San Diego is fast becoming an epicenter of personally crafted distilled spirits. At the Distilled Festival last Saturday, those who put together the 3rd annual event raised their glass to honor the best distillers and mixologists throughout San Diego and beyond! Along with serving up 100+ different spirits and mixers, including some rare and hard-to-find bottles, they also let the Gaslamp Quarter Association exhibit and feature 4 different businesses and their “Dusty Rabbit Cocktail!”
Over 2000 ticket holders were able to peruse the San Diego County fair and Sip different distilleries, watch a Cocktail competition, taste culinary bite and try 4 Gaslamp “Dusty Rabbit” cocktails. The Horton Grand Hotel had sips of their “Dusty Rabbit” Rye Whiskey based cocktail to try for the first hour of the event. Then they were followed by Rustic Root’s rum based “Dusty Rabbit”. The third hour brought Ciro’s Pizzeria White Negroni and Gin based “Dusty Rabbit”, and the festival ended with Strider’s vodka based “Dusty Rabbit”.
“So many people were excited to know about our 150th anniversary and after hearing about the Dusty Rabbit competition, wanted to make a weekend out of coming to the Gaslamp Quarter, and doing their own “Dusty Rabbit” cocktail crawl! “ Said Erin Liddell, Marketing and Communications Manager representing the Gaslamp Quarter Association at the festival. “There are 23 locations who each have a different recipe, so you really get a wide variety of craft cocktails!!” Said Liddell.
Guests also got a chance to enjoy some music with their sips. The Leftover Cuties, ZB Savory and Kenny Eng brought the Paddock Stage to life with their ensemble of live instruments and vocals, taking guests from western swing to soul music by way of Americana folk.
Ticket holders also made sure to mix business & pleasure by learning about the distilling process at a few educational presentations. Hosted by distillers from Malahat Spirits, Liberty Call Distilling, Sweet Potato Spirits and Kill Devil Spirit Co., Guests learned about the science behind distilling, food pairings and more!
The ticket also got you free admission to the San Diego County Fair, the largest County Fair in the US! Where visitors enjoy exhibits, rides, animals, and some delicious Fair food to pair with their bourbon.
The Gaslamp Quarter hopes to see those who enjoyed a taste of a few “Dusty Rabbit” cocktails at the fair to come down and try more during the 150th anniversary celebration.