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The American Craft Spirits Association (ACSA) and Park Street released the Craft Spirits Data Project (CSDP) at its annual Craft Spirits Economic Briefing, which was held at New York Distilling Co. last week. The report finds that the U.S. craft spirits market share reached 4.9% in volume and 7.5% in value in 2021, up from 4.7% in volume and 7.1% in value in 2020.
Calwise Spirits and Firestone Walker Brewing Company have collaborated together to create “Old Tom Big Sur Gin,” using a special mash made at the brewery. According to a press release, Firestone Walker generated a mash of traditional brewing grains with a complement of wine grape juice, all fermented with native yeast and bacteria.
As brewers of all size think about growth, diversification of offerings, and creativity, the idea of opening a distillery component has crossed most minds. While beer and spirits share a lot of the same space, there are a lot of practical, financial, and logistical issues to overcome with distilling that just do not exist in beer.
If you are a small brewery thinking about starting a distillery component, there are a few basic things to know and questions to ask before letting the spirits move you.
Scott Vaccaro knows this firsthand. As the brewer and founder of Captain Lawrence Brewing in Elmsford, New York, he added Current Spirits to the portfolio in 2019 after a long flirtation with the idea and jumping through legal and local red tape. The process was harder than he imagined.
The Vermont Legislature has passed a bill that will lower taxes on spirits-based ready-to-drink beverages. As in most states, Vermont currently taxes spirit-based RTD’s at the same rate as all other distilled spirit beverages.
Under the bill, taxes on RTD’s would drop from $7.68 per gallon to $1.10 per gallon and could be sold in non-state controlled retail locations that sell beer and wine. The state excise tax on beer is $0.26 per gallon. The bill now sits on Governor Phil Scott’s desk for signature and would become effective July 1, 2022 if signed.
The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUSS) has joined forces with state-based spirits trade groups to lower the state excise tax on RTD’s in a number of states across the country in a organized effort to gain better access to market by being regulated and taxed similar to beer. The beer industry has generally opposed such efforts.
Craft spirits continue to outpace all spirits and are predicted to grow by 21% CAGR through 2025 according to ISWR. With a 5% market share in 2020, craft spirits are expected to reach 10% by 2025.
Craft spirits they grew by 8% in 2020 versus 5% growth for non-craft spirits.
Full story here.
Kentucky distillers have filled 2.5 million barrels so far this year, breaking the record for production. For the first time, there are more than 10 million barrels of bourbon aging across the US state right now.
However, the achievement comes at a price. Kentucky state law considers bourbon aging in barrels to be property, and are therefore subject to property tax in the state.
It’s thought that no other region in the world taxes aging barrels in this way, and the bill puts Kentucky distillers at a competitive disadvantage with whiskey producers from other countries. The astronomical Kentucky barrel tax has increased by 140% in the last 10 years.
Starting a brewery or a distillery can be incredibly rewarding, but it isn’t without its risks. Double that for those who combine the two together in what is becoming a more common business model, often referred to as a brew-stillery.
As the market for craft spirits continues to grow, more brewery owners are tacking on a distillery to utilize the efficiencies and commonalities of the two production methods. One of the biggest barriers is licensing, which varies by state. There are some creative licensing hurdles to overcome in some states, but many states do allow some sort of joint brewery/distillery operation.
Read a detailed article here from Matt Strickland, Head Distiller at Distillerie Côte des Saints and Senior Advisor, Distillery Technical Services at First Key Consulting.
The following article was posted on Sept. 21, 2016. It has been reviewed and updated as necessary by the ProBrewer editorial staff.
Safety is the most important element in any manufacturing facility, and a distillery is no exception.
According to the American Distilling Institute, OSHA defines a distillery as “a plant or that portion of a plant where flammable liquids produced by fermentation are concentrated and where the concentrated products may also be mixed, stored or packaged. The main cause of distillery incidents is fire or explosion. This is caused from vapors being released into a confined space with an ignition source. The vapors can be released by leaking equipment components such as mating surfaces, leaking tanks, gaskets, valves, casks, even transfer pumps.
Ignition sources include:
The following article was posted on Sept 21, 2016. It has been reviewed and updated as necessary by the ProBrewer editorial staff. Footnotes have been included where updated content has been added.
Craft Distillation Tax structure: Craft distillers pay a federal $2.70 per proof gallon (PG) on the first 100,000 PG, $13.34/PG on the next 22,130,000 PG sold, and $13.50/PG on anything above that. More on the federal tax structure for craft distilleries here. (1) There are also state taxes which vary by state.
CQ – What additional licensing were you required to obtain in addition to the Federal Distillers Permit? Was it difficult?
Note: Check with your canning/bottling line manufacturer to see if your line is capable of processing Straight spirits.
