Meet your new favorite summer cocktail.
We lean on cliches for a reason: they’re often true. So, yes, we really are finally seeing ‘the light at the end of the tunnel.’ ‘Better days’ truly are ahead. And thanks to Better Man Distilling Company in Patchogue, better spirits await us, too.
Founded by Anthony Gruppuso, Better Man Distilling Co. moved into the space formerly occupied by Blue Point Brewing Company in January 2019 and began distilling in August of that year. It wasn’t until September 2020, however, amid the global pandemic, that Better Man opened the doors of its tasting room. A gutsy move for any business faced with the unknown and the unimaginable—but luckily for all of us, gutsy moves are something of a Gruppuso family tradition.
“Opening a distillery has been my dad’s dream for about 10 years now; he’s like a dog with a bone when it comes to passion,” says Abby Gruppuso, Anthony’s daughter and Better Man Distilling’s Head of Operations. “And it’s taken us a long time to get here, but we did. We released six products in the height of the pandemic. Once we opened our tasting room, it didn’t seem to matter that we were still at the height of Covid; people loved it. They would come and safely sit outside. We did an adult lemonade stand and virtual bar crawls—and we’re just getting started.”
This summer, Better Man Distilling Co. will release a new summer seasonal product, a local, 11-days-old limoncello. Their first batch of rye whiskey will arrive a little later, in either late summer or early fall of this year.
In the meantime, enjoy this appropriately ‘better’ cocktail recipe from the team at Better Man to whet your appetite. Cheers!
Black Panther
Ingredients:
- 2 oz Elysian Fields Lavender Gin
- 1 oz pineapple juice
- 3/4 oz lemon juice
- 3/4 oz simple syrup
- 3/4 oz cream of coconut
Method:
Combine all ingredients except the Lavender Gin in a shaker with ice. Shake until chilled. Pour into a rocks glass filled with ice. Top with Lavender Gin and garnish with mint.
