It took over 70 years after the prohibition had ended for the distilling industry to return to New York City. New York had a flourishing distilling industry by the early 19th century, however things changed during the Civil War, when President Lincoln taxed spirits to fund the military. This resulted in many distilleries going underground before the end of the century. The fatal blow for the legal distilling industry in US came in 1920, when the Eighteenth Amendment came into effect making the production of alcohol illegal. It was only in the 21st century that small distilleries started resurging in New York. The New York Distilling Company, located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, is one of the oldest distilleries in the city, and was founded in 2011 by Tom Potter, a co-founder of the Brooklyn Brewery, and Allen Katz, one of the nation's leading experts on distilled spirits and cocktails. The distillery specializes in gins and rye whiskeys and has been one of the pioneers of the city's distilling renaissance that builds upon the pre-prohibition heritage. Gin distilling in New York began in the 17th century, when Dutch settlers of New Amsterdam (as New York was then called) started making a version of the Dutch spirit genever. However, it wasn't until the early 19th century when the first commercial gin was produced in the US. Gin was a popular drink during the prohibition, as it was simple to make. American gin is a bit different from London and other European gins as a result of using other botanicals. The Ragtime Bottled in Bond Rye Whiskey features a 75% rye, 13% corn and 12% malted barley mash bill. In addition to meeting the Empire Rye standards, this bottled-in-bond edition of New York Distilling Company's flagship Ragtime Rye is also compliant with the strict Federal Bottled in Bond Regulations. This whiskey is matured in full-size barrels for a minimum of four years and is bottled at 50% ABV.

Brand Introduction 

A mission-driven, social impact-driven company, Erstwhile is a boutique agave spirits importer based in Brooklyn, New York.  Our mission: advocate for small, independent, family-owned producers who lack representation outside their local communities in Mexico; and bring their craft to mezcal lovers in international markets for the first time. We work closely with our partner producers and set them up for success.  No haggling.  No exclusivity contracts.  We guide producers through the complicated steps to export in their own names for the first time and cover necessary expenses including local attorneys, accountants, license fees, and more.  We absorb our producers’ marketing and supply chain costs as our own.  We believe in autonomy for producers, be it hiring their own workers or using their own bottling facility. We only step in if they want our help. We connect with our partner producers to share knowledge and help each other in production. Revenue from every Erstwhile bottle sold creates jobs in our partner producers’ and vendors’ local communities in Mexico.  Our producers hire their own team of local men and women, on their own terms. Erstwhile is a woman-owned, women-led business.  Our team is multicultural and multilingual.  We are outspoken about elevating underrepresented voices in Mezcal and our industry. 

Erstwhile Henequen Mezcal

Must-have for any serious mezcal collector.  This is the first mezcal made from the Henequén agave that is available in the US market. This distillation, made from cultivated Henequén agave, is a small-batch limited edition of 397 liters (roughly 500 bottles) from the personal collection of the late master distiller Juan Hernández Méndez in Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca.  Henequén, an agave plant native to the Yucatán Peninsula and valued for its fiber since pre-Hispanic times, once ruled and transformed the region’s economy to such an extent that it came to be known as “green gold”. It is not native to, and thus rarely seen in, Oaxaca and other mezcal-producing regions of Mexico.

Brand Introduction 

A mission-driven, social impact-driven company, Erstwhile is a boutique agave spirits importer based in Brooklyn, New York.  Our mission: advocate for small, independent, family-owned producers who lack representation outside their local communities in Mexico; and bring their craft to mezcal lovers in international markets for the first time. We work closely with our partner producers and set them up for success.  No haggling.  No exclusivity contracts.  We guide producers through the complicated steps to export in their own names for the first time and cover necessary expenses including local attorneys, accountants, license fees, and more.  We absorb our producers’ marketing and supply chain costs as our own.  We believe in autonomy for producers, be it hiring their own workers or using their own bottling facility. We only step in if they want our help. We connect with our partner producers to share knowledge and help each other in production. Revenue from every Erstwhile bottle sold creates jobs in our partner producers’ and vendors’ local communities in Mexico.  Our producers hire their own team of local men and women, on their own terms. Erstwhile is a woman-owned, women-led business.  Our team is multicultural and multilingual.  We are outspoken about elevating underrepresented voices in Mezcal and our industry. 

