For a brewmaster, it’s exciting to forge new paths, as Monday Night Brewing’s Peter Kiley has done by curating a line of spirits for the company’s taprooms.
The Sneaky Pete spirits are launching Feb. 3 at Monday Night Brewing West Midtown and Monday Night Garage in the West End. The brewery’s bourbon, gin, rum, rye and vodka will be featured in cocktails developed by mixologist Tiffanie Barriere.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
“The name alludes to what this program has been,” said Kiley, who learned about distilling while continuing his brewmaster duties.
After studying chemistry at the University of Georgia, he made his way to Napa Valley, working in a number of vineyards. He became a certified sommelier, and later was assistant winemaker at Chateau Elan in Georgia.
He joined Monday Night Brewing in 2013 and worked in nearly every position before becoming brewmaster in 2018.
To make Sneaky Pete, he takes spirits from vetted partners and puts his own spin on them, adding botanicals, aging and blending.
“Liquor has been personally exciting,” he said. “My favorite thing is to get to practice and understand principles of alcohol production, leaning on my experience and having great partners.”
Straight pours are available at the taprooms. The American dry gin is infused with hand-selected botanicals — juniper, coriander and lightly sweet citrus peels might jump out at you. The vodka is triple-filtered through charcoal, and has a silky finish. The seven-year Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey is laced with oak, vanilla, clove and a toffee finish. The six-year rye is a straightforward profile, with whiffs of toasted oak, dark chocolate and clove. Kiley described the barrel-aged dark rum as velvety, made with a blend from Trinidad and Barbados and aged in American oak barrels.
Barriere came up with a collection of cocktails that enhances each spirit.
“It was such a wonderful opportunity to get to learn from her ... how she tapped into things,” Kiley said, adding that Barriere designs and implements flavors “in a way that feels like it has never been done. We are so fortunate to be able to showcase her talents.”
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
“Working with the Monday Night team was super exciting,” said Barriere, who is known as the Drinking Coach. “Peter has a flavorful portfolio, using quality ingredients, and each bottle has a unique quality to work with. It was valuable for me to keep fresh ingredients to mix the cocktails with, to make them clean and properly balanced, and to continue to reflect both Monday Night’s and my style of classic, yet sharp, pronounced flavors.”
The menu includes a blue gin fizz, using house-made blueberry puree coupled with lemon. Another cocktail showcases the ultrasmooth vodka with house-made basil-infused honey. And, an Old-Fashioned adds house-made Japanese brown sugar syrup to the classic.
Monday Night Brewing was founded in Atlanta in 2006, and its beers can be found in Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama and, soon, North Carolina.
Monday Night Brewing West Midtown. 670 Trabert Ave. NW, Atlanta, 404-352-7703; and Monday Night Garage. 933 Lee St. SW, Atlanta. mondaynightbrewing.com
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