2 craft distilleries open in Benton County
WEST RICHLAND — A longtime Yakima Valley winemaker is getting into the spirit of a new Washington industry.
Make that spirits.
Joel Tefft is opening Black Heron Spirits and Portworks today in West Richland. It is one of two distilleries that have opened this week in Benton County. Blue Flame Spirits opened Thursday in the Prosser Wine & Food Park.
Tefft, who grew up in Coeur d'Alene, moved to the Yakima Valley in 1987 to join the blossoming wine industry and launched Tefft Cellars in 1991 in Outlook. He said the move from making wine to spirits is not a huge leap, but it gives him the opportunity to go back to doing something small and fun.
"The winery got way too big," Tefft said, adding Tefft Cellars grew to 20,000 cases, primarily on the strength of a premium boxed wine that he sold through Costco. "It just wasn't fun anymore. This is a smaller operation, and I'm back to being able to talk to other people when they come in."
Being in an isolated area of the Yakima Valley also wore on Tefft. Now he lives in Kennewick and has a short commute to his location on the west end of Keene Road in the shadow of Red Mountain.
"Now I can go to a baseball game without driving for 45 minutes," he said with a wide smile.
In 2008, the state passed legislation allowing craft distilleries to make 20,000 proof gallons, have tasting rooms and sell directly to the public. A "proof gallon" is a gallon of 50 percent (100 proof) distilled spirit.
During this year's session, the Legislature expanded the amount of production allowed by distilleries to 60,000 proof gallons. That bill was co-sponsored by Sen. Jerome Delvin of Richland.
Prior to selling his winery in March 2009, Tefft knew little about distilling, though he understood brandy and how to select it for the port-style wines he crafted. So for the past 18 months he has been traveling around the country to learn about distilling by taking classes, attending trade shows and doing a lot of reading.
He also used the proceeds from his winery sale to buy land from the Port of Kennewick, build a 4,300-square-foot building and purchase equipment, including a copper still from Kentucky.
Tefft said Washington now has six distilleries, with another 16 awaiting approval, so he is happy to be in a young, exciting and growing industry.
"With all the grains we grow, we'll be able to showcase Washington state," he said. "With the reputation of our wines, hopefully the spirits will have the same following."
Tefft's lineup includes a corn whiskey called "Desert Lightning," a gin called "Rayn Anjel" and a vodka called "Ink." He also has brandy aging in barrel and plans to make limoncello, an Italian-style lemon liquor made from vodka, as well as barrel-aged whiskey, pepper vodka, huckleberry brandy and perhaps grappa.
Tefft likens distilling to winemaking, in which white wines can be made quickly, while red wines tend to take longer. Vodka and gin, for example, can be made in a week, while grape brandy must be aged for at least two years.
Ruth Swain, West Richland's economic development director, is thrilled with the city's newest business.
"It's a tremendous new opportunity here," she said, adding Black Heron is the first tasting room of any kind in West Richland and is in a destination development that will have a wine theme.
"We were looking at what we needed to do to enhance the wine industry" in West Richland, Swain said. "And lo and behold here comes the distilling industry."
Swain said newspaper advertising and word of mouth had brought more than 100 customers through Black Heron's doors before its official opening.
Meanwhile, Blue Flame Spirits' opening Thursday was the culmination of two years of work by owner Brian Morton.
"The federal and state paperwork is extensive," he said with a sigh.
Blue Flame sells vodka and plans to add gin to its lineup in about two months and eventually will specialize in whiskey. One of its vodkas is made from merlot grapes. Like Black Heron, Blue Flame uses only Washington wheat, rye, barley and grapes.
"We have the best produce in the world right here," he said.
Black Heron Spirits and Portworks
8011 Keene Road, West Richland
509-967-0781
www.blackheronspirits.com
Grand opening: Today through Sunday, with ribbon cutting at 1:30 p.m. today.
Regular hours: Noon to 5 p.m.
Blue Flame Spirits
2880 Lee Road, Suite B, Prosser
509-778-4036
www.blueflamespirits.com
Hours: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 1-5 p.m. Sunday
* Andy Perdue is editor of Wine Press Northwest, a quarterly magazine owned by the Herald.
This story was originally published October 1, 2010 at 12:00 AM with the headline "2 craft distilleries open in Benton County."