Platinum Moonshine

Aside from the Cucumber Margarita at La Cava del Tequila, I don’t often have a specific adult beverage in mind when I set off for a trip to Walt Disney World. In May, however, there was one that I just had to try! It may have the word margarita in its name, but it is a night and day experience from my cucumber staple in Epcot. Let’s start with why this yet to be named beverage was on my radar at all.

Western North Carolina, the corner of the country that I call home, has a long history of brewing and distilling. Given the title of Beer City U.S.A. on several occasions and home to a plethora of breweries, the area in and around Asheville, NC is home to the Asheville Distilling Co., Troy & Sons. A friend let me know that they had read in Troy & Sons newsletter that the corn distilled liquor, known to many as moonshine, had begun being served in Walt Disney World. In particular I found that it was being served up at the Wilderness Lodge, as if I needed an excuse to visit the Wilderness Lodge.

What is this beverage you ask? It is known as the Moonshine Margarita and is exclusively on the spirits menu for Whispering Canyon Cafe. I let you in on a little secret though, if you visit the Territory Lounge, as I did, they can whip one up for you too. It is comprised of Troy & Sons Platinum Moonshine, St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur, fresh lime juice, agave nectar, and a dash of soda water.

For those of you that have this image in your head of an astringent drink from Mason jar that may cause blindness, put those fears aside. This isn’t your father’s bootlegged beverage. Territory Lounge presents a drink that is very sweet and very smooth. The prime difference between the corn liquor drink and a typical tequila margarita is that the tequila has more weight to it your mouth, at least this is the way it seemed to me. There is a bit of a sour twinge from the lime juice, the sweet notes of the elderflower eases that tang right out of your mouth.

While I recommend the Moonshine Margarita for the uninitiated, there is more Troy & Sons available on the Territory Lounge’s menu. The other selection comes in the form of the moonshine flight featuring the Platinum (featured in the Moonshine Margarita), Oak Reserve, and Blonde Whiskey varieties available from the distiller. To my mind, this is as close as you can get to the Western North Carolina experience in Walt Disney World, especially given the setting of the resort.

I hear that there is more collaboration in the works between Troy & Sons and Walt Disney World, but we’ll have to wait and see what is coming down the line for now. That, however, does not mean we are done with the Territory Lounge. For some of the tastiest vitals this side of Bay Lake, you’ll have to check back in with us next week!