Following The Barrel
We’re following the many-chaptered life of a whiskey barrel that came to us all the way from Kentucky. Our bar director, Robb Jones, chose a rum-filled barrel from Tattersall Distilling late last year so that our restaurants could utilize both the spirit in the barrel for cocktails and have some fun with the barrel itself. Originally from the Four Roses distillery in Kentucky, the blackstrap rum that’s been aging inside of it has taken on flavors of vanilla, orange, and caramelized sugar imparted by the wood. The end product is a delicious, rich, mellow rum that tastes like it came from the Caribbean, but was aged right here in Minnesota. Our team visited Tattersall as their talented team emptied our special barrel right into bottles.
FOLLOWING THE BARREL PART 2
Tucked away off a rural road in Minnetrista, Minnesota, lies a hidden gem of sweet maple syrup. The owners of Somerskogen Sugarbush are making some of the best maple syrup in the state. When they moved onto the property in 1994, they stumbled upon an old box of maple syrup supplies left behind from the previous owners and quickly realized the property was filled with maple trees. They knew they needed to learn how to harvest maple syrup. In fact, the sugar shack was the first building they built on the property, their house came second and they haven’t looked back since.
We knew our rum barrel from Tattersall Distilling would be in great hands at Somerskogen.