Calistoga Depot Distillery, owned by vintner Boisset Collection, has debuted a new spirits lineup that includes whiskeys, brandy, gin, and vodka, with rum to come. KURT GONZALEZ
There’s a new crop of whiskeys out of California’s Napa Valley region to bring some excitement to your American whiskey assortment.
Boisset Collection—owner of the California wineries Buena Vista Winery, DeLoach Vineyards, Elizabeth Spencer, JCB by Jean-Charles Boisset, and Raymond Vineyards, and the U.S.-based outpost of family-owned Boisset, La Famille des Grands Vins—has launched a spirits portfolio under the Calistoga Depot Distillery moniker, with most of the focus on whiskey.
Jean-Charles Boisset, vintner and proprietor of the Boisset Collection, purchased the historic Calistoga Depot in Calistoga, California in 2021. The depot was built by entrepreneur Samuel Brannan in 1868 and is the second-oldest train depot in the state. This newly restored landmark includes a gourmet grocery and, now, a copper-clad distillery tasting room offering ultra-premium, barrel-aged, and wine cask-finished spirits.
Calistoga Depot Distillery tapped local California distillers for this project, including Ashby Marshall, master distiller for Fame & Misfortune and Calistoga Depot Distillery 1868, and Crispin Cain, master distiller for Prosperous & Penniless, among other distillers contributing to the collection. All of the spirits are distilled in California, and many of the ingredients are sourced within the state, with some coming from other areas outside of California, including rye from Canada.
Calistoga Depot Distillery’s spirits portfolio includes numerous whiskeys:
The First Millionaire line of 100% malted barley whiskeys is a nod to Brannan, who was the first millionaire in San Francisco, making his fortune selling mining equipment during the Gold Rush in 1848. The whiskeys under this label are:
- American Barley, 45%, $75, which is aged four years in French oak wine casks from Buena Vista Winery in Napa Valley.
- Sacramento Single Malt, 46.5%, $125, featuring malted barley sourced from Sacramento, California, and aged in new charred American white oak 70-gallon barrels.
Fame & Misfortune is a collection of rye whiskeys all made with 65% California-grown organic rye and 35% malted grains sourced from other states and inspired by the 19th-century bohemian temptress Lola Montez. They include:
- Cask Strength Straight Rye, 60.5%; $150, which is aged seven years in new charred American white oak.
- Rye Finished in Port Casks, 48%, $150, which is aged seven years total with six years and five months in new charred American white oak and finished seven months in Buena Vista Winery Port casks.
- Rye Finished in Cream Sherry Casks, 46.5%, $150, which is aged seven years total with six years and five months in new charred American white oak and finished seven months in Buena Vista Winery cream sherry casks.
- Rye Finished in Angelica Casks 45%, %150, which is aged seven years total with six years and five months in new charred American white oak and finished seven months in Angelica French oak casks, a dessert wine made specifically for Buena Vista Winery.
Prosperous & Penniless refers to Brannan’s history of both great success and financial ruin and pays homage to the Calistoga Distillery he founded more than 150 years ago. This collection includes a barrel-aged gin ($200), plus:
- Rye Malt, 44.6%, $300, featuring 93% rye malt whiskey (distilled in 2013 and 2014), 7% wheat malt whiskey (distilled in 2010, 2011, and 2012) and aged 24-30 months in new Bourbon barrels before being transferred to used cognac barrels made from Limousin oak, then finished in used Buena Vista cabernet sauvignon wine barrels for an average of 10 years.
- Bourbon, 46.1%, $250, featuring 65% corn, 20% malted barley, 15% malted rye and aged six years total in bourbon barrels from Missouri and finished in used Cabernet Sauvignon wine barrels from Buena Vista Winery.
In addition, the Calistoga Depot collection includes The Calistoga Star (named for the San Francisco newspaper Brannan founded), a line of barrel-aged brandies ($75-$400) that are a nod to Brannan’s love of distilling brandy, and Calistoga Depot Distillery 1868, a selection of gin ($75), vodka ($75), and rum (still to come) that’s only available at the distillery and pays tribute to the year the depot was founded.
If you’re local to Napa Valley, the launch of Calistoga Depot Distillery’s spirits portfolio begins with a limited series of masterclass tasting events taking place at the distillery. The first was on October 26, and two more are scheduled for November 16 and December 7. These local events will be followed by a national launch in retail locations, bars, and restaurants, beginning in California and Texas and expanding nationwide next year. The Fame & Misfortune and Prosperous & Penniless whiskeys are available at calistogadepot.com and can ship to most states.
