Dow Scoggins

Newport, Oregon — Rogue Spirits is producing and packaging hand sanitizer at our distillery in Newport, Oregon to donate to local emergency response and public safety officials. To date, Rogue has donated its ‘Helping Hand Hand Sanitizer’ to fire departments from Newport, Toledo, Waldport, Yachats, Depoe Bay, and Lincoln City, police services, county offices, local ambulance services and Life Flight. It is critical to keep those servicing the community safe and healthy so that they can protect the rest of the country during this public health crisis.

Rogue’s ‘Helping Hand Hand Sanitizer’ is made with 80% ethanol, glycerin, hydrogen peroxide and distilled water and packaged in 375 ml, 4 oz and 16 oz bottles. The Food and Drug Administration changed their guidelines on March 18 to give distilleries permission to start making hand sanitizer for distribution as long as they were abiding by the formula outlined by the World Health Organization. This change allowed Rogue and distilleries around the country to make hand sanitizer because of the shortage.

“There’s a massive shortage of so many life-saving supplies right now and we wanted to do something to help,” adds Brian Pribyl, Head Distiller of Rogue Ales & Spirits. “As a distillery, we make alcohol every day, so a hand sanitizer was an obvious way to help. It’s been amazing to watch the entire distilling community come together during this crisis. We can’t make gowns, gloves or medical equipment but we can keep a steady supply of alcohol flowing. If we can supply a hand sanitizer to the front-line of this pandemic, even if that means one less thing they have to worry about sourcing, we’re calling that a win.”

“What’s really great about our hand sanitizer initiative is that it came about as an employee passion project and their dream became a reality thanks to a collaborative team effort,” adds Jack Waibel, Vice President of Production at Rogue Ales & Spirits. “Since day one we have been dedicated to giving back to our community and are so honored to be able to step up and help in this time of need.”

Rogue’s ‘Helping Hand Hand Sanitizer’ is currently available to first responders in Lincoln county and we are working to make it available throughout the nation to businesses and consumers to help reduce the spread of the Covid-19 virus.

Learn more at Rogue.com.

About Rogue Ales & Spirits
Rogue Ales & Spirits, the only farmer-brewer-distiller-cooper in the United States, was founded in Oregon in 1988 as one of America’s first microbreweries. Rogue has won more than 2,000 awards for taste, quality and packaging, and is available in all 50 states as well as 54 countries. Proudly rooted in Oregon soil, Rogue’s beers, spirits and sodas are made with ingredients grown on Rogue Farms in Independence, Oregon. Rogue Spirits are hand-distilled on a 550-gallon still in Newport, Oregon, aged in the thick ocean air of the Yaquina Bay and bottled by hand. Since 2008, Rogue has remained committed to sharing the terroir of Oregon hops, honey, cucumbers and pumpkins one acre at a time by growing its own.

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The Bardstown Bourbon Company, 1500 Parkway Drive, is excited to launch an online search for the “World’s Top Whiskey Taster,” presented by Moonshine University. The contest calls on whiskey lovers, enthusiasts, fans and connoisseurs to compete for a grand prize of $20,000, a scholarship to Moonshine University‘s Executive Bourbon Steward program, and the opportunity to represent Bardstown Bourbon Company as a Distillery Ambassador at some of the world’s most preeminent whiskey festivals in 2021.

The competition consists of three phases, starting with an invitation to submit an audition video showcasing the contestants’ passion for all things bourbon:

PHASE 1 – Video Submissions: Submit a 1-minute video to YouTube, Instagram or Facebook and be sure to tag #WorldsTopWhiskeyTaster. Share your submission URL and contact information to BardstownBourbon.com/WTWT. Videos should showcase your passion for bourbon, interest in an ambassadorship and palate prowess. Online video submissions are now being accepted and will be open through June 15, 2020.

