The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines brewing as: to make (beer, ale, etc.). OK then, what else could we make by brewing besides those usual suspects (beer and ale)? What could that “etc.” possibly refer to?
How about “distiller’s beer,” for making whiskey and other spirits?
We usually think of vodka, whiskey, and the like as being distilled, which they are, but first, as with beer, the grains involved need to be cooked with water into a mash to create sugars, then fermented with yeast in order to produce a relatively low amount of alcohol that can be concentrated and clarified by using a still.
There are a lot of variations of technique and equipment in distilling among the various countries where it is practiced, but in practical terms there are just two types of stills: pot and column.
A pot still is what most people think of when distilling comes to mind — those graceful, tall copper beauties that grace most Scottish distilleries. Column stills — straight, vertical columns of copper — are used most commonly in the US for the production of bourbon and rye whiskeys.
Distilling in a pot still is exactly like cooking in a pot on the stove at home. Only when the soup’s finished can you clean the pot and start over. Column distilling involves steam rising through the still between perforated baffles that continuously remove the alcohol from the “beer” as it flows downward through the still.
Since alcohol in beer boils at a lower temperature than the water, the steam carries the alcohol upward in either type of still, to be cooled and condensed into liquid spirit that can then be consumed immediately (vodka, gin, rum, etc.) or put into a barrel and aged into whiskey.
That’s about as basic a primer as I can include here for our purpose. And what, you might ask, would be that purpose? To discuss the latest trend in local alcohol-beverage production, the craft distiller.
Craft beer takes up a lot of space in this column, and for good reasons: fresh, local, sustainable, and tasty, all of which also apply to craft distilling. Right now we have three operating craft distillers in Centre County, all using pot stills to create interesting and unique spirits. Let’s make a visit and see what’s up.
First off we have Big Spring Spirits, in the American Philatelic Society’s match factory complex in Bellefonte. Having opened in 2014, it was the first to hit the ground running here and now offers 10 different products at its beautiful tasting room and lounge. Big Spring also has the loftiest aspirations, having the largest product lineup and being available on the shelves of a number of Pennsylvania wine and spirits stores and in many area bars and restaurants.
Head distiller Phil Jensen is cooking up an eclectic and engaging mix of spirits: three white whiskeys (corn, wheat, and rye), an aged rye whiskey, white rum (and two flavored variants, plus a barrel-aged version), vodka, and a lovely cream liqueur made with neutral corn spirits. Unusually, all of Big Spring’s spirits use a single-grain mashbill, only one grain per product.
The tasting room at Big Spring is open for sales by the drink from a menu of inspired cocktails or by the bottle to take home and enjoy anytime. More information can be found at bigspringspirits.com.
The next local entrant into the distilling arena is the Griffin Method Distillery of Milesburg. Having started operations near Aaronsburg, a change of ownership in its rented location required a change of venue, and the Griffin family found themselves distilling in the Bald Eagle Valley instead.
Distiller and patriarch Dick Griffin is descended from a line of illicit distillers that operated during Prohibition and beyond. He wanted to legitimize the family legacy and acquired a license to begin distilling just one product: Uncle Lum’s Whiskey, an homage to one of the family’s past distillers. Available in both an unaged and a lightly aged version at the distillery, Uncle Lum’s utilizes an undisclosed mashbill to make what Griffin intends to be “the best whiskey in the world.”
Using homemade equipment and distilling in very small batches, the Griffin distillery is indeed just a step or two removed from the family’s distilling past, but science and modern methods allow it to make a far superior product than would have been the case in the old days. The distillery has no Web site as yet, but a short drive to the Dollar General building at 517 Dell Street in Milesburg will find you right at its doorstep, where Uncle Lum’s is available for tasting and purchase by the bottle.
The latest entrant in the local spirits scene is Barrel 21 Distillery & Dining, an offshoot of the highly popular Otto’s Pub and Brewery in State College. Located right next door to Otto’s, Barrel 21 is Pennsylvania’s first “distillery pub,” a craft distillery combined with a compelling tapas-themed restaurant headed by noted chef Lisa Palermo. Distiller Mike Smith was formerly head brewer at the late, lamented Gamble Mill and is immersed in this new opportunity.
Barrel 21 began distilling earlier this year, and the pace of product development has accelerated greatly in that time. Its first offering is an apple eau de vie, an unaged apple brandy made from whole local apples, cores, stems, and all, in the French tradition.
Up next came light rum, to be followed by a barrel-aged “Navy Strength” version, bottled at 114 proof, per the British Royal Navy. A white rye whiskey, made from grain sourced from Bedford County also is on offer, some of which has been barreled for future release. Bourbon also has been distilled and is now in barrels waiting for time to take its course.
All of Barrel 21’s spirits are available in creative cocktails in the restaurant or by the bottle from the distillery’s tasting room. Products and menus can be found at barrel21distillery.com.
Lest you think these are Centre County’s first distilleries, think again. More than 100 years ago we had Mrs. Maggie Bosch’s Spring Creek distillery in Bellefonte and J.C. Mulfinger’s rye whiskey distillery in Pleasant Gap, among others. Let’s also not forget about the backwoods distillers, like those you’ve seen on TV, some of whom still exist here, feeding the demand for homemade spirits to this day.
How about you take the legal route instead and visit the new breed of local distillers paving their own road and making history, right here, right now? I hope to see you there!
