Redefining high-rye preconceptions
Still Austin Whiskey Co. is elevating expectations
We’ve all had a lightbulb moment in our time. You know the one, where you come up with a life-changing idea that will ultimately make you millions and ensure that you can retire at approximately 25 years old. Sadly, a fair few fall by the wayside, but in doing so they make room for new dreams, ideas and career paths. However, some ideas are made to make it out into the world and the story of Still Austin Whiskey Co. is most definitely one of them.
The Austin, Texas-based distillery (how did
you guess?) made its move into the spirits industry as the city’s first legal whiskey distillery; of course, with an accolade like this came a lot of red tape to work through. One of the distillery’s co-founders, Chris Seals explains, “It took us a little over three years to navigate this. It was frustrating at times, but did give us time to build relationships and a local grain supply chain so we could source ingredients from our own region. This is part of what give our Bourbon its unique flavour.”
The rather unique team of founders is made up of three duos: Andrew and Lisa Braunberg, Sal and Joanna Salinas and Chris and Cleveland Seals. The six co-founders were united by their love of whiskey and this drew them into business.
For Chris and his father Cleveland this was a project that was close to the heart, providing them with something to work on together. “As an economist, I thought this was a terrible idea,” adds Chris. “My dad retired about seven years ago and asked me to start a whiskey distillery with him… I wanted to spend time with my dad, so I recommended that we study the idea of opening a distillery. By study, I meant visiting distilleries, tasting their products, having fun and bonding with my dad.
“We had fun studying and that happened to be the time that state laws in Texas changed, which made it more feasible for us to open a whiskey distillery… so we did.”
Since opening its distillery doors in September 2017, the team has expanded in size and experience, led by head distiller John Schrepel. During his time there, John has been mentored by two industry legends who have played an integral part in the success of the distillery: Nancy Fraley, master blender, and Mike Deavante, master distiller.
Nancy is quite the force within the industry thanks to her unflappable ability to detect flavour notes and her reputation for quality blending. If that wasn’t enough, she
is also celebrated within whiskey circles as the creator of the American Craft Whiskey Aroma Wheel, a sensory tool for distillers and whiskey connoisseurs alike.
The Still Austin team seemed like the perfect fit for Nancy, who explains, “I first met Chris and his dad, Cleveland Seals, and the other founders back in December 2013 when they took an American Distilling Institute Whiskey Distillation class in Seattle, which I happened to be co-teaching. We all really hit it off on a personal level, which was a huge plus. Then I heard from Chris again [at] the beginning of 2014 when they were ready to get their distillery started. I have happily been on this wonderful grain-to-glass Bourbon odyssey with them ever since.”
As a former chemical engineer, Mike has made his ascent into the pantheon of master distillers in North America. After more than half a century of work with distillers such as Appleton Estate and Campari, he came on board to design the Still Austin Distillery in order to produce the highest quality Bourbon.
Due to Still Austin’s success to date, it has been able to expand the team. Chris explains, “We continue to grow and were excited to add two recent key players to our team: Brandon Joldersma as general manager and Chris Cain as senior vice president of sales.”
Sticking with the family feel that this brand has, the team were all community focused and therefore wanted to be based in Austin from the off.
“We looked for a site that could work and were fortunate to find our warehouse, a
creative re-use of an underutilized building,” Chris continues. “We wanted to build a very energy-efficient and water-conscious facility that would operate sustainably; this mean a lot of work went into getting the resources in place to do that.”
Since the brands inception, it has been a period of trial and error in all aspects and in particular when it came to finding their niche in creating a grain-to-glass spirit.
Chris explains the process behind the creating the spirit, “During our first nine months or so we created a lot of different mash bills, while also experimenting with a variety of barrels. We also started to taste the differences in grain varieties and noticed the impact our climate was having on barrels, causing them to mature in very different ways than Bourbon in Kentucky.
“We made a lot of adjustments before settling on a flagship mashbill, including white corn and Texan varieties of rye. These grains lend themselves to sweet and spicy notes in our Bourbon. We have also developed a full program of elevage, a maturation philosophy borrowed from Cognac and Armagnac, during which we literally raise each barrel from its birth to the point it is mature. This is a labor-intensive process, but it really makes the highest quality.”
Processes such as the aforementioned have ensured that Still Austin continues to stand out from the crowd. Every step of the way has been made with intent and a hyper-local focus, in particular when it comes to selecting grain varieties; the local grains ensure that the base spirit is brimming with flavour familiar to those in the region.
Chris continues, “We thought we wanted to make a wheated Bourbon; after all, Texas
is a big wheat state. However, we quickly found that the combination of local varieties and the climate conditions for maturing barrels worked better with a high-rye Bourbon. Now our mashbill includes
25 per cent rye.”
Of course you have to wonder, once you have mastered your house style, what comes next?
“We’re interested in regional differences and what makes central Texas so special,” Chris notes. “We appreciate all styles of whiskey and love to challenge our distillers to showcase something really special that reflects us as people. Our Distillery Reserve Series is one way we do that. It’s only available at the distillery, but there are virtually no limits on what the distillers can do with this series in order to make the very highest quality.
“The whiskey scene in Texas is lively and we see it growing. Texas is one of the world’s largest markets for Bourbon and
I am constantly astounded by the level of knowledge and sophistication I see in our customers and fans.”
This level of consumer knowledge is both encouraging from a business perspective, but also in terms of keeping creativity on its toes. Chris explains, “While we’re always excited to introduce our Bourbon to new customers, there is an increased number of aficionados who are incredibly passionate about the category. They’re hungry for knowledge, including the process of making Bourbon and the people and stories behind the brand.”
This is an exciting time for Still Austin as this new-found consumer thirst for knowledge has meant that people are willing to experiment and spend their money on testing out new expressions and unique finishes, allowing for a little artistic flair behind the scenes.
“Perhaps most importantly, people want to understand how our Bourbon is made, including everything from where we source our grains to how we plan for sustainability,” Chris explains. “They expect and deserve our full transparency, so more so than ever we are committed to producing the highest quality whiskey by perfecting every part of the process and utilising local resources and sustainable practices.”
Thanks to such encouraging signs from a consumer standpoint, the future looks bright for Still Austin and this summer the team is set to release its first two-yearold straight flagship Bourbon whiskey throughout Texas.
“It is the fullest expression of the distillery’s strengths to date,” Chris proudly adds. “The spirit is distilled in our custommade 42-foot column still and aged in our Hill Country rickhouse. It is here that the humidity and rapidly shifting temperatures of our climate force the spirit to interact with the oak at a high level.”
The result of all of this work is a Bourbon of uncommon intricacy and complexity, a liquid that is just crying out to be tasted and enjoyed. Bring on the summer.