PHASE 2 – Regional Qualifiers: Bardstown Bourbon Company and Moonshine University will select up to 10 submissions per market to compete in live sensory challenges at some of the nation’s most prominent bourbon bars. Regional qualifiers will be held in Louisville, Kentucky; Nashville, Tennessee; Indianapolis, Indiana; Chicago, Illinois; San Francisco, California; Miami, Florida; Denver, Colorado; Las Vegas, Nevada; Washington, D.C.; and Dallas, Texas. A complete list of these events will be announced at a future date.

PHASE 3 – National Finals: One winner from each qualifier will be invited to compete for the top prize and title of “World’s Top Whiskey Taster.” The final event will take place this fall at Bardstown Bourbon Company in the Bourbon Capital of the world.

“Entrants are encouraged to be creative and have fun,” said Bardstown Bourbon Company Vice President of Sales & Marketing Herb Heneman. “Tell us what makes your palate as good as it is. Show us things like your favorite bourbon cocktail, your most impressive or underrated pairing, or pick the most amazing bottle in your stash and geek out on it. But most of all, tell us what representing Bardstown Bourbon Company as a Distillery Ambassador would mean to you.”

Phase 2 contestants will be selected in June and invited to compete in regional competitions featuring bourbon sensory and tasting challenges, such as identifying a bourbon’s producer, age, mash-bill and proof, among others. Each contest will be hosted by prominent distillers, journalists and experts from Moonshine University, the creators and curators of the Stave & Thief Society’s Executive Bourbon Steward training program in Louisville, Kentucky.

“The challenges contestants will face at these live events will truly put their sensory expertise to the test,” said Moonshine University’s Director of Spirits Education Colin Blake. “Where many other competitions have showcased mixology skills, this contest is — to my knowledge — the first to put contestants’ palates to work. The ‘World’s Top Whiskey Taster’ challenge will ask bourbon lovers to apply much of what we teach in our Executive Bourbon Steward training to practice.”

The winner from each regional event will then travel to Bardstown Bourbon Company during Bourbon Heritage month in September to compete for the national title.

By the end of the competition, one champion will be crowned and awarded a cash prize of $20,000 with a contract to represent Bardstown Bourbon Company as a Distillery Ambassador at some of the country’s top whiskey festivals in 2021, including WhiskyFest and Whiskies of the World. The winner will also receive a scholarship to Moonshine University’s Executive Bourbon Steward certification program, and a trip to Bardstown, Kentucky, where they’ll blend a custom product with Bourbon Hall of Famer and Bardstown Bourbon Company Master Distiller Steve Nally.

“We’re looking for people who are all about exploring and sharing their bourbon experience,” said Bardstown Bourbon Company National Brand Ambassador Sam Montgomery. “We invite social media bourbon evangelists who are actively snapping and sharing photos of pours and pairings, as well as travelers and bourbon explorers who love to share their tales.”

Candidates must be at least 21 years old to enter. The winner will be considered an independent contractor of Bardstown Bourbon Company. This prize does not constitute an offer for employment.

For full contest rules, terms and conditions, please visit:
BardstownBourbon.com/WTWT/RULES

To upload an audition video or for more information, please visit:
BardstownBourbon.com/WTWT

About Bardstown Bourbon Company:
Located in the heart of Bourbon Country on 100 acres of active farmland, Bardstown Bourbon Company is one of the country’s most modern and technically advanced whiskey distilleries. Celebrating the art of making high-quality and authentic whiskey, the innovative distillery produces custom rye, whiskey, and bourbon for prominent brands including Jefferson’s, High West, Belle Meade, Hirsch, and many others through its one-of-a-kind Collaborative Distilling Program. Bardstown Bourbon Company honors tradition and drives innovation with its exceptional destination experience for visitors, offering the only full-service restaurant located within a distillery on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, The Kitchen and Bar at Bardstown Bourbon Company. The company was founded in 2014 by Peter Loftin. For more information, please visit bardstownbourbon.com or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

About Moonshine University:
Founded by David Dafoe in 2012, Moonshine University is the nation’s premier educational distillery and the exclusive educational member of the Kentucky Distillers’ Association. Located in the heart of bourbon country, Moonshine University offers comprehensive, hands-on spirits education courses and services to entrepreneurs and professionals from around the world. As of 2019, graduates of this course have gone on to successfully launch 165 distilleries worldwide and counting. Moonshine University also houses the Stave & Thief Society, a comprehensive, hands-on bourbon certification program established to promote Kentucky’s distinguished bourbon culture. For more information, please visit moonshineuniversity.com and staveandthief.com.

