2 minute read
HOME GROWN & LOCAL
HOME GROWN
& LOCAL
Grand Traverse Distillery
Master Distiller Landis Rabish with Sales Director Mike Brunner HOME GROWN & Local
with Grand Traverse Distillery
The Distillery 781 Industrial Circle Ste. 5
grandtraversedistillery.com
OUR STORY (On the back of the bottle) “I grew up on a family farm in Michigan. One day, in the hayloft, I discovered three well-used whiskey jugs. Grandpa George, a Polish immigrant, was putting grain to good use. Fast forward to 2005. We opened Grand Traverse Distillery, Northern Michigan’s first craft distillery. We use only local grains. We distill and bottle every spirit we sell. No shortcuts. Grandpa George would be proud.” – Kent Rabish
KENT’S SON, LANDIS, MASTER DISTILLER continues… “My dad went to school in Marquette and studied Biology and Chemistry. He had a long career selling pharmaceuticals and his chemistry background brought him back here. Back in the day when you ran a farm you also made booze. On my great uncle Phil’s farm, they were also making true north rye vodka. Vodka is a quicker turnaround that you can build a company on. So that’s what dad started with. Our growth in craft whiskey has blown up in the last 2 years.”
FUN FACTS FROM LANDIS AND MIKE
We are a true grain to bottle distillery; we get all our grain’s wheat, rye, corn and barley, from Send
Brothers Farm in Williamsburg. Starting out grain distilleries weren’t allowed to have tasting rooms. Whiskey starts out clear, and the charring of the barrel over time is what causes sweetness and color. Our barrels are American white oak, heavily charred. They are based on a 1-5 system, 5 being the darkest. Our barrels are a 4. Our Chipotle Vodka is amazing for Bloody Mary’s. We are family owned, my brother, Steve runs the warehouse and logistics. Our True North Rye Vodka was selected one of the top 4 vodkas in the world. Ole George 100% Straight Rye Whiskey was picked the best of category for rye whiskey 3 of the past 4 years at the American Distillers Association. If it doesn’t say ‘distilled’ by – they didn’t make it.
