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Craft distilling in Seattle As a follow up to the feature last June on craft distilling in Seattle, Brewer and Distiller International promised you two more distilleries from the city billed as having more distilleries than any other in the USA. As part of our Craft Spirits and themed edition we feature Copperworks, where owner/distiller Jason Parker didn’t just ‘pick’ his but had them made in Scotland by Forsyths, and Emerson Lamb, President of the biggest producer of single malt whiskey in the country, shows us around the Westland Distillery.

with release expected in 2016. Copperworks We are shown around the distillery by Jason Parker, co-owner, distiller Distilling Company (and brewer) who with business partner opperworks Distilling Company is and fellow distiller Micah Nutt opened Copperworks Distilling Ca locally owned distillery, tast- the Copperworks Distillery in a historic ing room and retail store located on building close to the waterfront and, Company 1250 Alaskan Way Seattle’s downtown waterfront. The importantly, next to the Seattle Steam Seattle company offers small-batch and Company’s giant powerhouse. Jason WA 98101 vodka made from a base of Washing- was the first brewer at Seattle’s Pike +1 206 504 7604 ton-grown malted barley. Its twice- Place Brewery in 1989, with time served [email protected] distilled, all-malt whiskey is aging in at Fish Brewing Company, Redhook and charred, new American oak barrels, then as Brewmaster at Pyramid Brew- are sourcing sweet (un-hopped) wort eries. Jason explained that the original from either of the nearby Pike or Ely- plan was to include a brewing opera- sian Breweries. These are driven over tion within the Copperworks project, daily in four stainless steel transport however being offered a 7,000 square tanks, transferred into stainless steel feet historic building in a prime location fermentation tanks, then pitched with with room to expand, but with no pos- a pure strain of brewer’s yeast which sibility for spent grain movements, was has been selected for its distinctive an opportunity not to be missed. flavour profile that is unique to their products. From producing award-win- Sweet wort origins ning craft beer, moving onto distilled Jason says that many of the Copper- spirits is a natural progression. As works visitors are surprised to learn part of his distilling passion, Jason whiskey starts with beer. An experi- currently serves as President of the enced brewer, he was very keen to Washington Distillers Guild. start the process with as good a (beer) Two different recipes are used for Copperworks Single Malt American Whiskey, expected 2016 product as possible so Copperworks producing the un-hopped sweet wort

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The Forsyths room Co-owners Micah Nutt and Jason Parker to the Copperworks specification. spirit (GNS) when the alcohol vapour is The first is a 100% 2-row pale malt, directed through the adjacent 25-plate mashed at 148°F (64.4°C), boiled, column still. Copperworks’ vodka and cooled and delivered at 18°P; the the base for Copperworks’ gin comes second uses five different malts with through this route. ‘speciality malts’ consisting 25% of the Their gin still, based upon the grist. Both varieties are fermented in design of a well-known Scottish malt the Copperworks facility for 5 days at distiller … but a very small- 72°F (22.2°C) using an ale yeast, fol- scale replica, is used for distilling of lowed by a two week lagering process. a range of botanicals for use in their Copperworks Gin; a “distinctive, well- Scottish copper stills balanced combination of juniper and According to literature in the Cop- nine other botanicals, with aromatic perworks visitor centre, the ‘magic’ of citrus, coriander and floral top notes.” their distillation process is in its four traditional Scottish copper stills – three Copperworks’ spirits pot stills and a column supplied by Copperworks opened its doors in If you can’t wait … DIY whiskey available from vodka Forsyths of Scotland. Built at a size to October 2013 offering tastings, tours starter in the visitor centre meet their ‘final’ volume requirements and other events focused on enjoying of 60,000 proof gallons per annum, and learning about fine distilled spirits. these are supplied with steam via The company has won numerous local, underground pipes from next door – city national and international awards and steam at 30psi is reduced down to 7psi is on the shelves of more than 100 bars and used to heat internal stainless steel and restaurants, plus retail stores, heating coils in the stills. Seattle Steam throughout the Puget Sound region. Company produces steam by burning The on-site shop offers gin and clean wood debris in its biomass boiler vodka now, and the distillery has all- and delivers it in underground pipes to malt whiskey aging in new, charred the distillery - wood that is unpainted, American Oak barrels. The intention is not treated with chemical preservatives, to age for around the three year mark and is free of non-combustible materi- initially, with the first whiskey available als. This includes debris such as broken sometime this year if all goes to plan. pallets, construction demolition wood Over time, Copperworks is also re- and wood waste from saw mills. leasing a series of aged . Released Their largest still, the wash still, so far are: weighs nearly three tons, stands more • Copperworks New Barrel Gin: aged than 5 meters tall, has a capacity of in a new charred, American Oak Barrel 4,000 litres and enables Copperworks • Copperworks Malt Barrel Gin: aged to produce up to two 53-gallon barrels in an oak barrel previously used to age of whiskey per day. The spirit still malt whiskey Reservations are now being taken for batch is the second used in the process of • Copperworks Peat Barrel Gin: aged #1 of the Copperworks American Single Malt making Copperworks’ all malt whis- in an oak barrel previously used to age Whiskey. We imagine that they will sell-out key. It can also produce grain neutral peated malt whiskey pretty quickly! www.ibd.org.uk Brewer and Distiller International February 2016 z 3 l DISTILLERY VISIT

