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| Founded | 2012 |
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| Headquarters | |
| Website | http://wiglewhiskey.com |
Wigle Whiskey (pronounced "wih-gul" [1] ) is an artisan small batch whiskey distillery in the Strip District neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Wigle Whiskeys are the flagship products of Wigle Whiskey, which is entirely family owned and operated. [2]
  Wigle Distillery & Tasting Room Whiskey Production and Pittsburgh History Tour | |
| Location | 2401 Smallman St, Pittsburgh, PA 15222 |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°27′16″N79°58′54″W / 40.454542°N 79.981584°W |
| Website | wiglewhiskey |
Wigle began operations in 2011, and opened its doors to the public in March 2012. [3] [4] Wigle was the first distillery to open in Pittsburgh since Joseph S. Finch's distillery, located at South Second and McKean streets, closed in the 1920s. [2] At that time, only two other distilleries existed in the rest of Pennsylvania. [5] The founders of Wigle Whiskey were instrumental to the passage of Pennsylvania House Bill 242 in December 2011, establishing a new distillery license allowing craft distilleries to sell their own products onsite, which led to the growth of craft distilleries in Pennsylvania. [6] [4] The bill allowed Wigle to sell spirits to customers. [7] Wigle purchased the distillery building and a neighboring building in early 2019 to provide more room for tasting, tours, whiskey production, and community programs. [8] [7]
Wigle's founders, Mark Meyer, Mary Ellen Meyer, Meredith Meyer Grelli, Eric Meyer, Alexander Grelli, and Jeff Meyer, named the distillery after Philip Wigle, a man convicted of treason in 1794 and sentenced to hang for his actions in the Whiskey Rebellion, wherein Alexander Hamilton leveled the first excise tax-on whiskey. [2] [9] Wigle punched a tax collector, helping to incite four years of protests and riots that would come to be known as the Whiskey Rebellion. [10] Wigle was later pardoned by George Washington. [2] Washington feared hanging Wigle would stir a civil war in the young nation. [11]
Wigle Whiskey was at the center of the "Pennsylvania Rye Revival" [12] and the growth of Pittsburgh's whiskey heritage tourism. [13] [14] [note 1] The distillery offers tours, which include a history of the Whiskey Rebellion. [15] [16] Owners Mark Meyer and Meredith Meyer Grelli are authors of The Whiskey Rebellion & the Rebirth of Rye (Belt, 2017), which describes rye's origins and the history of Pittsburgh, and provides a guide to making rye whiskey and recipes for cocktails. [17]
In 2018, Wigle partnered with Pittsburgh's Heinz History Center on a Prohibition Rye whiskey to accompany the museum's "American Spirits: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition" exhibition. [18] Wigle has also partnered with other museums, including the Mattress Factory and the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh, the Allegheny Museum in Cumberland, Maryland, and the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. [4] Wigle is also involved in the development of a Whiskey Rebellion trail following the Great Allegheny Passage, a trail that extends from Pittsburgh, through Pennsylvania and Maryland to Mt. Vernon. [4] Wigle partnered with the Omni Bedford Springs Hotel in Bedford, Pennsylvania, a town about 100 miles southeast of Pittsburgh where Washington led his troops during the Whiskey Rebellion. [4] [13] Wigle's annual event during the Whiskey Rebellion Heritage Festival raises money for nonprofits. [4] [19] [20]
In 2013, the Meyer family opened a new facility in the Northside area of Pittsburgh, the Wigle Whiskey Barrelhouse and Garden. A former produce warehouse, the barrelhouse provided a place for tastings and tours. The family also purchased two vacant lots neighboring the barrelhouse for gardens for botanicals used in the spirits. [21]
In April 2017, Wigle opened a cocktail bar and bottle shop, the Wigle Whiskey Tasting Room, at the Omni William Penn Hotel. [22] [23] [24] In 2018, Wigle opened a Tasting Room and Bottle Shop in Ross Park Mall. [25] [26] During the holiday shopping season, Wigle also runs pop-up kiosks in Pittsburgh's South Hills Village Mall. [24] Wigle holds weekly labeling parties every Tuesday, where guests label bottles in exchange for drinks. [27]
