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Hello from the Okanagan Canada


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Hello Everyone,

We are well on our way to receiving all Provincial and Federal approvals to open a small craft distillery in Penticton, BC. We are located in the newly established (last 20 yrs) "heart of wine country" which was predominantly cultivated fruit orchards since the early 1890's...a perfect place for our new venture. It has taken a considerable amount of time and $ to get to this point as most of you are aware, but it has been an exciting ride so far. I was introduced to Heritage Distilling in Gig Harbor through the Artisan Distilling Institute back in June and recognize a few members such as Hired Guns Creative below. Looking forward to the 2014 conference in Seattle...

Cheers,

Graham

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Welcome, Graham! Nice to see new distilleries in BC!

What do you plan to make? Brandies? Grappa? Fruit vodkas? Maybe fortified wines?

I lived near Trout Creek for a little while...Penticton is a great spot!

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Hey Natrat,

I grew up in Trout Creek! We are going to make gin and whisky primarily, there are several others in this area (Okanagan Spirits and Maple Leaf) that focus on brandies and grappa so I thought I would mix it up a bit.

Cheers

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From talking to a few of you Canadians and reading these forums, eems like the craft distilling movement is growing rapidly up there, especially in Vancouver. Is the government supporting you guys in your endeavors?

Yes, the BC government recently (June) reviewed their liquor policies and allowed craft distilleries to sell to private liquor stores, pubs, restaurants and to the public (tasting rooms) without paying the "165% mark-ups" on sales attached in our government run Liquor Stores. They have also recently (Nov) changed the laws to allow craft distilleries to sell in farmers markets, have happy hours, and patio's etc etc. In addition, due to these new regulations, industry is now working to better define craft distilling with regard to fire hazard ratings (F1 reduced to an F2 or even F3) so we can be located in agricultural and urban environments rather than industrial parks and out of the way. I think you will see many more distilleries opening soon...

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