“It was filled, nearly wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling, with old win- dows,” Claypool says. Undaunted, they signed a long-term lease with Abbot Properties and began the 18-month process of renovation. “But rehabbing a 130-plus (year-old) building with old gas and water lines is a challenge,” says Claypool. “The building was in really rough shape.” Claypool then pauses, as if counting into the hundreds when asked to list all the challenges the building presented while at the same time trying to retain its historical ambiance. Today, the scrubbed space feels cavernous while keeping to what one supposes was its original look. Claypool says, “media blasting” the walls other interior surfaces, instead of sandblasting, helped with the restoration look. “All the brick and wood were media blasted. It’s a gentler process than sand using glass beads and water for restoring the original look and feel.” The distillery features brick walls and exposed beamed ceilings with original timbers on both floors. Natural light enters the many, aligned windows where horses once peered out into the streets and fresh breeze aerated the stalls. Vases of wheat decorate several win- dow ledges. Cable spools found in the alley are repurposed as tables. A 20-plate silver still surrounded by glass for viewing, lives on the first floor of the distillery. Locally sourced grains from Wellsville, KS – a specific strand of Kansas Red Winter Wheat and rye – are deliv- ered in the back, where it is then milled, mashed, fermented, distilled and aged in barrels, all on site. A wooden staircase leads to the former hayloft, where hay bales were once hoisted from the ground up through the second-floor win- dow. The bales would drop through a hatch to the first floor to feed hungry horses. Today, The Hayloft – as it’s cleverly named – serves as an event space that accommodates about 200 people. An ADA- approved lift ferries those who do not wish to take the stairs. In addition, windows from outside of the building have been added to inside of the loft so customers can look down and view the distill- ing process below. A cocktail bar and an infusion bar are located at the front of the distillery where customers may both smell and taste. The infusion
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Above: A Toledo industrial-sized scale sits next to the infusion shelves.
16 VINTAGEKC WINTER 2016
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