America’s history with alcoholic beverages is perhaps one of the most compelling across the globe.
Today, the U.S. produces some of the world’s best wines and whiskeys but it wasn’t always this way. In the 1920s, Prohibition up-ended the entire industry as rickhouses were purged, barrels of wine drained and bars shuttered. After Prohibition was repealed, the industry was built back stronger than ever where spirits emerged as front-runners over the holds that beer and whiskey previously held in the market.
Though Prohibition disrupted the industry, it also redefined the industry — American made became a pursuit by top winemakers and distillers to showcase quality across all categories. Now, American whiskey may be globally renowned, but also, there’s a growing niche for American vodka, gin and rum brands. The only spirit the U.S. doesn’t produce is tequila, strictly because the agave-distillate is a designation of origin product; it can only be made in Tequila, Mexico.
Top 5 American-Made Spirits
With uncertainty of import tax lingering over international trade, there’s never been a better time to peruse your local liquor store and explore more stateside produced spirits. Below, discover some of the most popular labels across five spirits categories, including legacy brands and newcomers.
American vodka is an example of the good that came out of Prohibition as the first U.S. vodka was from a Connecticut-based distillery in 1934. For years, whiskey outpaced vodka as the most popular spirit in the U.S., but in the 1970s, vodka finally surpassed whiskey sales. As demand increased, American producers took advantage of vodka’s popularity by creating a U.S. label to compete with the Russian brands holding the market. Tito’s Handmade Vodka was one of the first to succeed; it launched in 1997 and is still one of the most popular American vodkas on the market. A number of large labels followed, but in the last decade, craft producers have been keeping up with unique releases that offer nuance to traditional vodka.
5 bottles to try: Hanson of Sonoma (produced with grapes in California), Barr Hill Vodka (distilled from raw honey in Vermont), The Community Spirit Vodka (distilled five times and filtered with activated coconut carbon in Indiana), St. George Spirits All Purpose Vodka (made in California), Wheatley Vodka (produced at the Buffalo Trace Distillery, America’s oldest continually-operated distillery).
Vodka sales may have surpassed whiskey as the most popular spirit e in the 1970s, but there’s no denying it’s still the most important U.S.-produced spirit; according to the Distilled Spirits Council, in 2023, American whiskey accounted for 63 percent of all U.S. spirits exports. Maker’s Mark, Michter’s, Bulleit, Woodford Reserve, Buffalo Trace, and Jack Daniel’s are continuously listed on annual bestsellers lists but other favorites include Blanton’s, Angel’s Envy, Uncle Nearest and Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve.
5 bottles to try: Milam & Greene Whiskey (distilled in Texas, aged in rickhouses spread across four states), Wyoming Whiskey National Parks Series (collectible, limited-edition releases that pay homage to rotating National Parks), Brother’s Bond Bourbon (a celebrity-back bottle with purpose that supports regenerative farming), Bardstown Bourbon Collaborative Series (a portfolio of bottles made in partnership with other alcoholic beverages like Blackberry Farm Brewery or Goose Island), Widow Jane Whiskey (small-batch production in Brooklyn, New York).
The British may have introduced Americans to gin (it was especially popular during the 1970 martini era) but it seems the rise of the better-for-you movement has piqued American producers’ interest in the juniper-based spirit for its botanical qualities. There are now a handful of various U.S. gins on the market, using destination-specific ingredients to bottle up a sense of place.
5 bottles to try: Four Corners Gin (uses herbs and botanicals sourced from the four corners of the U.S., from Oregon to Florida), Gray Whale Gin (produced in California with regional ingredients like juniper from Big Sur and Mendocino Coast kombu seaweed), Loch & Union Barley Gin (from an upstart distillery in Napa that’s coriander-forward), Leopold Bros Small Batch Gin (individually-distilled botanicals in Denver), Corsair American Gin (small batch and exclusively vapor-distilled in Nashville).
It’s reported that during the 1600s, American colonists consumed 3.7 gallons of rum annually — per head. Rum was also a popularly bootlegged beverage during Prohibition. In modern times, rum rounds out the top five spirits categories by volume and maintains a steady on-premise presence for its varied qualities it brings to libations. It’s most traditionally associated with Caribbean coastal distilleries like Jamaica and Barbados, but there’s some American expressions from the mainland (and island) that stand up to the best.
5 bottles to try: Privateer Navy Yard Rum (a molasses-based rum made in Massachusetts), Bully Boy Boston Rum (crafted at their Boston distillery from a mix of blackstrap and sweet molasses), Greenbar Distillery Silver Rum (a fresh and grassy expression from the LA-based operation that’s ideal in daiquiris), Kō Hana Rum (you can’t go wrong with their portfolio of agricole rum made on Oahu), Humboldt Spiced Rum (made on California’s northern coast from American sugarcane, infused with organic spices).
American brandy dates back to the early colonial settlers as they distilled fruit from orchards on the west coast. The oldest brandy label still around today is Laird & Company which began distilling its Applejack brandy in 1780 in New Jersey.
5 bottles to try: Laird’s Old Apple Brandy (for something other than their Applejack, this liquid rests for 7.5 years in charred oak barrels), E&J Brandy (another large U.S. brandy company that was established in 1975), Argonaut Fat Thumb (made in California with apple, pear, caramel and oak notes), Germain-Robin XO Brandy (California brandy with a delightful cherry characteristic), Korbel VSOP (one of the various styles of brandy from Sonoma County’s popular sparkling wine brand).