Devils River Whiskey, maker of premium small batch whiskeys, will soon be announcing the opening of Devils River Distillery. Located in the historic Burns Building at 401 E. Houston Street, the artisan distillery is a premier whiskey experience just steps to the city’s bustling San Antonio River Walk and the Alamo.
Devils River Whiskey’s new headquarters is much more than a working distillery. In addition to premium tastings and tours of the company’s meticulous production process, guests are invited to kick back and enjoy live music on the rooftop, indulge in tempting appetizers and imbibe sinfully smooth cocktails at the 1920s prohibition era bar.
With over 34-million visitors to San Antonio each year, Devils River Distillery is sure to become a destination in the city’s revitalized downtown district. “The opening of Devils River Distillery will allow us to be completely produced, distilled, aged, and bottled in San Antonio,” says Mike Cameron, co-founder and Head Distiller. “It’s a feat we are most proud of.”
Capturing the spirit of San Antonio’s deep history of prohibition – an era fraught with rebellion against the government’s rules over production, importation and the sale of spirits – the Devils River Whiskey team chose the historic Burns Building as the quintessential location for their new home. “Working with the architects, a design team and the historic society, we were able to build out a gorgeous space that remains true to the historic nature of the building,” Cameron explains. “Guests will see the building’s original copper hardware and the magnificent floor to ceiling columns from 1919.”
In designing a state-of-the-art headquarters for their handcrafted whiskey, the Devils River team worked with distillery artisans to custom design equipment imported from Germany’s oldest distillery fabricator. At the forefront of the process: tackling the dual challenge of creating an engaging customer experience while making the distillation process as environmentally conscious and sustainable as possible.
Giving back to the Earth and to the local community served as a twofold objective during the course of construction. As distilleries on average can use over 15,000 gallons of non-potable water each day, the Devils River Distillery installed a proprietary system that allows them to recycle and reuse non-potable water.
With one eye on significantly reducing water consumption, the Devils River Whiskey team has also arranged to donate spent grains to area farmers. An essential step in the whiskey making process, once most of the sugars have been extracted from the mash, often a lot of protein remains behind. Substituting spent grains for corn provides cattle producers a less expensive, nutritious feed ingredient that supports production and maintains meat stability.
Devils River Whiskey is proud to be the first nationally distributed brand to call downtown San Antonio home. “Whether you are booking a distillery tour, venue space or looking for a place to sit and enjoy a Texas evening, the Devils River Distillery will be ready with custom cocktails and great food at our elegant 1920s prohibition style bar,” says Eric Hundelt, EVP of Sales and Marketing.
When the Devils River Distillery opens its doors later this year, you can indulge in custom cocktails and Devils River Whiskey inspired bites in the tasting room, open Thursdays 4 pm – 8 pm, Fridays 4 pm – 10 pm, and Saturdays 12 pm – 10 pm. Make sure to stop by the Devils River Distillery gift shop to take home a bottle of Devils River Whiskey and merchandise to commemorate the visit.
The Devils River Distillery will be opening soon. Learn more about its grand opening and offerings online at www.DevilsRiverWhiskey.com/Devils-River-Distillery/.
Terry Bunch