Erstwhile Cuishe Mezcal

A herbal, easy drinking mezcal from the Agave karwinskii family.  Lovely nutty, earthy nose.  On the palate, this mezcal has a bit of kick to it with notes of jalapeño pepper and spices.  Banana and chipotle follow through with a hint of cinnamon sticks, clove, and bitter melon.

Holmes Cay is an independent bottling company from New York City. Founded by New Yorker rum aficionado Eric Kaye in 2019, they focus on finding the very best rums and bottling them at cask strength. Kaye used to work as a producer and music composer for film, TV, and commercials, but has also been an avid diver for decades. His favorite pastime brought him into contact with fantastic rare Caribbean rums. He felt he needed to share these with his fellow Americans, which is how Holmes Cay came to be. Passionately standing behind the tradition and honor that is an integral part of rum, Kaye hopes to bring incredible as-of-yet-unknown unadulterated cask-strength rums to the US, introducing spirit-lovers to the best-kept secrets of the rum world. Their very first release Holmes Cay Barbados 2005 fittingly came from the legendary Foursquare Distillery in Barbados. Holmes Cay Belize 2005 follows in the footsteps of their recent releases of Barbados, Fiji, and Guyana rum. Crafted in collaboration with Travellers Liquors Distillery of Belize it's a 100% tropically-aged column-still rum that has spent 15 years in ex-bourbon barrels. Distilled in 2005 and bottled in 2020 at cask strength, this 122-proof rum has no sugar, color, or flavoring added. 4 casks of this rum were produced in total. 

Rich and deep flavours come from the barrels in which we tropically mature our liquid in.

A TRUE RUM. COMPLETELY UNCOMPROMISED. 100% NATURAL. LIMITED BATCH LIQUID.

Refreshingly unique, an exceptional blend of barrel aged molasses rum from the Caribbean, fused with fresh sugar cane juice rum from Africa.

TWO EXCEPTIONAL DISTILLERIES. TWO DIFFERENT CONTINENTS. MARRYING THE BEST OF THEEASTERN & WESTERN HEMISPHERES

Brand Introduction 

A mission-driven, social impact-driven company, Erstwhile is a boutique agave spirits importer based in Brooklyn, New York.  Our mission: advocate for small, independent, family-owned producers who lack representation outside their local communities in Mexico; and bring their craft to mezcal lovers in international markets for the first time. We work closely with our partner producers and set them up for success.  No haggling.  No exclusivity contracts.  We guide producers through the complicated steps to export in their own names for the first time and cover necessary expenses including local attorneys, accountants, license fees, and more.  We absorb our producers’ marketing and supply chain costs as our own.  We believe in autonomy for producers, be it hiring their own workers or using their own bottling facility. We only step in if they want our help. We connect with our partner producers to share knowledge and help each other in production. Revenue from every Erstwhile bottle sold creates jobs in our partner producers’ and vendors’ local communities in Mexico.  Our producers hire their own team of local men and women, on their own terms. Erstwhile is a woman-owned, women-led business.  Our team is multicultural and multilingual.  We are outspoken about elevating underrepresented voices in Mezcal and our industry. 

Tepeztate-Tobalá Ensamble (2018 Limited Edition)

A true blend of 50% Tepeztate and 50% Tobalá, two agaves that are dramatically different in personality.  This Tepeztate-Tobalá Ensamble is Tepeztate forward, meaning you will likely taste the green, vegetal, and pear notes of the Tepeztate first, before it expands into the Tobalá’s sweeter fruit notes and rounder body.  A verdant, precise and clean combination of grass and rainwashed limestone on the nose. Pear, green pepper, peppercorn, and minerals on the tongue. Tempered by the smooth caramel notes and hint of smoke from the Tobalá.

