Searching for Rum - Connecticut
Contributed by on Sep 04, 2015
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I slid down the guide here at Rick The Rum Runner and found the first state that had no Distillers was Connecticut. So this is where I begin my search. In that search I found a little bit about the area. So to date, here is what I found.
According to Bottle Society, a web page that tries to list the Distillers in each state, there are 6 Distillers in Connecticut. The very first is one I found and its not in that listing. Here are the ones I found with a bit of background:
Connecticut Valley Distillery.   
They have a rum Smuggler's Rum, so this will be followed up upon and we will see what they have to offer. This wasn't in the Bottle Society listings.... So I continue to search:
Westford Hill Distillers 
Looks very nice, but, no Rum (Vodka & Rye)
Elm City Distillery
No Rum Mentioned.
Onyx Spirits
No Rum (mostly Moonshine)
Maple Lane Spirits
Not Much info
Appstraw Brandies Distillery
Appears to be Brandies only
Buon Cello
Italian Style Cream Liqueurs. (No Rum) 
So there you have it -- One Rum in the State!!! If I am wrong -- please anyone who knows of other Distillers in Connecticut - please let me know EMAIL. 
Here is a bit of a preview of Smuggler's Rum (Connecticut Valley Distillery)....
Welcome to Connecticut Valley Distillery. We hope you’ll take a brief journey through our
website and learn about the spirits that we make and our small batch production methods.
  Our spirits are hand-crafted from start to finish in small batches  using only the finest ingredients and hands-on techniques. Our copper  pot still began legally producing spirits in Connecticut in the 1990’s.
We  take our time, carefully watching over every step of the spirit making  process. This allows us to fine-tune a delicious spirit beverage that  harkens back to a time well before mass production, a time when quality  and flavor were of greatest importance. Our team always puts the quality  of our spirits first. We hope that you will agree that it makes a  difference in taste and complexity.
 At Connecticut Valley Distillery,  we are passionate about our product and inspired to bring to you, our  friends, a remarkable spirit beverage not experienced in Connecticut for  many generations.
Smuggler's Rum
The  Molasses  Act of 1733 threatened the colonies with economic ruin,  taxing the raw  products used to make the most popular beverage of the  day. The tax was  strongly opposed by the New England colonists who  turned to smuggling to  avoid paying the unfair tax which was designed  to eliminate the source  of molasses (the raw material needed for rum  production) and destroy the  New England rum industry. Two hundred years  later, the prohibition era  similarly gave rise to bands of skillful  smugglers who supplied all  tiers of New England  society with spirits to  help them cope with the hardships of lean  times. Many plied their trade  by the light of the moon, supporting  their families with their stealthy  pursuits. Just as in colonial times,  smuggling effectively cancelled the  intended consequences of the law.
Smuggler’s Rum  was created to pay homage to those smugglers who kept the rum industry   alive. This premium white rum represents the dreams of owner Rich  Gummoe  who studied distilling with Kris Berglund of Michigan State  University  and Christian Carl, one of the oldest producers of German  distillation  systems. Driven to know more about fermentation, Gummoe  was one of two  students from the United States to be accepted to live  and learn from a  producer of fine Sake in Japan.  
  Gummoe’s skillful blending of pure spring waters gives Smuggler’s Rum  the crisp notes of New England.
I will search deeper and report back -- I will continue to seek other distillers not listed in guides. Till then. ... 