Wigle is an organic "grain-to-glass" distiller, which means that the distillery obtains ingredients from nearby farms in Washington County, Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio, mills grains on site, where they are distilled, and serves them at the distillery. [5] [4] [28] The Meyer family worked with the Artisan Distilling Program at Michigan State University throughout the start up of the distillery. [2] Wigle distills their whiskey from scratch. [5]
Wigle led a two year study into regional terroir by producing batches of Rye Whiskey from rye grain sourced from farms in Saskatchewan, Minnesota and Pennsylvania. [29] The distillery found differences in the tastes and compounds of the resulting whiskies that could be traced back to the regional grains used in the process. [30]
Wigle Whiskey produces Organic Straight Rye Whiskeys, Organic Straight Bourbons, Dutch Style Gins, Rum and Bitters. [31] Wigle's Bourbon was the first bourbon produced in Pennsylvania in more than 40 years. [32] In March, 2020, Wigle began manufacturing hand sanitizer for Pittsburgh's first responders to help ease coronavirus-induced shortages. [33]
Limited bottlings
Two of Wigle's co-founders, Alex Grelli and Meredith Meyer Grelli, were named James Beard Award Semi-Finalists in 2018. [34] [35] [36] [3] In 2018, Wigle Whiskey's Organic Ginever was awarded Best in Class Gin by the American Craft Spirits Association. [37] Its Bourbon won a gold medal and the Distillery was awarded an additional 16 medals across its portfolio, making it the most awarded craft distillery in the country by the American Craft Spirits Association for the second year running. [38]
Canadian whisky is a type of whisky produced in Canada. Most Canadian whiskies are blended multi-grain liquors containing a large percentage of corn spirits, and are typically lighter and smoother than other whisky styles. When Canadian distillers began adding small amounts of highly-flavourful rye grain to their mashes, people began demanding this new rye-flavoured whisky, referring to it simply as "rye". Today, as for the past two centuries, the terms "rye whisky" and "Canadian whisky" are used interchangeably in Canada and refer to exactly the same product, which generally is made with only a small amount of rye grain.
Bourbon is a type of barrel-aged American whiskey made primarily from corn (maize). The name derives from the French Bourbon dynasty, although the precise source of inspiration is uncertain; contenders include Bourbon County in Kentucky and Bourbon Street in New Orleans, both of which are named after the dynasty. The name bourbon may not have been used until the 1850s; the association with Bourbon County did not appear until the 1870s.
Rye whiskey can refer to two different, but related, types of whiskey:
Tennessee whiskey is straight whiskey produced in the U.S. state of Tennessee. Although it has been legally defined as a bourbon whiskey in some international trade agreements, most current producers of Tennessee whiskey disclaim references to their products as "bourbon" and do not label them as such on any of their bottles or advertising materials. All current Tennessee whiskey producers are required by Tennessee law to produce their whiskeys in Tennessee and – with the sole exception of Benjamin Prichard's – to use a filtering step known as the Lincoln County Process prior to aging the whiskey. Beyond the perceived marketing value of the distinction, Tennessee whiskey and bourbon have almost identical requirements, and most Tennessee whiskeys meet the criteria for bourbon.
Jim Beam is an American brand of bourbon whiskey produced in Clermont, Kentucky, by Beam Suntory. It is one of the best-selling brands of bourbon in the world. Since 1795, seven generations of the Beam family have been involved in whiskey production for the company that produces the brand. The brand name became "Jim Beam" in 1943 in honor of James B. Beam, who rebuilt the business after Prohibition ended. Previously produced by the Beam family and later owned by the Fortune Brands holding company, the brand was purchased by Suntory Holdings in 2014.
