Got the spirit: Bosque Brewing Co. debuts gin, vodka with assist from As Above So Below

Bosque Brewing Company is mixing it up this holiday season with its own vodka and gin line.

“It’s been about a month since we launched,” said Jess Griego, chief operating officer at Bosque Brewing Co. “We’ve been working with As Above So Below (Distillery), which was formerly Altar Spirits in Santa Fe. We’ve been providing them wash, which is basically like prebeer, (and) they distill it into a spirit.”

Bosque currently does not have the room required to distill spirits at its brewing operation at Bosque North in Bernalillo, so it relies on As Above So Below to produce their gin and vodka.

The spirits are currently only available at Bosque taprooms and Restoration Pizza locations. There are plans to expand Bosque spirits’ reach soon.

“We kind of have been launching quietly,” Griego said. “We started with just offering or using the Bosque gin and vodka in our spirits at our taprooms, which is mostly where you can get it. We just recently started selling bottles to take home in the last couple of weeks. The plan, as we continue to ramp up the new spirit program, is to have it wholesale and available at retailers. But, because there’s that extra layer of using a third party to make it for us, we’ve been launching it slowly and just trying to make sure that we don’t create this huge campaign and then all of a sudden we’re out (of spirits). But in January, I’d say, the next phase of Bosque spirits is to start self-distributing them so they’re available in stores.”

There have been conversations with As Above So Below distiller and owner Caley Shoemaker about creating spirits inspired by some of Bosque’s popular beers.

“Caley is a world-class distiller and so it’s just incredible,” Griego said. “We’re really excited to continue working with her and designing new things. We talked about riffing off of popular beers that we have. So maybe being like a pickle vodka or like the (Elephants on Parade). So that’s kind of what we’re hoping to do in the future.”

The focus for now is on the basic base spirits that are easy turnaround timeframe wise and later build upon the spirits. The Bosque vodka gift box is $30, the Bosque gin gift box is $35, and the bundle box with the vodka and gin is $50. The boxes come with Bosque branded glasses.

“I love those boxes,” Griego said. “They’re so beautiful with the cottonwood tree (design) it has. I love it and the evolution of our brand. We’re really happy with how this turned out.”

Bosque’s vodka and gin can also be enjoyed at its taprooms. Bosque has created a winter cocktail menu and offers cold classics with a twist featuring its gin and vodka as well as some spirits from local distillers. Its Honey Lavender Hot Toddy is made with Bosque gin, butterfly pea tea and lavender bitters. The Bosque Cosmo features Bosque vodka, orange liqueur, 1888 Cranberry Seltzer and lime juice.

“We were prebatching in kegs and pouring out of the taps,” Griego said. “And then once we had Bosque vodka and gin available, we moved to handcrafted cocktails. I think that’s another thing that a lot of people don’t necessarily know is that beyond our 20 or so beer offerings that we’ve always had, now we’re also doing handcrafted cocktails or a gin and tonic or whatever with the base spirits that we have … We have moved to handcrafted cocktails with this new product line as well. So that’s been a big change for us and it’s been good.”