Matchbook Distilling Late Embers Sunchoke + Honey

Matchbook Distilling Co. is an experimental distillery located in Greenport, NY, that draws inspiration from the intersection of agricultural anthropology, scientific innovation, and the multifaceted role of plants as food, medicine, and the source of perfume, flavor, and human pleasure. At the heart of it all is the firm belief that healthy soils produce the healthiest - and tastiest - ingredients. Co-founder Leslie Merinoff happens to have distilling in her blood - as a direct descendant of Hiram Walker, the 19th century American whiskey mogul who created Canadian Club during his work in Canada. But this small, diverse distillery eschews empire building for a firm focus on local agriculture, with each bottling seeking to capture their fascination with the natural world into a tasty snapshot by sourcing herbs and produce from nearby farms.

Sunchokes are a knobbly, gnarled looking root vegetable (tuber) that thrive in our northeastern climate. (These perennials can grow so well in fact, that they can easily take over a planting bed - something garden centers and nurseries warn about!) An interesting botanical fact: sunchokes, like agave, consist of chains of fructose molecules, known as inulin. Since yeast can’t actually digest inulin, the molecules need to be broken down first. In Oaxaca, mezcal is made by smoking and roasting agave hearts, or piña, in large pits, which steam the piña, thereby breaking down the inulin into fermentable sugars (hydrolysis). Inspired by mezcal production, Matchbook built a fire and roasted 1800 lbs of local, organic sunchokes, burning wet burlap sacks alongside to build steam and smoke in the process. Fermentation was assisted by the addition of inulinase (an enzyme grown by aspergillus, the mold used to inoculate grains for koji in sake and soy sauce production) to make sure all the inulin was broken down, and the fermentation itself took place with the use of champagne yeast, water, and honey, and lasted a week. After that, the mash was transferred to the still, run through the pot and column, and collected into a demi where it rested. The final result: earthy, smoky, full bodied, and nuanced, with notes of black pepper, rose, wet earth, pear, grass, and freshly cut lumber. In short - totally compelling! Mezcal lovers: take note!