Craft spirits should not be defined by size

Craft spirits brands are defined by “individuality and integrity” and should not be restricted by size, the author of a new book on the sector has argued.

Emile Miles does not use size as a part of the craft spirits criteria in her new book

Freelance food and drink journalist Emily Miles recently published a craft spirits guide, called Craft Spirit World: A guide to the artisan spirit-makers and distillers you need to try.

When discussing which distilleries should rightfully be considered craft, Miles claims: “For our purposes, a working definition could be along the lines of: a person or bunch of people who – in pursuit of the dream of excellent booze – turn organic matter into delicious-tasting alcohol.

“Certainly the romantic might like to think of these charmingly amateur operations as having been spawned like a mad-cap individual’s dream and realised in a garden shed, but, in reality, there are plenty of grey areas where ‘craft’ and ‘commercial’ can look pretty similar.”

Miles adds that including scale as part of the craft spirits definition is “inherently problematic” despite a “huge difference between large-scale, commercial column stills and small-scale pot stills”.

She questions the practicality of placing a limit on the output of a craft distillery, claiming that the American Craft Spirits Alliance (ACSA) has already revised the production limit for its members, which in turn “could well be reviewed in the future”.

“Although scale is pleasingly quantifiable, we won’t be ruling producers in or out on the basis of a maximum size. There are other more important factors, such as individuality and integrity, to take into account in this book.”

However, Miles states that the criteria for craft brands should also, “for now”, include independence, discounting distilleries which receive financial backing from large corporations.

“We want our craft distillers to be free to do what they want, and not hampered by limitations or regulations placed on them by an anonymous head office.”

In addition, she claims that while many brands marketed as “craft” do not themselves distil, instead buying neutral grain spirit to rectify, producers should be “transparent” with regards to “what’s going into the bottle”.

Published by Dog ‘n’ Bone, Craft Spirit World is available from 26 March at an RRP of £16.99.

A cocktail book called The 12 Bottle Bar, published last year, told consumers that Tequila, Scotch whisky, Irish whiskey and Bourbon were not vital if they want to stock a decent home bar.