Just in time for the holidays, The Honorable Distillery of Marquette, Michigan, has released its special edition Joulupukki Christmas Whiskey.
This spirit is named after the Finnish Santa, otherwise known as Joulupukki.
Joulupukki Christmas Whiskey uses locally-sourced Olson Brothers Sugar Bush Maple Syrup and Mulling Spices. The remaining high proof of this straight rye whiskey allows the classic rye flavors of pepper and spices to come through while tempered with a slight sweetness of local maple syrup making it very festive for the holidays.
The spirit was created by head distiller Abby Szukalski.
The label was designed by Bernie Rosendahl while the illustration of the Joulupukki was designed by Lauri Ahonen. Ahonen designed the previous version of Joulupukki for the film “Rare Exports.” Since the original is copyrighted, Rosendahl reached out to Ahonen to design a new version for this spirit. Rosendahl continued the folklore theme using script fonts and illustrations, while maintaining The Honorable Distillery’s bold branding and merging the themes together.
The Honorable Distillery is located in Marquette in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and uses all locally sourced ingredients for its spirits. This region is inhabited by many Finnish Americans—hence the idea for the spirit—who came to the Upper Peninsula to work in the local mines.