There was really no five-year plan when Rock Town Distillery opened a little more than five years ago in Little Rock.
Founder Phil Brandon knew he was taking a risk. So he didn't want to get too far ahead of himself in planning for the distillery, which has since gone on to critical and commercial success.
Distilling is an expensive business to break into. It requires patience because, as a rule, the longer a whiskey has aged, the better the product is.
"Really the mindset was 'let's get through this month,'" Brandon said. "Sometimes we were just trying to get through a week, surviving day to day," Brandon said. "As a small business, it's great to be able to say 'we're 5 years old.' Is this where I thought we'd be? I didn't have that good of a crystal ball."
More than 1,825 days have passed since Rock Town opened, and it has picked up a number of national and international awards. Most recently it was named the American Micro Whiskey of the Year for 2015 by Jim Murray's Whisky Bible.
Rock Town released a few hundred bottles of 4-year-old bourbon last month to celebrate its five-year anniversary. A couple of hundred cases of 3-year-old bourbon will be distributed beginning this month, and another batch will be released in October.
There is still room for growth, and Brandon continues to learn the business, but he's now in a position where others are going to him for advice. The conversations with newcomers, Brandon said, often center on best practices for distilling spirits.
As quickly as he can turn a discussion beyond the product, Brandon does so because as important as it is to have a quality product, there is actually something equally, if not more, critical to success.
"A lot of guys want to talk to me about how often to run a still, what temperatures are needed. They're concerned with how to make the product. That's the easy part," Brandon said. "It's all about selling it. Whether you've got a brewery or a distillery or you're a small business making widgets, you really need to be focused on how to sell, not make. That's my advice. Guys want to talk technology and methods and progress, but in the end it's all about sales."
Brandon admits to some growing pains over the past five years, although the brand, particularly its bourbon, has gained a strong following. Sales figures and production volumes are data Brandon guards closely, but he'll happily tell you that his products are now in 16 states and the United Kingdom.
Connecticut, Maryland and Massachusetts were the most recent markets for Rock Town. Delaware and Washington, D.C., came before that, and Brandon notes that the brand has "New York City surrounded. If we had more whiskey to sell, we'd be there, too."
When we last caught up with Brandon in this space, it was July 2014 and he was headed to tasting events in the United Kingdom. He had a similar trip in April, and Brandon continues to marvel at how popular the brand remains outside of Little Rock and how it has grown since Rock Town opened as a commercial operation.
Rock Town is still very active in its hometown, of course. A tasting event is scheduled at the distillery for Friday , a date added after three separate events related to the anniversary each drew 32 people.
When it opened in 2010, Rock Town billed itself as the state's first distilling operation since Prohibition. Diamond Beer Brewing Co. was a decade old then, but that was about it. Today, the state beverage control office has issued permits for four liquor manufacturer operations, with 18 small brewer permits and 7 microbrewery restaurants permits.
Brandon balks at the idea that his success helped fuel what appears to be a locally produced-drink boom happening in Arkansas. Distilling and brewing are distinctly different processes, with distinctly different final products, but surely the success of Rock Town has been an inspiration for others?
"I think you're reaching a little bit on that," Brandon said. "Arkansas, being in the center of the country, is a little bit insulated to things happening on the coasts. It was time. It is nice to see those trends are really catching on here. These craft breweries are having such great success and it draws even more attention to locally made, hand-crafted beverages. That's the market we're in. It is nice to see."
SundayMonday Business on 07/05/2015