Caledonia Spirits is a craft distillery in

Montpelier, Vermont Montpelier () is the capital city of the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Washington County. The site of Vermont's state government, it is the least populous state capital in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population w ...

. The distillery is known for its Barr Hill-brand spirits, including gin, vodka, and an Old Tom gin called Tom Cat. The company's flagship product is its Barr Hill Gin, which is the top-selling Vermont-made spirit and the most awarded gin made in the US.

History

The distillery was originally located in Hardwick in Vermont's

Caledonia County Caledonia County is a county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,233. Its shire town (county seat) is the town of St. Johnsbury. The county was created in 1792 and organ ...

(in the Northeast Kingdom). It was founded by Todd Hardie, a lifelong beekeeper who wanted to popularize honey-based beverages and highlight the important and threatened role of bees in the environment. Ryan Christiansen serves as the company's president and head distiller. The two met in 2011, while Hardie was using raw honey in his small production winery at the time. In the 2010s, the company moved to Montpelier, opening a 27,000-square-foot distillery. In 2019, the company expanded its presence there, opening a cocktail bar and retail store.

Operations

The distillery distributes in 32 U.S. states, as well as

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, and other foreign cities with cocktail cultures. Product volume tripled from 2015 to 2019 and continues to grow rapidly, leading to about 60,000 4.5L cases shipped per year. Each year since 2017, Caledonia Spirits has hosted a

Bee's Knees A bees knees (or bee's knees) is a Prohibition era cocktail made with gin, fresh lemon juice, and honey. It is served shaken and chilled, often with a lemon twist. The name comes from prohibition-era slang meaning "the best". History The be ...

Week, an event to raise funds to plant pollinator habitats across the U.S. The event, hosted in late September each year, is an effort to combat

pollinator decline Pollinator decline is the reduction in abundance of insect and other animal pollinators in many ecosystems worldwide that began being recorded at the end of the 20th century. Multiple lines of evidence exist for the reduction of wild pollinator ...

. The 2021 fundraiser had a goal of planting of bee habitats.

Products

The company's Barr Hill Gin uses raw honey sourced from Vermont. The raw honey maintains aromatics from the bees' foraging practices, with an estimated 100 to 115 different pollen and plant particles found in their raw honey. The company's vodka is distilled from only raw honey sourced from a 250-mile radius around the Barr Hill distillery. The process requires of honey per 750 mL bottle. The honey is not heated prior to fermentation, preserving natural aromatics. The vodka is also distilled only one to two times, keeping flavors that could otherwise be removed through subsequent distillations.

Reception

Caledonia Spirits' gin is well-received. In a

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

review of top gins in 2019, Barr Hill was listed first, recommended for its botanical notes and for use in a white Negroni.

References

External links

* {{portal bar, Liquor, Vermont Montpelier, Vermont Distilleries in the United States Privately held companies based in Vermont Food and drink companies based in Vermont Manufacturing companies based in Vermont Food and drink companies established in 2011 American vodkas Gins Hardwick, Vermont