The whiskey barrel is being emptied for bottling.
Celebrating 10 years of Wyoming’s First Legal Bourbon:
WYO M ING WHIS K E Y When Brad and Kate Mead bought their new ranch in Kirby, Kate wanted a winery. The fourth generation Wyominites had decided to diversify their business ventures and on the short list was a vineyard. However, the arid region of Hot Springs County was better suited for growing grains than grapes.
their proposed venture because, according to Max, it would take three times as long, be three times as hard and be three times as expensive as the partners expected. By now, however, the idea was firm in their minds and they were not to be deterred. In fact, their plans grew only bigger and more expansive than they first imagined.
In June 2006, David DeFazio, fellow lawyer, friend and business partner, was told by Brad, “Kate and I have decided we want to make bourbon.”
By January 2007, Brad announced to Kate, “We just bought a still.”
Dave responded, “How the hell do you make bourbon?”
“Will it fit in our garage?” she asked. “No,” he had to admit. “Its 38 feet tall.”
“That’s for you to figure out.”
Their new whiskey facility was built around the larger still and the colors were chosen by Kate to specifically blend into the red and brown landscape of Kirby. The distillery itself was designed to resemble the grain elevators as a tribute to those commonly seen throughout the region.
With this directive from Brad, David plunged into the world of bourbon with a mission to create the state’s first legal distillery. By fall of that year, his research led the men to the Kentucky Bourbon Festival where they began to learn firsthand about the industry of bourbon making.
In the summer of 2007, Brad sunk the ceremonial first shovel into the ground and construction began. That same year, Steve
One of their new acquaintances was Max Shapira, president of Heaven Hill Distillery. He actually attempted to dissuade them from HotSpringsWyoming.com
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