From Farm to Bottle: Nauti Spirits

The Cape May region has enjoyed quite a bit of good fortune by its participation in the two-decade-long development of the craft beer industry.  Concurrent with that trend there has been a sharp increase in the founding of craft wineries.  It was just a matter of time before distilled spirits joined in the zeitgeist and completed the triumvirate of adult beverage choices. Readers of this column have thus far read only about some of our breweries and wineries, which indeed provide us with exciting destinations beyond the famed beaches.  

But, with this issue we spotlight our first distillery—Nauti Spirits—a must-visit farm-to-glass destination. 

Luckily, Nauti Spirits is simple to find and easy to reach. From Cape May you have a five-minute drive at most from the Exit 0 bridge towards the Ferry.  If you come from the West Cape May bridge, you’re even closer. A turn onto Shunpike Road brings you to a simple, bucolic 60-acre farm with three handsome, symmetrical buildings comprising the distillery visible in the open just beyond a large parking area.

Before covering the goods, it’s always neat to learn a little of the backstory. 

With the abovementioned farm, we have the seed of the origin story. The site upon which Nauti Spirits sits, and where virtually all its ingredients are grown, was originally owned by locals Dorey and Corey Bryan. Corey had previously also managed the family business, the Lemon Tree restaurant on the Washington Street Mall. Separately, the concept of a farm-to-bottle distillery became the driving passion of co-founders Steve and Caroline Miller, after they became fascinated with the science of distilling following a visit to one of the oldest craft distilleries in the country. 

That experience seized the Millers’ attention and fueled an enthusiasm for the pursuit of a new dream. After years as a senior executive and Fortune 150 corporate general counsel in Maryland, Steve, along with Caroline, a fundraising executive, sought to advance the concept by finding just the right place to actualize it.  It so happens that a great many of Steve’s fondest memories were of recurring visits at the Cape May shore, an area he and Caroline quickly came to love, and which led to their establishing a home in Cape May Point.  

They settled on West Cape May for the project. It was a place familiar to them, but crucially, it was also an area with an unmatched commitment to agricultural preservation and sustainability practices. Serendipitously, the Millers then connected with farm’s owners, the Bryans, who quickly came to share in the passion for founding a coastal farm-to-bottle operation. With multiple breweries and wineries already in the county, the marketplace was ripe for the novelty the project presented. 

Ultimately, the Bryans decided to contribute their farm and by doing so become the Millers’ first partners. After five years of arduous research, feasibility studies, and regulatory hoop-jumping,  the Millers and Bryans launched Nauti Spirits to the public in April 2017. As such, this year they will celebrate the eighth year of producing craft spirits. In this relatively short span of operation, Nauti Spirits is already one of the largest distilleries in the Garden State. Even more notable is that they already boast of winning 18 awards (Bronze through Gold medals) in six different major spirits competitions.  

For my walkabout and tasting I was graciously met by Tommy Peters, Nauti’s marketing manager and Nauti’s distillers Veronica Townsend and Tim Mulligan. The complex consists of three simple, attractive buildings which include the Tasting, Distillery, and Rack Rooms. In the trendy decorated tasting room, there is ample space for up to 90 patrons. A courtyard space between the Tasting Room and Distillery room provides for another 40 people. Outside seating and picnic tables provide room for up to 150 revelers, with heaters and fire pits available in the cooler weather.  

Nauti’s flagship spirits are vodka, gin, rum and whiskey, with small batch releases and seasonal offerings throughout the year.  Veronica and Tim oversee the entire distilling process from mash to bottling. Except for the molasses needed for rum production, all of Nauti’s liquors are grown, ground, mashed, fermented, distilled, and bottled on site. There is no mass-produced grain neutral spirit brought in and flavored or flash aged.  Most of the botanicals are grown in an onsite greenhouse. Even the ingredients in the mixers for cocktails, the juices and bitters and cordials are grown or made on site. 

I was presented with an impressive ten choices based on the four foundational spirits. These were Nauti’s Classic Vodka, Jalapeno Vodka, Classic Gin, Signal Botanical Gin, Classic Rum, Hibernal Flame Barrel-Aged Rum, Atlantic Bourbon, Kestrel Bourbon, Plundered #8 Rye Whiskey, and Red Tail Whiskey. Inspired by Dionysus, or by whim, I selected five mini-shots: the Signal Coastal Farm Gin, the Classic Rum, the Hibernal Flame Rum, the Kestrel Small Barrel Bourbon and the Atlantic Bourbon.

A proper tasting required that I also sample a couple cocktails.  Given the five neat samples already, my focus narrowed to two mixed drinks-the Charlie Horse (made with Signal Gin, strawberries, basil, ginger, lime juice and simple syrup) and a straightforward rum and tonic. Space never allows for full descriptions of each sensate experience. And the readers’ mileage may always vary. But this taster, having a suitably enough bibulous nature to write this column, will assert that all visitors will, like I was, be highly impressed and will find plenty to like.  Although personally a rum fan overall, I was pleasantly surprised to find Signal Gin a particular revelation.  I’ve since delighted in several classic Martinis made with it.  

Quick notes: Nauti Spirits has multiple non-alcoholic drink choices. Also, there is live music on Thursdays-Sundays and several offerings from food trucks are also on site in the busy months. 

For a break from the breweries, and to enjoy a super cool, spirited vibe, be sure to schedule a trip to Nauti Spirits to raise a couple toasts. One for being lucky enough to enjoy craft spirits of such novelty and quality, and another for the good fortune of just being on the Jersey Cape to do it! 

Nauti Spirits is located at 916 Shunpike Road. nautispirits.com • 609-770-3381