Headframe Lays Claim to the West

We're not yet certain how we feel about a micro going macro, but we have to grant John and Courtney one thing: they freakin' love Butte. And even though a minor macro setting up shop in the West means less market share for the smalls, its still a step toward breaking the whiskey monopoly held by Kentucky, Canada, and Scotland.

Here is their press release:

Largest Beverage Distillery West of the Mississippi Announced

BUTTE, Mont (August 14, 2014)—Montana’s Entrepreneurs of the Year 2013, and owners of Headframe Spirits, John and Courtney McKee opened Headframe Spirits in 2012, currently they operate two distilleries in Butte, MT, and are now announcing plans to open a third facility in Butte with the capacity to rival that of large distilleries in Kentucky and Indiana.

Last summer, Headframe Spirits entered into a year long project with Butte Silver Bow Community Development, the Community Development Block Program, and SMA Architects to evaluate three potential sites in Butte suitable for our needs of producing a full size barrel of whiskey every seven minutes. Although a value added agricultural manufacturing facility, the goal of site selection included the need to create ties between agriculture, history, manufacturing, and tourism.

With preliminary engineering and architectural work complete and a suitable site selected, Headframe intends to enter into negotiations with property owners - Butte Silver Bow County and Atlantic Richfield Company with the goal to take over 20 acres of a former industrial site, The Kelley Mine Yard, to redevelop it into the largest distillery west of the Mississippi.

This project incorporates Headframe Spirits' proprietary continuous flow distillation technology to produce beverage alcohol both for Headframe Spirits' own brands and for bulk sale into the beverage alcohol industry as well.

All attempts will be made to maintain the history of the site, with production and restaurant space located in the historic hoist house. Barrel storage, packaging, shipping and receiving will be located in the 54,000 square feet Kelley garage building.

We also envision this site built out to act as an eastern anchor to Historic Uptown Butte, America, with a strong emphasis on tourism, outdoor event space, and economic development for our place in the world. Onsite overnight bungalows and the restaurant were incorporated into the master plan in order to promote a more fully integrated experience onsite and in the Uptown.

Headframe Spirits anticipates that this project will create approximately 50 new long-term jobs through this venture and ownership will be maintained in Butte.

For additional information and architect renderings, please visit http://bit.ly/1sVGsK2.

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Headframe at the Edge

One perk of constantly monitoring goings on in the craft spirit world is that you often catch wind of things you might otherwise have missed. This was the case this past Thursday when I noticed a posting on the Headframe Spirits' Facebook page announcing that the Edge in Hamilton, Montana, would be hosting a meet and greet with them from 5-7 pm.  Hamilton is only a short drive south on U.S. 93 from my home in Corvallis, and the timing worked out such that I was headed that direction anyway, so I popped in to see what it was all about.

I have been excited to visit Headframe for awhile. This particular distiller is headquartered in Butte, America, by far the most interesting and historic city in Montana, if not the entire West. Seattle and San Francisco are certainly more prominent, but the evidence of their significance has been muted and buried beneath their growth. Butte, on the other hand, still wears its legacy on its sleeve.

I love Butte. It is absolutely without pretense and utterly authentic. I imagine Headframe to be the same.

Whether it is or not is a question to be answered another time. For the moment, all of its substantial possibility was relegated to a small folding table in a section of the well stocked liquor store that comprises a third of the Edge Restaurant and Sports Bar footprint.  Bottles were arrayed in ranks, backed by Headframe Spirits' marketing intern superforce, Eric Johnston.

Eric is everything you want in a rep. Outgoing, loyal, and fearless, he did nothing but pay tribute to the brand and its founders, John and Courtney McKee. Knowledgeable, or at least versed, in every aspect of Headframe, he got me started in the right direction with a taste of their High Ore vodka while he told me about Headframe, explained how he came to be involved with the company, and wooed everyone who came within arms reach of a free sample.

I will never claim to be a spirits connoisseur, but as one visitor described it, their vodka came across a little "hot".  It struck me as having what always turned me sour on vodka, the aroma of rubbing alcohol. The gin, on the other hand, was incredible.

I don't know gin, but Headframe's Anselmo is a life altering experience. It has none of the characteristics I associate with gin, namely pine needles. Everyone who tried it was amazed.

Next up was the Neversweat bourbon. I heard Eric mention several times as I stood there sipping mine, listening to him pitch the brand, product, and company fervently to each and every patron, that it had won silver at a recent whiskey competition. It was easily as good as most bourbon's I've tried, but it wasn't Red Breast or The Balvanie. Again, its the process I appreciate, not the outcome. I recommend you try it for yourself and then decide.

Last up was dessert. Eric, maestro that he is, had precisely orchestrated my tasting experience, building to the crux and providing a smooth and tasty denouement, which took the form of Orphan Girl bourbon cream liqueur. I would define it as Bailey's with style, and it drinks even better than that sounds. Over ice cream, I hear, its divine.

All in all, I would consider the tasting a success, as I left even more curious about Headframe than when I arrived. Given the depth of Butte's heritage, the brand has as much marketing leverage as a hill full of copper and, from what I gathered, the technical expertise, personality, and passion to bring it to the surface. Of course, I would expect nothing less from the spirit of Butte.

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