Crafting Cocktails and Memories: A Journey into Abbott & Wallace Distilling's Signature Creations
As I sat and enjoyed a Mai Tai, while drifting across the Caribbean, I had few thoughts on canned cocktails that I would like to share with you.
As many know, HK and I cut our teeth in the beverage industry by canning beer in Boulder, Colorado. I moved to Colorado in 2011, and I found a job with Avery Brewing Company on day 3! I soon called HK, and in a very indirect route through Portland, he found a job with Upslope Brewing. Both breweries were enjoying the craft beer boom, and we were the beneficiaries of their expansion. I slowly worked my way through the ranks of an established brewery while HK's industrious background made him a jack of all trades for an expanding brand.
HK quickly became Upslope's first cellarman, and he often had to hop onto the brew-deck.
One of the regular bar-flies at Upslope Brewing, Ted Palmer, owned Vapor Distilling in Boulder. HK and Ted struck up a conversation about welding and quickly decided to start a company fabricating distillery equipment. They rented a house and started the American Dream in their garage. I moved in, bought their first still and the rest is history.
Growing up in the South, hospitality and happy hour were staples of a happy family. The seed was planted, and it didn't take long to bloom. Over the years, Budweiser gave way to Yuengling then Foreign Imports. Similarly, sweet Jack & Coke became preferred over cheap Vodka & Sprite. On a special occasion, Hennessy made us feel classy, or mix it with Hypnotic for a green "Incredible Hulk". The Hulk was probably my first "sophisticated" cocktail experience (often with unsophisticated results 😂).
Fast forward a bit, when starting the Distillery, HK and I knew that cocktails were the quintessential expressions and experience for our brand.
Hospitality and a delicious hand-crafted beverage could be the key to happiness and success. Additionally, our beer canning experience, combined with the rise of canned cocktails, suggested that we should make these offerings to-go.
Starting a distillery from scratch and distilling all the spirits from scratch required us to get creative behind the bar.
We made some pretty wild moonshine expressions like the "Harvest Moon" with apricots and cream. Thankfully, we quickly expanded our portfolio of spirits to gin and Lusca Spiced Rum. Our creative legacy thrives today, but some of our original cocktails became our first cult classics. The depths of Lusca Spiced Rum and the spice of our homemade ginger beer made a mule that nobody had tasted before. Throw in some flowers and there's even a tropical twist. Billy Ocean's passionate balade for an exotic woman seemed to capture the essence of this cocktail, and the "Caribbean Queen" was born.
The owners of Black Canyon Distillery in Mead, Colorado decided to close their doors in October of 2018.
They reached out to us about purchasing their barrels and we jumped at the opportunity. Our in-house bourbon still had a couple years to age, so the Black Canyon barrels would give us a chance to have locally distilled bourbon (and support a neighbor going out of business). The Last Waltz was a tribute to Black Canyon Distillery and the path they paved for the next generation of craft distillers. We managed to package The Last Waltz for the Holidays, but the whiskey really didn't shine until the Longtucky Derby.
As many know, the Longtucky Derby is a long standing tradition and one of our biggest celebrations.
We are now forced to call it the "Derby Party" thanks to a Cease and Desist from Woodford Reserve and Churchill Downs. Anywho, one of our bartenders (Kira) decided to put a little Maple Syrup into the Juleps instead of sugar and the Longtucky Julep was born! We brought the ABV down to 12% for the can, but you know it still packs a punch.
Today, Miss Collins is our top selling cocktail. It's a modern and refreshing take on the classic Tom Collins made with our award winning Alpine Gin, Lemon, Lavender and Sage. She is just so damn refreshing. This summer, we introduced the Mai Tai and it quickly became our second best selling beverage. Gina Tonic seems to have edged out the Caribbean Queen, but the Queen and Julep still hold their own. The Julep now swaps with La Chupacabra for a seasonally spicy sensation. And, unfortunately, the Steamboat Spritz is setting sail for the land of no return.
We are very passionate about these products. We distill and blend the original base spirits before mixing them into cocktails.
Our Head Distiller, Leigh, tests us with countless iterations to make sure we offer the best version. There are no shortcuts. Unfortunately, the market is crowded and pricing competition is fierce. Consumers cannot tell the quality without trying or hearing about it.
SO WE NEED YOUR HELP SPREADING THE GOOD WORD!
We remain popular on many shelves because managers and consumers appreciate our process and flavors. But this is not enough. We encourage everyone to try them, find your favorites and share with a friend. We promise not to let you down.
Thanks for letting me rant about cocktails for a while. We love them, and we want to share their quality with you. Summer's not over, so keep adventuring and take some caned cocktails with you!
Cheers,
JY(thewhiskyguy)
