ILLUSTRATION BY CHRIS DANGER
In February, Brian Sprance was named New Riff Distillery’s first master distiller. We recently talked to him about going from being a beer guy to a spirits wrangler, his favorite spirit, and what’s on the horizon for New Riff.
You started out as a “beer guy,” right? How and why did you make the switch to spirits?
After 15 years in the brewing industry, I was starting to feel a little burned out. In 2013, New Riff was still under construction, but Ken [Lewis, New Riff’s cofounder] was putting the final touches on the build out of Ei8ht Ball Brewing in The Party Source. A dear friend of mine, Mitchell Dougherty, was hired as the head brewer and through that relationship, I was given the opportunity to sit and talk with Ken and Jay [Erisman, New Riff’s cofounder] about their vision for the distillery. Fortunately for me, they were specifically looking for a brewer that had a mix of small and big brewery experience. The idea of joining a small team and building something from the ground up was too good of an opportunity to pass up.
How does your expertise in fermentation apply to the distillation process?
The distilling process doesn’t necessarily create the flavors, but instead, amplifies the flavors created in the cooking and fermentation process. Everything starts with quality raw materials, consistent mashing techniques, and consistent fermentation profiles. We pay attention to our fermenter temperatures, pHs, alcohol content, sugar content. Each fermenter is also analyzed every 24 hours. Consistency is so important in what we do because at the end of the day, we’re putting this raw, aggressive distillate into a charred oak barrel that we then will not even touch for years. Our focus upfront is quality, quality, quality. The best raw materials, consistent production techniques, the best barrels. The list goes on.
You’ve been with New Riff since it began a decade ago. How has the business and the industry changed in that time?
We’ve obviously grown quite a bit and continue to as well. The culture that has been created at New Riff is quite contagious and it’s been really enjoyable to watch the enthusiasm of newer employees. We have pretty lofty goals, and it takes each and every one of us to achieve them and that in a nutshell is why I love New Riff. We’re still a team focused on becoming one of the world’s great small distilleries.
What would you say were the most important lessons you learned from Larry Ebersold (known in the industry as the “Godfather of Rye Whiskey”) while he mentored you when you were first starting with New Riff?
Patience and critical thinking. Plain and simple. Making great whiskey takes years, but if you work your way through each process in a consistent and thoughtful manner, then you’ve done your job.
What does it mean to you to be named “master distiller”?
The recognition from my coworkers and peers in the industry has been amazing. “Master distiller” has always been a polarizing title, but it was pretty exciting seeing how excited the company was as a whole. I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished in the last 10 years and hope to make everyone even more proud in the next 10 years.
How will the change in title change your everyday work for New Riff?
That’s the beauty in all of this! My focus will continue to be on working with my team in the pursuit of making world class whiskey! It’s very important to me to have my thumb on the pulse of the distillery and that’s what I’ll continue to do.
What’s your favorite spirit and why?
Rye whiskey. Spicy, delicious straight up, and equally delicious in cocktails.
How do you see the distillery innovating in the next 10 years?
We’ll be working on older whiskey releases. More sour mash single malt and quite a few other fun things in the warehouse right now that are still kind of secret. 2024 will be a fun year for New Riff releases though, I can tell you that.
Anything else you’d like our readers to know?
Come join us at The Aquifer. Catherine and her team are making amazing cocktails!
New Riff Distilling, 24 Distillery Way, Newport, (859) 261-7433
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