Virginia Distilled: Oh, What a Night!
Did you miss the Virginia Spirits event of the year? Relive Virginia Distilled, a night of celebration at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture in Richmond, Va., during Virginia Spirits Month, with the below recap and photos.
VIP Hour
The night’s festivities began at 5 p.m. with an extra hour for a select group of VIP attendees. Guests funneled through Commonwealth Hall to the Halsey Family Hall at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture where five finalist bartenders (keep reading) stood ready with their batched cocktails. After sampling each concoction and enjoying some charcuterie from local Truckle Cheesemongers, guests were invited to turn in their chip to vote for their favorite cocktail.
If that weren’t enough, distillery tastings opened up by 5:30 p.m. – offering an early chance to start sipping before the crowds rushed in – and a VIP lounge offered small bites like shrimp, crudité and chicken skewers all evening, catered by Mosaic.
Naming Virginia’s 2024 Cocktail of the Year
In case you hadn’t heard, the inaugural Virginia Cocktail Games concluded with a live, head-to-head cocktail competition – expert judges and a popular vote to boot. After more than 80 applicants from across the commonwealth dwindled down to 25 and went through a digital voting round, five finalists (one from each region) were selected to craft a new cocktail at Virginia Distilled in response to the prompt: Why do you choose Virginia?
Each mixologist presented their cocktail in front of the judges prior to the event and prepared a batch to share with attendees. See the recipes and results below.
The Winner: No Place Like Home x Henry Hill, Jr.
The winner of Virginia’s 2024 Cocktail of the Year went to the talented mixologist at Hotel Roanoke, paying homage to his upbringing and life journey in the commonwealth. It officially made the cocktail list, too, so swing by and try it for yourself.
Ingredients:
- 1 oz Cirrus Vodka
- 0.5 oz Brady’s Prohibition Gin
- 1 oz aquafaba* (optional)
- 1 oz spiced peach rosemary syrup**
- 0.5 oz hibiscus tea
- 0.5 oz fresh lemon juice
- 0.5 oz Rheda’s Longing Mead from Atheling Meadworks
Learn how to make it here.
Bad Apple x Julieta Hernandez
The bartender from The Catamount Lounge in Front Royal (Northern Virginia) mixed up a flavorful and spicy cocktail worthy of the name.
Ingredients:
- 1.5 oz Mt. Defiance Blue Agave Spirit
- 1 oz Pommeau
- 0.5 oz Sweet Vermouth
- 0.25 oz Apple Black Pepper Syrup*
- several dashes aromatic bitters (recommended: Fee Brothers Turkish Tobacco Bitters
Learn how to make it here.
Grande Dame x Amanda Liebrich
You’ll find Amanda Liebrich behind the bar at The Glass Light Restaurant in Norfolk, and she shook up a unique, tantalizing cocktail.
Ingredients:
- 1.5 oz Watershed Gin by Catoctin Creek Distilling Co.
- 0.5 oz Straight Apple Brandy Bottled in Bond by Laird & Company
- 1 oz fig walnut orgeat*
- 0.5 oz fresh lemon juice
- 1 spritz magnolia essence**
Learn how to make it here.
Sun & Soil x Breannah Carr
Taste the refreshing and bountiful taste of this cocktail by Breannah Carr, a bartender from Devils Backbone in Charlottesville.
Ingredients:
- 1.5 oz dill-infused Strange Monkey Gin by Silverback Distillery
- 0.5 oz Fox Field Barrel-Aged Vixen Gin by Devil’s Backbone Brewing Co.
- 0.75 oz dry vermouth
- 1 oz Sungold tomato & basil shrub*
- 6 drops of Spicy pepper tincture**
- 1-2 dashes celery bitters
Learn how to make it here.
Paper Trail x Melanie Holmes
There’s a lot to love about this aperitif from Melanie Holmes at The Tavern in Abingdon, and the citrusy, warming effect is just one reason.
Ingredients:
- 0.75 oz Trail Whiskey by Appalachian Heritage Distillery & Brewery
- 0.75 oz Italian-style aperitivo (like Aperol)
- 0.75 oz amaro (like Amaro nonino Quintessentia)
- 0.75 oz tarragon apple citrus shrub*
Learn how to make it here.
Educational Courses
Three sessions sprinkled throughout the night provided a deep dive into the following subjects:
- Virginia as The Birthplace of American Spirits: author, radio host and food historian Patrick Evans-Hylton
- Historical origin of sugar cane based-spirits, the essential role that rum played in early American history (as America’s FIRST spirit!) and the diverse styles of rums that have evolved over the centuries: Barry Haneberg (Virago Spirits)
- A sensory exploration of Virginia-made spirits: Shelley Sackier (Director of Education at Reservoir Distillery)
From Samples to Take-Home Bottles
Now for the main event… A dozen distilleries from around the state showed up with samples of their top products. The grand tasting tent opened up and kept the party going until 9 p.m. If you liked what you tried, you could purchase a bottle and leave it with the concierge service for a quick and easy pick-up at the end of the night. And thanks to Virginia Spirits Month, and Virginia ABC’s Sale-A-Bration, most bottles were offered at 20% off.
Wondering about food and entertainment? We had that covered, too. Smooth jazz from the Weldon Hill Trio buzzed through the air. Some of Richmond’s best food trucks (Momma’s BBQ, The Gratefull Grill and Westray’s Finest Ice Cream) offered up the perfect pairing.
If all that weren’t enough, the perks of being hosted at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture granted after-hours access to museum galleries including the newest exhibition, A Better Life for Their Children: Julius Rosenwald, Booker T. Washington, and the 4,978 Schools That Changed America.
Thank you to everyone who came out and celebrated all that Virginia Spirits has to offer!