On Feb. 9, the Philadelphia Eagles defied the odds to clinch their second-ever victory at the Super Bowl. Needless to say, the mood radiating through its hometown is positively electric. Tens of thousands of fans flooding the streets with reckless abandon; green-and-white confetti fluttering through the air; Jalen Hurts elevated to near-messianic status.
In light of the festivities, we thought it as good a time as any to round up the excellent spirits brands that Philadelphia has to offer. Pennsylvania is a state rich in liquor history, dating its roots back to the 18th century when the notorious Whiskey Rebellion threatened to topple a nascent American government. In the decades since, the region's reputation for liquor has only grown (and we're not just talking about the football fans who drink it). The state currently counts over 250 federally licensed distilleries, placing it right alongside heavy hitters like California and Texas that lead the pack.
From bourbon to vodka and beyond, here are seven spirits brands that define The Birthplace of America.
Nothing screams Philadelphia quite like Bird Gang, the Eagles' very own spirits brand launched in late 2023. Unveiled alongside the return of the team's iconic Kelly green uniforms, the brand debuted with a bourbon and vodka distilled and sold locally by BOTLD. The collection has since expanded with a white rum, rye, single malt whiskey and a pair of tequilas produced at the Orendain distillery in Jalisco, Mexico.
In just a few short years, Bird Gang has debuted enough bottles to fill an entire liquor store of their own. For discerning fans, these products are jam-packed with Easter eggs. Each label is wrapped in the slogan "Volare Aquilae Volare," a Latin translation of the rallying cry "Fly Eagles Fly." On bottles of Bird Gang Tequila, the only spirit in its catalog not distilled in Pennsylvania, you'll find a Spanish translation — "Vuelen Aguilas Vuelen."
Nearly all of the brand's spirits clock in at a budget-friendly $30 to $40. If you're looking to splurge, Bird Gang just uncorked a trio of commemorative Super Bowl champions bottles that notch the price up to $65.
Liberty Gin is purportedly distilled from an Old Dutch recipe passed along the spice trade during the American Revolution. As such, its ingredients are about as back-to-basics as it gets. The gin uses a simple botanical mix of juniper, coriander, angelica, cardamom, lemon peel and grains of paradise that are distilled over an open flame in a traditional copper pot still. No frills, just Liberty.
The brand was launched in 2015 by Walter Palmer, a self-professed history nerd who happened upon the 18th-century recipe in the most 21st-century way imaginable. After losing his job, he stumbled upon what would eventually become Liberty Gin in the depths of a faithfully translated Google Doc.
"And the Dutch actually were very good at keeping the manuscripts for all these ships, because they were the ones that had the first global spice trade," Palmer told Regal Wine. "So I took the ingredient list of what they used to call genever, which is basically the first gin, from 1780. We started to assign values to the ingredients, and to distill them."
In its colonial heyday, a bottle of Liberty Gin would've cost just a handful of shillings. Nowadays, expect to pay around $35.99.
Dad's Hat Pennsylvania Rye
[caption id="attachment_100063" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: Dad's Hat Pennsylvania Rye Whiskey)[/caption]
Drive 20 minutes northeast of Philadelphia, and you'll stumble upon Dad's Hat, a rye whiskey distiller drenched in regional heritage. The brand traces its inspiration back to the 18th century when Pennsylvania farmers began using their rye surplus to distill some of the country's first spirits. These circumstances would eventually pave the way for the Whiskey Rebellion of 1794, oft regarded as the first true challenge to the American government's federal authority from within.
That legacy lives on today through the rebellious (though completely legal) spirit of Dad's Hat.
The distillery produces a quintet of expressions including its Bonded Rye, Port-finished Rye and White Rye, the latter of which forgoes the barrel aging process entirely. Founder Herman Mihalich intends the brand as a tribute to the whiskeys his father and grandfather would've served at their tavern — Dad's Hat — in Monessen, Pennsylvania. If you're interested in checking out its offerings, find aggregated reviews for all of Dad's Hat whiskeys here.
Stateside Vodka
[caption id="attachment_100073" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: Federal Distilling)[/caption]
Stateside Vodka proudly eschews the origin story of most Philadelphia distillers. There's no centuries-old tradition, family recipe or bootlegging Prohibition roots. Instead, the brand insists it is the result of a simple question between two brothers in 2013: "Hey, do you want to start a vodka company?"
