Breaking (and very exciting) news! Today on Instagram and Facebook, Shacksbury announced the opening of its brand new Tasting Room in Vergennes, Vermont. Located in a portion of the historic Kennedy Brothers Building, the space which once housed a creamery and an antique store, among other things, has been lovingly rehabbed since the Shacksbury team signed the lease back in the spring of 2016.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWxk5sblsQ1/?taken-by=shacksbury
General Manager Kim Beaty let us know that the Tasting Room is still very much in a “soften open” phase and that a grand opening is in the works for the fall. “We’re keeping it simple to start,” she continues, “but we wanted to get it open and start being able to have people come here!” Though there isn’t a lot of fanfare for opening weekend, Shacksbury cider maker Nick Janson and Colin Davis, co-owner and head of operations, will be hanging out to chat with guests and give tours of the space.
The Tasting Room is open from 4–8 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays, and from 2–6 p.m. on Saturdays. The bar offers samples of Shacksbury’s craft ciders, along with full pours and can sales. Visitors can expect to find a few ciders on draft, including specialty limited release ciders in four and eight ounce pours.
Opening day draft highlights include the very limited release Wedded Bliss, a farmhouse cider made from organic apples from Golden Russet Farms. This unfiltered beauty was aged on the lees for 10 months and then bottle/keg conditioned. Shacksbury’s flagship ciders, such as the light and crisp Dry, are also pouring at the Tasting Room.
The Tasting Room, which offers limited seating but lots of “mingling area,” according to Kim, looks into the newly minted Shacksbury production space. To date, they’ve been doing most of their production in Shoreham, in the same facility where their partner orchard, Sunrise Orchards stores apples. The crew is in the process of transitioning Shacksbury’s full production to the new space.
Stay tuned for more info about grand opening celebrations in the fall. If you visit the Shacksbury Tasting Room, let us know what you think in the comments!
Find the Shacksbury Tasting Room at 11 Main St. in Vergennes, Vermont; phone: (802) 458-0530.
- Feature photo: Michael Tallman