Founded 1780 | ||
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Headquarters Eatontown, New Jersey, United States | ||
Laird & Company is a distillery located in the Scobeyville section of Colts Neck Township, New Jersey. Founded by Robert Laird, it is the oldest licensed distillery in the United States and received License No. 1 from the U.S. Department of the Treasury in 1780. Laird has a rectifier and blender license from the New Jersey Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
Robert Laird, descended from one of Monmouth County's oldest families, served in the Continental Army under George Washington. Washington asked Laird for his recipe for "cyder spirits" before the Revolution. Today, none of the company's production is located in New Jersey. It obtains all its apples from Virginia's Shenandoah Valley and distills its products there. Distilling at its New Jersey facilities ceased in 1972 and Laird's only blends, ages and bottles its products in Scobeyville".