They will drink to that
Still Fired Distilleries making top-quality spirits
Moonshine has a bit of an image problem. This spirit has long had a popular perception of being, well, perhaps a little rough around the edges — a beverage for the less-discriminating gentleman or lady.
Since 2015, Still Fired Distilleries in Annapolis Royal has been giving moonshine a major re-branding.
“We wanted to prove that we can make a great tasting moonshine that everyone can enjoy,” says Still Fired Distilleries co-owner Andrew Cameron.
Fresh pressed local apple cider is added to the company’s Valley-made moonshine to create the delicious Granny’s Apple Pie Moonshine.
“It was our main product out of the gate, and it set us apart from other distilleries,” Cameron recalls. “There were no moonshine distilleries in Canada when we started.”
Before launching the company, co-founders Cameron and Owen Ritchie both worked as commercial divers, welding and inspecting tankers, cruise ships, military vessels, and underwater structures.
“We worked hard and liked to indulge in libations at the end of a day,” Cameron recalls.
But they quickly grew tired of the range of spirits then available. So, they decided to make their own. They purchased a 20-litre hobby still and went to work, initially giving away most of their product.
“It was just a hobby, but we were super passionate about it,” Cameron recalls. “We were spending so much time on it, while still working our day jobs, that we decided we had to either shut it down or move forward with it.”
Move forward they did, and Still Fired Distilleries was launched in June 2015, as just the third craft distillery to open in the province. By that time, Cameron and Ritchie had already put their welding skills to good use, creating Kirby, the first legal still to be designed and constructed in Nova Scotia.
“We did a lot of research on the chemistry of distilling, and Kirby was designed to be interchangeable,” Cameron explains.
Kirby can be easily transformed from a pot still for making rum and whiskies to a reflux or column still to create pure, high-proof product for spirits like vodka, gin, and moonshine.
“We had Kirby for the first year, and then we built our second still, Morgan, and we’re currently running both stills.”
A range of moonshine flavours are available, including Big Buck Cinnamon, Three Sheets to the Wind, White Molasses, Night Owl Coffee, Rapture of the Deep Dark Molasses, Root Beer and Strawberry Rhubarb. In addition to moonshine, the company’s products include Thai Chili Vodka, Vanilla Bean Vodka, Fundy Gin, and Amber Rum.
Still Fired Distilleries sources local ingredients, including honey, maple syrup, apples, and peppers.
“The Annapolis Valley provides all sorts of fantastic ingredients for making alcohol,” Cameron notes. “So, it makes it very easy for us to buy local.”
As a company based in the Annapolis Valley, it’s fitting that Still Fired Distilleries’ signature product is Granny’s Apple Pie Moonshine. Helen Ritchie, grandmother of coowner Owen Ritchie, is an award- winning baker from the area, renowned for her apple pie.
“When we started doing this as a hobby, Owen asked for her apple pie recipe,” Cameron recalls. “We took the recipe and turned it into a moonshine cocktail. She gave it her blessing, and that’s when it became Granny’s Apple Pie Moonshine.”
“The Annapolis Valley provides all sorts of fantastic ingredients for making alcohol … So, it makes it very easy for us to buy local.”
Andrew Cameron
Still Fired Distilleries