We submitted ours May 2, 2016. State June 3, 2016.
TTB approved on 9/27, 2016. Ahead of schedule. They had one round of questions in late Aug which we turned around in a day. Unfortunately, it was lost in the shuffle and I eventually called them to check in and they processed it that afternoon.
State has also been very quick. The biggest challenge is the local municipality. They didn't know what to do with us, so we got conflicting direction which they had to sort out. That has extended everything since the State needs a valid CO.
Some insight for those starting or going through the process...
Definitely spend the money to have a lawyer (with experience in the industry) look over applications. They caught a few changes which made things easier with TTB.
Wait a few months, then give the TTB a call. It takes time to get through to someone, but once you have a direct connection, and can show that you won't be a nuisance asking for daily updates - but you do want communication open and regular, they seem to really appreciate that. See what you can do to simplify their effort which will have them more willing to work with you.
On the town level - if you're the first distillery in town, engage the building/fire/electrical/plumbing and zoning offices asap. They will most likely be challenged to know how to give you the inspections and oks you need. I ended up pulling OPRAs on other towns with distilleries for any CO/building subcode documentation on record. This gives you a baseline to present to your town to help them with their approvals.
Good luck all and stop by if you're in NJ!