Taste The New Whiskey From This Award-Winning Distillery Saturday

By Anthony Todd in Food on Sep 18, 2015 3:44PM

Ethel, the still at North Shore Distillery. Photo courtesy of North Shore Distillery.

North Shore Distillery, located up in Lake Bluff, has won just about every spirits award around for their two gins. Their #11 gin is our favorite martini gin in the whole world, and their other spirits (vodka, absinthe, aquavit and more) have gotten accolades everywhere they've popped up. But until now they haven't ventured far into the world of aged spirits. That's about to change.

It's taken a while. Anyone who has toured the distillery has noticed barrels hiding in corners, but they haven't moved very quickly. Co-owner Sonja Kassebaum explains: "We want to make a contribution to the scene, but not in the 'I've gotta get it out fast' way." So they took their time and did it right.

Tomorrow, from noon to 9 p.m. at the distillery tasting room, they'll be releasing a whole range of surprise whiskey experiments. There will be tasting flights, whiskey cocktails, and bottles for sale, and the only way you can get them is to head up there. They'll also be featuring their aged rum, which debuted a little earlier this fall and was so popular that one variety sold out completely.

They've made these spirits from scratch. The whiskies have been aged in a combination of used bourbon barrels and new barrels, and Kassebaum promises some styles that will be new to most drinkers. She won't go into details about the individual styles, so if you want to learn more, you'll just have to go drink.

From now on, bottles of whiskey will be for sale at North Shore's tasting room, pending availability. The spirits won't release into the wider market for a while—not until at least next year.

North Shore Distillery is located at 28913 N Herky Dr #308, Lake Bluff, IL.