It was a January evening in 1991 in Sarasota, FL when I fell in love with bourbon. I had drank it before, but that Jim Beam on ice in a coffee mug was like the first kiss from a surprise crush. There were so many flavors and aromas coming from the mug I had brought into the public lecture I was attending at my college, that I paid little attention to the speaker, but instead just loved on that whiskey.
From there my life was a move to Chicago, art school, working at a then-new place on the West side called The Empty Bottle. It started my real love of spirits being able to sample them with a full back bar, to taste the differences and similarities at the end of the shift made me want to learn more. So I did.
Over the years I worked in and managed many other bars and restaurants, moving to Asheville NC, getting fairly deep into the world of craft cocktails before that world was ubiquitous, learning as much about different spirits as I could in a control state. One day I started wondering why people don’t use oats in whiskey, and what would that taste like? Why can’t I find a gin with lemon, cardamom, and a touch of lavender?
I realized that I might just have to answer those questions myself, and started researching distillation. I had been a home fermentation nerd for over a decade, and maybe it was time to start thinking about going professional. So I enrolled in the charter class of the Brewing, Distillation, and Fermentation program at the Craft Beverage Institute of the Southeast at AB Tech – what I call booze school. I spent two years focusing on what it would take to make whiskey legally.
From there it was off to Savannah, GA where, for over six years I was the head distiller at Ghost Coast Distillery. I wrote the OSHA compliance manual, SOPs, recipes, led the production team to meet our deadlines, mopped floors, turned wrenches, cleaned the employee bathroom, and made over 30 different spirits until one day I was told the distillery was closing its doors. Which surprised me because after a slow start, there were consecutive years of very strong growth.
I am now at my next stop, in lovely Brown County Indiana. Working as the head distiller at a farm distillery focused on the regional grains which is exciting, but that only engages part of my interests in distillation. Experimentation and creativity are two aspects that I need to stay happy.
So that is why I am writing this. Spirits and especially whiskey still fascinate me, they are just one thing that gets my nerd juice running. Other things are spreadsheets and data tracking, efficiency improvement, building of systems, and experimental conceptual photography (I know that isn’t job related, but creativity is a big part of my home life.) I thrive on new projects and unique ideas. I want to help people realize their boozy dreams and help them create something unique and wonderful.
Does that sound like fun? Then reach out and let’s make delicious happen.