Denyce M.
Yelp
This review is more for the product that Koval makes than the tour they offer.
A close friend decided to have a "surprise" birthday tour at Kovel to kick off the festivities. I have passed this place many times as I sometimes take Ravenswood as a shortcut to avoid traffic on Foster. Like a lot of places, have always thought about stopping in, but didn't have the time. So glad C decided to do the celebration here.
The space itself is cleaning and inviting. It has an old time feel to the place. There is a main entrance where you check in, then there is an open room where actual "tour" is held. Full disclosure, it is not a tour so much as a lecture and a tasting. There are representative pieces of the distilling equipment in the open room as well as chairs for sitting. The lecture itself was very interesting as I had no idea that Koval was the first distillery since the mid-1800s founded in Chicago. While I myself am not a follower of organic products, as a chemist and someone who has worked in the food and drug industry, I can respect the owners (Robert and Sonat Birnecker) decision to make organic spirits from scratch.
With my science background, of course I was interested more in the equipment than that product. There was one still there from Germany, I believe, that was awesome in shape and its uniqueness in how it distilled. I had a lot of questions about their quality system, but unfortunately the tour guide could not answer them. No harm, no foul as I imagine most people come to taste the product, not worry about the QA processes :-) Nice thing to know is that their products are kosher for folks were that is a requirement. Feel free to drink my Jewish friends that follow the laws of kosher.
The products themselves were most excellent and definitely had a clean finish to them. We had plenty to sample and the pours were nice...I would say about 1/3 of a shot glass for each. Don't remember what we sampled because the Cranberry Gin stole my heart. At the end we were allowed to sample some additional products and liquors...don't know what they were because all I saw was Cranberry Gin. My two additional requests were for that, which I got a full shot of (didn't toss it down, but sipped it real slow like). That stuff is great by itself, but in bubbles, it is the bomb diggity!
The staff was very accommodating for our group size (about 30) and even helped us in letting G in so we could say "Surprise!". After the tour, on 9/6/19, The Doctor and I ran into a gentleman name Mitch, who worked in marketing and distribution for Koval. Had no idea that they were sponsoring a cocktail event there with Empirical beer. The Doctor and I had a lovely time with Mitch as he gave us even more information about the company, their plans to expand, the markets they are in. Mitch is definitely got the personality for his role and you could tell he really loves the product that he is selling.
Didn't know about the classes until we left, so might try that out for fun. Also I need to go back so I can focus on the other products they have to offer. I was totally bias...once I had the Cranberry I did not have eyes or tongue for anything else.
The tour was fun, but go for the gold and the Cranberry. Koval knows what it is doing when it comes to making whiskey and gin. Fun fact, my GF got a bottle of the Cranberry gin and brought it over the next day for drinks on the balcony. Six bottles of champagne, a bottle of Koval = a very fun Funday Sunday. No Koval was left behind....shalom.