Two Birds Artisan Distilling uses Michigan ingredients

In recent years, Southwest Michigan has gained a reputation as being one the state's, if not the country's premier producers of wine and craft beer. But at least one local company is hoping there is room at the party for another kind of beverage. 

 

Two Birds Artisan Spirits is co-owned by Nathan Jonjevic and Ryan Bailey. The company recently began production of its own small batch, Greyling Modern Dry Gin, and the owners hope to offer discerning drinkers a third Kalamazoo-based option when it comes to choosing the right libation. 

 

"Greyling gin is light-bodied and very well balanced. It has a hint of sweetness and a floral nose," says Two Birds co-founder Nathan Jonjevic. "Greyling stands out in most cocktails and it can be enjoyed on the rocks, which is an uncommon combination for most gins."

 

Jonjevic recommends using Greyling as a base spirit in a gimlet, which pairs gin with simple syrup and a squeeze of fresh lime juice. 

 

Though Greyling Gin is available for purchase online through Internet Wines and Spirits and can be found in liquor stores and bars throughout West Michigan, Jonjevic and Bailey are nonetheless operating as spirit distilling vagabonds with no permanent home. 

 

"Since it's illegal to work on distilling before being fully licenced it means that it's also a really large economic trick (to open the business)," Jonjevic says. "What you have to do is basically go out, pay for a still, pay for a building for that still to be in, and it could wind up sitting dormant for several months until all your licensing is in place."

 

Instead of going the traditional route of renting or purchasing space, and waiting for the state to give the legal thumbs up, Two Birds has chosen to operate "gypsy style" as Jojevic calls it. 

 

The company has partnered with Yahara Bay, a Madison, Wisc.-based micro-distiller that crafts, bottles and ships the Two Birds recipe. But just because the product is currently being made out of state doesn't mean that it is any less local. 

 

"We’re sourcing everything from Michigan that we can," Jonjevic says. "We’re using Michigan hard red winter wheat, our lavender comes from Michigan, the only thing that we don’t source from Michigan are the juniper berries, and we can’t get the citrus peels." 

 

Two Birds uses only Northern Michigan, culinary-grade lavender, which does not contain camphor, an organic compound that can often cause food and drink to give off a bitter, unpleasant taste.

 

If the gin sells well, and Jonjevic believes it will, then the next step for Two Birds is to work on acquiring a space of its own somewhere in Southwest Michigan. At that point the company would like to expand its product line, somewhat. 

 

"I think that we would like to stay on the smaller side just so that we can concentrate on quality," Jonjevic says.