29 Aug Cardinal Spirits Nominated For Two “USA Today 10 Best” Awards
Bloomington, Ind. — Cardinal Spirits, the craft distillery in Bloomington, Ind., has been nominated for two of USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards: Best Craft Vodka Distillery and Best Craft Rum Distillery.
image credit: Cardinal Spirits
The distillery’s award-winning, highly-rated spirits were nominated by a panel of spirits experts, and daily voting is open to the public now through Monday, Sept. 23. Winners will be announced on Oct. 4. Co-founder Jeff Wuslich said of the nominations, “Hoosiers know that excellent spirits are being made in their state, and our nomination for USA Today’s 10Best awards lets the rest of the country know it. We’re proud to represent Indiana and we’re proud to distill these spirits. We thank everyone for voting daily.”
Cardinal Spirits distills two vodkas: its signature grape-based vodka is one of the highest-rated craft vodkas in the country, with 93 points from Wine Enthusiast. This was the first product produced and sold by Cardinal (Feb. 2015) and still represents their top selling spirit in the state. Its second vodka, Pride Vodka, is a special bottling of its signature vodka, and Cardinal Spirits donates 10% of proceeds from each bottle to LGBTQ organizations. The first bottling of Pride came soon after the signature vodka was released, in June of 2015. Each of the vodkas are made with the finest white grapes.
Meanwhile, the distillery makes two innovative rums. Tiki Rum, first released in July 2015, is a light rum made from cane juice, light molasses, and deliciously fruity yeast, is one of the highest-rated craft rums in the country, with 92 points and a “Best Buy” rating from Wine Enthusiast. Meanwhile, Lake House Spiced Rum is a spice-forward, dry spirit with citrus and subtle vanilla, crafted on a base of Tiki Rum and first produced in April of 2016.
The Tiki rum is made from sugar cane juice and light molasses, first fermented with a mixture of hefeweizen yeast and a yeast found on wild sugarcane and then distilled. To create the Lake House variety, the Tiki Rum is infused with natural, whole botanical ingredients like orange peel, vanilla and cardamom. Lake House’s dark golden color is due to the natural botanicals used, Cardinal never uses extracts or flavorings. Make sure to join Cardinal Spirits in their tasting room/restaurant on the first Tuesday of every month from 4-10pm for Tiki Tuesdays, with a special menu of tiki-based cocktails.
Voting link for Best Craft Vodka Distillery: https://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-craft-vodka-distillery-2019/
Voting link for Best Craft Rum Distillery: https://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-craft-rum-distillery-2019/
In addition to the award winning and nationally nominated spirits, Cardinal has a full scale restaurant in their tasting room. The menu features upscale snacks and appetizers in addition to seasonal entrees like the current summer risotto with zucchini blossoms and taleggio, and dinner specials like the current Thai-inspired selections. Check out the entire menu, including the Sunday Brunch line up, and make reservations here. Cardinal Spirits says, “It’s the perfect way to show people how cocktails and food go together!” The restaurant has gained local and national attention since opening, including being named #1 on Yelp’s Top 50 Places to Eat in Bloomington, one of the 5 Best Distillery Restaurants in America by Thrillist, and having their chef, Dean Wirkerman, profiled in Bloom Magazine (A Chef Who Gets It Just Right).
About Cardinal Spirits: Cardinal Spirits is the craft distillery, cocktail bar, and restaurant in Bloomington, Ind., known for making award-winning and highly-rated vodkas, gins, rums, botanical liqueurs, and canned cocktails. Our products are available in 12 states and Washington, D.C. Our Terra Botanical Gin has been covered by both The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, and Men’s Journal named us one of the 19 Best Undiscovered Cocktail Bars in America.
banner image credit: Cardinal Spirits
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