'Friendly Fire' rye whiskey on sale this weekend at Fort Ligonier

When Fort Ligonier Museum supporters were naming a special-edition rye whiskey to debut at a 2019 fundraiser, they looked no farther than the Ligonier museum’s own Washington Gallery.

A painting there depicts a 26-year-old George Washington’s “friendly fire” incident in 1758 that nearly claimed the life of the then-Virginia colonel.

The incident is commemorated in a framed 62-by-44-inch portrait, “Flash Point” by artist Chas Fagan. It’s displayed next to a copy of Washington’s “Remarks,” a handwritten account of his years on the Pennsylvania frontier, including the traumatic friendly fire engagement that nearly took his life.

The September fundraiser was a huge success, according to museum director of public relations Julie Donovan, and the 100-proof whiskey, aptly named “Friendly Fire” crafted by the Pittsburgh-based Wigle Whiskey was a hit, too.

So much so that museum officials ordered a new batch and obtained a special permit from the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board so the whiskey can go on sale in the museum’s gift shop 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

“In his 11-page memoir of his time spent in the Western Pennsylvania frontier at Fort Ligonier and Fort Necessity (in Fayette County), Washington’s remarks talk about the friendly fire incident that occurred here and was the closest he came to death his entire life including later in the Revolutionary War,” Donovan said.

Donovan credits former trustee Molly Walton of Ligonier with the idea to create the special whiskey to promote the museum’s Washington Gallery and Fagan’s painting that was unveiled to the museum’s board of directors in April 2019.

“It was a very creative, unique and fun way to engage people in the region’s history and tell Fort Ligonier’s history. … When Molly was a trustee she always came up with these creative ideas for our annual Cannon Ball fundraiser that were fun and still emphasized our unique history,” Donovan said.

Walton and Erica Nuckles, the museum’s director of history and collections, worked with the Wigle distillery on the proper whiskey blend.

Devon Roeshot, a sales manager with Wigle, said working with the folks at Fort Ligonier on such a worthwhile project was definitely memorable.

“I can say that people at the fort were an absolute joy to work with. A special shout out to Molly Walton, who creatively came up with the idea and worked closely with our design team to make the beautiful label that pays tribute to the friendly fire incident,” Roeshot said.

Donovan said the museum was hoping to hold its whiskey sale in conjunction with a History Happy Hour event slated for Friday. The event was canceled because of the uncertainty of the state limiting the sizes of public gatherings due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“We had already acquired the permit to sell the whiskey from the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, so we decided to go ahead with the whiskey sale,” Donovan said. The bottles are $50 per 375 ml. bottle or two for $90.

The History Happy Hour has been rescheduled for Aug. 21.