Heaven Hill Distilleries, Inc. is a private, American family-owned and operated distillery founded in 1935 and headquartered in Bardstown, Kentucky, that produces and markets the Heaven Hill brand of Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey and a variety of other distilled spirits.
American whiskey is whiskey produced in the United States. American whiskeys made from mashes with at least 51% of their named grains include bourbon whiskey, rye whiskey, rye malt whiskey, malt whiskey, wheat whiskey, Tennessee whiskey, and corn whiskey.
Bulleit Bourbon is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey produced at the Bulleit Distillery in Lebanon, Kentucky and the Bulleit Distillery in Shelbyville, Kentucky, owned by the Diageo beverage conglomerate. It is characterized by a high rye content for a bourbon and being aged at least six years. It is bottled at 45% abv for the US, Canadian, British, Dutch and Mexican markets. For Australian and Danish markets, it is bottled at 40% abv. It is also sold in Germany, Norway and Sweden.
Buffalo Trace Distillery is a distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky, United States, owned by the Sazerac Company. It has historically been known by several names, including the George T. Stagg Distillery and the Old Fashioned Copper (O.F.C.) Distillery. Its namesake bourbon brand, Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon whiskey, was introduced in August 1999. The name "Buffalo Trace" refers to the ancient buffalo trackway that crosses the Kentucky River in Franklin County, Kentucky. The Sazerac Company purchased the distillery in 1992.
High West Distillery is a manufacturer of distilled spirits located in Park City, Utah, United States. It is the first legally licensed distillery in Utah since the end of the American Prohibition.
Nelson's Green Brier Distillery is a whiskey distillery located in downtown Nashville, Tennessee that produces different varieties of Tennessee whiskey and bourbons. The distillery offers daily public tours and tastings as well as a large mercantile shop with bottles, barware and apparel available for purchase. In July 2023, Nelson's Green Brier Distillery opened a newly renovated distillery restaurant and full-service bar at their 1414 Clinton St. Nashville, TN 37203 location. The same facility also now offers four new private event and dining spaces available to rent for corporate functions, weddings and celebrations of varying sizes.
Willett Distillery Ltd, is a private, family-owned-and-operated company that produces bourbon and rye whiskey. Over the years, the company has bottled whiskeys that range from two years of aging maturity up to 28 years. The company was named Kentucky Bourbon Distillers (KBD) between 1984 and 2012.
Sazerac Company, Inc. is a privately held American alcoholic beverage company headquartered in Metairie in the metropolitan area of New Orleans, Louisiana, but with its principal office in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is owned by billionaire William Goldring and his family. As of 2017, it operated nine distilleries, had 2,000 employees, and operated in 112 countries. It is one of the two largest spirits companies in the United States, with annual revenue of about $1 billion made from selling about 300 beverage brands.
Benjamin Prichard's Tennessee Whiskey is a brand of Tennessee whiskey produced in the small community of Kelso, Tennessee in the United States. Although it is produced by one of only two distilleries operating in Lincoln County – and its unaged variation is named Lincoln County Lightning – Prichard's is not produced using the Lincoln County Process. Due to a special grandfathering exemption under a Tennessee law enacted in 2013, the Prichard's distillery in Kelso is the only producer allowed to label its product as "Tennessee Whiskey" without using this process. Prichard's whiskey is produced entirely using pot stills rather than column stills.
MGP Ingredients, Inc. is a distilled spirits and food ingredients producer with headquarters in Atchison, Kansas, United States.
Philadelphia Distilling is a microdistillery founded in March 2005 in the Byberry neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the first craft distillery to open in Pennsylvania since before Prohibition.
Old Pogue is a brand of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey. Located in Maysville, Kentucky, the Old Pogue Distillery carries strong family ties dating back to the 1870s, and is privately owned by members of the Pogue family.
Tamworth Distilling is a small-batch distillery in Tamworth, New Hampshire, known for producing small-batch spirits with local ingredients.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to whisky:
Chicken Cock Whiskey is a historic brand of bourbon that has been revived by Grain and Barrel Spirits.
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