Ep. 72: Traverse City Whiskey Co. with Founder Chris Fredrickson

Traverse City Whiskey Co. (TCWC) was started as both a hobby and a business by Chris Fredrickson and a couple of friends. They started as many do, by buying aged MGP and selling it while building their own distillery. 

A decade later, depending on the product, the MGP percentage is at 10%, or even lower. What they are buying from MGP - when they buy - is unaged distillate to their own specifications and needs. Their rye blends their own Michigan-distilled 100% rye with MGP's 95/5, for example. 

Traverse City is also the cherry capital of the world, something Chris knows as a third-generation cherry farmer. Montmorency, Balaton, sour or sweet, Chris and TCWC know their cherries. The cocktail cherries are an in-house recipe and the only cherries I use in my cocktails, and the annual Cherry Whiskeyfest they throw is not to be missed. 

The best part - my favorite part - of TCWC is that each product is for a different audience. The Barrel Proof whiskies aren't simply out-of-the-barrel versions of the lower proof ones; they're aged longer and in different parts of the warehouse. Their North Coast Rye is closer to a 50/50 mix of MGP and TCWC distillate, not a proofed-down Barrel Proof Rye. Targeting consumers is nothing new - targeting them in a way that differentiates you is. 

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Thanks for reading! Now here’s Chris Fredrickson of Traverse City Whiskey Company.

Traverse City Whiskey Co.

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Reviews

• Traverse City Whiskey Company Barrel Proof Rye
• Traverse City Whiskey Company Barrel Proof Straight Wheat Whiskey

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