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NASHVILLE – Tennessee distilleries announced today that they are banding together to pivot operations from whiskey-making and repurposing the alcohol for hand sanitizer and surface cleaner production in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Distillers are working rapidly to obtain ingredients necessary to produce sanitizing products in bulk due to supply shortages resulting from the pandemic.

“We saw a need in our communities, and we are on a mission to make a difference,” said Kris Tatum, president of Tennessee Distillers Guild. “It’s a great feeling when competitors collectively decide to put profits aside and jointly decide to support the communities which have made us successful in the first place.”

Sanitizing products will be delivered to large transportation companies, municipalities and health care businesses across the state.

“We’re trying to help government entities including fire departments, police stations, physician offices and other businesses that are the heartbeat of our state and still on the front lines serving the public and keeping the economy going,” said Greg Eidam, head distiller at Sugarlands Distilling Company in Gatlinburg, Tenn.

Tennessee distilleries have taken a hard hit as a result of the sudden coronavirus-induced downturn. Distilleries have suspended tours, cancelled large events, and ceased production in order to minimize the risk to employees and guests and further spread of the virus throughout the state.

“The irony here is that during Prohibition, many distilleries became medical dispensaries in times of sickness,” noted Keener Stanton, head distiller at Old Forge Distilling Company in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. “I think we’re heeding the call of our ancestors and doing what those who came before us would’ve been proud to see us do.”

About the Tennessee Distillers Guild:
The Tennessee Distillers Guild is a membership organization that consists of 32 Tennessee distilleries and associate members. The mission of the Tennessee Distillers Guild is to responsibly promote and advocate for the distilling industry in Tennessee through the collective voice of its members. In June 2017, the Tennessee Distillers Guild launched the Tennessee Whiskey Trail, a 26-stop tour of Tennessee distilleries across the state. For more information about the Tennessee Distillers Guild, visit www.tndistillersguild.org.

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PORTLAND, Oregon – Eastside Distilling announced expanded distribution in Florida and California for the Company’s Azuñia Tequila, Burnside Bourbon and Hue-Hue Coffee Rum brands. The expansion of these brands leverages the Company’s distribution capabilities in each market, which are led by Eastside’s Redneck Riviera Whiskey and Granny Rich RSV.

In Florida, Republic National Distributing Company, in addition to Redneck Riviera Whiskey and Granny Rich RSV, will begin distributing Eastside’s award-winning Azuñia Tequila, Burnside Whiskey and Hue-Hue Coffee Rum products in the fast-growing tequila, bourbon and cordial categories.

In California, where the RNDC/Young’s Market partnership distributes Redneck Riviera Whiskey and Azuñia Tequila in the market, consumers will now be introduced to both the Burnside Bourbon portfolio and Hue-Hue Coffee Rum.

“This expands our suite of products in two of our largest markets,” said Eastside President Robert Manfredonia. “These award-winning brands are all fantastic. I’m sure they will resonate well with the customer bases in Florida and California.”

Hue-Hue Coffee Rum is an exciting new cordial made with cold-brew fair-trade, single-origin Arabica coffee beans grown at the Finca El Paternal Estate in Huehuetenango, Guatemala, and proudly sourced & lightly roasted through Portland Roasting Company. The concentrated brew is then blended with premium silver rum and a trace amount of Demerara sugar in a memorable marriage of flavors, giving Hue-Hue a natural, deep, smooth richness.

Burnside Whiskey is a collection of four expressions meticulously blended straight bourbons and whiskeys ranging in ages and mash-bills all kissed by glorious Oregon White Oak, aka Quercus garryanna.

