Man Builds Dream Quonset Hut™ Distillery in Virginia

In mid-June, they celebrated their much-anticipated grand opening of the Three Brothers Distillery with a live band, grilled food, and great spirits! This celebration has been in the making for several years now.

Dave, a Chesapeake resident, is a retired Navy first-class electronics technician and he is certainly no stranger to putting in long hours and hard work. He has been dreaming of opening his distillery for many years.

Dave came to SteelMaster with a dream and a solid plan; he needed something he could do himself, a building that was cost effective, and one that would accommodate his growing business in the future. He purchased a 35’ by 40’ S-Model building and worked with LEED Certified Building Specialist William Swafford, who helped him customize the building to accommodate the business.

After getting final approval in December of 2014 Dave started construction in May of 2015.

It took Dave and his team just a few days to erect the arches, but a little over a year to complete the rest of the structure. They opted to design their own wooden endwalls, which they painted bright red to contrast with the bright steel arches.

Inside of the 1,400 square foot distillery, Dave and his crew produce several kinds of amazing products. They produce Silk Jacket, a Naval strength compound gin, Kablam, unaged corn whiskey and George Straight Rye Whiskey.

Soon you’ll be able to go to any ABC store and pick up a bottle of Silk Jacket made right in Dave’s special distillery.

Chip, who also works with the crew, says he and his brother Chris drive up from Suffolk, Virginia and spend hours in the sweltering distillery to ensure they have the best quality product possible. They spend 8-12 hours at a time inside of the Quonset Hut distillery working hard on what they love to do.

They will be starting tours in mid-summer on Saturdays for those who wish to visit the facility.

Even just after a few months, they are ready to expand! They are currently working on one of the original buildings on the property that was first constructed in 1820. Dave and his crew are going to turn that building into grain storage, and they will have another facility that will be dedicated to storing the aging George Whiskey.

“We love this stuff! We make it, and we breathe it. Best of all, we get to drink it,” says Dave.