Tag: DC special events

Lighting Up Nats Park with Founding Spirits

Last modified: March 23, 2023

DC’s first Enchant Christmas has come to town creating a winter wonderland at our beloved Nationals Park, and Founding Spirits is delighted to take part in the festivities.

As one of the official Enchant Christmas sponsors, Founding Spirits is featured in some very special ways. We have created a unique cocktail that is already Instagram famous. Our Founding Spirits Enchanted Cocktail, served in a super cool light bulb cup, is the perfect mix of our Founding Spirits award-winning vodka, spiced syrup, lemon, and apple juice. Enchant Christmas is also warming guests up with hot chocolate spiked with our Founding Spirits American Amaro. 

Enchant Christmas DC is the place to light up your holiday season. The festivities include the world’s largest Christmas light maze, a holiday food & Christmas market, and an ice skating trail that winds through this magical space. Enchant is in town through December 29th. Tickets are available here. 

If you can’t make it to Nats Park, there are several local bars and restaurants in and around the Navy Yard area that carry Founding Spirits too, including The Ugly Mug, The Salt Line, and Roy Boys. Or, stop by Founding Farmers & Distillers – home of DC’s #1 local Vodka – where we have a bar menu sure to lift your spirits.

Citi Open 2019: That’s a Wrap

Last modified: August 16, 2019

As the Official Vodka and American Whiskey of the 2019 Citi Open – one of DC’s biggest sporting events – our tennis tournament week was packed full of festivities: from our popular kickoff event and tasty spirits to lively tastings and some friendly competition that extended beyond the courts of the Rock Creek Tennis Center.  

In addition to serving our tasty craft cocktails to guests all week long, we hosted a Founding Spirits Cocktail Clash, giving six of DC’s top bartenders the challenge of mixing their most delicious Highball using any of our Founding Spirits. 

  • Roger Molina, Farmers & Distillers, introduced the Ace Highball, his take on a classic Aperol Spritz, made with Founding Spirits Vodka, lemon, mint, club soda, and Aperol. 
  • Christine Kim, Service Bar, played with fresh peaches and Founding Spirits Vodka in her Game-Set-Peach cocktail.
  • Frank Mills, Roy Boys, was definitely the star of the {Boomerang} show with his charismatic shake making the rounds on Instagram. His Love & Match-rimoney Highball, made with Founding Spirits Vodka, grapefruit, and florals, was packed full of just as much punch.
  • Andra Johnson, Serenata, mixed up her It’s All Love cocktail, with a choice of Founding Spirits Vodka or our Founding Spirits American Whiskey blended with flavors everyone seemed to love, including: strawberry, banana, pomegranate, ginger, and walnut, to name a few. 
  • Eric King, 100 Proof Strategies, came in strong with his Brown Derby Energy, mixing Founding Spirits American Whiskey with a spiced grapefruit syrup that was understated, yet full of flavor.  
  • Jo-Jo Valenzuela, The Game DC, came in HOT with his spiced mango soda and Thai basil-infused Tangdang Soda, mixed with a choice of Founding Spirits Vodka or our American Whiskey. This drink was on fire during the competition, and Jo-Jo ended up taking home a well-deserved “W” this year. 

Each bartender absolutely killed it, and we’re grateful for their participation in what we hope will become an annual event. Another huge shout out to all the event goers who stopped by our tasting booths at Citigold and outside Market Square. 

Now that the tournament is over but summer is still heating up our streets, we look forward to continuing to toast all things DC and seeing many of you out at our distillery, located at 600 Massachusetts Ave, just inside Farmers & Distillers. Stop by for a cocktail or a tour, grab a bottle to take home, or place your order for delivery online.

Sippin’ On Founding Spirits at the RAMMYS

Last modified: January 17, 2020

Last night was filled with exciting festivities and celebrations at the 37th annual Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington’s biggest event of the year – the RAMMYS. Founding Spirits was happy to serve as event bar sponsor while supporting our town’s best restaurant industry revelry and awards ceremony.

Each year, RAMMY goers don their finest party formalwear to celebrate the best of the best on DC’s restaurant scene. This year’s event gala was held at the Walter E. Reed Convention Center, just blocks from our award-winning Founding Spirits distillery in downtown DC.   

Founding Spirits Distillery Director Jon Arroyo, Vice President Clyde Davis, Jr. and their team were on hand to share Founding Spirits with gala guests and celebrate a great year of exceptional talent and creativity, industry growth, and delicious food and drink. 

