Category Archives: news
Copper & Kings Distills World’s Oldest Known Whiskey Recipe
Louisville, Ky.-based Copper & Kings American Brandy Co. has distilled the world’s oldest known gin recipe, first documented in 1495, by a wealthy merchant from the Duchy of Guelders (in what we now know as Germany).
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The Family Coppola launches Great Women Spirits line
The Family Coppola—yep, the film- and wine-making one— has announced the launch of Great Women Spirits, which will be available this October in select restaurants and retailers. Great Women Spirits, which the Coppolas describe as “small-batch, house-crafted, classically styled spirits,” will begin production with its brand of vodka, gin, and brandy, and has plans to expand the collection in the near future.
Craft Beverage Modernization Act now has 50 co-sponsors in Senate
S. 236, the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act, re-introduced earlier this year by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MN), has reached a landmark 50 co-sponsors in the Senate, with 28 Democrats, 21 Republicans and one Independent, representing a clear, bipartisan groundswell of support for tax parity. H.R. 747, the companion bill introduced by Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN) and Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) in the U.S. House of Representatives, which reached a majority back in June, continues to rally support as well, with 278 co-sponsors as of today, which includes three new co-sponsors gained this week alone.
Graybeard Distillery partners with iHeartMedia on Bedlam Vodka Soundstage
North Carolina based Graybeard Distillery, maker of award-winning rice-based Bedlam Vodka, has teamed with media industry leader iHeartMedia to establish the Bedlam Vodka Sound Stages at iHeartRadio’s 96.9 The Kat, Channel 96.1 and 1065 The End studio in Charlotte, N.C. and G105, 95x and B93.9’s studio in Raleigh.
Private venues reserved for exclusive artist performances, VIP concert series and invite-only sessions by emerging names in music, the Bedlam Vodka Sound Stage will host its first act August 14 at iHeartRadio’s studio in Raleigh when international recording sensation Jorge Blanco takes the stage in a concert for contest winners and guests of G105.
“Partnering with iHeartMedia to develop the Bedlam Vodka Sound Stages is an amazing opportunity to promote our passion for music, which is a constant throughout our distilling process,” a spokesperson for the distillery says. “This chance to bring artists to the Triangle and Charlotte areas enables us to share that passion for music and the iHeartRadio local affiliate stations allowing contest winners the opportunity to attend aligns with our brand’s inclusive nature.”
Author Kevin R. Kosar releases Moonshine: A Global History
for Kevin R. Kosar, vice president of policy at R Street Institute, and his new book Moonshine: A Global History. Despite its close association with Appalachia, the concept of moonshine really is a worldwide phenomenon. Kosar offers some details on his new book:Despite its reputation as a product of ramshackle stills hidden away in the Appalachian Mountains, moonshine has a long and storied global history. No matter where you go on earth, there is a local bootleg liquor, whether it’s white lightning, chang’aa, or hjemmebrent.
In Moonshine: A Global History (Reaktion Books/University of Chicago Press), Kevin R. Kosar tells the colorful and, at times, blinding history of moonshine, which features a crazy cast of crusading lawmen, clever tinkerers, sly smugglers, ruthless gangsters, pontificating poets, mountain men, beleaguered day-laborers and foolhardy frat boys.
