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| - Wigle(pronounced Wiggle, though they admit it probably shouldn't be) Whiskey is a young whiskey distillery - having produced its first batch just over a month ago - named after a Pittsburgh revolutionary who wasn't ready to let tax get in the way of his whiskey. There are two aspects to this review - the whiskey itself, and the distillery itself.
The Whiskey:
Wigle Whiskey is the first(in modern day terms) liquor to be distilled within the city limits of Pittsburgh(Clique is distilled abroad and Boyd and Blair is located in Glennshaw). Due to the young age of the distillery, they currently only sell a white whiskey, that is, a clear whiskey that has not touched oak barrels. If you are a fan of the familiar dark and golden browns and oak flavor of your standard aged drink, fear not. They are currently aging whiskey, but you can also buy mini barrels($50/1lt $60/2lt) of the stuff and DIY at home. I love this idea - whiskey does not age in a glass bottle(Your 3-year old 15 year scotch did NOT just double in value), so buy one of these to mark special occasions(ie births) and celebrate with them much later.(Disclaimer - I am not exactly sure what the upper aging limit on American Whiskeys should be, nor am I sure how much would evaporate after several years in a small barrel.)
They currently sell two varieties - a wheat and a rye, and both are made entirely organic(though they are without label while they complete the paperwork), from locally sourced grains(Except for the small amount of barley, as I learned on my tour), and from scratch - starting with several bags of whole grains. The wheat whiskey is smooth tasting, slightly sweet with only a bit of burn going down, smelling freshly of yeasty bread. The rye is a bit bolder and not as sweet, but still has a great flavor. The wheat for me is my favorite, but I wouldn't really sip either of them. Cocktails are what I think these do best in, where the flavors come through but there is no age to overpower the other ingredients. At the store, you can sample both and pick our your favorite.
At just over $30 a bottle, I think that you're getting a great deal. To purchase this whiskey, you have to go right to the source. They're happy with it that way, since they aren't sure they can meet PLCB quotas, and they would rather talk about it themselves than have their name defiled by a random W&S employee.
The Distillery:
The distillery itself is small, a tiny warehouse, one set of large machines to create whiskey, a small store at the front. The place obviously had a designer in come through: the design reminds me very much of the Glass Lofts in Garfield. The ceiling has bottles embedded in it, a nice touch. The store offers free tastings and even cocktails for only about $5 - and they are delicious, even if you don't think you're a whiskey person. Apparently, you can also send in your own Wigle cocktail recipe and they might feature it, inviting you and your friends in to the distillery for a round.
They do tours and cocktail classes here, both can be signed up for on the website - The tours are $20/pp and come with tastings, cocktails, and light snacks. Again the place is small, but the tour was definitely extremely informative - You get to see, feel or smell just about every step of the process of whiskey making. The gains, the flour, the strong methanol in the first output of the still, the fresh and tasteless ethanol alcohol of the "hearts", and the "tails" - the flavorful part, the char on the inside of the barrels. At the end of my tour I felt like I was ready to compete with them, look out!
Additionally the tour has a historical aspect. Western PA was home of America's favorite sprit just after the Revolution, rye whiskey. Wigle himself had a distillery which he fought hard to keep from being taxes, resulting in the Whiskey Rebellion and eventual flight of Whiskey producers from PA to Kentucky - where corn grew in abundance and the spirit of choice for Americans everywhere switched from Rye to Bourbon. The tour goes much more in depth into Wigle's story, but I don't want to give it away. Needless to say, it's riveting, and integrates very well with the tour. The whole tour lasts about a half hour.
I have not been to a cocktail class($35), but I do know that they feature some of the best names in Pittsburgh cocktails. Verde, Andy's, Meat and Potatoes, Union Pig and Chicken, Salt of the Earth, and Drinksburgh(a blog about - guess what) are all places where class instructors have hailed from, and you can see many of the creations on their website.
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All in all, Wigle is an excellent spirit and excellent new addition to Pittsburghs fast-changing cocktail landscape. Be sure to stop by, have a taste and maybe learn a little bit about whiskey and PA history while you're at it.
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