Chris Fornstrom wears multiple hats but he does so with great enthusiasm for the passion he has in serving the agricultural community.
In January the 23-year-old University of Wyoming graduate joined the family farm along with being a full-time sales representative for Channel Seed.
But he has a third passion—he is active with the management of Pine Bluffs Distilling. The bourbon and whiskey company sells Pine Bluffs Distilling bourbon products to over 96 liquor stores in five states, most prominently in his home state.
His work with the distillery led him to thinking about what might make a fun Christmas present to give to customers who purchase his Channel Seed. He learned that bottled spirits were always well received by growers, who appreciated the personal touch.
“We thought of our bourbon and we grow corn we use from Channel Seed,” he said.
All of the corn grown for the spirits is a non-genetically modified corn, he said. All the grains for the distillery are grown by a combined four local area farms within 30 miles of the distillery, he said. The Fornstrom family is the exclusive corn producer for the distillery. The other farms grow wheat, barley and rye.
“We found that making bourbon is a fascinating and a real cool venture,” Christopher Fornstrom said. “Our interest continues to grow.”
“We’ve been strictly Channel growers for the farming side for over five years,” he said. “We’ve always appreciated their brand and we have good connections and it has been a good partnership.”
One of the aspects he likes is that few farmers and ranchers get to see what the grain they grow becomes as a final product, he said. Pine Bluffs Distilling is an example where he and his family can plant the seed and watch it grow, then harvest so it can be processed into a product enjoyed by neighbors and friends.
This year, of course, was a challenging one with the drought. Thankfully, the family was able to grow corn with irrigation, he said, and Channel seeds have the quality needed for the spirits.
Special-made labels will be put on the bottles to signify the novelty, he said. The promotional bourbon was to be bottled on Dec. 15 and then delivered to customers for the holiday season.
“Channel has been very supportive and we are very fortunate to have that support,” Fornstorm said as he quipped, “Not a lot of companies would let you send a bottle of booze (to growers) as a way to say thanks.”
Pine Bluffs Distilling now produces about 400 barrels a year and has released its first two-year aged bourbons, Fornstrom said, and is on target to ultimately release four-year aged bourbons.
More information about Pine Bluffs Distilling is available at pinebluffsdistilling.com and Channel Seed at channel.com.
Dave Bergmeier can be reached at 620-227-1822 or [email protected].
