Tuthilltown SpiritsTuthilltown Spirits Gardiner, NYGardiner, NY

Reviving artisan distilling in the Hudson Valley

Tuthilltown is New York’s first whiskey distillery since Prohibition. Prior to Prohibition, stills were a common sight in the New York countryside and the production of spirits, especially grain whiskey, was an important part of the local economy. Sacks of corn and grain were bulky, heavy, and difficult to transport over long-distances (there weren’t a lot of roads, so much was carried by packhorse). Whiskey distilled from these same grains proved much more easy to ship and barter with; it also didn’t spoil.

When Prohibition was repealed in 1933, New York’s distilling industry never bounced back due to severely limiting licensing fees. Approximately 2 years ago, New York relaxed those fees and Tuthilltown was the first to take advantage of this new license class for medium-sized distilleries. Currently, there are several other applications being processed state-wide, the first rumblings of what is sure to become a small-batch distillation revolution!

HistoryHistory

BackgroundBackground

Ralph Erenzo, a professional climber, purchased a large plot of land in Gardiner NY which contained a multi-bedroom house, several barns, a large field, and the Old Gristmill—a National Historic Site. It was his hope to open a Bed & Breakfast for climbers, due to the proximity of the mountains. The community board, however, hindered his efforts fearing that Ralph’s business plan would attract too many transients. Ralph was wondering how to make this property of his make money when suddenly he caught wind of the change in New York State liquor licensing laws.

Brian Lee, an engineer by trade, had heard of the Old Gristmill and was interested in buying and revitalizing it. Instead, the two embarked a different quest. After months of attending countless lectures, reading anything they could get their hands on, and visiting distillers of all sorts from all parts, they ordered their first still and set to work. Turning to their neighbors in the Hudson Valley for starting materials, they began to experiment with various types of spirits. The decision to make both vodka and whiskey was an easy one—while whiskeys take months or years to age, vodka and white corn whiskey are ready for sale nearly immediately after distillation. Today, just a few years later, they are still experimenting, constantly playing around with ingredients and proofs and oak treatments, releasing the results in small batches-- finite in quantity but high in quality.

The Tuthilltown Still is a copper and steel POT STILL fitted with two fractioning columns—a 6 plate and a 20 plate. Each batch begins with approximately 100-125 gallons of mash (mash= fermented material), which is steam heated to boil the contents. The whiskeys are run through the 6-plate column, with two of the six gates closed. Each plate is a site of purification and in the production of whiskey you do not want your end-result to be too pure: it is the retention of the character of the starting materials that give whiskeys their personalities. Vodka, on the other hand, is passed through the 20-plate column since purity is one of its key accolades.

The first run through the Still is called the “stripping run,” since you are in fact stripping the alcohol and water from the solid materials in the mash. After this is complete, the resulting spirit is then passed through the still again in what’s called a “rectification run.” This is the final stop for all products, with the exception of the triple-distilled vodka (Spirit of the Hudson), which is passed through one final time.

The Still & DistillationThe Still & Distillation

This type of process is called BATCH DISTILLATION. (Unlike the CONTINUOUS DISTILLATION of our Armagnac producer). In the batch method, each trip through the still produces three categories of product: the HEADS, the HEART and the TAILS.

The HEADS contain the most volatile compounds with the lowest boiling points, often including acetone and methonal. The heads are toxic and Tuthilltown discards them.

The TAILS, however, are reserved and added to future batches to be re-distilled. They are the compounds with the highest boiling points and the greatest concentration of water.

Separating the HEART from the heads and tails is the art of the distiller. There is no real math that can determine exactly where the heads and tails end and the heart begins. This can only be done by taste and smell. Many of the flavor congeners that give spirits their distinctive taste lie in the heads and tails and as such should be retained. However, take too much heads or tails into your heart and your end product can easily have off-flavors and the compounds that contribute to hangovers and headaches. It is in making these “cuts” that the distiller puts the stamp of his palate on his product.

The Still & DistillationThe Still & Distillation

Once the whiskey, or any spirit marked for barrel-maturation, is fully distilled, it is put into barrels to age. At the conclusion of maturation, the spirits are then “brought to proof” through careful addition of water, and then bottled.

The Still & DistillationThe Still & Distillation

Part of what makes Tuthilltown so special is that every single bottle is hand-filled, hand-corked, hand-waxed, hand-labeled and hand-numbered! When you consider that only two people are doing this work, you can understand why the quantity is so limited!

HEART OF THE HUDSON VODKA is a premium batch-distilled spirit is double distilled to retain a faint essence of the Hudson Valley apple cider from which it is hand crafted, one batch at a time from apples pressed in local orchards.

This is not "apple vodka" (which is typically neutral grain spirits with apple flavoring added). Each 375mL bottle of HEART vodka contains the essence of up to 80 Hudson Valley apples, pressed to cider, fermented under the watchful eyes of the distillers, then carefully guided through our 20-plate copper pot still to create this unique vodka.

All cases are 12pks 750mL: 375mL1cs: $27/btl 1cs: $20/btl2cs: $25/btl 2cs: $18/btl

SpiritsSpirits

SPIRIT OF THE HUDSON VODKA is a super-premium hand made vodka, produced from 100% Hudson Valley Apples. This spirit comes off the still at 191 proof. It is distilled three times, to ensure a deliberately smooth taste. Bottled at 80 proof, it their purest, lightest spirit.

