Oola

Situated in Seattles Capitol Hill Neighborhood, Oola Distillery was founded by Kirby Kallas-Lewis as "a labor of love, intellectual curiosity and commitment to the neighborhood."As a result of his commitment to his community, Kirby sources all of the ingredients used to craft Oola Chili Pepper Vodka from local farms. For instance, the white winter wheat used to make the vodka is harvested on a third-generation Washington family farm that is certified organic. Once the grains arrive at the distillery, they are milled and mashed before being distilled through Kirbys copper-pot still.Following distillation, the vodka is infused with goathorn peppers sourced from the Yakima Valley and Thai chili peppers. The peppers give the vodka a rich and silky texture, and provide it with an aroma of black pepper, spices and warm vanilla. The aroma gives way to notes of crushed peppers, fresh mozzarella cheese and a hint of caramel. The finish is smooth and warm, with a burst of red pepper spices.Oola Chili Pepper Vodka earned the Silver Medal at the New York International Spirits Competition, and is "highly recommended" by the Beverage Testing Institute.Pick up a bottle today!

Situated in Seattles Capitol Hill Neighborhood, Oola Distillery was founded by Kirby Kallas-Lewis as "a labor of love, intellectual curiosity and commitment to the neighborhood.""All our grains are sourced from two organic farms in Eastern Washington," says Kirby. In addition, the use of wheat in the bourbons mashbill "allows me to hold back on the corn and add more rye. This results in a more complex, balanced and less overly sweet bourbon."Once the ingredients arrive at the distillery, they are milled and mashed before being distilled through Kirbys copper-pot still.Following distillation, the bourbon is matured in small, American white oak casks that are subjected to large temperature swings of up to 50-70 each day. "The idea is to extract a lot of the influence from the barrel early on in the aging process." After this initial beauty rest, the bourbon is transferred to 53-gallon, American white oak casks that boast an alligator char. The alligator char allows the whiskey to penetrate the wood, which hails from the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, up to a inch. There, the bourbon rests for an additional three to four years. "These casks are then combined to marry together subtle flavors that compliment each other usually two barrels are married together, but sometimes 3 or 4 work best to get to the optimum flavor profile before bottling."Once the barrels have been blended, the bourbon is bottled without the use of chill filtration. "We want the full richness of the nose and flavor profile to stay as intact as possible," says Kirby.Oola Waitsburg Bourbon has a spicy aroma, with touches of cinnamon, ginger and black peppercorn that give way to notes of caramel, vanilla, olives, dill pickles and chutney on the palate. The finish is warm and balanced, with hints of honey and oak spices complementing each other.The bourbon was "highly recommended" by the Beverage Testing Institute, and has a "pleasingly long and mellow finish," according to the Capitol Hill Times. In addition, it earned the Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2013 and the Silver Medal at the Beverage Testing Institute Competition in 2012.Pick up a bottle today!

Situated in Seattles Capitol Hill Neighborhood, Oola Distillery was founded by Kirby Kallas-Lewis as "a labor of love, intellectual curiosity and commitment to the neighborhood."Oola Waitsburg Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon is crafted from a mash of approximately 65 percent corn and 20 percent-28 percent rye, with the remaining balance split evenly between malted barley and white winter wheat "All our grains are sourced from two organic farms in Eastern Washington," says Kirby. In addition, the use of wheat in the bourbons mashbill "allows me to hold back on the corn and add more rye. This results in a more complex, balanced and less overly sweet bourbon." Once the ingredients arrive at the distillery, they are milled and mashed before being distilled through Kirbys copper-pot still.Following distillation, the bourbon is matured in small, American white oak casks that are subjected to large temperature swings of up to 50-70 each day. "The idea is to extract a lot of the influence from the barrel early on in the aging process." After this initial beautyrest, the bourbon is transferred to 53-gallon, American white oak casks that boast an alligator char. The alligator char allows the whiskey to penetrate the wood, which hails from the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, up to a inch. There, the bourbon rests for an additional three to four years. Whereas at that point, multiple casks are typically married together to create a blended bourbon whiskey, Oola Waitsburg Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon represents a single barrel bottling from Oolas finest stock of maturing whiskey. This particular batch no. 6, bottled at cask strength exclusively for Caskers members, produced only 216 bottles at a robust 114 proof. Doing so allows "the full richness of the nose and flavor profile to stay as intact as possible," says Kirby.Oola Waitsburg Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon has a spicy aroma, with touches of cinnamon, ginger and black peppercorn that give way to notes of caramel, vanilla, cherry and oak on the palate. The finish is warm and balanced, with hints of brown sugar, toffee and maple syrup complementing each other.The bourbon was "highly recommended" by the Beverage Testing Institute, and has a "pleasingly long and mellow finish," according to the Capitol Hill Times. In addition, it earned the Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2013 and the Silver Medal at the Beverage Testing Institute Competition in 2012.Pick up a bottle today!