The Brew Daddies

DC Beer’s Richard speaks with John Ustleton, Cofounder of New Columbia Distillery, and Alex Laufer, Head Distiller and Cofounder of One Eight Distilling, to talk about distilling spirits using local DC beers.Made in DC, for the Love of DCNew Columbia and One Eight are located in Ivy City, a small neighborhood in Northeast DC that is also home to DC breweries Atlas Brew Works and The Public Option. They take pride in their city and focus on providing local clientele with a broad range of spirits offerings. New Columbia opened its doors in Ivy City in 2011 as the first of several distilleries to begin operations in DC over the past decade. Its main product line consists of eight gins, all produced under the “Green Hat Gin” label. The Green Hat moniker is a tribute to George Cassiday, a Prohibition-era bootlegger who operated in the Cannon Office Building (House of Representatives) from 1920 until he was arrested in 1925. Soon after his arrest, Cassiday restarted operations in the Russell Office Building (Senate