John Wohlfert is a Master Distiller who recreates Prohibition era liquors using his Great Grandfather Johann’s bootlegger recipe. The owner of Wohlfert Craft Distilling rides a custom-built Janus Motorcycle named Black Kat and produces seven spirits with names like Spark, Torque, and Clutch.
But the liquor dearest to his heart is Starter Sugar Shine based on a recipe passed down from his Great Aunt to his aunt who recapped the ingredients for him. As a ‘’spirited’ master baker, his German-born Great Grandfather co-opted the basic ingredients of baking—grains, sugar and yeast—into making moonshine in the 1920s.
Speaking of heart, Wohlfert quadruple distills his spirits to cut to the best hearts, aka cleanest part of the distillation. Wohlfert current job as a Microsoft systems engineer led to the application of his math skills to analyze how tall the illegal still that his Great Grandad built through the three stories of the family’s house in Queens, NY. He then reengineered the heritage design for the still he built behind his home in Clearview, Wash.
Beyond his love of riding, the rationale for the motorcycle theme is historical. Motorcyclists called Outriders scouted safe routes during Prohibition for bootlegging deliveries.
These intrepid riders inspired Wohlfert to plan an adventurous “Shaken and Stirred” tour with his Black Kat cycle in the summer of 2025 publicized on social media. Along the route with stops from Chicago to the Indiana home Janus Motorcycles, and on to Seattle, Wohlfert and his cohorts with shake up cocktails with names like A Hot Tail Pipe and The Backroad.
The Wohlfert’s portfolio includes seven spirits. The line kicks off with an 80-proof Head Light Vodka and High Beam Vodka at 100-proof. I appreciated the smooth finish of the High Beam and used full-strength Premium Fever Tonic to pair with it. The concept for Spark Basil Flavored Vodka came from Wohlfert’s wife Karen who is an expert recipe developer. My tasting partner and I immediately thought of building a Spark Gimlet with lime juice, but the herbal nose pointed to pairing with Fever Tree Elderflower tonic.
The Starter Sugar Shine was inspired by the start of Great Grandaddy’s bootlegger business and the essential cycle mechanism. Though made with corn, a traditional moonshine ingredient, Starter is labeled as a corn liquor because it finished with oak chips to simulate aging and has natural caramel color added. We noted that the smoothness and richness is reminiscent of rum.
Wohlfert’s affinity to merge his heritage with traditional copper distillation techniques led him to create a special bottling of corn liquor with only hearts of the distillate aged 18 months in Bourbon barrels. He named the award-winning corn liquor Halcyon Reserve 23 which harks back to the Halcyon Janus series, the heritage of the Janus Halcyon brand of his Black Kat, and the year 1923 from the Prohibition era.
Wohlfert’s well-crafted liqueurs have won bartender, spirits and sommelier competition. The Torque Apple Liqueur conjures the aroma of baking apple pie. My friend wanted to pour the Torque on top of ice cream and take the same route with the Clutch Coffee Liqueur and Decaf Clutch coffee liqueur.
Wohlfert holds complimentary tastings at his home which is halfway between Snohomish and Woodinville. Special events such as Cuts Night to show guests how to evaluate spirits and Making the Moonshine are periodically featured at the distillery.
Ordering the tasting sampler online is a simple way to taste through the Wohlfert spirits; check the website for periodic sales. The Wohlfert liqueurs are stocked at 13 Total Wine & More flagship stores. Wohlfert Distilling options such as Starter Sugar Shine are unique American liquors to sip and build into cocktails, speakeasy style or creative, twisted classics.
Photos Courtesy of Wohlfert Craft Distilling
#Wohlfert Craft Distilling #Janus Motorcycles #Craft Distilling #Craft cocktails #Liquor #liqueur #Wohlfert Spirits