Catoctin Creek® - Monthly Updates
February 2012 Update Wednesday, 01 February 2012 00:00
For those of you with Scottish ancestors (and that should be just about every one of you!), in January, we toasted Robert Burns, the national bard of Scotland. Burns enthusiasts across the world don the kilt and tartans and celebrate the poet's birthday with dinner, drinks and poetry—a lovely excuse to enjoy that "guid ol' Scotch drink". Big Production Month in January
Facing such a shortage was a huge problem, but as Becky likes to say, "We have good problems!" It was a lot of spirits to ship out, but that just motivated us more to produce these lovely spirits that you all seem to enjoy so much. Cheers, and thank you! Appreciating Alice Waters at the National Portrait Gallery
Both Becky and I had the opportunity to speak with Ms. Waters, and what's more, our Watershed Gin was chosen as the local spirit for the night, with Adam Bernbach of Proof/Estadio pouring an amazing pear and gin cocktail for the 300+ patrons. Many local celebrity chefs, including Chefs José Andres, Cathal Armstrong, and Mike Isabella, among others, were present providing their creations of local foods. It was an amazing night to be part of the food and drink culture in DC. Upcoming EventsThere are a variety of events planned for midwinter that should prove entertaining and educational:
For the full list of events, check our events page. Cocktail for February - Pfeffernüsse
2 oz Catoctin Creek Organic Roundstone Rye In a cocktail shaker, stir together rye, ginger syrup and bitters with ice. Strain and pour into rocks glass. Add 3-4 ice cubes, top off with soda, and sprinkle with fresh cracked black pepper.
See this cocktail and over sixty others on our cocktails page. In Closing...As always, there are lots of fun and information on our Facebook and Twitter pages, where you can stay up to date with the daily activities at the distillery. We do tours and tastings every day except Sunday, so stop by and see us sometime! Remember, "Think Global, Drink LOCAL!"SM Cheers! |
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Watershed Gin Wins Silver Medal in New York
"Gin is a product in a very competitive market," said founder and distiller Becky Harris. "so we are very happy to do well in a major competition like the NYISC." Watershed Gin is a formulation based on our organic rye spirits, with a maceration of ten herbs and spices, including juniper, coriander, anise, cinnamon, and orange peel. Becky describes the gin as a "modern style" gin that realizes her expression of the greenness of Loudoun County, Virginia, where the gin is made. Upcoming EventsThere are a variety of events planned for autumn that should prove entertaining and educational:
For the full list of events, check our events page. Cocktail for December - The Ghost of Vesper Lynd
3 oz Catoctin Creek Organic Watershed Gin Combine all ingredients... shaken, not stirred. Courtesy Chad Robinson, Brand Ambassador, Washington DC.
See this cocktail and over fifty more on our cocktails page. In Closing...As always, there are lots of fun and information on our Facebook and Twitter pages, where you can stay up to date with the daily activities at the distillery. Tours are always free, so stop by and see us sometime! Remember, "Think Global, Drink LOCAL!"SM Cheers! November 2011 Update Tuesday, 01 November 2011 00:00
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In early October, we finished up our brandy production. This year's brandy was made from Seyval blanc and Chambourcin grapes, along with the new addition of Norton to the mix. We've now put away those casks, and we have returned to making rye. Just in time for the holiday rush. As the holidays approach, remember that local spirits make a perfect gift for those hard-to-shop-for friends and relatives. If you drop by the distillery, we're happy to sign bottles for you, and we even have gift wrap! We also have flasks, shot glasses, and shirts, so you can put together a cool distillery package for that special someone. So drop on by the distillery, and pick up a bottle or two. Catoctin Creek Wins Green Innovation Award
By sending our spent-mash to local farms as a nutritious cattle feed, and by recycling waste alcohol into fuel-grade ethanol, we ensure that nothing in our production process ends up in landfill. We're really proud of that! Upcoming EventsThere are a variety of events planned for autumn that should prove entertaining and educational:
For the full list of events, check our events page. Cocktail for November - The Horse's Neck
1½ oz Catoctin Creek Organic Roundstone Rye Garnish ice cube with lemon twist. Drop into an old fashioned glass. Separately, stir together rye, ginger ale, and bitters with ice. Strain and pour over prepared glass. Recipe courtesy Henry Lewis and Jay Davis at The Chesapeake Room, and used with permission.
See this cocktail and over fifty more on our cocktails page. In Closing...As always, there are lots of fun and information on our Facebook and Twitter pages, where you can stay up to date with the daily activities at the distillery. Tours are always free, so stop by and see us sometime! Remember, "Think Global, Drink LOCAL!"SM Cheers! October 2011 Update Saturday, 01 October 2011 00:00
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This week, we are wrapping up brandy season. This has been a really tough year for grapes; most of the wineries have really struggled with the ridiculous amounts of rain we've gotten in September. Too much rain at this late date leaves grapes that are watery and flavorless, not very good for wine.
Wineries working with us this year on brandy are Tarara, Fabbioli, and Chrysalis. Thanks to all of you wonderful winemakers (Jordan, Doug and Melanie, and Alan) for your efforts. As mentioned last month, for those of you awaiting the next batch of Pearousia pear brandy, just as soon as we get done with all those grapes, we'll be getting back to work on the pear brandy, aiming to get that out by late this year. Upcoming EventsThere are a variety of events planned for autumn that should prove entertaining and educational:
For the full list of events, check our events page. Cocktail for October - Castle Hill Cider Sour
2 oz Catoctin Creek Organic Roundstone Rye Fill a shaker with ice. Add the rye, sugar and bitters, and top off with cider. Shake well (holding tightly, since the carbonated cider will be under pressure!), and strain into a tumbler full of ice. Serve with a slice of apple.
