Forthave Spirits
Brooklyn, New York

Daniel and Aaron met in the 2010s in New York City just as living wine was seeing a boom in the US. First connecting through a shared love of natural wine, they then became interested in the shrouded history of vermouth and medicinal spirits, spending years researching the historic recipes of these herbal remedies. The name Forthave references Richard Forthave, a fifteenth century botanist who recorded a medicine for the Black Plague called Four Thieves Vinegar which also went on to inspire their amaro Marseille.

In 2016, they formally licensed their distillery in a tiny studio in Brooklyn equipped with a 400L pot still they hand-built and it’s still used today to distill everything they produce. Their neutral distillate is based on organic sugar cane juice from Brazil, and their sweetener is either raw honey sourced from Upstate New York or organic unrefined sugar. When it comes to sourcing their botanicals, many come from local growers in New York, with only some elements that are harder to find nearby, such as the Génépi flower used in Yellow, sourced from further afield. 

Above all, the pair search for clarity of flavour, harmonious balance and interest amongst all else and so the processes differ for each line. They use a variety of maceration techniques at various degrees of alcohol to get clean, yet complex layers from each botanical. Over the last 10 years, they have never stopped experimenting with different styles of maceration and distilling, continuing to be inspired by the past – the complex and varied histories of how, why, and when people drink any sort of aperitif, digestif, or spirit. Of their full range, we are very excited to announce we have imported a few of our favourites to the UK, which are available now.