Scott and Becky Harris of Catoctin Creek Distilling Company.

/ Courtesy of Revel Photo Co.

Catoctin Creek Distillery in Purcellville, Va, is known for its award-winning rye whisky, and for being the first legal distillery in Loudoun County since prohibition. Now, in the era of the pandemic, the family-owned distillery is doing something even more experimental than usual.

Founded in 2009 by two engineers, Becky and Scott Harris, Catoctin has for years sold custom-made bottles to restaurants through its barrel select program—essentially, Catoctin bottles and labels some of its more experimental barrels for restaurants with their logo on it. The restaurants can then offer their own specific label of whiskey on their liquor or cocktail menus.

Coronavirus completely sidelined the program, Scott Harris says. In April, their depletion report—which shows how many restaurants, bars, and liquor stores bought their products —showed zero restaurants for the first time in 11 years. Harris declined to share which restaurants pulled out of the barrel select program.

“It really was … absolutely devastating,” Harris says. “I was sort of expecting it to happen. But when you actually saw it, it was just gut wrenching.”

Catoctin’s only sales now come through liquor stores, which continue to operate as essential businesses under Virginia’s emergency order. As the service industry has been hit particularly hard during the health crisis, restaurants, even the ones that have carryout options, couldn’t continue their commitment to Catoctin’s barrel program.

“And so we decided to take that liquor back and try to make some good out of it,” Harris says. About two weeks ago, Becky came up with the idea for the #InThisTogether Rye Whisky, made from an “infinity barrel,” a concept that is gaining popularity in the industry, Harris says.

The Harrises took the leftover whiskey and aged it in three different casks: an American Chardonnay oak cask; an apple brandy cask; and an American Imperial Stout cask from Virginia farm brewery Stable Craft. The whiskies were then mixed together and re-barreled to create the infinity barrel, a complex, spicy, and fruity combination.

Dumping those three different whiskies together might sound like a risky idea. But Harris says the distillery employees made sure they got it right by doing blind tasting trials of small batches at different proofs, using pipettes.

“We thought they might fight each other, but they blended in really nicely. It’s really a stunning whiskey, and it’s one of a kind. We’ll never see something like it again” says Harris. “It was a fun project that came from something that was really not fun.”

The 80-proof bottles, which cost $45.09, go on sale June 1 at Catoctin Creek’s tasting room (curbside pickup only), via delivery in Virginia, and at liquor stores in D.C., Delaware, and Maryland through distributor Prestige-Ledroit.

All the proceeds are going towards charities supporting out-of-work and struggling restaurants, bars, and their workers: Restaurant Workers Community Foundation, an advocacy and action nonprofit created by and for restaurant workers; USBG’s Bartender Emergency Assistance Program; Ayuda DMV, which provides social services and language access services to low-income immigrants; and Southern Smoke, a crisis relief organization for people in the food and beverage industry.

The#InThisTogether name for the infinity barrel came easily: Restaurant and bar workers are united in their struggle right now, and these whiskies are now blending together to help them, Harris says.

“It was pretty quick that we decided all the profits from this project should go to local charities, restaurants and bars that have supported us so much in those 11 years,” Harris says. “Now, when they need our support, we want to be there for them.”

Filed Under: catoctin creek, coronavirus, distilleries, meanwhile in virginia,