Old Dominick Comes to Florida: Our May Tasting Recap @ Bellhop

Our May event came together one fateful evening sitting at what ultimately became the event venue, Bellhop in Downtown Orlando. As we thought through what would be a good event, the conversation got struck up with Bellhop’s GM, Connor Christie.

The idea was centered around doing it for Old Dominick, a craft distillery from Memphis, that is newly entering the Florida market. Connor, an OWA member familiar with our goals, asked the simple question:

“Why not here?”

The Talk

It was obvious from the moment he said it. But we knew with having a new label in Old Dominick, we had to see if the fit was there. So a meeting was set between OWA, Connor, and Old Dominick’s Market Manager, Stephen Lowery.

Within minutes of the meeting, it was apparent that this was a perfect fit. The plans came together organically, and so the event was announced. And we sold out the space within six hours of posting the signup link.

Event Night

Our event guests walked in and were immediately met with some Old Dominick swag sunglasses to take home. They were then welcomed with a cocktail offering of their choice: the Black Manhattan (made with Averna to stand up to the flavors of the whiskey for a perfect blend) or the Bow & Arrow (a bourbon, mescal, and pineapple juice cocktail perfect for summer).

After guests grabbed their drink and found a spot at the bar or on the couches, we begin the tasting. Stephen and his wife Vicky worked seamlessly together to hand out sample pours of each offering, while Stephen told the story of Old Dominick Distillery and each item being sampled.

He spoke about founder Domenico Canale’s passion to make great Tennessee whiskey and how the history of Old Dominick came to be up to today. While Tennessee whiskey is their flagship product, Old Dominick have also now begun to put out great age statement single barrels of wheated and bourbon whiskey.

The Pours & Eats

The tasting pours included: Straight Tennessee Whiskey (85 proof), Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey (90.1 proof, to honor the area code of Memphis), Bonded Tennessee Whiskey (100 proof), Cask Strength Bourbon Whiskey (121 proof), 7-year Straight Wheat Whiskey Single Barrel (124 proof), 8-year Straight Tennessee Whiskey Single Barrel (128 proof), and their ready-to-drink Original Toddy (60 proof).

Charcuterie boards were provided all across the seating areas for grazing. They were filled with various salamis, cheeses, and accoutrements, such as a house-made sweetened pistachio puree. These boards are curated daily at Bellhop by Connor’s wife, Valerie.

The Finale

The evening was capped with a thank-you to one of our admins and videographer, Tommy. He mentioned in talks leading up to the event that he had fond memories of his father bringing back home an Old Dominick product called Huling Station when he used to work in Memphis.

So with the help of Stephen from Old Dominick, we were able to give Tommy a 9.5-year Huling Station bourbon. Tommy puts in so much behind-the-scenes work, between graphics and video editing, that we knew this was the call to make to show our appreciation.

What’s Next

There are many more events and releases to come, including a special Old Dominick barrel pick with a very limited number of bottles. This will be the first of its kind in the Florida market. More to come on the details soon, though!

So stay locked in at OWA. Join all the social pages and channels so that you don’t miss any of the action, make it to our next event if you missed this one, and let’s get ready for what is about to be a really tasty summer. Cheers!