taste
distillery
Spirit Works Sloe 75
Serves 1
tant to Sebastopol’s Zazu restaurant, said that Spirit Works’ sloe gin, which sells for around $40 a bottle, revives a “wonderful tradition with a local product.” The intense fruit flavor and modest alcohol (54 proof) make it an excellent ingredient for bartenders looking to make relatively low-alcohol cocktails. The distillery’s great story, combining family history with the farm-to-glass, do-it-yourself ethos, appeals to customers, particularly in the bay area, who are interested in artisan production. but it’s not just customers who are happy. One of the side benefits of finally debuting their dream drink, Timo said, is that they now have enough sloe gin on hand to actually indulge in a few glasses once in a while, rather than hoarding the annual harvest for special occasions. “It’s so hard to come by … it’s so luxurious for us to be able to go to our pantry and have a couple of glasses of sloe gin,” he said.
1 ounce Spirit Works Sloe Gin 1 ounce fresh lime juice 3/4 ounce simpl e syrup (a solu tion of sugar and water) 1 dash Fee Br others Old Fash ion Aromatic Bitters Dr y sparkling w ine Fill a cocktail sh aker with ice an d add the sloe gin, lime juice, simple syrup an d bitters. Shake and strain into a sparkling-win e flu te then top with bubbly. Recipe courtesy
of Michael Ceccon i and Zazu restaur ant
Bottles await filling next to one of sloe gin at Spirit Works. Timo Marshall and his dog, Bandit, sit in front of a mural of a sound wave that captures the noise made when the Marshalls opened and poured the first bottle of gin produced at the distillery.
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