From Indiana Fields to Your Glass: The Full Circle of Local Grains

Great whiskey starts with great grain, and great grain deserves respect at every step of the process. Let us walk you through the journey from local fields to your glass - and what happens to every kernel afterward.

The Source: Where Flavor Begins

Our grain sourcing is about understanding what each ingredient brings to the final product. When we source from Sugar Creek Malt Co. in Boone County, IN, we're not just buying corn, wheat, rye, and barley - we're selecting the building blocks of flavor that will define our whiskey.

Each grain plays a specific role in our mash bills. Corn provides the sweet backbone that makes bourbon what it is - rich, full-bodied, with those classic vanilla and caramel notes that develop during aging. Wheat brings smoothness and a softer mouthfeel, creating whiskeys that drink easy without sacrificing character - just how we like it. Rye adds spice and complexity, that peppery bite that keeps things interesting. Barley, malted and ready, provides the enzymes necessary for fermentation while contributing subtle nutty and biscuit-like flavors.

Cuson Farms in Mill Creek, IN adds their premium corn to our supply chain, ensuring we have the sweet foundation we need for our signature mash bills. These partnerships aren't accidents. They're relationships built on mutual respect for quality and a shared understanding of what makes whiskey worth making.

The Process: Patience and Precision

Once our grains arrive at the distillery, they become part of our mash — the crucial mixture that sits for 5–7 days before continuing its journey through our custom South Bend-crafted copper pot still. Those aren't just any five to seven days. That’s when the magic happens: fermentation transforms the mash into the complex foundation of what will become bourbon.

During this time, the yeast is hard at work converting sugars into alcohol while preserving and amplifying the character of the grain. Those flavors carry through fermentation and distillation, building the distinct profile that makes our whiskey unmistakably ours. It’s a process that can’t be rushed, leaves no room for shortcuts, and demands the kind of patience that separates true whiskey makers from the rest.

The Transformation: From Mash to Spirit

When the mash finally hits our still, it's carrying all the character of those Indiana grains. Our 100% copper pot still - remember, the one we had custom-built to our exact specifications - extracts every bit of potential from that grain. What emerges is pure Indiana spirit, carrying the terroir of our home state in every drop.

But here's where most people think the story ends. They're wrong.

The Second Life: Spent Grains Find New Purpose

After distillation, we're left with spent grains - the solid remains of our mash after all the alcohol has been extracted. These aren't waste products to be discarded. They're nutrient-rich feed that still carries value and purpose.

Indiana-first farms like Allison Farms in La Porte, IN take a portion of our spent grains, along with Peep Farms in Mill Creek, IN and Freedom Farms in Syracuse, IN. These farming operations understand what we're providing: high-quality feed that's packed with protein and nutrients their livestock need.

This completes a cycle that feels right - grain that helped create whiskey continues to nourish the land and animals that make Indiana agriculture thrive. Our spent grains go from whiskey production directly into feeding Indiana livestock, keeping resources local and relationships strong.

The Craft Connection

From Sugar Creek Malt Co. and Cuson Farms providing the raw materials to Allison Farms, Peep Farms, and Freedom Valley Farms making use of our spent grains, this entire process stays rooted in craftsmanship and community. It's a supply chain built on relationships, quality commitments, and the understanding that good whiskey connects us all.

This is what we mean when we talk about loving what we do. It's not just about the final product - it's about respecting every step of the process, every partnership, and every grain that contributes to the whiskey in your glass. Every bottle carries the story of these collaborations, the patience of proper fermentation, and the precision of custom distillation.

That's what drives us: local grain, local partnerships, and whiskey that honors the craft from start to finish.