See this cocktail and over fifty more on our cocktails page. In Closing...As always, there are lots of fun and information on our Facebook and Twitter pages, where you can stay up to date with the daily activities at the distillery. Tours are always free, so stop by and see us sometime! Remember, "Think Global, Drink LOCAL!"SM Cheers! September 2011 Update Thursday, 01 September 2011 00:00
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So far, our plans this year include Seyval blanc and Chambourcin (as was done for last year), and we may throw a few other varietals in there as well, like Petit Verdot and Norton. This should make for a truly unique Virginia brandy!
Stay tuned here for details! A Little Humor... A Thief in the Distillery!We get pretty busy in the back of the distillery: meeting with people, making whisky, moving barrels, etc. So it is easy to lose track of a pug who is our ostensible watch dog. Luckily we have a security system to capture the details. See the video below to see what happens when a pug is left alone in the office!
Upcoming EventsThere are a variety of events planned for the next few weeks that should prove entertaining and educational:
For the full list of events, check our events page. Cocktail for September - Raspberry Vinegar Rickey
1½ oz Catoctin Creek Organic Watershed Gin To make the caramelized limes: Dredge the lime wheels in sugar. Heat a sauté pan over medium heat; when the pan is hot, cook the lime wheels on each side until just lightly golden. They will be a little sticky; set aside to cool (they can also be refrigerated at this point for a day or two). To assemble the drink: Place the caramelized lime wheel in the bottom of in a tall glass or a large wine glass and lightly muddle the fleshy center, then remove and set aside. Add one tablespoon of Raspberry Vinegar, 1.5 See this cocktail and over fifty more on our cocktails page. In Closing...As always, there are lots of fun and information on our Facebook and Twitter pages, where you can stay up to date with the daily activities at the distillery. Tours are always free, so stop by and see us sometime! Remember, "Think Global, Drink LOCAL!"SM Cheers! |
Gie him strong drink until he wink, 
January was a crazy month for us at the distillery. The holidays literally exhausted all of our supplies. You drank us dry! By January 4th, we were almost completely out of Mosby's Spirit, Watershed Gin, Roundstone Rye and Pearousia. We had less than ten cases left of everything. Obviously, we had some bottling to do!
With two teams of wonderful volunteers, in one weekend, we bottled approximately 10% of our entire 2011 production! Yes, over one and a half tons of spirits were bottled and shipped out in just two days. It was an incredible effort, and we were certainly exhausted afterwards, but we were satisfied knowing that our stock was replenished 
We were very honored to be invited to participate in the unveiling of a portrait for Alice Waters at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC. Alice Waters is the pioneer chef and owner of Chez Panis in Berkley, California, and the author of the local food "Locavore" movement across the nation.
Perhaps the highlight of our December was Becky's appearance on the Kojo Nnamdi show on WAMU. Not only is it way cool to be on the radio, but we actually listen to his show almost every day in the distillery! So to be on this show from one of our favorite radio celebrities, well, it was just really awesome!
There was so much to be thankful for in 2011, and I won't list them all here. We won several awards and got some really nice press. 2011 was also the year that we took on three wonderful new employees: Greg, Emily, and Chad. We couldn't ask for better help, and time and time again, these guys are putting a top-notch professional face on what we do back at the distillery. Thank you, guys!
This recipe is cross-posted (with permission) from Inspired magazine:
Batch Two of Pearousia is Here!
We were thrilled to receive another award, a silver medal, in the 2011 New York International Spirits Competition for our organic Watershed Gin.
A Catoctin version of 
Welcome to November! November? Honestly? We've already had our first snow, and it seems winter is pressing quickly upon us.
We were very happy to be named a Silver-level certified green business and awarded the Innovation Award in the 2011 Green Business Challenge. The Green Business Challenge affirms our commitment to sustainable practices, while producing the finest rye whisky, gin, and brandy in the area. Going green means we are simultaneously preserving our environment and saving big on energy and waste expenses.
This cocktail was featured in Flavor magazine in the fall 2011 issue and is served at 
Fortunately for us, the bulk of our grapes were picked before the big September rains started, and we've received some very nice wine for making into brandy this year. The Seyval blanc was exceptional again this year, and the Chambourcin and Norton will make nice additions to the brandy. Norton is a new grape for us, and distilling it has proven very interesting. The grape is extremely floral and should offer some nice aromatic notes to the 2013 release of our 1757 brandy.
andy! This workshop is full, but if you have your spot reserved already, we'll see you on Saturday.
How about a nice apple cider cocktail for autumn? This one is super simple to make, and really delicious!
As we slide out of summer and into September, we move into brandy season. All the rye has been put away, and we're now getting the first fruit of the year. Fresh grapes are coming in off the vine, and that wonderful Loudoun County wine is the starting point for our second vintage of brandy.
Did you weather hurricane Irene? We've had a heck of a month of hurricanes and earthquakes! This cocktail, a take on DC's official cocktail, the Rickey, might help take the edge off a stressful August, courtesy the 
Certified Organic |
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Member of the American Distilling Institute |
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Member of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States |
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Certified Kosher |
