Boston, Massachusetts-based Bully Boy Distillers and Matunuck Oyster Bar in South Kingstown celebrated the releases of a proprietary gin, part of the distillery’s program that enables restaurants, bars or package stores to design a namesake gin entirely from scratch, start to finish. Matunuck Oyster Bar’s Owner and Founder Perry Raso and General Manager Kevin Momenee worked alongside brothers and Bully Boy Co-founders Will Willis and Head Distiller Dave Willis to design its custom gin. This marks Bully Boy’s first collaboration in the state of Rhode Island. Exclusively available at Matunuck Oyster Bar, Bully Boy Matunuck Gin is influenced and inspired by the flavors of coastal Southern Rhode Island and is featured in two signature cocktails. Momenee said, “My goal was to come up with a unique gin that people try and say ‘wow.’ Here at Matunuck Oyster Bar, we are committed to providing the freshest food available, using locally sourced produce along with farm-raised and wild-caught seafood. Continuing with that, we wanted to use ingredients in our gin that were local to New England; sea kelp was the missing piece to the puzzle. I knew the guys from Bully Boy could make it work and sure enough they came up with an amazing product that not only exemplifies local, but definitely adds to the wow effect.” The full Bully Boy Distillers line is distributed in the state via Horizon Beverage Co.
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- Bully Boy Matunuck Gin, a proprietary gin, on display at Matunuck Oyster Bar in South Kingstown.
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- Andrew Greenleaf, Rhode Island Market Manager, Bully Boy Distillers; Will Willis, Co-founder and Distiller, Bully Boy Distillers; Peter Hilton, Horizon Beverage Co. of Rhode Island, Fradin Division; Kevin Momenee, General Manager, Matunuck Oyster Bar; and Perry Raso, Owner and Founder, Matunuck Oyster Bar.
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- Will Willis, Co-founder and Distiller, Bully Boy Distillers said, “We are beyond excited to partner with Perry and his team at Matunuck Oyster Bar. We worked directly with Kevin Momenee, who came up with some really fun and different components to the gin. Our favorite was sea kelp, which we had never worked with before, and brings a really nice briny quality to the gin. We were thrilled to be involved with such a talented group of people.”
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- Signature cocktails made with Bully Boy Matunuck Gin: Matunuck Aqua Fresca, made with Matunuck Gin, blended cucumber, simple syrup, lime juice and tajín rim; and Oh So Beautiful, made with Matunuck Gin, fresh blackberry, simple syrup, fresh lemon juice and soda.
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- A closer look at Bully Boy Matunuck Gin cocktails.
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- Michelle Conner and Beatrice Mills on the dock for Matunuck Oyster Bar, which uses fresh, locally sourced ingredients for its cuisine and its new proprietary gin, including sea kelp.
Photos by Laura Widness.
