What if I told you that Belmont, a place that was once a “dry town,” is now home to one of the Boston area’s newest distilleries? And not just any distillery — a local, farm-to-bottle distillery that serves Massachusetts Whiskey in their very own storefront. When I first read about the local concept happening at Damnation Alley Distillery, I was intrigued. Not only because of the striking name, but also because of the story behind the whiskey.
The Belmont distillery uses only grains and products from Massachusetts, thus taking the term “local” seriously. And to call it a “micro-distillery” would be an understatement. According to the local distillery’s website, when they say small, they mean “SMALL small… so small that we don’t think there’s an adjective to describe us — Micro-distillery? Nano-distillery? Pico-Distillery? Think smaller.”
The local distillery officially opened for business just last month and is owned and operated by five partners. Two couples — Jeremy and Jessica Gotsch, and Alex and Emma Thurston, as well as a work colleague, Alison DeWolfe. The idea was conceived out of Alex Thurston’s enthusiasm for brewing beer which later grew to include distilling spirits.
For more information about the distillery, we decided to ask them a few questions ourselves. Here’s all you need to know about the new Damnation Alley Distillery.
Why did you decide to open Belmont’s first distillery?
Belmont is where the majority of the owners of Damnation Alley Distillery live. Our philosophy is to support our local economy whenever we can and when a space became available in Belmont, it was a no brainer.
When people see that we’ve opened a distillery in Belmont — a town that was a dry town until 6 years ago — the reaction is usually, “What? Seriously? This is real? Awesome.” Both town hall and the community have been very supportive of the distillery.
Where did the name “Damnation Alley Distillery” come from?
Damnation Alley is the nickname of Boston’s first one-way street that usually had two-way traffic. Because of this traffic pattern, often times loud profanity-laden discussions were heard as travelers used the alley as a short cut to both Quincy Market and business meetings at the Royal Exchange Tavern. Sometimes running a business with five people is a lot like this.
What serves as inspiration for Damnation Alley Distillery’s different flavored vodka and whiskey products?
The inspiration for our spirits is really from the ingredients we use to create them. Our spirits are made solely from grains, produce and herbs grown and produced in Massachusetts. This allows us to be creative with experimentation as seasonal grains and produce will provide us different flavors throughout the year.
Will you be debuting any special spirits for this fall or winter?
One Night in Bangkok, a vodka inspired by Sweet Thai Chili sauce, will be released in mid-November. Ingredients in this vodka include chilies and honey grown and produced locally.
In December, and in time for the holidays, we will be launching our first aged whiskey. This whiskey will be aged for six months in five-gallon barrels.
Where can our readers find your products?
Our spirits are available for purchase exclusively at our distillery located at 7 Brighton Street in Belmont.
