Distillers & Spirit Producers:

Port Chilkoot Distillery

Port Chilkoot Distillery, Haines, Alaska, USA.

Haines is a small town found at the end of the Inside Passage (or Marine Highway), in the South East of Alaska, established in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s during the Klondike Gold Rush. Today it is referred to by some as the adventure capital of the world due to the extensive range of outdoor activities it can offer on land, sea and snow. During October through to February each year it is also home to the highest number of Bald Eagles to be found anywhere in the world. It was to this beautiful area, married couple Heather Shade and Sean Copeland paid many visits before deciding to permanently settle in Haines in 2008. With a population of 1,800 and sporadic unemployment rising to a rate of around 40%, subject to the summer tourist trade, they realized the best opportunities involved self-employment and this led to the decision to open a distillery. Thus, “instead of spending all their hard-earned money on good whiskey” they would “make all their hard-earned money on good whiskey”.

In 2012 they purchased an historic building, originally built in 1904 as the bakery to the nearby military encampment of Fort William H. Seward. In 1922 the fort was renamed Chilkoot Barracks and was eventually decommissioned by the US Army just after World War II, when it was bought and renamed Port Chilkoot. In 1970 the areas of Port Chilkoot and Haines were merged and this history gave Heather and Sean the idea to call the old bakery Port Chilkoot Distillery. Sean has a background of over 20 years as a carpenter and utilized his skills to extensively restore the building so they were able to open the distillery in the late fall of 2013. Today they have developed a range of spirits with Sean undertaking most of the practical activities and Heather, with a background in science, taking on the role of Head Distiller. Here she seeks to ensure quality and fine balancing is applied, so that all who partake of this liquid refreshment can taste the real spirit of Alaska. 

Port Chilkoot Distillery.

50 Fathoms.