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+1 703-360-1750
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| 5514 Mt Vernon Memorial Hwy, Alexandria, VA, 22309 | |
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0.7 miPence Gate
0.8 miHospital / WT
0.9 miFort Belvoir Community Hospital
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Specialties
Just 3 miles down the road from Mount Vernon, George Washington’s Distillery and Gristmill provide a study in Washington, the master entrepreneur. Both buildings have been reconstructed and are fully functioning. The two-story stone distillery is open seasonally and is still mashing, fermenting and distilling grain as it was done in the eighteenth century. Whiskey produced at the distillery is sold seasonally in limited quantities at the gift shop. The gristmill was reconstructed in the 1930s and today has the only operating Oliver Evans Automated Milling System in America. Demonstrations of the mill are given when open during seasonal hours and grain products are available in the gift shop.
Both buildings are open April — October. Entrance to the site is included in admission to George Washington’s Mount Vernon. Save money and time when you purchase your tickets in advance online. Admission to the Distillery & Gristmill is also sold separately for $ 5 for adults, $ 3 for youth (ages 6 – 11) and free for children 5 and under.
History
Established in 1798.
George Washington erected a large stone gristmill in 1771 to increase production of flour and cornmeal. A hired white miller, assisted by enslaved millers, ground more than 275,000 pounds of the highest quality «superfine flour» each year exporting it to the West Indies and Europe. Much of the cornmeal was provided as rations for the enslaved community and the mill processed grain for neighboring farmers for a small toll.
In 1797, George Washington hired a Scottish plantation manager, James Anderson, who encouraged him to build a whiskey distillery next to his gristmill. This distillery was the largest in America and produced almost 11,000 gallons of whiskey in 1799. Five copper pot stills produced whiskey using Washington’s original mash bill (60% rye, 35% corn and 5% malted barley) which was then sold to neighboring farmers and in Alexandria. It was one of the most successful business enterprises at Mount Vernon.
