Built in 1932 towards the end of the Prohibition era, Harvest Homestead Farm is a spectacular 343-acre swath of land in Pine Plains. Previously owned by Dutch’s Spirits, the legendary property was once Dutchess County’s largest bootlegging operation – owned and operated by the notorious gangster Dutch Schultz, who was once played by Dustin Hoffman in the film Billy Bathgate. Now, Harvest Homestead Farm is on the market for $4.5 million with Andrew Gates of Houlihan Lawrence.
Not only does the Pine Plains property include several impressive barn structures and a fully functioning distillery and tasting room, but the destination is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. With over 343 acres of land, 7,036 square feet of space, and four three-quarter baths, Harvest Homestead Farm is a superb piece of Hudson Valley history.
Back in the Prohibition era, a massive network of hidden underground bunkers and tunnels under a cow barn on the property housed a distillery that produced sugar wash moonshine – considered the best of the best. Then, in 2020, a newly constructed building that integrated the underground complex with a state-of-the-art distillery, commercial kitchen, and tasting room was opened to the public. Operated by Dutch’s Spirits, the distillery blended and bottled the first batch of sugar wash moonshine since Prohibition, just steps from the very place where Schultz’s gang bootlegged so many years before.
Aside from its moonshine-mixed past, Harvest Homestead Farm has endless potential as a commercial property. Over the years, the Pine Plains spot has been a productive farm, raising everything from turkeys to chickens, pigs to cows, and potatoes to corn. Today, the historic farm is waiting for someone to revitalize the distillery and tasting room, reimagine it as a full-time working farm, or open a sprawling indoor-outdoor event space.
Located adjacent to Harvest Homestead Farm is the increasingly popular Mashomack Fish and Game Preserve Club, which operates on a 1,900-acre private sporting preserve. The sporting club offers shooting, polo playing, and fine dining. Furthermore, the farm resides within the picturesque hamlet of Pine Plains, which is a mere 30 minutes from the popular day trip towns and cultural and dining hubs of Hudson and Rhinebeck.
Harvest Homestead Farm is located at 70 Ryan Road in Pine Plains.
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