Made in Jeffersonville, Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin is a love letter to Vermont with its totally delectable Maple Gin made with 100% locally made, pure Vermont Maple Syrup. Vermont is synonymous with maple syrup and maple products, and Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin delivers the magic of the season with its partnership with a local maple sugaring operation. We found the Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin to be a delicious sipping spirit, and easy to use in cocktail and culinary recipes. Father and son team, Ron, and Jeremey Elliot, did an outstanding job in creating this very tasty Maple Gin. Cheers, it’s cocktail time!
We first experienced Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin during a trip to Manchester, Vermont in August 2024, and visited their Tasting Room, where we were introduced to their delicious line of spirits including Vodkas, Bourbons, Gins, Rye, Rum, and more. Founded in 2006 by the father and son team, Ron and Jeremy Eliot, Smugglers’ Notch Distillery’s focus is creating award-winning spirits that celebrate the essence of Vermont. Their Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin is gorgeous to sip on its own, shake with ice and serve Martini style, or use to create a diverse range of cocktails. We also used it to enhance culinary recipes. Instead of picking up one bottle, do yourself a favor, and pick up two bottles, it’s that good.
Product Information: Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin, 45% alcohol by volume, 70 proof. $35.99/750 ml bottle. Distilled and Hand Bottled by Smugglers’ Notch Distillery in Jeffersonville, Vermont.
Bottle Notes: “The name, Smuggler’s Notch, captures the legacy of the smugglers who used this thickly forested rugged mountain pass with its surrounding caves to move goods and liquor from Canada into the United States. Although we don’t need to smuggle anymore, we provide a commodity worthy of the cause. Smugglers’ Notch Distillery is proud to offer Maple Gin, a hand-crafted gin with natural flavor made in small batches from juniper berries, select botanicals, and 100% Pure Vermont Maple Syrup. Our Maple Gin balances light juniper overtones with the rich complexity of maple notes.”
Tasting Notes: The color of Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin is a lovely pale gold. The nose is richly aromatic with hints of sweet maple notes on the nose. On the palate, there are layered nuances of maple, juniper, and botanical notes. Nice viscosity gives this spirit a long, delicious, and lingering finish as well as “long legs.”
Luxury Experience was “In The Kitchen and Behind The Bar®” creating two delicious cocktails and two culinary recipes with Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin to show its versatility. The only limitation is your imagination. Cheers!
Luxury Experience Recipes
The Cocktail Menu
Luxury Experience – Autumn in Vermont
Luxury Experience – New World Meets Old World
The Culinary Menu
Luxury Experience – Gin & Tonic Maple Glazed Shrimp with Kiwi Berries
Luxury Experience – New England Apple Tart
The Cocktail Recipes
Autumn in Vermont is a special time of the year when the leaves don their finest Autumn rich colors of gold, red, and orange, mixed with green that draw visitors from around the world to enjoy their spectacular beauty. Our cocktail, Luxury Experience – Autumn in Vermont, is a celebration of the flavors of Autumn, maple products, apples, and its stunning colors. We combined Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin, with Thompson’s Cider Mill Gold Rush Hard Cider, then drizzled in Select Aperitivo (red), Chartreuse Liqueur (Green), and Aperol (orange), to create a layered cocktail known as a Pousse-Café.
Luxury Experience – Autumn In Vermont
Luxury Experience – Autumn in Vermont
Yield: 1 Cocktail
Glass Used: Martini Glass
Ingredients:
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1.25
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Ounces
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|
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1.50
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Ounces
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|
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0.25
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Ounce
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|
|
0.25
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Ounce
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Chartreuse Liqueur
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0.25
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Ounce
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Aperol
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Method for the Cocktail: Chill Martini glass while you make the cocktail. Combine the Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin, with the Thompson’s Cider Mill Gold Rush Hard Cider. Add 4 ice cubes and stir cocktail to combine and chill the ingredients. Strain into chilled Martini glass. Have the (3) liqueurs in (3) shot glasses and pour all (3) into the cocktail at the same time. Due to the different viscosities, the cocktail will create layers of colors on its own.
We love the mélange of New England (Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin made in Vermont) meeting England (The London Essence Co. Roasted Pineapple Crafted Soda with notes of basil made in the United Kingdom) in our cocktail, Luxury Experience – New World Meets Old World.
