Village Garage’s Matt Cushman (holding a copy of the resolution) and Doug Goble with Commissioner of Liquor and Lottery Wendy Knight. Courtesy photo.
For winning Silver Medal, Village Garage Distillery’s Bonfire smoked maple bourbon recognized on the floor of the State House
Vermont Business Magazine On Wednesday, March 18th, Village Garage Distillery’s Founder Matt Cushman, Director of Sales Douglas Goble, and head of Marketing Tom Remp were in attendance at the Vermont State House for the reading of H.C.R.187, a House concurrent resolution congratulating VGD on “winning a silver medal at the 2025 San Francisco World Spirits Competition for Bonfire… a smoked maple bourbon.”
Sponsored by Bennington Representatives William Greer and Mary Morrissey, H.C.R. 187 is full of praise for both VGD and Bonfire:
“This tantalizing and unique bourbon evokes the special ambience of family and friends gathered around a roaring campfire… [T]he San Francisco World Spirits Competition is renowned for its vigorous blind-tasting process that has earned this event a coveted ranking among spirits-judging competitions across the globe… [N]ow associated with an extraordinary imprimatur, Bonfire smoked maple bourbon has inspired the Village Garage Distillery to work even harder in its creation of outstanding locally sourced spirits.”
For a small craft distillery in Vermont to win silver here is a major achievement, cementing Bonfire as one of Vermont’s most exceptional alcohol products.
“Receiving this recognition from the state is pretty astounding,” says Cushman. “This is an exciting time for the Distillery and for Bonfire, which is fast becoming our flagship product.”
At the State House for the reading, Cushman and Goble were congratulated in person by Governor Phil Scott. They also met with Wendy Knight, Commissioner at the Vermont Department of Liquor and Lottery, and with Lieutenant Governor John Rodgers.
Village Bonfire is available in 802Spirits stores across Vermont, select stores in New York and Massachusetts, and online through villagegarage.com.
About VGD:
One wintery Vermont Christmas Eve, Village Garage founders Glen Sauer and Matt Cushman shared their dream of opening a craft distillery in their hometown of Bennington, Vermont. Years of hard effort later, we're proud of our status as one of Vermont’s most innovative craft distilleries and as a central pillar of the Bennington community. Our acclaimed product lineup includes our award-winning Bonfire smoked maple bourbon, as well as high-rye Village Bourbon, Village Rye, Village Vodka, and Village House Gin.
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Vermont Business Magazine