Brand Introduction 

A mission-driven, social impact-driven company, Erstwhile is a boutique agave spirits importer based in Brooklyn, New York.  Our mission: advocate for small, independent, family-owned producers who lack representation outside their local communities in Mexico; and bring their craft to mezcal lovers in international markets for the first time. We work closely with our partner producers and set them up for success.  No haggling.  No exclusivity contracts.  We guide producers through the complicated steps to export in their own names for the first time and cover necessary expenses including local attorneys, accountants, license fees, and more.  We absorb our producers’ marketing and supply chain costs as our own.  We believe in autonomy for producers, be it hiring their own workers or using their own bottling facility. We only step in if they want our help. We connect with our partner producers to share knowledge and help each other in production. Revenue from every Erstwhile bottle sold creates jobs in our partner producers’ and vendors’ local communities in Mexico.  Our producers hire their own team of local men and women, on their own terms. Erstwhile is a woman-owned, women-led business.  Our team is multicultural and multilingual.  We are outspoken about elevating underrepresented voices in Mezcal and our industry. 

Erstwhile Tobala Mezcal

Tropical fruit notes, with a round mouthfeel.  Banana, cooked maguey, and adobo on the nose. Quince and vanilla on the tongue, with the lingering lovely round sweetness of caramel. The slightest hint of spiciness and hot smoke.  This mezcal always makes us think of dessert and would make a fabulous after-dinner digestif with dessert or on its own. Banana foster, creme brûlée, banana pudding … The possibilities are endless.

Indoggo Strawberry Flavored Gin is a unique and refreshing spirit, infused with natural strawberry flavors, offering a sweet and smooth taste. Crafted by rapper and icon Snoop Dogg, this gin reflects his laid-back, California lifestyle. Indoggo is ideal for mixing in cocktails or enjoying on its own, making it a fun and flavorful addition to any occasion.

Founded in the Chicago suburb of Evanston, IL in 2011, Few Spirits is a grain-to-glass distillery that crafts award-winning whiskey and gin, while constantly innovating and experimenting in order to bring surprising flavors to the discerning drinker. Evanston held the 1893 World's Fair, where the US was introduced to several modern inventions. The town was also known as the seat of Prohibition and would remain a dry community long after Prohibition was repealed in 1933. These 2 events became the inspiration that fueled the distiller Paul Hletko's vision of creating Few Spirits, the first legal distillery ever to craft spirits in Evanston. The ever-creative Hletko has always loved making new things, whether as an engineer, lawyer, or musician. "At the end of the day, I like to have created something that didnt exist that morning and offers something completely different," says Hletko of the passion that drove him to open the distillery. With it he focused on creating urban whiskey that could rival that of his Kentucky friends with humble beginnings in an old chop shop. Now he crafts artisanal small-batch spirits using locally-sourced grains, ages them in American oak barrels and bottles on-site into US-made glass bottles. Hletko was named Distiller of the Year in 2018's edition of the Gin Magazine's "Icons of Gin" feature. The Few Immortal Rye expression is based on their award-winning grain-to-glass Straight Rye Whiskey that is aged in air-dried oak barrels. The cask-strength straight rye that has received a Double Gold medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition is then brought to proof with 8 Immortals oolong tea, resulting in a complex whiskey that retains its rye character and ramps up the complexity with fruity and creamy notes of the famous tea.

