Collaborative Spirits Trio from Virginia Distillers

In a state where history is spirited and runs deep, Virginia distillers are raising a glass to the 250th anniversary of America and Virginia’s role in the country’s founding, with a collaborative spirits trio.

To mark America’s anniversary, the Virginia Spirits Board gathered nine distilleries into a rare collaboration: a limited-edition trio pack featuring three spirits tied to the Commonwealth’s early identity: rum, whiskey, and gin. Created in partnership with Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority and the Virginia American Revolution 250 Commission, the Virginia Spirits 250th Celebration Trio Pack blends history, landscape, and craftsmanship.

Each bottle represents a region of Virginia and a spirit historically rooted there. Teams of distillers spent months refining blends through collaborative tastings, creating a coastal rum, a heartland four-grain whiskey, and a mountain gin.

Virginia distillers craft three blended spirits

Leading the efforts were some well-known names in Virginia craft distilling.

VA250 Aged Rum

Rum was a popular spirit in colonial America, including Virginia, coming through trade with the sugar cane-growing plantations of the Caribbean. With its trading and shipping background, rum represents Coastal Virginia

Barry Haneberg of Virago Spirits, which specialized in rums, guided the VA250 Rum. He was joined by Peter Morgner of Vitae Spirits, Chuck Miller of Belmont Farm Distillery, and Chris Richeson of Chesapeake Bay Distillery. The spirit was blended using rums from three of the distilleries, for an average age of 7½ years, bottled at 105 proof.

VA250 Four Grain Whiskey

Whiskey became more common after colonial times, as farmers grew grains, which could be used to make alcohol. As the new Americans spread out, far from populated area and over rugged roads, distilling the grains created a marketable product that was easier to transport and at less risk of spoilage than the grains themselves. The inland farming heritage honors farmers in the heart of Virginia.

The whiskey was blended by Amanda Beckwith, lead blender at Virginia Distillery Co., and Scott Harris, co-owner of Catoctin Creek Distilling Company. The four-grain whiskey used only Virginia-grown grains and was fermented, distilled, and aged entirely in the commonwealth. The blended spirit uses a bourbon from Ironclad Distillery, a single malt from Virginia Distillery, a rye whiskey from Catoctin Creek, and a wheat whiskey from Reservoir Distillery.

VA250 Botanical Gin

Gin was one of the first spirits to be created specifically for consuming as a pleasurable beverage rather than in a medicinal preparation. When it first came to Virginia in the 17th century, it would have been gin’s predecessor, genever, a Dutch creation.

The collaborative gin was created by head distiller Peter Ahlf and distiller Kimberly Nuckols of Mt. Defiance Cider & Distillery, with blending and distillation support from Haneberg and Morgner.

Their goal was to capture the flavors of Virginia’s mountain regions. Built in the style of traditional London Dry gin, it features Italian juniper (the juniper notes a necessity for any spirit labeled gin), angelica, coriander, orris root, and lemon peel, plus cardamom, cubeb, and aniseed. Complemented with native Virginia notes of pawpaw, rose, sassafras, and sumac, the gin reflects native plants, from mountains to riversides.

Packaging

The packaging underscores the Virginia roots. Norfolk artist Mark Todd created a triptych-style box that visually follows the James River from mountains to coast, each section aligning with one of the spirits. A river-shaped window reveals the bottles, reinforcing the idea of a shared current connecting Virginia’s regions and its distilling tradition.

Only 2,400 sets of the trio pack have been produced. The sets began appearing in select Virginia ABC stores in late March.

The collaboration is a snapshot of Virginia’s distilling community as grounded in tradition, but very much of the moment.