Hudson Valley Master Distiller David Nahmias and his wife Dorit hand-craft their award-winning spirits with the finest, natural ingredients. They are proudly the sole producers of Mahia in the United States.
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 former computer-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, as well 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
It was travel that turned Dorit Nahmias, President, into a gourmand. She’s a former Foreign Exchange Trader with Bank Leumi and a Financial Institutions Relationship Manager with OCBC Bank, who’s been quoted in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and the Wall Street Journal. Her work took her to Singapore, Venezuela, Panama, Mexico, Chile and Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She’s also traveled to Paris, London, Canada, Mexico, and frequently to Israel, where she has family. Growing up, she traveled across northern Europe (including Denmark and Sweden), and to her mother’s hometown of Arad, Romania. Domestically, she’s been to the Napa Valley, Los Angeles, Orlando, Miami, Washington D.C. and throughout New England, Pennsylvania, Virginia and the family’s home state of New York. Today, she’s an eco-mom with three children of her own, and her passion for green living extends to the distillery, where she chooses organic, locally-grown ingredients for the Legs Diamond Whiskey and oversees production of the Nahmias et Fils’ Mahia, which is made 100% from figs and seasoned only with herbs (Anise). She is a graduate of the Levin Institute and Carnegie Mellon University.
Master Distiller, David Nahmias, was raised in the small Moroccan town south of Taznakht. His parents, Joseph and Tamou, and grandparents, Saada and Moshe, were also distillers and they created Mahia, a unique Jewish alcoholic beverage, made entirely from figs, dates, or grapes. His dad was also a well-known businessman, who was dedicated to life in the region. He worked with the American Joint Distribution Committee for 15 years, helping to distribute food to the region’s poor. During the Moroccan independence from France in the mid 1950s, Joseph ran a small hotel in Taznakht, which ended up housing French military. Concurrently, he was secretly transporting Moroccan revolutionaries and when his actions were discovered, he was thrown into jail for three months. Following the Jewish exodus from the region, Joseph became legendary for being the last Jew to remain in Taznakht. David has also lived in Paris, France; Montreal, Canada, spent time in London, and has traveled extensively throughout Morocco, France, and Spain. For 25 years, he worked as a computer-software engineer in the banking, accounting, collections and home-loan industries.