White Whiskey/Moonshine/Poitin
White whiskey (or “moonshine”) is not a legally-defined type of whiskey, but it has grown in popularity with the increase of craft distilling in America and the need for small distillers to showcase (and sell) their products while their aged whiskey stock matures. White whiskey is a clear spirit that may be produced to the specifications of whiskey or to those of a grain neutral spirit. Moonshine can be made from nearly anything; some moonshine is made from sugar and is known as “sugar shine.” Poitin, which originated in Ireland and has protected geographical indication status with that country, is essentially a white whiskey and legally defined in Ireland, but it does not meet EU or American requirements for a whiskey.
Top White Whiskey / Moonshine / Poitin Posts:
Glory Irish Poitin
The Spirits of Sugarlands Shine
Glendalough Poitin
Stillhouse Moonshine
Tequila for rabbits? No. New Holland, based not in Holland the country but rather Holland the city in Michigan, takes a double-distilled mash of 100% malted barley, then steeps Centennial hops in it. It’s not aged, but it comes out a Chardonnay-yellow from the hops Hopquila, then, is not a funky tequila but rather a…
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The white whiskey craze continues to rumble along, and artisan producers keep driving the trend. Our friends at Craft Distillers offer this spirit, distilled from Bavarian hard wheat (wheat with a higher protein content) and fermented to an 8.8% alcohol beer. It’s then double-distilled in a copper pot still and bottled at about 90 proof,…
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To call Koval Distillery an “artisan” operation would be the understatement of the year. Koval, based in Chicago, is a microdistillery of the bizarre: It takes organic, single grains — not just wheat and rye, but stuff like oats, millet, and spelt — and makes booze out of them. Bottled without aging (under the Koval…
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You say apple pie, I say apple pie moonshine. Yes folks, it’s two great tastes that taste great together, with Tennessee’s Ole Smoky Distillery moonshine — 80% corn and 20% mystery — making up the backbone of a classic yet indescribable spirit. The nose and body scream cinnamon and apples, in that order. This is…
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Like it or not (and most of you appear to be firmly in the “not” camp) white whiskey is here for the consuming. The good news: Heaven Hill is doing something useful with white whiskey beyond attempting to make a quick buck. (Since white whiskey is unaged and need not spend years in expensive barrels,…
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The San Francisco Belle was packed but the crowds were manageable at this year’s San Francisco Whiskies of the World event. With much more room to move around than last year’s cramped fest, lots more seating, and plenty of whiskey, guests seemed to be having a great time, myself included. Who knows what venue will…
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Little did I know that Moonshine is a brand of “clear corn whiskey” — unaged, white dog whiskey for the rest of us. The company is sending a sample for us to review, but in the meantime, I took an interest in the Valentine’s Day cocktail recipes it sent along. You can sub in another…
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Charbay’s Master Distiller Marko Karakasevic, a 26-year veteran of the business, has created his first spirit, an unaged “white whiskey,” part of the big push to make moonshine, er, white whiskey palatable to the drinking public. Whiskey is essentially distilled beer, and Karakasevic’s idea was that, especially if you aren’t going to age your spirit,…
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It may not be canonically “Bourbon,” but the state of Tennessee is responsible for the best-selling whiskey in the world: Jack Daniel’s. But Jack isn’t the only whiskey going in Kentucky’s next-door neighbor. Benjamin Prichard has been producing a variety of spirits — including a whole family of rums — for ten years now. We…
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