At Blackwater Distilling, vodka is more than a tasteless, odorless spirit – it’s a passion. Sloop Betty handcrafted vodka stands apart from other top shelf vodkas due to our unique combination of spirits distilled from organic wheat and organic cane sugar. Blackwater Distilling’s first product, Sloop Betty Vodka, was an instant success winning a Gold Medal for Best Vodka in Show at the New York Wine & Spirits Competition.

Sloop Betty

Sloop Betty’s organic wheat provides a complex base and hints of ripe berries on the nose and palate, while the sugar cane adds creamy vanilla notes and a slight residual sweetness for an unforgettably smooth finish.
Many of the large vodka brands will add smoothing agents like propylene glycol, a clear, tasteless and odorless compound with a slight residual sweetness that you might recognize from your car’s antifreeze. Not Betty. She’s all natural.

Sloop Betty Honey

We start with our multi-gold medal-winning Sloop Betty Vodka and blend in a touch of raw, unpasteurized orange blossom honey that we source from a local Maryland apiary. This sweet thing is our number one seller at the distillery store!
She’s not overly sweet and plays well with fresh citrus juices, herbs like rosemary and sage, and spices like cinnamon and cloves. Smooth enough to sip on the rocks with a twist of lemon or grapefruit and sweet enough to top a glass of iced tea.

Sloop Betty Caramel

Sloop Betty Caramel embodies our philosophy of using high-quality, natural ingredients. Our award-winning Sloop Betty Vodka is infused with carefully selected vanilla beans then sweetened with house-made caramelized syrup for a natural, toasty flavor that is perfect for fall and winter cocktails.
Not overly sweet, Sloop Betty Caramel plays well with chocolate, apple cider, apple and cranberry juices and other fall flavors. She is smooth enough to sip on the rocks but give it a try in hot apple cider with a dash of cinnamon for a warming treat.

Sloop Betty Professional

Designed with the professional and home mixologist in mind, Sloop Betty Professional Bartender’s Vodka is the same Gold Medal winning Sloop Betty Vodka, bottled at 120 proof rather than 80 proof.
Sloop Betty Professional is not only smooth and pure, it is the most economical of our line of Sloop Betty vodkas, sold in liter bottles made for infusing and entertaining.

The Boat

The sloop “Betty” was a merchant vessel that plied the pirate-infested waters of the Atlantic in the early eighteenth century. On one fateful day in 1717, the “Betty” was returning from Portugal with a cargo of madeira wine when she was set upon at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay by none other than Blackbeard, who had strayed north from his base in the Carolinas. The infamous pirate and his crew took the “Betty” and, unable to resist her booty, broke in to the wine and worked up a raucous drunk, eventually scuttling the “Betty” and sinking her to the bottom of the Bay.

The Girl

Sloops, pirates and fine madeira wine make for a fun bit of local history but we wanted our first product to tie into our family history as well. Chris and Jon Cook, founders of Blackwater Distilling, grew up in a military family as they moved about the country with their father Rich Cook, who was in the Coast Guard. Rich had lived out a similar experience growing up in a family piloted by Burt Cook, a U.S. Army pilot. In World War II, Burt flew numerous sorties as a pilot of C-47 troop transport planes. Burt was shot down three times and flew on D-Day but returned home to tell his tales. The girl on the vodka bottle we affectionately call “Betty” recalls adventures and the contribution of Burt Cook by paying homage to the pinup art often found gracing the fuselages of American planes in World War II. If you are or have been part of our armed forces, please stop by the distillery for a tour and tasting and show us your military ID for a 10% discount.