Berkshire Mountain Distillers & Samuel Adams Collaborate On Two Lanterns American Whiskey

Today, Berkshire Mountain Distillers (BMD) announces the release of Two Lanterns American Whiskey, the highly anticipated whiskey that is the result of a groundbreaking four-year collaboration with Samuel Adams.

BMD crafted this one-of-a-kind premium whiskey by triple distilling Samuel Adams flagship Boston Lager at BMD’s distillery in Great Barrington, MA, followed by years of barrel aging in vintage bourbon barrels.  While BMD is well known for aging spirits in used craft beer barrels, Two Lanterns is the first whiskey distilled with Samuel Adams’ Boston Lager. It took nearly 25,000 gallons of Boston Lager to produce the 1000 gallons of Two Lanterns available for purchase, so this whiskey is a truly unique and rare find.

"After anxiously waiting for more than four years, we are excited to finally share the fruits of our teamwork for craft whiskey and beer lovers to enjoy," said Berkshire Mountain Distillers founder Chris Weld. "Two Lanterns American Whiskey is truly a labor of love and we had a lot of fun working with Jim and the Sam Adams team."

The whiskey’s name was inspired by the two lanterns lit at Old North Church in Boston in 1775 that signaled to the Sons of Liberty that the British were coming by sea to Lexington and Concord to capture Samuel Adams and John Hancock and hang them as traitors. The alert launched the American Revolution, much like the creators of Two Lanterns have revolutionized the craft beer and whiskey industries. Jim Koch brewed the first batch of Samuel Adams Boston Lager in his kitchen in 1984 using his grandfather’s recipe, creating a full-flavored beer that propelled the craft beer movement. BMD’s innovation in craft spirits began in 2007 and its work in craft beer barrel-aged whiskey – and now distilled beer – has built a bridge between two highly sought-after craft beverages: whiskey and beer.

"After barrel aging for over four years, we can’t wait for drinkers to finally have the chance to enjoy Chris’ Two Lanterns whiskey distilled with Boston Lager," said Jim Koch, Samuel Adams founder and brewer. "Chris is doing a lot of really cool things and it was fun and interesting for us to see how the ingredients and flavor in the beer influenced the final whiskey."

The distilled Samuel Adams Boston Lager has distinct notes of malt and piney hop flavors. The lager was aged for four years in vintage bourbon barrels, creating a smooth whiskey with sweet fruity esters and a very slight bitterness from the Noble hops. Once fully emptied, the American oak barrels used for aging the whiskey will make the trip back to the Samuel Adams Boston Brewery, where they will be used for a yet-to-be-named barrel-aged beer. 

Throughout the months of November and December, Chris Weld and BMD will hold over 40 tasting events for Two Lanterns American Whiskey. For more information on the locations, visit berkshiremountaindistillers.com.

Availability: Beginning the week of October 31^st, Two Lanterns American Whiskey (SRP: $120) will be available for purchase at select liquor stores, bars and restaurants in Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey and Georgia.