Distillery Row Tour – Portland, OR

A few weekends ago I had THE most scrumptious cupcakes at a girl’s night party. I soon discovered the source of these heavenly little cakes…a cute shop located in the Pearl District called Saint Cupcake. The weekend before Valentine’s Day I found their website and happened to take a look at their blog. They had a posting for a “Valentine’s Day Distillery Tour” hosted by Willamette Week. The tour promised a pedi-cab powered tour down Distillery Row and yummy treats (include Saint Cupcakes!). We were sold!

My boyfriend and I, along with another couple, met at the Jupiter Hotel where the tour began. Our tour consisted of five hand-craft distilleries in northeast Portland including:

House Spirits – 2025 SE 7th Ave
House Spirits was our first stop on the tour. Here we were given an informative tour while snacking on some organic appetizers from The Farm Cafe including some sweet and spicy hazelnuts. We sipped on a variety of hand craft spirits in their tasting room which was lined with shelves full of apothecary style bottles. My favorite spirit here was Medoyeff Vodka, a Russian inspired vodka with a smooth finish.

New Deal Distillery – 1311 SE 9th Ave
Our next stop at New Deal Distillery brought the heat…literally. When we arrived we were served some delicious spicy mac and cheese from Le Bistro Montage (best known to me for their tin-foil leftover creations). To calm the heat we sipped on some of their sweet liqueurs until we were ready to tackle their Gold Winning Pepper Infused Vodka, otherwise known as Hot Monkey. We drank it with a little pineapple juice which provided the perfect mix…sweet then heat. If you like it hot, you’ll love this spirit!

Integrity Spirits – 909 SE Yamhill St.
Integrity is known for introducing one of the first absinthes, called Trillium, to Oregon. Showcased in a beautiful bottle, this milky green substance is said to cause hallucinations and conjure a green fairy. Our fun and kooky hosts served us Saint Cupcakes as well as several samples of Trillium and their 12 Bridges gin with hints of cucumber and juniper. The Trillium was slowly prepared in its own absinthe fountain and served in shots.

Highball Distillery – 610 SE 10th Ave
While the rest of the distilleries up until this point served straight shots, Highball Distillery served us some spectacular cocktails alongside rich truffles from Missionary Chocolates. Our bartender promised to e-mail me some of his delightful recipes so I will be sure to share them when I receive them. My favorite spirit here was the Vanilla Vodka.

Artisan Spirits/Gnostalgic Spirits- 1227 SE Stark St.
Here we sampled another one of Oregon’s first absinthes made by Gnostalgic Spirits as well as a delicious honey vodka called Apia. It was a great ending to our tour! Thank you to Willamette Week and the pedi cabs from Portland Rose Pedals for putting on such a wonderful event!

For anyone that would like a taste of Portland’s hand-craft spirits the Jupiter Hotel offers some Distillery Row Tour packages or if you live in the area you can grab a few friends and create your own tour!

Posted by: Denise Angvick on Denise’s Dish