One gold medal and two silver medals were brought back to Nova Scotia from the Taster’s Guild International Spirits Competition in Grand Rapids, Mich., by Andrew Shelswell, distiller at Jost Vineyards in Malagash.
The winning spirits are Jost Yellow Plum Eau de Vie (Gold Medal), Jost Red Plum Eau de Vie (Silver Medal) and Jost Muscat Grappa (Silver Medal).
Shelswell, delighted with the wins explains, “These spirits were distilled in 2008 and we knew then that we had some great products. Everything is Nova Scotia grown with the yellow and red plums coming from the farm of David Bowlby, Aylesford, in the Annapolis Valley and the Grappa was made from the skins of our Eagle Tree Muscat grapes.”
The still was installed at the winery in March of 2008 and has been busy ever since.
Shelswell pointed out that distilling is very popular in Germany with over 30,000 licensed distilleries in that country, mostly producing fruit type vodkas or as they call it, schnapps, which is often enjoyed after dinner as a digestif.
He added that the village in the Black Forest where his still was built has 600 residents and 100 licensed distilleries.
Both Shelswell and Jost Vineyards owner, Hans Christian Jost, believe that distilling has a great future in Nova Scotia and the Maritimes. Jost noted that just last week Pierre Guevremont and Lynne MacKay of Ironworks Distillery in Lunenburg started their new still and invited Shelswell to partake in a workshop with master distiller Frank Deiter.
“We find there is camaraderie amongst distillers, where we try to help each other, including everyone at Glenora in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia’s oldest and most established distillery.”
Jost added, “We were concerned about the licensing and taxation issues of dealing with spirits as compared to wine but found that everyone at Excise Canada and the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation was most helpful with a shared sense of excitement about this project.”
Jost believes that there is room for a number of Nova Scotia distilleries that can promote Nova Scotia grown spirits in the same way as Nova Scotia wines are often promoted together through the Winery Association of Nova Scotia.
Jost spirits can be purchased at the Jost Winery store in Malagash, Bishop’s Cellar in Halifax and a number of fine restaurants.