Westland Distillery

Built at a cost of $4 million, and with a production capacity of 60,000 proof gallons a year, Westland is the Westland Distillery largest malt whiskey distillery (by volume) west of the 2931 First Ave. S. Seattle Mississippi. Situated in the SoDo (South of Downtown) area +1 206 767 7250 of Seattle, this young distillery is run by a team of young, westlanddistillery.com dedicated distillers who have quickly become the biggest Brewer and Distiller International producer of single malt whiskey in the US. around the magnificent distillery in the heart of the busy city. With another he Lamb family has a long history decided there was limited future in two racking warehouses and a bottling Tin logging and lumber, and with a paper (due to computers!) and he ap- facility on the Pacific Ocean, this site paper mill business in the Seattle area proached a classmate from Bellarmine contains the brewing and distilling for the last 135 years they are well Preparatory Academy in Tacoma, Matt operations, along with the obligatory established and well regarded local Hofmann, with a business plan to start visitor centre, shop and event space. business. Emerson Lamb, the grand- a distillery to create malt . Emerson and Matt decided early on son of its founder, became interested A few years later, and following that they would start making their own in something quite different – the story relaxation of state laws regarding dis- mash, rather than sourcing from a local goes that at an early age Emerson tilling of spirits in 2012, the Westland brewery as others often do. The barley Distillery came into existence. Deter- would be sourced from Skagit Valley, mined to produce best quality Ameri- where the Skagit Valley Malting Co. can Single Malt Whiskey, produced produces their 2-row pale malt. Water as far as possible from local malted comes from the Cedar River. The ma- barleys, Emerson and co-founder jority of their malt bill is locally sourced, Matt started distilling and straight but with the majority of their spirit away were laying down barrels of malt using five malt types, specialities are whiskey having decided not to take the sourced from Breiss Malt and the UK- now traditional /vodka/gin based Thomas Fawcett. Westland blend start-up route. their spirits 70:30 five grain:single grain, and also use a significant amount Brewing operations of peated malt from UK’s Bairds Malt, President and co-founder Emerson although Emerson proudly tells us generously gives his time to show that they have just bought a peat bog

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Still room operations in Washington State. Malts are milled a column using two rollers into the 5,000 litre without Newlands Systems combination mash/ plates. lauter tun, then two mashes are col- Spirit is lected into one of five 100 hectolitre cut to 110 stainless steel fermenters. proof, 55% Fermentation uses a ‘saison-style’ ABV for brewer’s yeast and fermentation al- storage lowed to rise to 90°F (32°C) maximum to new American oak casks (60% of over four days then crash-cooled. current output), with the remainder President and co-founder Emerson Lamb in front of the This gives “lots of fruity esters” which mainly going into first-fill ex-bourbon Westland brewing operations contribute to the distinctive flavour of or ex-sherry casks at 130 proof the new make spirit. The ‘brewers’ fill (65%ABV). The still room sits in an one FV per day and rotate through five explosion-proofed building, and above tanks per week – to double production a watertight pit which will hold all the volumes they would need a second row spirit content of the stills plus one of five fermenters. hour fire sprinkler discharge. There are three main brands, all Distilling operations of which are styles of American Single The two stills are supplied by Ven- Malt Whiskey. The largest is the stand- dome, built in the ‘Scottish-style’ and ard expression, matured predomi- the largest the company had supplied. nantly in new oak for 27 months, which The copper wash still has a capacity is around 50% of output. The second of 7,500 litres and a normal charge of expression is the peated single malt, 5,000 litres of 7.8 – 9.0% wash from a blend of a mash of peated malt and fermentation. Heating is by steam coil. one of 100% Washington pale malt and The wash still has a unique ‘onion’ matured in a variety of cask types. The Emerson demonstrates effects of cask maturation: note layering of colour shape, followed by a four plate column. third expression is their Sherry Wood The spirit still has a 5,500 litre capacity malt whiskey, using Spanish-sourced visitors to the distillery, Westland has and a charge of 4,500 litres, again with casks – and a range of single cask bot- developed its own version of the whis- the distinctive onion shape but has tlings now compliment the range. Total ky taste wheel – specifically for Ameri- output of the distillery is currently can single malt whiskey. Descriptors around 40,000 cases per year. such as ‘treacle’ that are used in the UK (but meaningless elsewhere) are National distribution replaced with more commonly known Tasting is a big part of the quality op- descriptors more appropriate to their erations at Westland, with taste panels own whiskey. being conducted for all employees on A national spirits distributor, a daily basis. As well as tasting their Anchor Brewing and Distilling, now own spirit production, the panels are represents the Westland brand in taken through a range of whiskies mainland USA. How long before inter- from around the world as familiarisa- national distribution and the chance tion and to expand their range of taste for this ‘Thoughtfully Made’, distinctive Choice reading matter in the still room descriptors. To help with this, and for single malt to gain fans overseas? www.ibd.org.uk Brewer and Distiller International February 2016 z 5