Rhode Island Spirits, makers of Rhodium brand gins, vodkas and liqueurs, is a winner in the 2020 USA TODAY 10 Best Readers’ Choice travel award contest for Best New Craft Distillery.
Having fairly recently opened in 2019, its owners, married couple Kara Larson and Cathy Ploude, said they were as surprised as they were thrilled.
“We are still a brand new business, and we haven’t yet entered any of our Rhodium spirits into competitions, so this came right out of the blue,” said Plourde. “It’s a really nice recognition to get this early!”
“Our ‘gay-owned’ flag has been flying right since we opened, and we are careful to make sure that ours is a safe and welcoming space for every one regardless of their orientation. We support local gay nonprofits and tag our products just so everyone at the store knows what they’re buying. We’re delighted to say we are getting very positive feedback for being so open and supportive, and we love being able to be ourselves in business,” said Larson.
10 Best Readers’ Choice nominations of 20 category leaders were made by a USA Today expert panel, and the public voted for the top 10 winners.
“We kind of keep our heads down and work, so having an award that comes from an expert selection tells us we’re doing something right, and having enough votes to finish highly ranked suggests we have enough fans and supporters to bring it home for us,” said Larson. “Thank you and thank YOU!”
Rhodium brand products are available statewide in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, and will expand to Connecticut in early 2021.
For more on Rhode Island Spirits, visit rhodeislandspirits.com.
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