Quietly open since the beginning of April, Florida Cane Distillery has revealed the grand opening of its Ybor City headquarters as 3 to 5 p.m. Friday.
The relocation of Florida Cane, whose move from an industrial park in East Hillsborough to Ybor's El Encanto Building was announced in January, was prompted by updates to craft distillery zoning requirements in Tampa. The nearly 18-month process involved transferring federal and state permits, renovating the historic interior of Florida Cane's new home and installing new equipment.
The opening celebration, which the public is welcome to attend, will feature a ribbon-cutting ceremony with Mayor Bob Buckhorn, followed by samples of cocktails and spirits.
Twice the size of the original location along Falkenburg Road, Florida Cane's Ybor facility at 15th Street and Eighth Avenue has room for behind-the-scenes tours that showcase the manufacturing process, plus a barrel room used to age spirits. Its portfolio is made up of flavored vodka and moonshine, small-batch vodka and gin, but the local distillery also plans to release a number of other offerings in Ybor.
Later, Florida Cane will offer summer distilling classes to give folks the opportunity to create their own whiskey, vodka and rum.
