You can watch Chris Montana’s testimony here. Madame Chair and Members of the committee, I am honored today to represent craft distillers nationwide in addition to my own company Du Nord Craft Spirits. Who are the American Craft Distillers? At the outset it is worth defining exactly what a...
The Monthly Mash Volume 5.6 Member-Owned, Industry-Driven ACSA Mission: To elevate and advocate for the community of craft spirits producers. From the Desk of Margie A.S. Lehrman, Chief Executive Officer Dear Friends in our Craft Spirits Industry: Historical fiction is one of my preferred reading genres. Exploring a time...
The sting of stun grenades and tear gas is still fresh for Chris Montana, owner of Du Nord Craft Spirits, one of the few Black-owned microdistilleries in the United States. He spent the better part of May 27 — two days after the killing of George Floyd — handing out water and...
Chris Montana, owner of the first Black-owned microdistillery in the U.S., shares his hopes for the future. This story, as told to Garin Pirnia, is from the perspective of Chris Montana, co-owner of South Minneapolis’ Du Nord Craft Spirits. When Montana opened the distillery in 2013, in the neighborhood where he...
To Our Alcohol Beverage Community and Supporters of Craft Spirits —In the early morning hours of Friday, May 29, Du Nord Craft Spirits, the Minneapolis distillery owned by the American Craft Spirits Association’s immediate Past President Chris Montana, was severely damaged amidst all of the devastation in the city....
COVID-19 has battered the entire whisky industry but perhaps no one is struggling quite like the thousands of craft distillers in the U.S. The pandemic has shuttered tasting rooms and disrupted distribution, cutting off crucial revenue streams, prompting staff cuts, and potentially putting some on the brink of permanent closure. While...
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