Austin Is Getting its First Urban Whiskey Distillery

Still Austin Whiskey Co. is set to become the city’s first whiskey distillery since Prohibition. As a grain-to-glass distillery, it will be making its booze in-house from milling and mashing and fermenting to distilling, barreling and bottling. Plus, ingredients will be locally sourced from Texas farmers.

Construction on Still, part of the new mixed-use development The Yard on St. Elmo Road in South Austin, is well underway having achieved a major milestone on Friday when the bourbon still, which stretched up 45 feet, was installed into the five-story tall still tower by crane. The bourbon still came from Scotland.

Once the distillery opens, visitors will be able to take a tour, sample a variety of whiskeys, and enjoy cocktails in the whiskey garden making the facility a welcoming spot for both whiskey novices and more experienced drinkers. Visitors will be able to see into the fermentation lab where the team will be working on special small batch "experimentals." And they will be able to look through sight glass into the bourbon still and see the mash being distilled.

Regularly scheduled and special events are in the works including live music, food trucks, and potentially whiskey and yoga (because Austin, right?). Keep an eye out for distill your own barrel events (hands-on DIY whiskey making experiences).

In July, Still announced its distillery research and development manager as fermentation mastermind Jason White, who also has ties to the program at Emmer & Rye, the menu at L'Oca d'Oro, and the halted culinary food center and laboratory Arrel. Small batch unique whiskeys are now in development, though the distillery already has a trio of new-make whiskeys (fresh off the still and unaged) ready to be introduced.

Austin-based Tito’s Handmade Vodka holds the title of Texas’ oldest legal distillery. Other area distilleries include Deep Eddy Vodka and Treaty Oak Distilling Co., which are both located in Dripping Springs.

Still Austin’s construction continues with a tentative opening date of this fall or early 2017.

• Still Austin Whiskey Co. [Official]
• Still Austin Whiskey Co. [Facebook]

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