a good response they considered pursuing this passion further. After talking about it with one another they decided to try a small commercial endeavor, she said. If it worked out it would be great, and if it didn’t that would be fine too, she added. She said the next step for them was having Neil attend a distilling college in Kentucky to learn more about the craft of making spirits and learn more about the legalities of the business. She added that shortly after he finished his courses they moved forward with opening Crawford Distillery. Their first location was on Fourth Avenue, Alyssa said. But after a couple of months of operation it was obvious they needed a bigger
space, she said. She added that they were quickly selling their rum and moonshine as fast as they were making them. Along with selling to their patrons at the distillery, Crawfords began distributing their spirits to establishments in Great Falls and Ennis as well as around Havre, with their products for sale at the local liquor stores and a number of bars and restaurants in the area. “But we are at max-capacity,” she said, adding that they have nothing stored in inventory because they are selling so quickly. And they had to keep their wholesale clientele limited to a number they could serve. Liquor stores outside of the area started requesting their spirits — and they needed
to increase the production to fill the demand, she said. Alyssa said that she and Neil are also the face of their distribution, having to deliver all of their products themselves. She added that they have wanted to expand their distribution across the state and into other states. But, for that, they had to increase their production. “If we were going to grow any more, something had to change,” she said. One of the projects they are already working on in the new location is increasing their production, she said. “It’s a lot of trial and error,” she said. “It’s a lot of, what does work and what doesn’t work, and then obviously keep doing what works.”
What is new for the distillery? Neil said that Crawford Distillery has purchased two 300-gallon fermenters to move into their new space, which is only the first step in the business’ expansion. He said that before they were running a small 50-gallon batch on a small still which did six runs each cook. The fermenting process takes about a week, and having two 300gallon fermenters will help increase production in a significant way, he said. He added that operating with the 50-gallon fermenter he had before, he would get about three
proofed gallons for every batch, averaging 35 to 40 gallons a month. Their new set-up them, at capacity, increases production by more than 10 times. Distilling is a time-consuming task and running a small fermenter, considering the high demand for their spirits, was a major commitment, he said, adding that he and his wife rarely had days off from the distillery. With the new system they will be able to have more time off together to spend as a family or do family activities with their kids.
At the same time, they will be able to have more in inventory and have the opportunity to expand their business, he said. He added that it will also give them the ability to experiment with new recipes while still meeting their needed production. Neil said that different spirits require different processes. For example, clear liquor tends to not be aged while dark liquor needs to be aged — usually in wooden barrels with the inside of the barrels charred to add a
8 | LIVING Havre and the Hi-Line MAGAZINE | April 2020