SPIRIT is perfect vodka. Great over ice or with citrus garnish. Pure apple spirit in a bottle. It is ideal for an apple Martini that doesn't hide its spirit under artificial apple flavoring. The SPIRIT of our vodka is in the apples from which it is distilled.

Note: The two vodkas are remarkably different, and everyone always has a favorite. The Heart has more apparent apple character while what the Spirit lacks in appleness, it gains in smoothness.

SpiritsSpirits

OLD GRISTMILL AUTHENTIC AMERICAN CORN WHISKEY is a very historical American Spirit. Distilled the old fashioned way, one batch at a time from 100% Hudson Valley corn. No sugar is added. This unaged sipping whiskey is clear and soft to the tongue, with a faint aroma of the corn fields along the banks of the Rondout Creek.

Known by a variety of nicknames: White Dog, White Lightnin’, Moonshine; this is a traditional American corn whiskey.Typical Moonshine has a lot more “kick,” often bottled at a much higher proof. By toning down the alcohol, Tuthilltown has created a corn whiskey that can actually be sipped and enjoyed.OLD GRISTMILL is also the unoaked foundation of Tuthilltown's HUDSON BABY BOURBON.

All cases are 12pks 750mL: 375mL1cs: $22/btl 1cs: $15/btl2cs: $20/btl 2cs: $14/btl

SpiritsSpirits

HUDSON BABY BOURBON is fermented from 100% New York corn. It is the first bourbon made in New York and the first legal pot-distilled whiskey to be made in New York since the

start of Prohibition. It is a true American classic. Distilled and bottled in limited quantity!

This single grain bourbon is aged in small American Oak Whiskey barrels. Our unique aging process produces a mildly sweet, smooth spirit with hints of vanilla and caramel.

All bottles are 375s!$30/btl

No quantity discount.

SpiritsSpirits

Our Four-Grain Bourbon Whiskey is made of 60% corn, with the balance being a mixture of rye, wheat and malted barley. It is the only such Bourbon of its kind on

the market, as most distilleries stop at three grains.

$30/btl (375mL)

SpiritsSpirits

HUDSON MANHATTAN RYE is bottled at 92 proof. This classic Rye is produced with the famed cocktail

MANHATTAN in mind. Floral, fruity and smooth, a perfect compliment to sweet vermouth. Each bottle hand filled,

capped, waxed and numbered one at a time.

$30/btl (375mL)

SpiritsSpirits

GOVERNMENT WARNING RYE WHISKEY is an experimental label only. Each batch of GW rye will differ from the last, as each will be the product of a new recipe.

Releases will be sporadic.

$30/btl (375mL)

SpiritsSpirits

The Hudson Valley River Rum is made from 100% blackstrap molasses purchased from Louisiana. It is a rich, deep and smoky rum that functions both as an after-dinner

sipper and an enhancement to any mixed drink. Aged 3-6 months in new charred American oak casks.

$30/btl (375mL)

The new SINGLE MALT WHISKEY release from Tuthilltown is made of 100% malted barley, purchased from Scotland directly. It is an unpeated, unsmoked Single Malt,

deliberate and pure in flavor, displaying the classic Tuthilltown subtle vanilla overtones. Only recently released and limited in availability.

$30/btl (375mL)

Selling Points & FAQsSelling Points & FAQs

*The only difference between the Gristmill Corn Whiskey and the Baby Bourbon is oak treatment. They are fermented and distilled in exactly the same way.

*I THOUGHT BOURBON COULD ONLY BE MADE IN KENTUCKY!?!?!Wrong!!! The only legal requirements for Bourbon are that it be at least 51% corn and have aged for an indeterminate length in new charred American oak barrels. There is no physical provenance required. In fact, interestingly enough, Bourbon County is a DRY county. As such, all distilleries have had to move operations elsewhere.

*I THOUGHT BOURBON HAD TO BE AGED FOR 2 YEARS!?!?!?!?Wrong!!! “Straight Bourbon” has to be aged a minimum of 2 years, regular Bourbon has no time requirements. This is why it’s called Baby Bourbon—its in part a reference to the shortened aging process.

*Tuthilltown uses a range of cask sizes, but generally 2 and 3 gallon barrels. This allows them to age for a shorter amount of time and thus move product to market more rapidly. On average, the oaked spirits are aged for 3-6 months before release.

*They now lease farmland and hire local farmers to grow their own grains, so that they will be able to guide the quality of the product that much more closely!

Selling Points & FAQsSelling Points & FAQs

*MOST of the ingredients for the spirits come from the Hudson Valley. The exceptions are the Rye, which comes from Canada, and the molasses for the as-yet-unreleased rums, which is from Louisiana.

*The Manhattan was originally made with New York Rye and not Bourbon.

*With each batch, Ralph and Brian set aside some product in larger barrels, to be aged for posterity and perhaps used for blending. The longer the distillery exists, the older the average whiskey will become.

*Send the staff! Ralph and Brian are excited to train the bartenders, buyers, and staff of your restaurants and stores in a Distilling 101 class at the distillery.

*Ralph and Brian are talking about turning the steam produced during distillation into an alternative energy source. Their goal is to become the first truly-Green distillery ever!

*They just ordered a second still which should be operational by the end of the summer. Each still exponentially increases their output.

PressPress

• The New York Times

• TimeOut New York

• Time Magazine

• Wine & Spirits Magazine

• Forbes Magazine

• Playboy Magazine

• Seattle Times

• Eric Asimov’s The Pour

• NY Daily News

• Luck Magazine

• New York Post