Canned spirits are allowed to be distributed at 355 ml, this is a good deal for the existing breweries with canning lines that want to expand their products without purchasing a completely separate packaging line. The cleaning process remains the same along with the chemicals used for CIP. Canned cocktails or Ready to Drink (RTD) beverages are a great alternative for distilleries to market their products. This provides the consumer with convenience and puts the money that the consumer would have spent on a mixer in the pocket of the distillery. The uphill battle is acquiring the label approval from the TTB as this is a relatively new category for them.
Canning straight spirits: Critics are on the fence about canning straight spirits. Cans cannot be closed after they have been opened, leading the consumer to think they have to finish the twelve ounces (about 8 Shots) in one sitting our let the rest go to waste. The argument being that 12 ounces of a high quality craft spirit in a non-resalable container is too much. Others believe it is more convenient for the consumer to take a six pack to the pool or tail gate party as opposed to whole bottle of scotch.
Maturation Post Distillation: You can use your brewery tanks for spirit storage. Since you do not need to control temperature or hold under carbon dioxide pressure you can substitute much simpler, less expensive tanks for this step. The liquor at this point will need to be held in a separate bonded area for tax purposes, and you must have fire suppression measures in place according to local code. Maturation depends on the particular product being made. White spirits can go immediately to finishing and packaging. Others must be allowed to mature in casks. Aging in new, charred, wooden barrels is the most common procedure. This is sometimes followed by a shorter, second aging in used wine or fortified-wine barrels.
Blending: Blending is the Master Distillers key to the art of distillation. Choosing the right water for blending plays a huge factor on your finished product’s look and taste. The water being used to dilute your crafted spirit should be free of calcium and magnesium as these elements are insoluble in water and may cause hazing according to Victoria Redhed Miller, Author of “Craft Distilling” Making Liquor Legally at Home. She says ideally the water used for dilution should be distilled or Reverse Osmosis filtered to produce a higher quality spirit.
Filtering: There are different methods of filtration for different sprits. If you are filtering a vodka or natural spirit, you may want to use an activated carbon filter. This will remove unwanted congeners and other off flavors. Active carbon media is another filtration method. It may come powdered, pelletized, or granular. Be sure to source food grade media. Granular activated carbon is said to be the best for filtration due to its surface area and its porous nature. An activated carbon filter may not be the best for darker or aged spirits such as whiskey or rum due to the risk of removing more than just the unwanted congeners. If you have a big enough batch to be filtered, a lenticular filter may be the best choice for clearing up a cloudy batch.
While sourcing the correct still may seem a little daunting, here are a few things to consider. Most equipment manufactures understand not all prospective brewery/distillery facilities are created equally. Some manufacturers are willing to customize the equipment to fit the brewer’s specific needs and space. Another thing to consider is how often you plan to operate the equipment. In some cases, bigger is not better, and if it’s too small you may have and issue with keeping up with demand. When choosing a still and project production volume, pay attention to the increased loads on your existing heating and cooling systems. Some start-up craft distillers report overloading of existing brewery systems during peak production periods.
There are several types of stills in use in the world today but the modern Fractionating Column Still which passes the alcohol vapor through a series of plates in a column is the equipment of choice for those specializing in clear liquors like vodka and gin.
The trend amongst small distilleries is towards hybrid pot/column still or “Artisan Stills” which can produce a wider range proof spirits.
Will my current Grist or Grain Mill work? A variety of malted grains can be processed with a grain mill. You can probably use your existing mill to crush the malted grains or purchase pre-gelatinized flakes of cereal adjuncts from your malt supplier to add to your mash to increase the alcohol content allowing the operator to have a higher yield in the distillation phase.
What’s different in the Mash/Lauter Tun process? Traditionally the hot liquor and grist are heated to 140F (60C), the wort is then drained and a second mash is typically done at 158F (70C). Many current single step infusion and mash-out procedures can emulate this. Wort clarity is not as important as it is in beer production but a short vorlauf (recirculating the wort though the grain bed) and careful run-off will make downstream steps easier.
Kettle and Wort Chiller processing? Flavors created by bacterial action on the wort during mashing and early fermentation are carried over during distillation, so management is required.
CQ – What types of spirits do you make?
Brandon Wright: “We make Bourbon, Aged Corn Whiskey, Rye Whiskey, a hopped gin called High Country Gin, and a few other projects through the year.”
Clark McCool: “We make Whiskey, Brandy, Gin, Rum and Liqueurs from our two distillery operations. We have 17 products currently. Our most popular being our Hogshead Whiskey (4 year old malted barley)”
Probrewer.com thanks the following Brewstillery content contributors:
Brandon Wright, The Depot Brewery & Distillery
Clark McCool, McMenamins Inc.
Yusuf Cherney. Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits (Now CutWater Spirits)
Eric Howard, Sinister Deluxe Brewery & Distillery
WHY WOULD I WANT TO ADD DISTILLING TO MY BUSINESS MODEL?
