Today we left PEI heading for Quebec. During our trip we discovered Covered Bridge Potato Chips from New Brunswick. Best chips ever!
As we were driving along the highway not far from Hartland, New Brunswick we spotted a sign for the factory that makes Covered Bridge chips. The sign said we could take a tour. As we peeled off the highway and turned down the road for the chip factory, I spotted from the corner of my eye a craft distillery. Wow! This was shaping up to be a great day…. Oh, and Hartland is also the home of the longest covered bridge in the world – hence the name Covered Bridge Potato Chips.
After learning how potato chips are made, I headed across the street to Moonshine Creek distillery. Co-owner Jeremiah Clark happened to be in the tasting room and we soon struck up a conversation. He offered me a taste of his 3 year old whisky made to a mash bill of 70% rye and 30% barley. I must admit I was reticent to try it because of its young age. As I swirled the nectar in the tasting glass i quizzed Jeremiah as to his distillation technique. My reticence quickly disappeared when I learned that he engaged a 2 X distillation process. First he did a stripping run, next the stripped alcohol was re-distilled through some plates in the column of his still. A wee sip sent my senses spinning. YES! A craft distiller who was making fantastic whisky at 3 years of age. It was smooth and approachable. The earthy/spicy notes form the rye grain were on full display. This is whisky the way it should taste. He then explained that he had just proofed down a tote of corn whisky (70% corn, 30% barley). He offered me a wee taste and again my senses were floored. How could something so young taste so damn good? The answer of course is the 2X distillation technique. And the story got even better. It turns out that in the area around Hartland there is a maple syrup producer. To obtain syrup, a producer will tap the maple trees to obtain the sap run-off each Spring. The sap will have maybe 2% sugar content to it. The producer will have to boil the sap for hours on end to drive off the water content and concentrate the sugars. But, what if that producer decided to capture the steam from the sap boiling kettle? What if that water vapor steam were to be condensed? The result would be effectively a distilled water. Clean, pure, natural. But, let’s not call it just water. Let’s call it “tree water”. Now….let’s use the tree water to proof down the distillate at a nearby craft distillery. The word “sustainable” screams in the back of my head. Jeremiah Clark is a marketing genius!
I could go on and on waxing prophetically, but I will wrap it up. You HAVE TO try the whiskies from Moonshine Creek distillery. You just HAVE TO. You can apparently get a shipping discount if you order on-line from the distillery. Christmas is coming and gift-buying is just around the corner. What better to buy than some very nice whisky that is a pleasure to sip. ( If you need my address to send the whisky to, just email me…). Just kidding! But, if your close friends and family enjoy smooth, well balanced sipping whisky, I am sure they will appreciate a bottle or two from New Brunswick.
It was a pleasure meeting Jeremiah today. I wish him all the best. I am sure Moonshine Creek has a stellar future ahead of it. Oh…and yeah…the potato chips at the factory were good and the covered bridge was cool too. All in Hartland, New Brunswick…..
