimum of two years in new charred oak. 375 ml bottles can now be pre-ordered for pickup. The bottles will be available at the distillery as of September 4th. Not able to make it in to the distillery? Get it shipped to your Pennsylvania residence.

Phoenixville’s Bluebird Distilling Preps 5th Anniversary Release

Bluebird Fifth Anniversary Bourbon Finished in a Rum Barrel

Bluebird Distilling officially turned five back on June 23rd of this year and that usually means a blowout party but this year is different, cause ‘rona. But this weekend the Phoenixville distillery is celebrating (safely) with a new open-air pergola, expanded outdoor seating area and a two special spirit releases.

Bluebird is releasing its fifth anniversary, five year bourbon finished in Jamaican rum barrels. Touted as a “Bourbon Vacation,” Bluebird’s four grain bourbon is aged in new American oak for four years and then finished in dark Jamaican rum barrels for an additional year. The result is described as starting “with rich notes of caramel, toffee and tobacco, finishing with a solid punch of bananas, cloves and dried fruit.” 750 ml bottles will be available for $59.99.

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Triple Sun Spirits Releases Spiced Rum

Triple Sun Small Batch Spiced Black Rum

Triple Sun Spirits with locations in Emmaus and Newtown, released a Spiced Rum this past weekend. The rum is made from Caribbean sourced molasses and conditioned in American oak. The black rum is then enhanced with a cinnamon-free maceration featuring Triple Sun’s blend of Madagascar vanilla, orange peel, crushed nutmeg, whole clove, cardamom, peppercorn and star anise.

The Newtown location will have pizza and barbecue this weekend in case you need more motivation to leave your couch to pick up a $39 bottle.

The spiced rum is also being featured in these cocktails at the Newtown tasting room:

  • Frozen Coconut: Lime, coconut, pineapple and spiced rum
  • The Spiced Grapefruit: Ginger beer, grapefruit juice, spiced rum and smoked rosemary

Cans, Cans, Everywhere There Are Cans

Maggie's Farm Rum Cocktails in Cans

Yesterday we let slip that we’re a bit obsessed with cocktails in cans. Portable, easily iced, enjoyed on the go, what’s not to like? Not much unless you’re the actual distiller who has to figure out carbonation, canning, procuring and storing cans, producing labels and a public that isn’t familiar with the format, not to mention competing directly with the beast that is hard seltzer. But despite all of that, and yes the pesky pandemic, we are seeing more and more Pennsylvania distillers putting cocktails in cans.

Here are the Pennsylvania distillers producing canned cocktails for sale. Let us know if we missed any.

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JaggerBush Gin Released by Lawrenceville Distilling

Jagger Bush Gin

Lawrenceville Distilling has released JaggerBush, a new gin joining the cleverly named Ginzer (you know, like Yinzer). This time taking its inspiration on the Pittsburgh name for thorny plants. An apropos title for a gin made with juniper, coriander, lemon peel, orange peel, lavender, orris root, black peppercorn and French winter wheat. By comparison, Ginzer is a blend of juniper, coriander, orange, and clove.

JaggerBush is available now for $25 via pickup or delivery to Pennsylvania residents for a flat $10. FedEx Express Saver rate.

Boardroom Spirits Launches Canned Cocktails

Boardroom Canned Cocktails

We here at Pennsy Local have a real soft spot for canned cocktails. It goes back to the first time we opened an ice-cold gin and tonic in a can. It felt so natural, tasted so good, and could go just about anywhere.

So it is great excitement that we report that Lansdale’s Boardroom Spirits is launching not one, but three canned vodka and soda cocktails.

Each of the canned cocktails is made with Boardroom’s eye-opening vodkas, real fruit and purified water. The cans are sold in four-packs for $12.99 and come in at a crushable 4.5% ABV and 99 calories.

The three vodka and sodas are:

  • Pineapple Ginger Vodka & Soda
  • Cranberry Lime Vodka & Soda
  • Grapefruit Citrus Vodka & Soda

The Boardroom canned Vodka & Sodas are available for purchase online, for delivery, or pickup.

Lucky Sign Spirits Opens in Allegheny County

Lucky Spirits Opens in Pittsburgh

You have to believe luck is on your side to attempt to open a distillery during a global epidemic. And Christian Kahle and Matt Brudnok must believe they have luck in spades as this was actually the third location considered for their Lucky Sign Spirits that finally opened on August 8th, in Millvale, PA.

Lucky Sign’s first three products are a gin (eleven botanicals) and sourced bourbon and rye, bottled under their Card Shark sub-label. And they have plans on much more. The focus will be their own single malts. Experimentation will be a theme. Kahle told the Post-Gazette that they will highlight “tasting more of the distillate” over relying on barrel-aging. They’ve also been working on an amaro and a dandelion vodka but plan on producing everything from soju to aquavit. Kahle tells Next Pittsburgh that “we want to hide things in there so people don’t know what to expect — they have to drink it and experience it for themselves.”

Lucky Sign Spirits is located at 215 North Avenue in Millvale and has hours Wednesday through Sunday. They offer bottles and cocktails to go.