Michigan Distilled Vodka and Other Craft Beverages

Grass and grain crops that would otherwise end up as feed or fuel are being transformed into fine alcoholic beverages by Michigan Distilled Vodka that produce vodka, gin, whiskey, rum and brandy. These distilleries are churning out bottles that have earned national attention and winning awards for their taste.

Michigan Distilled Vodka

For example, the owners of Long Road Distillers opened their first distillery in Grand Rapids in May 2015 with a commitment to use local Michigan ingredients and true grain to glass craft distilling. Their flagship product is Vodka, which they make from wheat grown by a local farmer. The wheat is milled onsite and then fermented in-house. After fermentation, the vodka is distilled 37 times in their copper pot still. This produces a smooth, clean, and crisp vodka that is non chill filtered.

In the same vein, North River Vodka is a potato-based spirit that was developed in Traverse City and made from potatoes grown by family farms on Michigan soil. For every bottle sold, North River donates one pound of potatoes to a food pantry in the local community.

Another trailblazer is Rifino Valentine of Valentine Distilling Company who launched his premium-priced, 100% Michigan-made vodka in 2008. He got into the business with the idea that if just one out of every 10 drinks served in the state’s high-end cocktail and martini bars were made with locally distilled spirits instead of those imported from overseas, $100 million would remain in the state economy.