Luxury Experience – New World Meets Old World
Luxury Experience – New World Meets Old World
Yield: 1 Cocktail
Glass Used: Rocks Glass
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2.0
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Ounces
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|
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1.75
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Ounces
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|
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Basil Leaves, garnish
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Method for the Cocktail: Mix ingredients in a mixing glass. Pour into an ice-filled rocks glass and garnish with fresh basil leaves.
The Culinary Recipes
Luxury Experience – Gin & Tonic Maple Glazed Shrimp & Kiwi Berry
Luxury Experience – Maple Glazed Gin & Tonic Shrimp with Kiwi Berries
Serves 2
Ingredients:
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8
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Colossal
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Black Tiger Shrimp (13-15 count size), cleaned and deveined
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1
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Tablespoon
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Butter
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1
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Zest
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Lime
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0.50
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Ounce
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|
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0.50
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Ounce
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Tonic Water
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0.25
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Ounce
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Fresh Lime Juice
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1
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Teaspoon
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Vermont Maple Syrup
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8
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Nergi Kiwi Berries, cut in half
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|
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1
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Cup
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Cooked Rice, seasoned with salt and pepper, and butter
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Method for the Shrimp: Heat sauté pan, add some salt and ground black pepper. We like to heat the spices to bring out their flavors. Then add 1 tablespoon of butter, once melted, add the shrimp, zested lime, Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin, and tonic water. Sauté until shrimp are cooked through. Remove shrimp to a bowl and cover to keep warm. Add lime juice and Vermont maple syrup to the pan, cook over medium low heat to reduce the sauce, then add shrimp back in the pan to glaze them, along with the kiwi berries.
Plating Suggestion: Place rice in the center of each plate. Place 4 shrimp and 2 kiwi berries alternating around the rice. Drizzle any remaining pan juices over the rice and scatter fresh parsley over the rice.
Pro-Tip for the Rice: Butter a ring mold or empty tuna can, add half of the rice, pack down, then turn upside down onto each plate for an attractive presentation.
Luxury Experience – New England Apple Tart
Luxury Experience – New England Apple Tart
Yield: One 10-inch Tart
Equipment: 10-inch Removable Bottom Tart Pan and Baking Sheet to hold the Tart Pan
Luxury Experience – New England Apple Tart has three diverse layers to tempt your eyes and your palate. We started with a base of pâte sucrée (sweet pastry dough) to create the tart shell. We topped that with homemade apple butter, a New England favorite, then added a layer of thinly sliced apples, and crowned it with a crumbly mixture of butter, brown sugar, flour, rolled oats, vanilla, and cinnamon, and baked it in the oven until the tart shell was golden. We added an extra New England touch with a drizzle of homemade maple caramel over the top of it to finish it.
While it sounds time consuming, the pastry dough needs to chill for at least 2 hours and can be made a day ahead. The homemade Apple Butter can be made ahead and refrigerated until needed. It is also delicious to spread on toast.
Pâte Sucrée (Sweet Pastry) Ingredients:
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12
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Tablespoons
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Unsweetened Butter (1.5 sticks)
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4
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Tablespoons
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Sugar
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2
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Large
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Egg Yolks
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1.5
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Cups
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Flour
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1
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Pinch
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Salt
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2
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Tablespoons
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|
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2
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Tablespoons
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Heavy Cream
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Method for the Pastry Dough: In a food processor or standing mixer, cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs and beat until smooth. Add flour and salt. Pulse in food processor until mixture is crumbly. Add the Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin and heavy cream, and just process enough until dough comes together.
Note: Do not overwork the dough or it will become tough. Create 2 balls from the dough. Flatten the balls, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Dough can be made 1-day ahead. Dough will be enough to create two 10-inch pastry tarts. You can use dough to create 2 tarts or use 1 and freeze the other dough for another time.
Pro-Tip: The addition of Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin to the dough yields a very flaky and delicious tart shell.
Apple Butter Ingredients:
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4
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Medium
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Apples (Gala works well)
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1
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Ounce
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|
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1
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Ounce
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|
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0.75
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Cup
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Sugar
|
|
1
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Pinch
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Salt
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1
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Teaspoon
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Vermont Maple Syrup
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2
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Teaspoons
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Fresh Lemon Juice
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0.25
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Teaspoon
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Ground Cinnamon
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0.25
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Teaspoon
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Nutmeg
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Method for the Apple Butter: Peel, core, and small dice apples. Four medium apples, small dice will yield 4 cups of apples.
