‘Colonial’ distillery to create gin, rum and Bourbon

A colonial-themed craft distillery with costumed characters is set to begin producing gin, rum, and Bourbon in Virginia.

The Williamsburg Bourbon is currently ageing in these charred white oak barrels

Williamsburg Distillery – which focuses using historic ingredients and recipes from the 1600s and 1700s – has started to produce Jamestown Gin, Yorktown Rum and Williamsburg Bourbon, known as the ‘Historic Triangle series’.

The gin and rum are expected to be ready this summer, but the Bourbon will take longer; currently ageing in charred white oak barrels.

The themed distillery – which is currently in a temporary location until the business invests in a larger facility – will offer tours educating visitors about the local alcohol history and the traditional recipes distillers have used in the production process.

Although they will use modern equipment to produce the expressions, including a new 100-gallon pot still, the owners plan to set up a period-style working still to show visitors how the spirits would have been made in the colonial era.

There are plans to make limited edition expressions using the historic equipment in the future.