Looking for Educational opportunities

[Cole Train]

Greetings,

My name is Cole and I live in southwest Wisconsin. I have live in the area my whole life and am currently finishing a Master's Degree in Adult from University of Wisconsin-Platteville. In that degree I currently have a 4.0 GPA, however my dream for many years has been to be a distiller. I like the idea of starting my own distillery in Wisconsin and have a business plan for a distillery, but it still is a work in progress. Naming the distillery and owning a distillery puts a lot on ones shoulders, but having the creative license with spirit development is something one probably will not get working for someone else.

Being a current Master's student naturally, I do not have the funds or education for something like a distillery start up.

I am looking for an educational opportunity at the very least, since reading materials are not as educationally effective as hands on experience.

Any feedback, ideas, help or encouragement would be greatly appreciated to boost education and/or funds.

I am stepping to take the right steps for success.

Cole

sanderscol@uwplatt.edu

[Tom Lenerz]

I'd highly recommend getting involved as an employee in an existing business (either brewery or distillery) that shares your passion. Be up front with the employer and let them know your intentions, some employers in this industry are looking for people like you, some aren't. Don't be afraid to travel to find the right position, as a good fit with a good mentor is what you will need.

I do agree that there is no replacement for hands-on experience, but reading the right books is equally important.

Depending on your model, and types of products you are interested in, I'd either recommend doing some homebrew or extremely recommend it if you are planning on starting from any sort of raw material. Any homebrewer, just like any distiller, knows things rarely go quite as planned and homebrewing can teach you a lot about troubleshooting process. It also will help with understanding cleanliness and sanitation, fermentation and flavor development. You can't make spirits without fermentation, and I'd argue mashing and fermentation are more difficult to learn than distilling.

Also, Moonshine University has very good hands-on courses, I'd recommend doing.

Source: I've spent 5 years doing this, and am now a distiller.