Azuñia Tequila is a timeless expression of the heritage and traditional processes of our family farm in the heart of Mexico. Rancho Miravalle, our agave farm and tequila distillery, located in the heart of the Tequila Valley, produces our organic, premium, and award-winning 100 percent Weber Blue Agave tequilas through sustainable farming practices and with no additives, nothing artificial, no sugar, and no GMOs. The result is smooth, authentic Azuñia tequila.

About Eastside Distilling
Eastside Distilling has been producing high-quality, award-winning craft spirits in Portland, Oregon, since 2008. The Company is distinguished by its highly decorated product lineup that includes Redneck Riviera and companion brand Granny Rich Whiskey, newly acquired Azuñia Tequilas, Burnside Bourbons and Rye, Hue-Hue Coffee Rum, and Portland Potato Vodkas. All Eastside spirits are crafted from natural ingredients for quality and taste. Eastside’s Craft Bottling + Canning subsidiary is one of the Northwest’s leading independent spirit bottlers and ready-to-drink canners. For more information, visit eastsidedistilling.com.

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ST. LUCY, Barbados(March 2020) –  Mount Gay, the world’s oldest running rum distillery established in 1703, unveils a new chapter for the brand in 2020. Harnessing over 300 years of experience, Mount Gay will reset the brand to pay homage to its rich heritage of passing down craft and expertise in Barbados, the birthplace of rum. In doing so, Mount Gay will embrace more transparency, providing an in-depth look into the brand and its rum, and will look to the future ensuring continued innovation and growth honoring the genuine rum tradition of Barbados.

With the introduction of Master Blender Trudiann Branker in April 2019, the distillery’s and Barbados’ first female master blender, Mount Gay began a new chapter for the distillery’s rich history. In her new role, Branker revisited Mount Gay’s core blends whilst simultaneously considering the discerning palate of the high-end brown spirit enthusiasts and appreciating Mount Gay’s steadfast brand loyalty. As a result, Branker has created a new blend for Mount Gay Black Barrel and an enhanced blend for Mount Gay XO, both of which she is thrilled to debut to global markets this year.

Mount Gay Black Barrel benefits from an older selection of rums being used for the blend, moving to a blend of three to seven-year-old rums as opposed to the previous two to seven years, with a higher content of double distilled pot still rums. The finishing period, still taking place in deeply charred Bourbon casks, will be extended to six months, greatly lengthened from the previous four week finishing period. These changes better reflect Black Barrel’s bold and robust flavor.

In addition to the work that she has done on Black Barrel, Branker revisited Mount Gay XO where she enriched the blend. From April 2020, XO benefits from a broader palette of rums selected for the blend, individually aged in three different casks – American Whiskey, Bourbon and Cognac – for five to 17 years, rather than the previous eight to 15 years. Overall, her adjustments to the blend aim to enhance the liquid’s ultimate complexity.

Throughout the core range, each expression will be placed into new bottles with updated labels intentionally designed to give ultimate transparency to the rum inside showcasing further detail on casks used, style and tasting notes. Each change has been a conscious decision to appreciate the true value of Mount Gay and honor its significance on the spectrum of high-end rum.

Underpinning the packaging and liquid changes is a refreshed creative platform that promises to honor the genuine rum tradition and focus on what makes Mount Gay More than a rum through education, exploration and discovery. Each touch point of the platform pays homage to Mount Gay’s Barbadian heritage, the people who craft the rum and its unrivalled terroir carefully harnessed since 1703.

“It is an honor to be at the forefront of the exciting changes that Mount Gay will see in 2020, and I’m proud not only to be the first female master blender in Barbados but to be part of the team that will take Mount Gay from strength to strength,” said Trudiann Branker, Mount Gay Master Blender. “I am wholeheartedly committed to embracing the expertise that we have inherited for over 300 years and am passionate about looking ahead as we combine both science and craft to explore what makes Mount Gay more than a rum.”