Add diced apples, Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Maple Gin, and Thompson’s Cider Mill Gold Rush Hard Cider to a medium saucepan and cook over medium low heat until apples are tender. Puree cooked apples in a food processor. They should yield 1.5 cups.
Return the pureed apples to the saucepan, then add the sugar, salt, Vermont maple syrup, fresh lemon juice, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Cover and cook for 5 minutes to dissolve the sugar. Uncover and cook over low heat until the mixture is thick, stirring occasionally so that it does not burn. This will take about 30 minutes. Remove from heat, let cool, then store in a glass jar in the refrigerator until ready to use. Can be made ahead of time.
Pro-tip: Peel apples, cut them in half, and use the small end of a melon baller to neatly remove the core.
Crumbly Topping Ingredients:
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8
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Tablespoons
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Unsweetened Butter (1 stick)
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0.25
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Cup
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Dark Brown Sugar
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1
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Cup
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Flour
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1
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Cup
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Rolled Oats
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1
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Teaspoon
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Vanilla
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1
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Teaspoon
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Cinnamon
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0.25
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Teaspoon
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Salt
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Method for Crumbly Topping: Mix all ingredients in a food processor to thoroughly combine.
Tart Assembly: Spray 10-inch removable bottom tart pan with vegetable spray. Roll out dough between lightly flour-dusted parchment paper. Carefully lift the dough into the tart pan. Prick holes in the tart dough with a fork so the dough will not buckle.
Spread a layer of homemade apple butter over the bottom of the tart dough. Place sliced apples in a concentric circle on top of the apple butter. Finish with the crumbly topping.
Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit (177 degrees Celsius) until the pastry is golden. Remove from oven. Let cool slightly on a baking rack. When cool enough to handle, gently remove the tart from the pan and place it on a serving plate. Drizzle tart with Maple Caramel (see recipe below).
Maple Caramel Drizzle Ingredients:
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2
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Ounces
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2
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Ounces
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Vermont Maple Syrup
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2
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Ounces
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Heavy Cream
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Method for the Maple Caramel Drizzle: Add the apple cider and maple syrup to a medium saucepan and bring it to a boil. Let it boil for 2 minutes to reduce. Slowly whisk in the heavy cream and boil until the mixture starts to thicken, for about 2-3 minutes. Drizzle over the baked New England Apple Tart. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Smuggler’s Notch Distillery Line of Excellent Spirits Include:
Vodkas: Smugglers’ Notch Vodka, Smugglers’ Notch Gluten Free Organic Vodka, and Smugglers’ Notch Moroccan Rose and Grapefruit Vodka.
Bourbons: Smugglers’ Notch Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Smugglers’ Notch Maple Bourbon, and Smugglers’ Notch Maple Bourbon Maple Cream Liqueur.
Gins: Smugglers’ Notch Gin Blend 802, Smugglers’ Notch Hopped Gin, and Smugglers’ Notch Maple Gin.
Rye, Rum, and More: Smugglers’ Notch Rye, Smugglers’ Notch Rum, Smugglers’ Notch Maple Cream Liqueur.
Distillery and Tasting Rooms: If you are planning a trip to Vermont, you might like to visit the Smugglers’ Notch Distillery in Jeffersonville, or one of their other Vermont Tasting Rooms in Manchester, Waterbury Center, Burlington, Stowe, and Williston.
Smugglers’ Notch Distillery and Tasting Room – Jeffersonville, Vermont Hours: Open daily from 10:00 am until 6:00 pm.
Please visit their website for more information on Smugglers’ Notch Distillery: https://smugglersnotchdistillery.com/
Read about our visit to the Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Tasting Room in Manchester, Vermont in the Destinations section: Postcards from a Summer Weekend in Manchester VT USA
Read our feature on Smugglers’ Notch Distillery Moroccan Rose and Grapefruit Vodka including great recipes in the Liquor Cabinet section: Smugglers’ Notch Moroccan Rose & Grapefruit Flavored Vodka
Until next time, cheers, it’s cocktail time!
Smugglers’ Notch Distillery & Tasting Room
5087 Vermont Rte. 15
Jeffersonville, Vermont 05464
United States
Telephone: +1-802-760-0619
Email: info@smugglersnotchdistillery.com
Website: https://smugglersnotchdistillery.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/SND_Spirits/
@SND_Spirits
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/smugglersnotchdistillery
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© October 2024. Luxury Experience www.LuxuryExperience.com. All rights reserved.