Matt and Bryan Quigley hit the ground running with a seven-time distilled vodka made from 100% American corn. The spirit utilizes a propriety finishing process featuring carbon, oxygen and a water formula that includes various minerals and electrolytes. The end result is hand-bottled in the neighborhood of Kensington, Philadelphia, and costs just $28.99 a pop.
Though Stateside Vodka may not be a household name outside of Pennsylvania, another of its products is. In 2022, the distiller forayed into the booming ready-to-drink market with Surfside, an iced tea and vodka cocktail that has witnessed explosive growth in record time. According to the brand, Surfside was the single fastest-growing alcohol product in America throughout 2024, achieving 360% growth within just 365 days.
Illadelph Vodka
[caption id="attachment_100070" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: City Distilling)[/caption]
Illadelph Vodka is one of several spirits headed by City Distilling, known locally for its colorful array of gins, hard teas and pre-mixed cocktails. Unlike those products, however, Illadelph comes packaged inside of a bong.
This genre-defying vodka was launched last summer alongside Illadelph Glass, a Philadelphia-based bong designer that specializes in all things luxury smokewear. Emphasis on luxury; browsing the brand’s website, you’ll find products ranging from $380 to nearly $3,000. In addition to custom pieces inspired by Michael Jordan and the Greek pantheon, Illadelph has its own art gallery on the Philadelphia waterfront where its bongs are commemorated like ancient relics in some sort of National Cannabis Museum.
For its first (and so far only) foray into the spirits market, the brand opted for a triple-distilled organic wheat vodka that costs just $25 per bong-shaped bottle. Is it ridiculous? Of course. We doubt that Illadelph would insist otherwise. Rather than take itself even remotely seriously, this is the kind of liquor destined as a gag gift for your basement-dwelling cousin who lives in a haze of smoke.
Bluecoat Gin
[caption id="attachment_100062" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: Philadelphia Distilling)[/caption]
Bluecoat is one of several Philadelphia-area gins that pay homage to colonial history. In this case, the inspiration is the eponymous Bluecoats, a nickname for the American Regular Army led by none other than George Washington.
The gin's maker, Philadelphia Distilling, also bears distinction as Pennsylvania's first distillery built since Prohibition. Though it produces a variety of well-regarded vodkas, amaros and absinthes, its flagship Bluecoat Gin has soaked up most of the praise for good reason. Distilled with a propriety botanical blend including American citrus peel, juniper berry and coriander, the dry gin is well-regarded by critics who have heaped praise on its distinctive flavors of mint and lemon rind. The expression currently sits at an impressive Raided Score® of 91.
Philadelphia Distilling also makes a Barrel Finished Gin and Elderflower Gin, which are well worth checking out in their own right. All bottles cost around $30.
Bloody Butcher Bourbon
[caption id="attachment_100072" align="aligncenter" width="600"] (Photo: New Liberty Distilling)[/caption]
No, Bloody Butcher Bourbon is not named after some sort of 18th-century serial killer. Rather, the brand takes its name from a strain of heirloom corn sourced from the Castle Valley Mill in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. The corn is famous within the whiskey industry for its nutty sweetness and distinctive oil character. That and its ominous crimson-red hue.
For its take on the concept, New Liberty Distilling opted for a mashbill that combines Bloody Butcher corn with malted rye and malted barley. Said to balance flavors of milk chocolate, leather and stone fruit, the bourbon has proved successful enough to be spun off into a handful of bespoke cask finishes. Visitors to New Liberty Distilling can pick up the expression in pinot noir-, Amarone- and Bordeaux-finished varieties in addition to a cask strength bottling that notches the proof up to 55.25% ABV.
For a bottle of its flagship Straight Bourbon, expect to pay no more than $54.99.
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(Photo: W.P. Palmer Distilling)[/caption]
(Photo: Dad's Hat Pennsylvania Rye Whiskey)[/caption]
(Photo: Federal Distilling)[/caption]
(Photo: City Distilling)[/caption]
(Photo: Philadelphia Distilling)[/caption]
(Photo: New Liberty Distilling)[/caption]