By Nicole Stafford
It's as if Saint Patrick himself bestowed Detroit's craft whiskey aficionados with a reward for their discerning palettes: A safe haven from the raucous crowds and green beer of St. Patrick's Day.
Tuesday's grand opening of Motor City Gas, an all-whiskey microdistillery and tasting bar at 325 East Fourth Street in downtown Royal Oak, had not a single green T-shirt, hat or scarf.
“It's been a refined crowd,” said Mike Mazur, an employee who was doling out $2, single-ounce pours, neat, from the first barrel of whiskey produced by the microdistillery.
Instead of throngs of drunken St. Patty's Day revelers, a trickle of young and old, all-male, serious-about-tasting-whiskey patrons stopped by to sip, sample and discuss the first batch.
The first batch or barrel “is called Royal Oak Rye,” said the distillery's owner and founder Rich Lockwood, 39, of Royal Oak. His wife, Tonya, is co-owner of the business.
“I would describe it as sweeter in taste, like a bourbon," Lockwood said.
A self-described hobby distiller for the last decade, Lockwood hatched plans to open the business 2 years ago after losing his job at Compuware Corp.
He was able to bridge the gap between hobbyist and commercial distillery by learning from other local distillers, including Grand Traverse Distillery and Northern Latitudes Distillery in Lake Leelanau, as well as Michigan State University's distillery workshop program.
“It's a very open industry. It's more us against the the huge enterprises in the market than it is a competition between us,” Lockwood said.
Motor City Gas, housed in about a 2,000-square-foot space that formerly housed Vintner's Cellar of Wine, is a full-process distillery with all but the bottling process open to see. From boiling the mash to 'pitching' the yeast to labeling bottles, “everything is done by hand.” Lockwood said.
A slow, conservative start is planned for the business. Tasting room hours are noon to 8 p.m. Wednesday to Sunday. Only tasting pours and bottles of Royal Oak Rye, a blended rye whiskey aged six months in small barrels, is available for purchase (pint, $25, and fifth, $36).
In the spring and summer, Lockwood plans to roll out two more whiskeys, Apple Pie Moonshine, a blend of moonshine, cider and spices, and a bourbon aged in old rum barrels dubbed Belly Up Bourbon.
A bar serving craft cocktails using the distillery's product will follow.
“To get started we're just selling on-site. It would be ideal, if down the line, we were allowed to self-distribute in limited quantities to local retailers in Royal Oak and Ferndale like the local craft beer industry in Michigan,” Lockwood said.
Motor City Gas, like Detroit's other local distilleries, cannot self-distribute product under a small distiller's license.
Lockwood envisions for an ever-changing menu of unique and creatively-concocted whiskeys grounded by a couple of stock traditional whiskey offerings for Motor City Gas.
“We'll be doing all types and styles of whiskey, including whiskey liquors, but very creatively, more like a micro-brewery beer model with constantly rotating and new products, so we can really explore.”
Lockwood also hopes to unravel traditional whiskey consumers' beliefs about aging and the quality of whiskey. Lockwood's working philosophy runs counter to the notion that the longer a whiskey ages, the higher its quality.
“It depends on what you put in the barrel,” Lockwood said. “If you do it right, you can have a great whiskey in a few months.”
Nicole Stafford is a Detroit area freelance writer. She can be reached at ni.stafford@gmail.com.
