Area distillery taps into national top 10 list

LAKEWOOD RANCH — Loaded Cannon Distillery in east Manatee County has made the top 10 of a new list from USA Today ranking the best new craft distilleries in the country.

Loaded Cannon ranked No. 8 on the list, from USA Today 10Best, a travel and tourism site, and its the only one from Florida. 10Best asked a panel of American spirits experts to nominate 20 of the best new craft distilleries nationwide, and then readers voted for their favorites. All the distilleries have opened in the past three years.

“Loaded Cannon Distillery produces their spirits in small batches from locally sourced raw materials,” the post states. “The current selection includes Florida corn or rice vodka, gin, six different rums and four whiskeys, with more in the works.”

The top 10 winners include:

Lost State Distilling, Bristol, Tenn.

Ballmer Peak Distillery, Lakewood, Colo.

Rhode Island Spirits, Pawtucket, R.I

Altered State Distillery - Erie, Pa.

Harmony Spirits - Harmony, Minn.

Dread River Distilling Co., Birmingham, Ala.

Hatch Distilling Company, Egg Harbor, Wis.

Loaded Cannon Distillery

Ferino Distillery, Reno, Nev.

Wise Men Distillery, Grand Rapids, Mich.

Loaded Cannon Distillery opened in August 2019 in Lakewood Ranch, and was founded by Steve Milligan, a former engineer with Dow Chemical.