Natural High
Midtown distillery cooks up creative spirits
By Gabrielle Myers
April 2025
Seasonal gins arrive in small batches four times a year. They showcase the creativity of distiller Jonathan Piner and the diversity of our seasons.
The distillery used local Jasmine rice as the spirit base, but it became unsustainable given the time and effort to unclog the equipment. Midtown switched to neutral corn spirits, distilled before arrival.
This is the place for exciting vodka varieties—cucumber, strawberry, pineapple chili, very berry and ginger lime. All are distilled in house.
Barrel-aged negroni, called a “bottled cocktail,” combines Midtown gin, sweet vermouth and Campari. It’s aged 11 months in oak barrels. Three rum varieties cure in former whiskey barrels for around two years.
Piner was born and raised in Sacramento. He joined Midtown in 2021 and worked his way from barback to head distiller.
Piner loves collaboration among distillers and says he’s “excited to see how the industry will transform into more holistic approaches with reductions in waste and using local fruit and other local ingredients.”
Abrahamsen and Poole encourage Piner’s imaginative concoctions. He calls distilling “a combination of art and science, especially when we get to be creative, like with our seasonal gins.”
The bar and restaurant have cocktails on tap, alcohol-infused slushes (think a cool drink with vodka, gin, cucumber, mint and lemon, or something with Tajin rum, chamoy, mango nectar, lime juice, salt and vodka). There are hot cocktails, too.
Midtown offers educational components with several clubs for customers.
Distillery Club members participate in distilling, bottling parties and cocktail classes. The Barrel Club lets customers work with Piner to create custom spirits. The Bottle Club offers discounts with purchases of specific numbers of bottles each quarter.
Up next is whiskey, with plans for distilling and aging. In November, Midtown hopes to open a bar, tasting area and restaurant at Sacramento International Airport.
Midtown Spirits is at 1717 19th St.; (916) 243-6991; midtown-spirits.com.
Gabrielle Myers can be reached at gabriellemyers11@gmail.com. Her latest book of poetry, “Break Self: Feed,” is available for $20.99 from fishinglinepress.com. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram: @insidesacramento.
