Keep your liquor cabinet's top shelf in the loop with these latest arrivals from the West Coast's craft spirit scene, the exceptional gin and silky smooth wheat whiskey from Dry Fly in Spokane, Wash.
Recently named "Distiller of the Year" by the American Distilling Institute, and newly available in Pennsylvania, Dry Fly has come a long way since it was founded four years ago by two pals on a fishing trip who ditched their corporate jobs to make artisan booze from local ingredients.
Their vodka made from soft Washington winter wheat actually tastes like something (subtle hints of vanilla, butterscotch). But it's their "Pacific Northwest"-style gin - infused with juniper, coriander, and local aromatics such as dried Fuji apple, lavender, mint and hops - that caught my attention in a simple gin and tonic. The whiskey is unique, an exceptional sipper made from 100 percent wheat (a grain usually used in smaller percentage to soften a whiskey's bite) that's still lively enough with just two years of barrel age. Both are special online order bottles only, for now, but purchases placed Monday should be delivered by the weekend.
- Craig LaBan
Dry Fly Washington Wheat Whiskey, $41.99 (code 30773) and Dry Fly Gin, $29.99 (code 30803) available online in Pennsylvania at www.finewineandgoodspirits.com.
