With
an abiding respect for the history of his family’s 1000-acre farm, one of the
largest certified organic farms in the Northeast, John Myers grows all manner
of grains. He and his brother, Joe
Myers, have redefined the term “value added.” They are upping the energy value
of the farm’s grain product by turning it into some very fine tasting high-test
spirits.
Their
local heritage runs deep: The brothers trace family history back to 1789, when
their ancestors settled what is now the Town of Ovid. They also had the first
distilleries on record in that town. John has been working the current farm for
the past 30 years, and the current farm itself was established in 1868 when
their great grandparents acquired the land and built the farmhouse. Still hale
and hardy, John said he wasn’t ready to retire. Joe trained as a concert
pianist and violinist, and as a painter, worked as a herdsman, and then at
Cornell’s College of Human Ecology; he longed to return to the farm. The creative elements of whiskey making,
appealed to both of them, and they saw a future in it for themselves,
especially now when the spirits industry in this country is booming.
They
are starting small, expecting to make 600-800 cases their first year. Focusing on quality, they’ll develop a range
of hand-crafted spirits: vodka, blueberry vodka, gin, wheat whiskey, rye
whiskey, buckwheat whiskey (very popular in Japan, they say), bourbon, a mixed
grain whiskey, mostly from organic grains planted, harvested, and
cleaned on Myers land. They also have plans for liqueurs. While they’re still
wading through paperwork, receiving glassware, and getting Federal label
approval, the vodka we sampled there was sipping-delicious with undertones of
caramel and vanilla – far more complex than the flavorless tonsilwash of bar
well vodka. Joe says it smells like baking bread when it’s working.
The
farm’s new facility, designed and built by the brothers and their “right-hand
man,” Mark Thomas, aided by Ithaca architect Ernie Bales, is based on
traditional Scottish distilleries with their pagoda-topped still houses. The design speaks to the happy marriage of
the modern and the ancient, science and art; recent landscaping helps it settle
into the sensuous roll of the farmland perched above Cayuga Lake.
The
“back of the house” holds a modern laboratory and office with the
communications tools required for today’s commerce, along with the
impressive 16-foot-tall, 19-plate,
650-liter German-made copper and steel column still. The front of the house – the part visitors
are most likely to see -- is crafted of local materials, its deep tasting bars
crafted from wide cherry and oak boards harvested from the farm’s woodlots and
polished to a warm glow. The concrete
floors, are treated to a deep cordovan stain and sealed and burnished to a
leathery shine, thanks to advice from Karen Gilman of Dano’s Heuriger.
But
the spirits business isn’t all chemistry, art, and chatting up the public.
There’s a mountain of paperwork which, fortunately, the multitalented Joe, also
relishes -- filing taxes every two weeks, and producing a monthly production
report, monthly state taxes, and quarterly sales taxes. He also keeps detailed production notes. And then the artistic side of him balances
things out. For information and frequent updates on the facility’s progress,
check out his poetic blog on the distillery’s Web site, www.myerfarmdistillers.com
As
local grape growers facing an ebbing market for their product turned
successfully to winemaking, and local dairy farmers process excess milk into
rich cheeses, the brothers Myers have created a New York State farm distillery
whose products will utilize their produce -- winter and spring wheat, rye,
buckwheat, barley, even corn – malted when appropriate, fermented, and given a
couple of leisurely passes through an awe-inspiring copper column still,
hoping, expecting to bring even greater glory to the Finger Lakes’ wine,
cheese, beer, and spirits trails.
Myers
Farm Distillery
7350
Route 89 (just past Route 139)
Ovid,
NY 14521
607.532.4904
