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Please read and drink responsibly.
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Classification: American Whiskey
Company: Copperworks Distilling Co.
Distillery: Copperworks Distilling Co.
Release Date: November 2025
Proof: 100
Age: 5 Years
Mashbill: Distilled from ale beer
Color: Bronze
SRP: $60 / 700mL (2026)
Raspberry whipped cream | Pine | Lightly floral | Lemon meringue pie
Caramel | Apricot | Powdered cinnamon | Apple | Dried fruit
Lemon curd | Pie crust | Raw barley | Toasted oak
Copperworks Kilt Lifter Whiskey is a unique American whiskey from Copperworks Distilling Co. that is distilled from an unhopped scotch-style ale, resulting in a flavorful and complex tasting experience.
Copperworks Distilling Co. is a distillery located in downtown Seattle, Washington, and has been operating since 2013. Copperworks focuses primarily on American single malt whiskey. Variables across releases include the variety of barley, aging time, and characteristics of barrels used for aging. For this release, the company took a detour from their usual style of whiskey making. They teamed up with Pike Brewing to craft an American whiskey distilled from an unhopped version of Pike’s Kilt Lifter scotch-style ale. The reasoning for this move was more than pure curiosity. Copperworks Distilling President and Co-founder, Jason Parker, was the original brewmaster at Pike Brewing, and Kilt Lifter was a recipe that Parker helped develop during his tenure.
Distilling beer to make whiskey isn’t new, but far from common. It tends to lead to a distinct flavor with a malty-like quality. Kilt Lifter Whiskey is noticeably darker in color than Cooperworks' standard whiskeys, and while they are still on the light side (compared to bourbons, for example), they are more robust than an American single malt from Copperworks.
Kilt Lifter Whiskey features a wide range of interesting flavor pairings. The aroma starts off with a raspberry whipped cream pushing against pine, floral, and lemon meringue - an unusual pairing. The palate layers in caramel, apricot, powdered cinnamon, apple, and dried fruit. The finish offers lemon curd, baked pie crust, raw barley, and toasted oak. On paper, this all sounds strange, but in application, it works exceedingly well.
With so many whiskeys released in a given year, sometimes one that mixes things up is a beautiful breath of fresh air. Distilling beer can easily result in odd flavor pairings that simply don't work. Kilt Lifter Whiskey bucks that and results in a whiskey that is flavorful without being overbearing, and unique without being strange.