Making craft liquors is a market opportunity that could be a logical ‘brand extension’ to your craft beer offerings. Craft distillers report significant opportunities for ‘cross-branding’ between their beer and liquor products. Because you may already have most of the equipment, ingredients, and knowledge needed to produce craft spirits, the profit opportunities are boundless.
Contributor Question (CQ) – What made you decide to add spirits to your production?
Microbreweries, now having been successful outlets of palatable, aromatic and distinguished beers, have planted their roots, established their legacy and are ready for some fresh air. Well, these brown bottle pioneers need look no further – their spirited cousins are gaining speed and ready to join forces.
With a slew of microdistilleries popping up throughout the country, this budding industry attracts the envy of breweries in need of a slight change in pace. Many breweries contemplate pursuing the path Arizona’s Mogollon Brewing Company took: opening a distillery side by side with their existing brewery and making beer schnapps and vodka.
“Beer schnapps,” you ask?
All it takes: grain, water and yeast!
Quantities
Approximately 100 kg (222 lbs) grain will make 600-liter mash. The expected end result is 32-35 liter pure (theoretically 100%) alcohol, from which we can make about 80 to 87 liter (21-23 gallon) whiskey that has the strength of 80 proof.
“Brandy” originates from the Dutch brandywign, which means, “burnt wine.” Dutch traders introduced the secrets of brandy making to Northern Europe after learning about it in France and Spain. It is said that Brandy was spread to these western Mediterranean countries by word from the Arab alchemists of Muslim states back in the 7th and 8th centuries. After so much traveling, one can imagine the variance among brandies across Europe. Brandy can be categorized in three ways: grape brandy, pomace brandy, and fruit brandy.
Grape brandy, perhaps the simplest of all three, derives from fermented grape juice or crushed grape pulp and skins. This type of brandy is frequently aged in oak casks that help mellow the harsh flavor and adds additional aromas and flavor from the wood itself. At the same time, the original grape flavor tends to be lost to the stronger oak flavor.
Pomace brandy results from the fermentation of the pressed remains of the wine making process. This includes grape pulp, skins and stems. Although the taste is rougher, it carries a stronger fruit aroma because it is not aged in wooden casks, if aged at all. Pomace brandies include such spirits as the Italian Grappa and the French Marc.
Vodka. The pure, clean spirit.
Russians and Poles will forever argue over who drank it first – and we will leave that arguement between them. Let it suffice to agree that this “white drink” originated somewhere in northern/eastern Europe around 1400AD and has, since then, spread its popularity across the globe. Vodka, or more literally, “water” (derived from voda), was most conveniently discovered in the colder regions of Europe and Asia when burgeoning distillers realized that their fermented wine became more potent after freezing through the cold winter temperatures. With advanced distilling techniques brought over from the west in the 1400s and 1500s, the Slavic peoples were able to refine their vodka and create top-quality alcoholic drinks that would soon become the trademarks of their countries.
Vodka did not become popular in the US until the 1940s. It was introduced into the American market in the late 1800s and early 1900s when importers realized they could target Eastern European immigrants with a nostalgic drink. Also, many Russian distillers, who lost their livelihood when the Bolsheviks confiscated all private distilleries after the Revolution of 1919, escaped to the US and brought with them their trade vodka secrets and dreams to start again. Still, vodka did not find a prominent place on the stage of alcohol for Americans. Once alcohol rejoined the living with the repeal of the Prohibition Act in 1933, the Russian Vladimir Smirnov (changed to Smirnoff) sold the Smirnoff company to Rudolph Kunnett who in 1939 sold it to the Hublein Company. Several attempts were made at breaking vodka into the American market, but it was not successful until the company began to market it as a cocktail base. This proved to be a great strategy and vodka was on its way to make its mark on the American drinking culture. With its great versatility as a drink mixer it became a favorite at parties and social gatherings. Today you can see many vodka varieties at the liquor stores, among them the most popular being Smirnoff and Absolut.
“1 tequila, 2 tequila, 3 tequila, floor!” -Buddy Shirt
Tequila has won the thirst of Americans twice over and now you, too, want in on the spirit that takes people to the floor. First, we would like to clear some misconceptions regarding the classification of Tequila, for there are many variations of and myths about the famous Mexican spirit that has swept over the US, and they are not one and the same.
Sometimes, mezcal and tequila get confused. Simply put, all tequilas are a mezcal, but only one mezcal is a tequila. By definition, mezcales are spirits made from any agave plant. Tequila, however, can only be made from the blue agave plant, which only grows in the fertile red soil of Western Mexico, in the Tequila region. Another misconception is that tequila can be made from the maguey. Blue agave and maguey are not the same plant and neither of these is a cactus, as many assume.