Craft Cocktails at Sangfroid Distilling? Yes, please!

By Community Contributor (in so many ways!) Krissi Humbard:

Music to our ears: Another cocktail spot is coming soon to the Route 1 corridor! Sangfroid Distilling, which produces craft spirits in downtown Hyattsville, will soon be serving hand-crafted cocktails at its production location.

Hyattsville's Sang Froid Distilling soon serving cocktails!

Looking forward to tasting Sangfroid’s Grimes Golden Apple Brandy!

Lucky for us, this means that soon we’ll be able to sip cocktails in Sangfroid’s tasting room as we decide which concoctions to recreate at home!

Cocktails at Sangfroid Distilling

The Maryland General Assembly recently passed a bill allowing counties to create a cocktail permit for distilleries, which allows them to sell mixed cocktails for on-premise consumption. The two owners of Sangfroid jumped at the chance to apply, natch.

“This legislation is a major step forward for the distillery industry in Maryland,” said co-owner Nate Groenendyk. “In the same manner that most people want to be able to drink a pint of beer at a brewery or have a glass of wine at a winery, many of our customers want us to serve our spirits in the way that they are likely to drink it, which is in cocktail form.”

Hyattsville’s Got a New Cocktails Spot!

This is good news for you, the cocktail lover and local biz supporter. Soon enough, you’ll be able to sip cocktails that highlight Sangfroid’s spirits to help you decide which concoctions you’d like to recreate at home. And Sangfroid is working with local firm Green Owl Design to redesign the tasting room and add more seating.

It’s also good news for small distilleries like Sangfroid. Groenendyk says that this new law puts Maryland distilleries on even footing with distilleries from other states and districts that have been allowed to serve cocktails for years.

Artisinal Distillery with Fruit-to-Glass Approach

Sangfroid Distilling is a small, artisanal distillery owned by Groenendyk and partner Jeff Harner that takes a fruit-to-glass approach and focuses on fruit-based brandies, Dutch-style gins, and Maryland rye whiskey.

All of their products are made in their distillery in the SoHy area of Hyattsville, using fruit grown in their own orchard in western Maryland and grains from Maryland farmers.

Grimes Golden Old Fashioned

The guys behind the bar are still working out the details of which cocktails they’ll serve and what the price range will be. But trust us, you’ll want to try whatever they come up with. Groenendyk said one likely cocktail would be a Grimes Golden Old Fashioned, made with their apple brandy.

Fun side note: The single-variety Grimes Golden apple brandy is made from apples Groenendyk and Harner picked from unsprayed trees in their orchard. They said they wanted to showcase the Grimes for a couple reasons: First, it was discovered as a seedling not too far away from their orchard in West Virginia in the early 1800s, which makes it one of the oldest American varieties still grown today. Second, it has been a very popular variety for making cider and brandy because it has high sugar content (more alcohol!), great flavor, sharp acids, and the tree produces a reliable crop of apples every year.

Rye Whiskey, Dutch-style Gin and Apple Brandy

Sangfroid is currently offering rye whiskey, Dutch-style gin, and apple brandy for sale. You can pop in for a tour and tasting each weekend from 1-5 p.m. They’ll start offering their pear eau de vie (a fancy way of saying unaged fruit brandy) again in the next week or so, just in time for Thanksgiving.