Fifty Stone
Maine Craft Distilling was founded in 2012 by Luke Davidson and Fred Farber. Like many in the new wave of craft distilling, Luke experimented with a private still (in his barn) after malting grain for local brewers and eventually tried his hand at whiskey, inspired by scotch but using ingredients native to Maine. Like a very few Scottish distilleries, Maine Craft Distilling is a malt-to-barrel operation, with many of the machinery from Scotland. While the distillery makes rums, vodkas, gins and brandy – including a curious blueberry liqueur – the Fifty Stone is their only whiskey. Named after the old British unit of measure, fifty stones was traditionally the weight of barley required to make a barrel of whiskey (one stone usually equaled 14 pounds). The barley is smoked using Maine peat and Maine seaweed. Purportedly made in the Highland (we assume that equates to Scottish) style.
Glenrothes Peated Cask Reserve
Glenrothes was founded in 1879 through the work of James Stuart, a local Rothes businessman who began the construction of the distillery, and the Reverend William Sharp, who secured the remaining funds after Stuart was forced to step aside for financial reasons. Though a series of fires, explosions and world events hampered production at times, the distillery has been making whisky for over 140 years for a variety of owners. Much of the Glenrothes stock is aged in ex-sherry casks and some ex-bourbon casks, but like many distilleries, they like to experiment. The Glenrothes Peated Cask Reserve was part of a now discontinued series from 2016 that saw whisky from their 1992 stock finished for a few months in (unnamed) ex-Islay casks. Apparently this was inspired by an association from the 19th century the distillery had with the Islay Distillery Company.
Berkshire Mountain New England Corn Whiskey
Berkshire Mountain Distillers was founded in 2007 and has been producing a large variety of gins, vodkas, rums and other spirits ever since. As many craft distilleries have done across the United States, BMD have looked to the markets and resources around them to help guide their creative process. The New England Corn Whiskey is made from area farms within miles of the distillery, aged using cherry wood and white oak. We note with interest the term “aged over” as opposed to “aged in” and wonder if barrels are used in the aging of this spirit.