QUALITY MANAGEMENT FOR THE SMALL DISTILLERY
WRITTEN BY MOLLY TROUPE
I
nconsistent product can be a problem for a small distillery. Problems with small batch sizes, inadequate standards, and more can all cause significant issues with quality and consistency. For a new or small distillery, this can be a nightmare of an explanation to a customer. Consumers are lost when products cannot be trusted to remain the same with every purchase. To combat issues with quality and consistency, an excellent quality management program is needed. Bigger distilleries’ quality management programs include expensive laboratory equipment and tests at each stage of the distilling process, but this is not always feasible for a smaller distillery. Luckily, other steps can be taken to deflect inconsistencies, so for a smaller distillery, a good quality management program involves equal parts quality assurance and quality control. Quality assurance (QA) is preventative as well as process-oriented. Quality control (QC) is reactive and revolves around product release. QC is identifying and solving problems while QA is preventing problems from occurring. Both of the elements of quality management involve developing good processes, good production documentation, welltrained employees, and expansive sensory analysis programs.
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