Northampton Community College students get a hands-on opportunity to craft their own gin

Staff Report
·2 min read

Northampton Community College craft distillery students got the unique opportunity to work with distillation runs at Quakertown's Doan Distillery this March.

As a requirement of the new craft distillery program, students in the class each brought their own recipe for gin to Doan Distillery, where owner Christopher LaBonge ― who teaches the distillery and maturation operations course at NCC ― helped them navigate the process.

Students got the chance to add their own botanicals, flavors, and other ingredients to mason jars to create their special concoctions for gin.

Northampton Community College students taste stills from limbic system at Quakertown's Doan Distillery. This march, students in the craft distillery program got the opportunity to create their own gin at Doan Distillery as part of NCC's craft distillery program.
Northampton Community College students taste stills from limbic system at Quakertown's Doan Distillery. This march, students in the craft distillery program got the opportunity to create their own gin at Doan Distillery as part of NCC's craft distillery program.

The process starts with a grain neutral spirit, meaning the grains, such as barley, wheat, and corn, are distilled with no added flavors of aging.

After students added the botanicals from their recipes, the ingredients macerate and ferment before going through the limbic system where the alcohol is pulled from the spirit to a drinkable level and then finished.

“Every Gin must have some level of juniper. That botanical makes it a Gin,” NCC student Denise Pierson-Balik said. Adding anything else, she says, will connect flavors in a way that’s unique to each student’s recipe.

Northampton Community College's craft distillery students get hands-on experience at Doan Distillery in Quakertown, where they created their very own gin.
Northampton Community College's craft distillery students get hands-on experience at Doan Distillery in Quakertown, where they created their very own gin.

Through the distillation runs, the students learned to identify important steps in the process and hone in on the key qualities of the spirit.

Doan Distillery is just one of several local distilleries, including Eight Oaks Farm Distillery, East Stroudsburg's Silverback Distillery, Wardog Spirits, and County Seat Spirits, which offer internships and help teach courses in the NCC program. In addition, McCall Brewing and Franklin Hill Vineyards help students learn about fermentation.

A selection of botanicals which NCC students add to their gin to create a unique flavor profile.
A selection of botanicals which NCC students add to their gin to create a unique flavor profile.

“We really are one of only colleges in the region to offer a craft distillery program. It’s a growing business and extremely popular in our area, and students can put their skills to good use in the industry after completing the program. Our goal is to have programs for wine, beer and distilling,” Director of Culinary Arts, Hospitality and Sport Management at NCC David F. Schweiger said.

Those interested in the program can find out more on NCC's website.

This article originally appeared on Pocono Record: NCC students make their very own gin at Quakertown's Doan Distillery