Business Events & Training

Vermont Tech Ag Institute Winter/Spring 2018 Trainings

Date: Monday, May 14, 2018 - Saturday, May 19, 2018
Time: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm

Craft Distilling as a Profession: The Vermont Experience.  Vermont is one of the leaders in the nationwide boom in microdistilling. This training brings students into direct contact with a variety of processes involved in building, operating, and working in a distillery and the distilling industry. Lectures, labs, visits from experts, demonstrations, and hands-on experience at distilleries introduce distilling and still design, fermentation, distillery economics, and basic business and marketing skills. An emphasis is placed on production of high-quality spirits from local ingredients and how to bring these successfully to market. The training also covers such details as licensing, environmental concerns, permits, and reports for the TTB, safety, and quality control. Led by Duncan Holaday, a pioneer in micro-distilling, he is the owner and operator of Dunc’s Mill and consults on distillery and still design. Visiting lecturers and distillery visits expose participants to a variety of products, business models and scales, and construction types for distilleries. Each partcipant will complete and present a project that reflects his or her particular interests and draws from topics covered in the training.

Opportunities for direct observation and hands-on work during the training will be at Dunc’s Mill in St. Johnsbury, Shelburne Orchards Distillery in Shelburne, and Hooker Mountain Farm in Cabot, Wild Hart Distillery located in Shelburne, and Mad River Distillery located in Waitsfield. The class will also tour other distilleries in Vermont. Farmers markets have served as a key venue for producers to expand sales of their Vermont made spirits. During the training visits will be made to two different markets to experience this one-on-one marketing first hand.

Cost:  $1,200.