We were delighted to serve up two specially-crafted cocktails, made just for the evening’s festivities. Our:

These tennis-themed craft cocktail names have significance for our team, as: Founding Spirits has been named the OFFICIAL VODKA and the OFFICIAL WHISKEY of the Citi Open! 

If you weren’t able to make it to this year’s RAMMYS, come join us at the Citi Open, in DC’s Rock Creek Park Tennis Center from July 27 – August 4, for a chance to get a taste of these refreshing summer cocktails and all of our spirits, including our award-winning Founding Spirits Vodka.

Stay tuned to Founding Spirits on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for more details. 

Supporting Best Buddies Prom Night

Last modified: April 8, 2019

Founding Spirits joined hundreds of happy partygoers on Friday night for one of the greater Washington, D.C. area’s best and biggest annual fundraisers, the Best Buddies Prom. 

Now in its sixth year, the gala was as festive and fun as ever as this year and was planned as two parties in one. Held at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in downtown DC, local area students of all abilities danced the night away with their Best Buddies, while attending adults enjoyed delicious food and complimentary beverages, including our award-winning Founding Spirits Vodka, which we donated to the event. 

The evening’s festivities were hosted by our good friend and Best Buddies advocate, DC’s radio and TV celebrity Tommy McFly. And the region’s famed DJ Neekola had everyone moving to her fantastic beats. It was a very lively and successful evening for this life-changing organization.

The Best Buddies Prom has raised over one million dollars for the Capital Region chapter alone. Best Buddies was founded in 1989 and is the world’s largest non-profit organization dedicated to ending the social, physical, and economic isolation of the 200 million people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Having grown to nearly 2,900 chapters worldwide, working to support and positively impact the lives of over 1.25 million people, Best Buddies engages participants in all of our 50 states, in 53 countries, and in six continents around the world. 

Fun & Fine Spirits at DC’s Dock 5

Last modified: July 22, 2021

Founding Spirits participated in the seventh annual Washingtonian Whiskey & Fine Spirits Festival on Thursday, November 15, 2018 at Dock 5 in DC’s Union Market.

Distillery Director, Jon Arroyo, and Distillery Manager, Bob VanLancker, served Vieux Carre with Founding Spirits American Whiskey, Founding Spirits American Amaro, bénédictine , and cognac to a sold-out crowd. This unusual craft cocktail was a smashing success.

Attendees also enjoyed sips of premium whiskey, scotch, bourbon, vodka, gin, tequila, and more from over 40 other local and national distillers. The event included live music and light fare from Ridgewells Catering, everyone enjoying what many say is one of the coolest event spaces in DC. Dock 5 is directly above the historic Union Market and features 12,000 expansive square feet with high ceilings and glass garage doors.

Sponsored by Washingtonian magazine, the entire event made for a classic DC evening.

Get Your Cocktail On with Founding Spirits

Last modified: July 22, 2021

Find our Founding Spirits front and center for this year’s annual DC Cocktail Week celebrations across our Farmers Restaurant Group of restaurants.

From Monday, November 12th – Sunday, November 18th, our teams at Founding Farmers DC, Farmers Fishers Bakers, and Farmers & Distillers will be participating, along with 60 other local area restaurant and bar teams, in DC Cocktail Week, a weeklong celebration of DC’s dynamic bartenders, mixologists, and bar and beverage teams from across our region.

Our teams have been working hard to create offerings of our scratch-made goodness to highlight what sets DC Cocktail Week apart – celebrating not only the art of creating delicious, handcrafted cocktails, but the nearly divine pairing of the perfect cocktail with the perfect bite. All for $15. Now that’s worth a special week of celebration.

Find our handcrafted Bridgetown Sour cocktail, featuring Founding Spirits Vodka, perfectly paired with our delicious Chips & Dips served with fresh guacamole, salsa, pimento cheese, and corn tortillas at Founding Farmers DC. At Farmers & Distillers, you’ll find our scratch-made, Savory Beignet paired with our handcrafted The American cocktail. This modern spin on traditional Irish Coffee, is served hot or cold, and features our very own, pot-stilled and barrel-aged Founding Spirits American Whiskey with an amaro cream finish. At Farmers Fishers Bakers, our team has our handcrafted Negroni Spritzer, made with Founding Spirits American Amaro, paired with a much-loved guest favorite, our Margarita Pizza.

Join us at these sibling restaurants during DC Cocktail Week for a taste of all that Founding Spirits has to offer.

Order our spirits online to get the same great taste at home or for the perfect holiday gift. Friends, colleagues, and family members will love the fine spirits we’re distilling.