Distillers have established a reputation for their dedication to craftsmanship, emphasizing sustainability and community engagement
By Becky Garrison
Additionally, certain distilleries demonstrate their commitment by supporting individuals who have served in the military. In honor of Veterans Day, this is a roundup of spirits produced by Pacific distillers with a military background.
Heritage Distilling Company (Tumwater, WA)
Drew and Sara Kellerman both served in the combat arms of the US Army. After they finished their service, they missed the joy of being part of a mission-focused, teamwork-oriented organization. The opportunity to start a small, craft distillery with friends seemed an effective way to engage in that same ethos.
In 2011 they co-founded Heritage Distilling Company (HDC) with Justin and Jennifer Stiefel. When asked what skills the Kellermans brought from their military backgrounds to their work at Heritage, Drew emphasized, “Servant leadership, attention to detail, ‘mission-first, people-always’ focus, proactive communication, and the goal of bringing the highest degree of professionalism and ethics to the team.”
HDC was located close to the home base of the 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne). Over a decade ago, one of their “Green Berets” approached them to see if HDC would make a fundraising whiskey for the non-profit organizations that support the 1st Special Forces (Airborne), warriors, veterans, and families. As Drew reflects, “We enthusiastically jumped at that opportunity.”
After seven years of producing annual whiskey editions in support of this local, Army Special Operations unit and $150K raised for their non-profit organizations, HDC started receiving a blizzard of requests for fundraising whiskeys from other Army Special Operations units. This led to the creation of the Salute Series.
They currently offer several Salute Series editions under Special Operations Salute and Service to America Salute, which have raised over $200K in donations. These editions are as follows:
US Army Special Operations Forces (ARSOF): Their original release, honors all US Army Special Operations Forces, with 10% of gross profits donated to a wide range of carefully vetted, non-profit benevolent organizations that directly support our ARSOF warriors, veterans, and their families.
War Dogs: Honoring and celebrating our US Military working dogs, known affectionately as “war dogs.” 10% of gross profits goes to carefully vetted, non-profit organizations that support our 4-legged warriors and their handlers, veterans, and families that adopt retired military working dogs.
De Oppresso Liber: honoring all our US Army Special Forces with an emphasis on the 1961 formal establishment of the “Green Beret” as the official headgear of the Army Special Forces soldiers by President John F Kennedy. $20 for each bottle sold goes to the Green Beret Foundation.
Law Dogs: Honoring and celebrating our Law Enforcement K-9s, with $10 from each bottle going to Project K-9 Hero, one of the nation’s leading non-profit organizations that support retired working dogs, and the families that adopt them.
More Salute Series Editions are in the works with the goal of raising at least $1 million in non-profit donations via the Salute Series. In addition, Sara is working with the Permission to Start Dreaming (PTSD) Foundation as a guide for “PATHH,” a highly effective, intensive training program for veterans and first responders to build the skillsets to cope with the stresses of the trauma they experience in service.
4 Spirits Distillery (Corvallis, OR)
Dawson Officer established 4 Spirits Distillery in 2011 with a mission to create superior craft spirits that honor all service members. As noted on their website, “they make each day an opportunity to honor, remember, and raise a glass.”
The name 4 Spirits is dedicated to the four soldiers that Dawson served with in the Oregon National Guard 2 Battalion, 162 Infantry Brigade: Lt. Erik McCrae, Sgt. Justin Linden, Sgt. Justin Eyerly and Sgt. David Roustum. These four men lost their lives in 2004/2005 serving in Baghdad, Iraq.
Starting in 2012, they began donating a portion of the sales from their 4 Spirits Bourbon Whiskey to support local programs that help veterans and their families with reintegration support. Also, they launched the first-ever combat veteran endowed scholarship at both Oregon State University and Western Oregon University, with a desire to expand this scholarship to other universities throughout the northwest.
The 4 Spirits Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit launched in 2023, enables them to contribute all proceeds from their giving programs and large events to causes that provide education, mental, and social health support to veterans and their families.
Fireside Distillers (Eugene, OR)
They opened shop in 2013 as Creshendo as a collaboration between Kyle Akin, a USMC veteran and civil engineer entrepreneur, and his former boss/mentor. Then in 2021, they purchased a small still and moved from being a processing company to a production company. While they still do their store brands Crescendo and Diamond Clear, according to Akin, they now have more creative passion by hand creating spirits from raw materials turning them into their Fireside Signature line.
While they always wanted the distinction of being a full-fledged distillery, they could not actualize this dream until the Oregon Distillers Guild got a bill passed through the Oregon State legislature that allowed them to finally start making money out of their tasting room.
In Akin’s estimation, his military experience gave him a sense of discipline and perseverance.” As he notes, “Starting, growing, and owning a distillery is a test of will. This is not an industry for the meek; If you plan to make a living as a distiller you must put in the hours and work hard. No excuses. Being in the military definitely gave me a leg up, which is why we’ve survived these past 13 years.”
When asked what inspired the name Fireside Distillers, Akin asks, ” What do you think of when you think of being fireside? ” He answers “Companionship, friends, adventure, exploring, comfort.” These are the ideals he wanted to inspire with our brand. With Fireside Distillers, they explore what they can do with their talents and then share them with people. “These are our desires out of life. To have friends, explore, and live an adventure,” Akin adds.
They collaborate with veterans all the time whether they are spiritually encouraging each other or donating their distilled spirits when requested. For example, the Marine Corps will have its 250th birthday in Fall 2025, which they will be doing in conjunction with the Soaring by the Sea Foundation, a marine-led non-profit organization flying World War II era planes. I will always take the time for my brother and sister veterans,” Akin proclaims.
Old Soldier Distillery (Tacoma, WA)
After retiring from the Army after 20 years of service Andrew Fairchok co-founded Old Soldier Distillery with his long-time friend Rodney Kaeding, who served for 27 years in the Air Force. After Kaeding retired, another long-time friend Joe Bennett, who served in the Air National Guard and had an active-duty parent, came on board. Bennett runs the books, oversees distillery operations, and offers tours of the tasting room filled with military memorabilia.
Old Soldier makes award-winning, small-batch Bourbon and Whiskey as well as flavored expressions which are based on a traditional corn whiskey recipe that came from a great, great grandfather who fought during the Civil War for a sweet and smooth finish.
Skunk Brothers Spirits (Stevenson, WA)
Skunk Brothers Spirits was started by a family of disabled veterans who wanted to build on their grandfather’s prohibition-era moonshine recipe and bring small batch spirits to the Columbia Gorge and beyond.
The name was inspired by their pops, who earned the nickname “Skunk” when he ran into a skunk during a snowstorm. While Skunk’s father was an illegal moonshiner in Oregon, the family decided to go legal with the family business. Their Moonshine Corn Whiskey is a classic take on an old American tradition that is made from 100% Washington-grown corn, mashed, fermented, and distilled in-house.
