Maine Vodka Awarded Double Gold at World Spirits Competition

FREEPORT, Maine, April 2, 2008 /PRNewswire/ -- Cold River Vodka, a triple distilled, small batch vodka made from Maine potatoes, has been awarded a Double Gold Medal at the 8th annual San Francisco World Spirits Competition, the largest and most prestigious competition of its kind in America.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080402/NEW121 )

Chris Dowe, Cold River Vodka's head distiller, said, "We spent over two and a half long years fine tuning the production process and developing the recipe for Cold River Vodka before we launched the product in 2005. Receiving a prestigious award like the Double Gold from the World Spirits Competition affirms for us that our hard work was well worth the effort."

Cold River Vodka is made of potatoes grown on a family farm in Fryeburg, Maine. The other key ingredient is pure spring water from the Cold River aquifer at the base of the White Mountains in western Maine. The brand is devoted to the preservation of open spaces, continuing the tradition of family farming, and highlighting the importance of the potato industry in Maine's long agricultural history.

Trade writer, beverage consultant, and World Spirits Competition judge Robert Plotkin said, "Each year we evaluate scores of vodkas with scant little difference existing between them. Yet invariably one spirit catches our attention. Perhaps it's the nuances in the bouquet or its extraordinarily elegant finish, but something distinguishes it from the pack. Congratulations to Cold River Vodka on earning a Double Gold Medal. It is well deserved."

Cold River Vodka was also recently rated the best American vodka in "Kindred Spirits 2" by F. Paul Pacult, director of judging for the World Spirits Competition and widely regarded as the one of the industry's leading experts on distilled spirits.

Maine Distilleries LLC, maker of Cold River Vodka, is the only vodka company in the world to oversee the entire production process, from planting the potatoes to bottling the vodka. Cold River Vodka is produced in small batches with each batch hand-numbered to ensure excellence. The vodka is gluten free. It retails for approximately $35 a bottle and can be purchased in the six states of New England as well as Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, South Carolina, Washington D.C., and London, England. For more information, call (207) 865-4828 or visit http://www.coldrivervodka.com/.

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Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080402/NEW121
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Maine Distilleries LLC

CONTACT: Nancy Marshall of Nancy Marshall Communications,
+1-207-623-4177, nmarshall@marshallpr.com

Web site: http://www.coldrivervodka.com/

2008-04-02 16:35:17 0326853 PRNEWSWIRE