YONKERS, N.Y.,– A trendy, new, “green” microdistillery, Nahmias et Fils, located in the Yonker’s Yoho Art District near the downtown waterfront, debuts its product line on May 15, 2012. The micro distillery was founded by Dorit Nahmias, a former foreign exchange trader, and David Nahmias, a computer-software engineer, who comes from a family of micro distillers in Morocco. His parents and grandparents all made Mahia, which is an alcoholic beverage, made entirely from fermented figs, dates, and seasoned only with herbs – generally Anise.
“Opening a micro distillery in New York, and furthering an exciting business and cultural trend, has been a dream of my family’s,” said Dorit. “My husband’s family made Mahia in Taznakht, Morocco. So David has a deeply-held passion for Mahia, which was traditionally made by the Jews in Morocco. David’s dad, Joseph, is actually a legend in Taznakht since he was the last Jew to remain after the Jewish exodus in the late 1950s and early 1960s. We are so excited to now be carrying on this tradition in this country.”
The family’s 1,800-square-foot micro distillery will debut with two handcrafted, small-batch spirits, which will be certified kosher: the Mahia, which will be made from figs, and a “Legs Diamond” rye whiskey, which will be made from certified-organic rye grown locally onsustainable farms. In a nod to the region’s moonshine history, the line of spirits will feature names of regional bootleggers and be packaged in bottles styled with 1920s flair. The bottles were featured in the July 2011 issue of HOW magazine, designed by Go for it Design’s Nancy Harris Rouemy – a former art director at the New York Times magazine, who has won myriad awards – and are made by a sustainability-focused manufacturer.
“We saw a growing market in this region that dovetailed perfectly with my family’s background,” said David. “For the past 20 years, Dorit and I both worked in the corporate world. We can’t wait to begin this Second Act in both of our professional lives.”
The distillery will produce 10,000 bottles of spirits a month, will distribute via gourmet food and spirits stores, as well as bars, restaurants and nightclubs, and will add a tasting room, tours, a line of liquors and aged whiskey in 2013.
About Nahmias et Fils:
Yonkers-based micro distillery, Nahmias et Fils, was founded by Dorit Nahmias – a former foreign-exchange trader quoted in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and the WallStreet Journal – and Master Distiller David Nahmias, a formercomputer-software engineer, who was raised in the small Moroccan town of Taznakht. His parents, Joseph and Tamou, and grandparents Saada and Moshe, distilled Mahia, a unique Jewish alcoholic beverage; following the Jewish exodus from the region, his dad became legendary for being the last Jew to remain in Taznakht. Individually, and as a couple, Dorit and David have traveled to Singapore, Venezuela, Panama, London, Montreal, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Israel, Romania, France, Spain, aswell as the Napa Valley, Los Angeles, Orlando, Miami, Washington D.C., New England, Pennsylvania, Virginia and New York. Dorit is a graduate of the Levin Institute and Carnegie Mellon University and David is a graduate of Cégep du Vieux in Montréal.
