How does a Nevada-born whiskey take on its more pedigreed Kentucky competitors? Frey Ranch blends 165 years of farming and custom state-of-the-art distilling methods into every bottle of their signature—and sustainable—90 proof bourbon. The co-founder, Colby Frey, is a fifth-generation farmer in northern Nevada where he and his wife/co-founder Ashley, started a distillery where they make whiskey using only the grains that they grow on their ranch. In their lush farm oasis nestled in the Lake Tahoe watershed, each of the slow grown grains are an heirloom and a point of pride.
The distillery is one of a small number of whiskey producers across the world to grow 100 percent of its grains on site at their ranch in Fallon, Nevada. And that commitment to “be good to the land and the land will be good to you,” has proven to be true. This year Frey Ranch captured eight medals for whiskeys at the prestigious San Francisco World Spirits Competition. Grown, distilled, matured and bottled on site, it’s a new generation of Frey that is more than a ranch but a true farm distillery. Turns out a world-class whiskey can come from an unexpected place like northern Nevada. If you want to see Frey Ranch crowned as RackHouse Whiskey Club’s Craft Distillery of the Year, vote now! To learn more about how Frey’s new generation of farmers + distillers are raising a whiskey of the land, click here.
Our first step to determine the Craft Distillery of the Year Award winner was to open up the competition to the public to nominate your favorite craft distillery. From there, an expert panel of judges narrowed the list down to 10 finalists based on these four categories: compelling story, impact on community, marketing presence and branding and packaging. Now we’re turning the competition over to you to determine the distillery you believe deserves to be named the 2021 RackHouse Whiskey Club Craft Distillery of the Year. Get your votes in now, voting closes on Nov. 30! VOTE NOW!
