"Great whiskey isn't made. It's grown." ~Whiskey Acres
February 1, 2020
Welcome to January's MacMomma and MacDaddy's Monthly Date Night! We tried a new place called Whiskey Acres - Illinois' 1st estate distillery - on the Walters Farm in DeKalb, IL. Now grant it, DeKalb is a little on the outer edges of the coverage area, but this was a really fun date night and not that hard on the wallet - two important boxes that need to be checked to qualify as a great date night and make it worthy to be shared with all of you. Besides, I'm a NIU Alumni ... Go Huskies!
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I had heard a lot about Whiskey Acres in DeKalb, but we had never made the trek out there to see it for ourselves yet. So, when a friend invited us to her 50th Birthday party being held there, we were a definite YES! MacDaddy is a bourbon man, so of course he was on board from the beginning.
It was very cold and snowy the night we went, but once we entered the tasting room (which they refer to as the Visitors Center and opened at the beginning of 2019) it was warm and inviting with a beautiful stone fireplace in the center of it all. The rest of the Center has areas of hi-top tables and stools, some regular tables and chairs, and some more casual seating areas with couches and coffee tables. They really thought-out the open-concept theme making it suitable for couples, small groups of friends, or even larger groups that can spread out and visit. And, they of course have a traditional bar for individual seating as well. They also have amazing outdoor seating available during the better weather months ... and we will definitely be going back to partake in that experience as well. No reservations are needed, but they do suggest you call ahead if you're going to be coming with a group of 8 or more.
If you're new to Whiskey Acres (as we were) you can opt to take the tour (which we did). For $10, you get an awesome tour of the distillery, a video showcasing the development of the business, and 3 tastings of their spirits and souvenir shot glass all presented by an awesome tour guide. It's quite the deal and makes for a really fun date night experience. If you're not new, you know that you can go and just have a fun night and enjoy some amazing libations. (We've included a couple of recipes at the bottom of this article of our two favs. )
So what makes Whiskey Acres so different from other distilleries? First of all, they grow their own crops of wheat, corn, and rye to produce the whiskey. Second, they are a sustainable farm (they grow the grains, have a field of solar panels to run most the operations, and recycle processing water that originates from their own on-site wells from the limestone below the farm, whiskey barrels for other uses such as maple syrup production, and give the mash to other local farms to feed cattle). Third, they have been a family-owned and operating farm since the 1930's that has also been distilling since the late-1800s. And fourth, they brought in the best of the best, Dave Pickerell - former master distiller for Maker's Mark, to consult and train them to develop a world-class distillery and make world-class bourbon. It was that go big or go home mentality that has made Whiskey Acres the success it is today.
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Another fun aspect to the Whiskey Acres experience is that you can bring your own food. They do not serve food, aside from some peanuts in empty whiskey bottles - which I thought was clever, but you can bring your own munchies with you. Since we were there for birthday party, everyone brought a little something to share and we ended up having quite the spread. Not to mention, birthday cake!
Now you may be saying where does the family fun come in to all of this? This is Macaroni Kid after all, so you know we're going to include a little family fun, too. During the better weather months, especially, they want families to be able to come and enjoy the farm as well. That is why they encourage people to bring their families out to enjoy some fresh country air and time together. They have beautiful open areas where you can throw out a big blanket and enjoy a picnic and play some yard games. They also have a grill on the patio area if you'd like to bring your own steaks, burgers, hot dogs, etc. to cook there. You can truly make a day of it.
And last but not least, you can rent their facilities Monday - Thursday from 9am - 9pm for business meetings or parties, family gatherings, adult birthday parties, or whatever other event you can think of. All of the details can be found on their website.
Want to win a Date Night of your own? Enter to win 1 of 2 prize packages each consisting of 2 tour passes, a Whiskey Acres baseball hat, and a Whiskey Acres stocking cap by clicking HERE or on the image below. This giveaway, which is sponsored by Whiskey Acres, will run Jan. 28 through Feb. 10, 2020. Good Luck!
Below are a couple of recipes for two of the popular drinks they serve that feature the amazing bourbon made at Whiskey Acres ... and that we particularly enjoyed. 😊
BOURBON SLUSH
9 cups water, divided
3 black tea bags
2 cups sugar
2 cans of frozen lemonade concentrate
1 can of frozen orange juice concentrate
2 cups of Whiskey Acres Bourbon
Ginger Ale for a splash finish
In a small saucepan, bring 2 cups of water to boil. Add tea bags and allow to seep for 10 minutes. Discard teabags. Stir in sugar until completely dissolved.
In large container, combine tea/sugar mixture, lemon and orange juice concentrates, water and bourbon.
Pour into a flat Tupperware container and freeze for 4-6 hours, or over night if possible. Serve using an ice cream scoop. Top with a splash of ginger ale.
BOURBON N BLUES
2-oz. Whiskey Acres Straight Bourbon
6-oz. Lemonade (use the good stuff)
Tbsp of Blueberry Syrup
Blueberries for garnish
Fill glass with ice and add the bourbon. Swirl in the blueberry syrup. Add lemonade. Stir will. Garnish with blueberries.
To check out our fun date night, click HERE!
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