Port Chilkoot Distillery

Port Chilkoot Distillery is a family-owned craft distillery in Haines, Alaska, founded by Heather Shade and Sean Copeland in 2012. Production began in 2013, establishing Port Chilkoot as the first distillery in Southeast Alaska. Shade had previously worked as a biologist for the National Park Service, while Copeland brought more than two decades of experience as a carpenter.

The distillery began in a restored building constructed in 1904 as the bakery for Fort William H. Seward. Shade and Copeland began restoring the neglected building in 2012, carrying out much of the work themselves before opening Port Chilkoot Distillery in October 2013. The name recalls Port Chilkoot, the post-war community that grew out of the former military installation. The distillery specifically identifies the Port Chilkoot Company, formed after the fort was deactivated in 1946, as its namesake. Port Chilkoot later merged with Haines in 1970.

The operation subsequently expanded beyond the original historic building. Copeland constructed a new production facility in 2019, while the restored building continued to serve as the tasting room. Shade has remained closely involved in developing the distillery’s spirits, drawing on her background as a biologist in her work with botanicals, and was the founding president of the Distillers Guild of Alaska. In 2014 she also played a leading role in the effort to change Alaska law to allow distilleries to sell limited quantities of their own spirits on site; Port Chilkoot opened its tasting room on October 31, 2014 after the new law took effect.

Port Chilkoot produces small-batch spirits in Haines, with a portfolio that has included 50 Fathoms Gin, Icy Strait Vodka, Green Siren Absinthe, Boatwright Bourbon, Wrack Line Rye, Seaworthy Rum and Agave de Alaska, alongside occasional limited releases. The distillery incorporates regional ingredients where appropriate, including locally harvested botanicals, while its whiskey program includes grain-to-barrel distillation carried out on site.