Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery is Western Canada’s oldest craft distillery, dating back to 2004. The distillery sprung from the idea of using 100% locally grown fruits and grains to make premium, world-class spirits just a tractor-ride away from the orchards and fields where the base ingredients were grown. BC’s original harvest-to-flask distillery now offers a selection of more than 25 internationally awarded spirits ranging from BC’s first Single Malt Whisky to Gins, Vodkas, Liqueurs, Fruit Brandies and even Aquavit and Absinthe.
Tyler, tell us a bit about yourself.
TD: My name is Tyler Dyck and I am in charge of running our family’s craft distillery as our CEO. I am also the President of the Craft Distiller’s Guild of BC, which means I spend a lot of time not only in the distillery but also in meetings with government to help create a better environment in which true 100% Craft Distilleries in BC can thrive. In BC you are considered a Craft Distillery if all steps of the distilling cycle from fermentation through to distillation are done on-site at your distillery using only 100% BC agricultural inputs (grains and fruits).
That’s quite a resume Tyler. How did you find yourself in the distilling of spirits world? What is the history of the Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery?
TD: Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery was built on a dream of creating true farm to flask spirits using only natural methods that are terroir specific and truly express the flavours and the spirit of the Okanagan Valley. We are Western Canada’s oldest craft distillery dating back to the early 2000’s, and we are also BC’s largest Craft Distillery with a portfolio of over 30 internationally awarded spirits, ranging from Whiskies, gins and vodkas, through fruit brandies and liqueurs, to Aquavit and Absinthe. What started as a tiny artisan distillery has now grown into a full family affair with all of our family members working in the distillery along side our extended family of employees.
Is it a family owned business?
TD: Absolutely! In every aspect of that category!
Tyler, Do you source all the ingredients locally? if so, what is the importance of sourcing locally?
TD: We source all of our ingredients from within the border of British Columbia and most of our grains and fruits are grown locally in our fields and in the Orchards in the Okanagan Valley. We firmly believe in terroir specificity and our goal is to present to our customers the true taste and expression of the Okanagan in every product we produce.
What are the specific aging warehouse conditions you find to be ideal for the maturation of your whiskey?
TD: Our barrel aging philosophy directly mirrors our belief that the end whisky should tell a story of the environment in which it was not only born into but also the environment in which it matured and developed in. It is because of this that we intentionally do not climate control our barrel warehouse for humidity nor do we try to significantly alter the ambient temperature within the barrel storage areas. We believe that our whisky will distinguish itself on the whisky spectrum as being true to every aspect of the environs in which it was created and aged. This to us is the true meaning of a whisky being regionally specific.
Does the geographic location and weather play a major influence on the maturation process as well?
TD: The Okanagan Valley is an amazing place for crop cultivation in both the arenas of fruit and grain production. It is super hot and dry throughout a prolonged summer growing period from May through to October and is very low in humidity throughout the entire year. This unique climate leads to specific flavour profiles in the grains and also in the stimulus it imparts on our barrel aging rooms and is ultimately what makes whiskies made here unique in their flavour. It all starts with the locally grown grains and continues through letting the whiskies grow up in the same conditions the rest of us locals grow up in!
What Whisky expressions are you currently producing?
TD: We are currently working on our main 4 whisky lines. Being in Canada and especially in the year of it’s 150th birthday we obviously produce a Coldstream Valley BC Rye whisky (51% of our Rye and 49% of our malted barley), but we also make a Single Malt whish we call The Laird of Fintry, and our BRBN Bourbon-Style Corn Whisky (54% of our local grain corn and 46% malted barley), and we have a creative line of whiskies called Final Proof, where we finish the wash/wort off to a style of beer (IPA, Kolsch, Pale Ale, Porter) and then ferment and distil that unfinished beer to create different flavour profiles of whisky.
Are you going to a wheated bourbon? Any plans for the future?
TD: I am sure we will venture that way some time in the near future as we love to create different flavour profiles for our followers.
Can you tell us briefly if possible on some of the mashbills being planned for 2017?
TD: We are looking at smoking some of our grains for a peated style of whisky in our Final proof line but as for mash bills the one we are most likely to play around with a bit is our BRBN mashbill…I could see us sneaking some rye in their too.
Do you remember your first dram? Maybe there is an interesting story behind that.
TD: I wish I could! There have been soo many over the years but to me in this new renaissance of true craft whisky making on a small artisan scale I feel like I discover something new every time I try a new whisky from a true craft producer.
Do you feel now is the most exciting time to be a whiskey lover?
TD: I think this is an amazing time in Whisky production! Times they are a changing and I really do think they are changing for the better. New styles of whisky, new flavour profiles; to me this is as whisky crafting should be…The new frontier of craft is able to do what the big established players used to do way back in their infancy. With so many new players in the market with new an original ways of looking at things and a renewed focus on expressing the local terroir we are seeing a huge increase in choice for the consumers. I would say hold on because the craft sector is just getting started.
What is your opinion on barrel entry proof? and are there special considerations that you are applying to your barrel selection (Stave thickness, cooperage choice, seasoning time, etc).
TD: Everyone has their own beliefs on this and I think now we are seeing craft distillers challenging the commonly thought proof entry levels to see what happens. Sometimes this creates something sublime and sometimes not but I think generally as long as you don’t go too crazy you might just catch onto something unique.
Where do you see your distillery in 5/10 years?
TD: We hope to be able to significantly increase our Whisky production capacity as right now we are able to get through about 4 tonnes of grain a week but we can not even keep the whisky releases on our shelves for longer than a week at a time. Our goal is to be able to provide our supporters with access to all our whiskies at any given time so that we can make their visit to our distillery or their taste experience out in their own house the most memorable that it can be.
Anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
TD: Really, just Cheers to celebrating your own unique terroir!
