Skip to main content

Spodee: Wine With a Dose Moonshine

What happens when you mix good old-fashioned moonshine with red or white wine? Spodee! It’s basically wine fortified with moonshine mixed with a bunch of several ingredients. It can be turned into sangria, used as a cocktail mixer, or drank all on its own. We quizzed its creator, Steven Grasse, about the evolution of the concoction, and the best occasions to enjoy it, but we have to admit, we’re not sure how serious he is about his last answer.

How did you come up with the recipes for Spodee White and Spodee Red?

Recommended Videos

Historical research is what I do for fun — drinkin’ and thinkin’. I specifically wanted to do something with wine, just to see what could be done, so I started researching. Spodee is wine fortified with moonshine and mixed with various spices and flavors. So, with that loose definition, we created the recipes for the white and the red.

How would you describe the taste?

Wine with a kick. We also call it Hillbilly vermouth, and like vermouth, Spodee mixes well in cocktails. But it’s also great on it’s own.

Why did you decide to put it on the market?

We made up a batch and it tasted great, so we decided to bottle some up in some old timey milk bottles and see what happens. That first batch sold like crazy, so we put out more, and it grew and grew in and around Philly. Then all around our home state of Pennsylvania, and now we are starting to expand it to new states. I think the timing is great because people seem to be really into these flavored moonshine, so I think they can easily “get” what Spodee is. People seem to be digging it.

What are the best occasions to drink it?  

Put some in your coffee for breakfast. Chill it, wrap it in a paper bag and put a straw in it…perfect for the train ride home!

For more information, visit spodeewine.com.

Ann Binlot
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Ann Binlot is a New York-based freelance writer who contributes to publications like The Economist, Wallpaper*, Monocle…
What’s in a $15 million wine cellar in Palm Beach?
Vintage acquisitions from all over the globe
Koch wine cellar in Palm Beach.

Oh, the rich and famous. They get to do it all, from building mansions on private islands to sipping on the most expensive Scotch in the land. If the rest of us our lucky, we get a peak at these lifestyles now and again.

In Palm Beach, where wealth is quite fashionable, there are some out-of-this-world wine cellars. One, belonging to William Koch, is valued at $15 million. And a lot of the prizes within are about to go to auction.

Read more
From sangiovese to syrah: the ultimate guide to dry red wines
Some of the greatest wines ever made
Cut of grilled steak with glass of red wine

Chances are your favorite red wine is dry. I know that not because I have a crystal ball, but because pretty much every popular red wine is dry. (I urge you to discover the many delights of sweet red wine, but not right now.) Before we get into types, let’s address the big question: What makes a wine dry?

Wines are called dry when they have comparatively low amounts of residual sugars, meaning they taste less sweet (technically below 1%, or nine grams of sugar per liter). All wines would be dry if fermentation weren’t halted or they were back-sweetened. Yeast will “ferment until dry,” meaning it will gobble up all the sugar there is, no crumbs left. This dry descriptor applies to all types of wine – sparkling, white, red, and rosé. The first time dry appears in writing referring to wine was in Richard Ames’s 1691 poem “The Last Search After Claret, &C.” in which the narrator is looking for a red Bordeaux but is offered sweet port instead:

Read more
Want to sound like a wine pro? The wine buzzwords of 2025 you ought to know
The descriptors you should comprehend
Erin Lindstone.

In wine, it pays to know what you're talking about. You can get lost in the lingo and end up with something you never would have ordered. But, if you crack the code, you'll be in with the cool wine kids and enjoying exactly what you were after.

Now, there's helpful wine terminology, which can help you navigate the field. But there are also buzzwords — descriptors sommelier-types like to throw at wine to paint a better picture of its build, style, or texture. This story is focused on the latter and will set you up to converse in even the hippest wine bars in the land.

Read more