TWO NEW PRODUCTS AT STONE BARN
The first two new product releases of 2013 are out:
For the Whiskey enthusiasts, Hoppin’ Eights Barrel #8 is bottled. It’s an 100% organic spelt, grown in Washington State, from Bob’s Red Mill. It was aged for 18 months in a used French Oak barrel that had previously held a whiskey. There are a total of 47 bottles (750 ml) produced.
Our second release is a Nocino– a green walnut liqueur spiced with clove, vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon. We didn’t pick the walnuts on the feast day of St. John the Baptist (June 24th) as is traditional in Italy- we waited a month and picked them in July on Parrot Mountain on the property of our friends Bill and Helen Bach. Pictured below is my colleague Randy, up in the fragrant tree, searching for the nuts that smelled surprisingly like fresh bay leaf.
I have learned that the fresh walnuts, when sliced, have a yellow juice that quickly stains very black. This caused me to travel to Canada on a business trip with with oddly discolored hands the following day. Enjoy the mid-winter fragrance of the Nocino as a digestif or as you would a coffee liqueur in mixed drinks.