Death's Door, Redux

On Friday, I mentioned that I would be trying the products from Death's Door. Man, am I glad I did- these are three liquors that will be on the scene in STL very soon, and I'm excited about it. "Death's Door" is the name of the passage of water between mainland Wisconsin, and Washington Island in Lake Michigan (a tad north of Green Bay). The reason that the distillery named it that is twofold: they grown the wheat on 1200 acres (all certified organic) on Washington Island, and the name is hard to forget. So, goofy names aside, how are the products?

We'll start with the Vodka. It is triple distilled, made from the locally grown hard red winter wheat. Although vodka is supposedly "colorless, tasteless, and odorless", this one is an exception. There's a subtle vanilla creaminess to it, and you can get just a hint of the wheat grain on the finish. Ketel One beware- you have been replaced in my heart, and my glass.

The Gin is just flat out killer. They use only three botanicals: Fresh Juniper berries (instead of the dried ones that other distillers use that cause a bitterness to Gin), Coriander, and Fennel. All three botanicals meld well together, and you get a clear sense of what they are trying to do. Think Bombay Sapphire, only much much smoother.

The third product they make is a bit of an oddball- White Whiskey. Made from mostly wheat, and some malted barley, it is rested in stainless steel for a couple of weeks, then finished in oak for 72 hours. The taste is hard to describe- it's definitely whiskey-like, but then again, not. I would liken it to a really good silver tequila. I don't know how it will be for a sippin' whiskey (more research needs to be done), but I had it in a white manhattan with Dorin Vermouth, Benedictine, and orange bitters- it was delicious!

So, be looking for Death's Door soon in the Lou. I know Wine and Cheese Place, Wine Merchant, Taste, Pi, Atomic Cowboy, and Herbies have all said they were going to pick some up.

Cheers!