OUR STORY
Our spirits are always crafted one batch at at time
In 2006
Nick Quint told people that he wanted to come out of retirement at age 61 and build Madison’s first Distillery. People laughed at him, including the people at the bank. But despite people’s discouragement, Quint’s business savvy told him that the demand for micro distilleries might mirror the demand and growth microbreweries had experienced in the early 2000s. So, setting out to prove everyone wrong, Nick began teaching himself the ins and outs of distilling and in 2007, Quint started Madison’s first distillery (the 2nd in Wisconsin)-Yahara Bay Distillers.
Humble beginnings
The distillery started slowly with only a handful of products, but soon began to grow thanks to help from friends, family and volunteers. With Quint’s stepson and head distiller, Lars Forde at the helm of the still and wife/co-owner, Catherine Quint, running the distillery art gallery, Yahara Bay became more than just a family-run Madison business. In 10 short years, Yahara Bay has gone from producing 3 products to over 40. They distribute to 20 different states, have one of the largest import bottling businesses in the Midwest, and expanded into a new 20,000 square foot facility complete with an event space, tasting room, art gallery, and retail space.
OUR PROCESS
It begins with the best
local ingredients...
Yahara Bay’s apple brandy is made from Honeycrisp apples from Kickapoo Orchard in Gays Mills, WI. The cherry brandy is made with Montmorency tart cherries grown in Door County, WI, and the coffee used in the coffee liqueur is from one of a few carefully selected craft coffee roasters in the Madison area including JBC and True.
By knowing the source of the grains, fruit or herbs used in their spirits, Yahara Bay is better able to control quality and celebrate “The Spirit of Madison.”
Then it goes into trusty Carl to be distilled and make the good stuff.
Fun fact: Arriving from Germany in 2007, “CARL” was assembled piece by piece by Nick, Owner, and Lars, Head Distiller, and sits center stage in the distilling process.
Some spirits are bottled immediately, some sit for a few weeks, while others are aged in American Southern white oak barrels to be enjoyed years later.
Fun fact: The colors you see in Yahara Bay’s spirits come from spending time in the barrel, from the fruit itself, or from other all natural ingredients used. No artificial flavorings or additives are blended in, so what you get is a crisp, clean, and natural flavor with each and every sip.
VISIT OUR TASTING ROOM