Noble Oak makes unique and award-winning whiskey with a worthy purpose. The folks at Noble Oak are wood fanatics and rightly so. That's because 70% of a whiskey's flavor comes from the wood in which it is matured. They mention: "Our commitment to oak transcends our whiskey, because every bottle plants a tree in partnership with One Tree Planted in an effort to preserve the world's most majestic forests." Trinity Reserve is a straight bourbon that brings together 3 continents via oak from Japan, Europe, and America. The whiskey is first aged for at least 4 years in new charred American oak, before being finished with meticulously hand-picked oak staves. Ex-bourbon staves bring vanilla and citrus notes, ex-sherry Scotch staves bring dried fruit and spice notes, while new Japanese oak staves bring the profile together, balancing the complexity and adding depth. Released exclusively online, and Flaviar members have a chance to grab this expression first. Fewer than 2,800 bottles were produced. Paul Pacult of The Spirit Journal has awarded this beautiful expression with 5 stars, noting its "top to bottom, consistent brilliance and on-message character from first whiff through to the finish. No surprises, no changes in direction, just solid, high quality excellence."

First we ferment the fresh pressed sugarcane juice then we double distill our in our full-bodied pot still before aging it in American Oak used bourbon barrels. The result is a rich, sweet high-quality rum that tastes delicious, neat and is a powerful and flavorful base for your favorite rum cocktail.

Tasting Notes

Nose : Vanilla, Oak, Leather

Taste : Spice-Cinnamon and Nutmeg, Blackberries, Tobacco

After fermenting our fresh pressed sugarcane juice, we double distill in both a pot and column stills before blending the two distillates. This is followed by resting of the finished product in stainless steel. This creates a smooth white rum that’s as good served straight on the rocks or in a cocktail such as a daiquiri.

Tasting Notes

Nose : Vanilla, Coffee Bean, Grass

Taste : Fruits, Strawberry, Lime, Citrus Zest

Yyo Tequila was founded by Jon Bullinger, who discovered a family-run farm in the Highlands of Arandas, Jalisco the birthplace of the famed Mexican spirit. It was there, on the red clay soil that produces the finest blue agaves, that his entry into the world of tequila would begin. His quest for the perfect balance of pepper, sweetness, and spice would lead him through countless hours of testing, tasting, and assessing. Yyo Tequila is a product of the highest quality ingredients and a refined distilling process. Only fully-matured agaves from a single estate are used, ones that have never seen any pesticides or chemicals. They are then roasted for 72 hours in brick ovens as tradition dictates bringing out the flavors. The quest for perfection requires some drastic measures, which is why Spanish classical music is played to the pulp during the 200 hours of fermentation. The next step is double distillation in copper-pot stills, resulting in a crisp and clean spirit that is a smooth sipper and versatile mixer at the same time. Handcrafted in small batches, Yyo Tequila Silver is made at the Vivanco family farm from 100% blue agaves and is bottled at 80 proof. The family has 4 generations of tequila-making behind them, ensuring that the resulting spirit is of the highest quality.

Our award-winning Breckenridge Bourbon soaks up the charm of our own aged Colorado Rum casks, creating an unstoppable wave of flavor. Candied apple and cinnamon enfold, as dark chocolate and cacao follow. Lingering allspice captivates the senses, gratifying in just one sip, but mysterious enough to leave you wanting another.

Distilled from the highest-grade American corn, Monkey In Paradise Vodka is seven times distilled, seven times carbon-filtered to produce a pure, smooth, drinkable vodka (this is six times more than other vodkas). Monkey In Paradise Vodka is produced by demineralizing water with a proprietary five ppm reverse osmosis system. This extreme level of purification takes 11 gallons of water to produce one "paradise pure" gallon of water for the distillation process. After this meticulous process, the spirit is filtered in copper stills, reducing sulfites naturally to deliver a purer, cleaner taste. Finally, the vodka is charcoal filtered three times, allowing the alcohol and water to age and rest together at four different proof levels. Because the more you filter and allow for "age settling," the smoother the final product. This premium vodka is exceptionally elegant. Distilled and bottled in Palm Beach Florida using only premium ingredients, including non GMO corn. Monkey In Paradise Vodka was unanimously awarded to be the highest rated vodka in the World in 2017. 