“This is an important step change for Mount Gay, one that will see us explore and showcase our roots whilst embracing what is truly important to us – our people, our land and our heritage,” said Raphaël Grisoni, Mount Gay Managing Director.

“We are confident that the changes we make now will cement Mount Gay’s position as a leading high-end rum brand for many years to come. It is with great honor that I have worked alongside Trudiann and the entire team at the distillery to consider each change that we have made along the way is the right one.”

From April 2020, Mount Gay’s new Black Barrel blend and its enriched XO blend will be on shelf throughout all markets and global travel retail. Suggested retail pricing across the core range will be updated across all markets as: 1703 Master Select ($199.99), XO ($64.99), Black Barrel ($44.99), and Eclipse ($21.99).

Trudiann Branker will continue to develop limited editions with a new release of 1703 Master Select and a new Master Blender collection due out before the end of 2020.

For more information, visit www.mountgayrum.com.

About Mount Gay:
A legal deed dated from February 20, 1703 confirms the existence of a “pot still house” on Mount Gay’s sugar cane Estate in Barbados, establishing Mount Gay as the world’s oldest rum producer. Our distillery name honors the pioneering Sir John Gay who perfected the distinctive Mount Gay style. Still today, only the finest sugar cane molasses and pure water filtered through the coral heart of the island are selected to create Mount Gay rums. Perpetuating a long-standing Barbadian tradition for more than 315 years, Mount Gay rums are handcrafted from a blend of single column and double copper pot distillates and matured in toasted oak barrels, delivering aromatic, flavorful taste, body and refined character.

The Mount Gay portfolio includes 1703 Master Select, XO, Black Barrel, and Eclipse. Mount Gay is owned by Rémy Cointreau SA.

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BOULDER, Colorado — Ska Street Brewstillery will open to the public on March 16, followed by a grand opening celebration slated for April 9.

A joint project of Ska Brewing and its sister company, Palisade’s Peach Street Distillers, Ska Street Brewstillery in Boulder will include a restaurant, a 10 BBL brewing system, a 450-liter still, thirty taps for serving Ska beers, a mixology program, and all of the music-inspired silliness the has established Ska and Peach Street as iconic Colorado destinations.

The Ska Street Brewstillery menu will include vegetarian and vegan options, as well as the farm-to-table ethos championed by Peach Street and executed by recently hired Head Chef Travis Messervey. The taproom will pour all of Ska’s flagship beers — including Modus Hoperandi IPA, True Blonde Ale, Pinstripe Red, and Pink Vapor Stew— as well as experimental one-offs and other specialties brewed on-site, along with whiskey, gin, vodka, and other spirits also made at the facility.

Join Ska Street Brewstillery at 1600 38th Street in Boulder on its first day open to the public on Monday, March 16 at 11am. Business hours are 11am to 10pm Monday through Friday, 10am to 10pm Saturday, and 10am to 9pm Sunday.

Ska Street will be open during regular business hours through the month, and will celebrate its grand opening on April 9. The brewstillery will share more information about this party soon.

ABOUT SKA BREWING
Based in Durango, Colorado, Ska Brewing was founded in 1995 and produces more than a dozen award- winning beers fueled with Ska music, and lots of it. Pioneers in the canned craft beer movement, Ska Brewing is known for an array of styles in 12 oz cans that include Mexican Logger, Modus Hoperandi, and Rue B. Soho. For information (a lot of it), more music, and a good time, visit www.skabrewing.com.

ABOUT PEACH STREET DISTILLERS
Peach Street Distillers was founded in 2005 in the heart of Colorado’s Fruit and Wine region, Palisade Colorado, where the high desert meets the mountains. The warm days and cool nights in Palisade make the local fruits and grains unimaginably delicious. Living the very definition of “craft” we do everything the hard way to turn these fermentable raw materials into extraordinary spirits. Because, this is what we consider fun and what makes for a mighty fine drink. Peach Street Distillers is Colorado’s oldest continuously owned and operated distillery. Visit Peach Street at www.peachstreetdistillers.com for more about the spirits and the spirits squad.

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