It’ll be a while before Deerfish Distilling Co. serves its first made-in-Mobile, aged-in-Mobile, bottled-in-Mobile whiskey. But the city’s first modern craft distillery has opened its doors to offer a taste of things to come.
The two couples behind the new company, Austin and Ashley Hallford and Lee and Emilie Hallford, held a ribbon-cutting followed by a “sneak peek” retail opening on Friday, with a public grand opening celebration to follow from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 23. The distillery is at 757 Government St. in downtown Mobile.
For now, Deerfish is serving a line of “Fish Hook” vodka seltzers in a trio of flavors: Satsuma peach, watermelon lime and honeydew cucumber. Master Distiller Austin Hallford said that the vodka is distilled offsite by a partner company; The seltzers are mixed and canned in-house.
Austin Hallford, 34, is a Mobile native who said that at age 21, “I took off to Montana because I had an opportunity for my first legal distilling job.” That’s where he met his wife, Ashley; he went on to learn his craft working in the Pacific Northwest…