I would like to personally thank all of those who attended our distillery open house earlier this month. It was a huge success with an estimated 1,200 people coming from as far away as Chicago, Denver, Arizona and Michigan for a tour of our expanded distillery. Some of you surprised us by coming a little early and we appreciate you waiting patiently.

Thanks also for all of the kind words and encouragement. We were happy to witness the excitement for what we are doing and it makes the hard work we put into planning and construction well worth it. We would especially like to thank Dave Schoeppner of Schoeppner Construction for his excellent craftsmanship and great patience. The place really looks great and we are proud to have built it with local partners in Western Iowa.

For those of you who were not able to make it, we would love to have you come by. Please contact kevin@templetonrye.com to set up a tour.

Thanks again,
Keith Kerkhoff, Assistant Master Distiller, Templeton Rye

Photo credit: Mandy Miller Photography

Photo credit: Mandy Miller Photography

Below: Click to watch a live acoustic performance of Templeton Rye by The Nadas from the open house.

We recently opened our distillery doors to area media and state and local elected officials in conjunction with the Templeton and Carroll Area Development Corporations.

The luncheon was catered by The Still, and Templeton Mayor Ken Behrens, TADC President Nick Romey, CADC Executive Director Jim Gossett and Templeton Rye President Scott Bush shared remarks with the crowd of approximately 75 people. Guests toured the facility and had an opportunity to label a bottle of TR, see our new tasting room and try a little of The Good Stuff straight out of the still.

Pictures from the event can be viewed here. After pitching in with the daily distillery duties, we all landed in the tasting room for a sample and some shopping. We definitely need to put in an order for some more TR gear — it was flying off the shelves!

Steve Long from KPTV Fox 44 in Sioux City did a segment on the event, which you can view below:

Templeton Rye was proud to help sponsor the Mods VS. Rockers party this past weekend at Delilah’s on Lincoln in Chicago. Mike Miller has put together one of the country’s largest and most unique motorcycle rallies wth an assortment of Vespas, Triumphs, BMWs and lots of modified scooters parked along Lincoln Avenue. Our own Jason Walsmith took some great pics, which you can view on Flickr.

The rally ended at 5:00 but the fun just switched gears. With the Templeton Rye bus leading the way, everyone kick-started their ride and headed over to the grand opening of the Bottom Lounge at 1375 W. Lake. We enjoyed a fish and chips dinner and watched the Chicago premiere of the motorcycle film Brittown. We also got a sneak peak of the new lounge and music venue which are very impressive.

Friday, June 27th

Join us Friday June 27th at the Hy-vee Wine and Spirits on 4707 Fleur Drive from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. Meryl and TR president Scott Bush will be signing bottles of “The Good Stuff” and you will have an opportunity to say hello and stock up on TR. If you have questions, please contact Ryan at 515-285-7266.

Thursday, July 10th

Templeton Rye is proud to announce it’s first Eastern Iowa bottle signing! Join us at the Iowa City staple John’s Grocery and meet President Scott Bush and Assistant Master Distiller Keith Kerkhoff July 10th from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm. They will be available to sign bottles of “The Good Stuff” and share some laughs. John’s Grocery is located on the corner of Market and Gilbert Streets in downtown Iowa City. For more info, contact Bill at bill@johnsgrocery.com or 319-337-2183.

Saturday, August 9th

There will also be a signing on August 9th from noon to 4:00 pm at Gold Eagle Liquors, 255 Petersen Road, Libertyville, Illinois. For more information please call 847-367-6000.

PHOTO: The TR team at the distillery groundbreaking. Trust us, it looks a lot different today!

Hello friends,

Many of you have been inquiring about distillery tours. We are pleased to announce that our distillery expansion is almost complete, and we’re inviting all of you to attend our open house on Saturday, June 7th, 2008 in Templeton, Iowa.

In case you didn’t know, we’ve been hard at work expanding our existing facility from 1,500 to over 11,000 square feet. This expansion will help us keep up with production of The Good Stuff and will hopefully become a tourist destination. We’ll also be unveiling a new barrel warehouse, bottling line, grand tasting room and a gift shop.

On June 7th you’ll be able to tour the new expansion and (of course) sample The Good Stuff. You will also have the opportunity to buy an empty Templeton Rye barrel for your home, office or garden.

The open house will run from 1:00 - 5:00 pm, but the fun won’t stop there. The town of Templeton is hosting The Nadas in an outdoor concert adjacent to the distillery grounds. The concert will start at 7:00 pm and tickets will be available at IowaTix.com. Come hear The Nadas perform Templeton Rye along with all their other great songs.

Hope to see you there,

Michael Killmer
Brand Manager at Templeton Rye

Templeton Rye is the proud whiskey sponsor of Des Moines’ first annual Blue Ribbon Bacon Festival on Saturday, March 1st. Stop by and join us for some delicious bacon, PBR, samples of TR, and even a bacon- and TR-inspired dessert! Chef Lance Avery from Chicago will be producing a maple bacon cheesecake with a Templeton Rye glaze. Does it get any better?

The event will take place at The High Life Lounge and El Bait Shop (200 SW 2nd) from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

More information can be found at BaconUnwrapped.com.