Long Road Distillers is a renowned West Michigan distillery unwilling to compromise its quality. This week, Smallegan Real Estate Realtor Richard France-Coe tours the facility with distillery co-owner and co-founder Kyle Vanstrien to find out just what makes Long Road Distillers one of the most beloved West Michigan attractions.

Richard France-Coe: Could you just tell us a little bit about yourself and your business?

Kyle Vanstrien: Yeah, my name is Kyle Vanstrien. I'm the co-owner and co-founder of long room distillers here in Grand Rapids Michigan. I started this business about five years ago now came up with the idea with a good friend of mine. One night, over a couple glasses of whiskey, we decided that we should make whiskey in Grand Rapids. Everyone was making beer - there was over 35 breweries at that time in the county.

Richard: Could you talk a little bit about your relationship with, West Michigan, with some of your suppliers, and where you got a lot of your ingredients?

Kyle: So one of the hallmarks of Long Road is that we don't take shortcuts. For us, that means we get our ingredients locally from a farmer we know by name, and that's what is important to us. We want to know where these things are coming from, and we know that that's important to consumers nowadays too. Like being able to just point a little ways northeast of here and say you know all of our stuff is growing right here! I think is important - it really connects us to where we are and to who we want to be.

Richard: What would you say are some of the key values that have driven long roads growth?

Kyle: Definitely our no-shortcuts approach to our spirits cocktails, food - I think that the number one hallmark is their a particular menu item like either a drink or food that you're especially proud of. The drink that a lot of people know us for is the Polish Falcon. It's our version of the Moscow Mule, and I say our version because we've made it our own. We're in a Polish neighborhood here on the west side, and it's our nod to that heritage. It might seem basic, but again we took the long road in making it, and we did it the right way. I think it does stand apart from a lot of other mules that you'll see. So we make all of our own vermouth, our own bitters, we juice all of our own fruits, and we do that so that the drinks are fresh; they're the best they can possibly be. Same thing with our kitchen - it's farm to table that's important and you can't fake it, you know? I think people see right through that. There's so many options for people. The food scene is blowing up; it's a great time to be in the industry. It's also a really challenging time. I wouldn't want it any other way at this point, you know? I’m excited to go to work sometimes; I feel a little guilty because I enjoy work as much as I do, but it's fun, and it's fun to have my family be a part of that too. To be a part of the work and to see the joy that being in this industry gives to me and to the rest of the team here!