Following the defeat of the British at the Battle of Yorktown during the American Revolutionary War, the territory west of the Appalachian mountains became known as Kentucky County. At the time, the territory was considered part of Virginia, and was overseen by a military governor namedJohn J. Bowman. In order to encourage westward expansion, Virginia issued pioneers who agreed to settle in Kentucky County "corn writs," which granted the pioneers 60 acres of land if they agreed to settle in Kentucky and start farming corn. One year after the defeat of the British, a Baptist minister namedElijah Craigemigrated to Fayette County (today, a part of the State of Kentucky) and purchased 1,000 acres of land in a town named Lebanon. In 1789, Craig built a distillery on his farm and is credited with being the first person to mature bourbon in charred, oak casks, earning him the title "Father of Bourbon Whiskey." Elijah Craig Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey pays homage to Craig and his unique legacy.Twice barreled for added complexity, Toasted Barrel takes Elijah Craig's award-winning Small Batch Bourbon to new heights. After it's fully matured, this Bourbon is finished in a second, custom toasted new oak barrel, where it's left to develop even more sweet oak flavor.

Named after two influential men of New Orleans cocktail industry, Thomas Handy and John Schiller, Handy & Schiller Barreled Cocktails was introduced by the Sazerac Company. Schiller, worked as a bartender in New York, later finding his way to New Orleans. By 1860 he was operating the world-famous Sazerac Coffeehouse in the French Quarter. Thomas Handy, a Maryland native, worked for Schiller at the coffeehouse. Handy later went on to become even more successful in the industry. Handy and Schiller's integral roles in the early days of New Orleans' cocktail culture would serve as inspiration for over a century and a half years of libations in America's most unique city. The Handy & Schiller Barreled Old Fashioned, and the Handy & Schiller Barreled Manhattan are both crafted and aged at Buffalo Trace Distillery. This Handy & Schiller Manhattan is crafted using Sazerac Rye Whiskey, Vermouth and Peychaud's Bitters.

Named after two influential men of New Orleans cocktail industry, Thomas Handy and John Schiller, Handy & Schiller Barreled Cocktails was introduced by the Sazerac Company. Schiller, worked as a bartender in New York, later finding his way to New Orleans. By 1860 he was operating the world-famous Sazerac Coffeehouse in the French Quarter. Thomas Handy, a Maryland native, worked for Schiller at the coffeehouse. Handy later went on to become even more successful in the industry. Handy and Schiller's integral roles in the early days of New Orleans' cocktail culture would serve as inspiration for over a century and a half years of libations in America's most unique city. The Handy & Schiller Barreled Old Fashioned, and the Handy & Schiller Barreled Manhattan are both crafted and aged at Buffalo Trace Distillery. This Handy & Schiller Old Fashioned, 84 proof, is made using the distillery's flagship Buffalo Trace Bourbon and Peychaud's Bitters.

Calumet Farm Single Rack Black 14 Year Old Bourbon Whiskey represents both the prestigious nature and hard-earned quality of a premium Kentucky straight bourbon. It is painstakingly crafted from extremely small batches of 19 barrels. All barrels used are aged in a single, center cut rack from the ideal maturation location and conditions inside the rick house.  This expression of the Calumet Farm Bourbon family is a true convergence of craftsmanship and flavor. It is Non-Chill Filtered for added depth of character and color.

Awards 

95 Point rating and Gold Medal from the prestigious Beverage Testing Institute.

Tasting Notes

Color: Deep amber throughout with shimmering highlights of copper and sun-yellow

Nose: Heavy notes of oak and molasses are rolled back as light scents of fresh corn, wood sugars and hay present

Taste: Smooth flavors of oak and char subside to reveal complex sensations of toasted grains, toffee and vanilla

Finish: The long finish leaves the palate with a subtle dryness followed by lasting flavors of rye and dark fruit