After years of bottling sourced whiskey blended with a proprietary formula of added flavors to create its unique taste profile, Templeton Rye will soon be distilling. Cofounder Keith Kerkhoff and Templeton, Iowa Mayor Ken Behrens broke ground on a distillery in the town on April 5th. The 34,500-square-foot facility will have a capacity of 500,000 proof gallons, and the site includes a warehouse that can store up to 40,000 barrels. It’s projected to be complete in about 18 months.
The distillery marks a new chapter in Templeton’s brief history. Though the brand claims roots in the Prohibition era, Kerkhoff and Scott Bush founded the current iteration in 2006. The company currently bottles rye whiskey from MGP that’s combined with a proprietary flavoring additive (which is legal in non-straight rye whiskey) and local purified water. With the new distillery coming online in 2018, Templeton will shift to producing its own whiskey—ceasing its relationship with MGP—with the aim of bottling it by 2022.
