Second Chance Spirits vice-president Brian Morton looks over the hand-hammered still that will be used to produce the Prosser company’s line of products, called Blue Flame Spirits.  The product line will include whiskey, vodka, gin, and specialty liqueurs. The still was manufactured in Germany and took about a year to complete. Richard Burger Photo

By RICHARD BURGER

Brian Morton is a man on a mission, and one that might come as a bit of a surprise in the lower valley community touted as the birthplace of the Washington wine industry.

Morton is one of two principals in Second Chance Spirits, Inc. a Prosser firm that will shortly begin producing whiskey, vodka, gin, and specialty liqueurs under the Blue Flame label. The firm also has a local silent partner.

Second Chance will produce its spirits using all Washington-grown ingredients, and sourced from valley producers whenever possible, Morton said.

“We trying to buy everything locally,” he said.

Second Chance will specialize in whiskey, most notably rye whiskey, which Morton characterized as “one of the most sought after whiskeys.”

Every aspect of production of all Blue Flame spirits will take place in house, from distilling to aging to bottling. 

Visitors to the distillery, in Prosser’s east side industrial park in the former location of Whitstran Brewery, 3800 Lee Rd., will be able to see every aspect of the production process firsthand.

“We’ll be distilling every day,” Morton said. “We’re making a hand-crafted product.

“When you walk in here, you’ll smell something no one else has smelled before,” Morton said, “and see something you’ve never seen before.”

At the distillery, visitors will be able to sample Blue Flame products and purchase it by the bottle, Morton said. 

He said large-scale commercially-produced spirits are made using a continuous process that is computer-controlled and largely without human intervention.

Blue Flame spirits, by contrast, will be produced constantly under Morton’s watchful eye, as still operator.

That process begins by making the “wash,” which is roughly equivalent to making beer, and which is called “bier” in European distilleries, Morton said.

The wash is then transferred to the still, and distillation, called the “run,” begins. Distillation happens in three phases, which are governed by the temperature of the wash as it is slowly heated. 

The first distillate produced is the “head,” which is not suitable for consumption, but may be used for other purposes, such as cleaning solvent, Morton said.

The second phase is the “heart,” which produces the consumable portion of the run. 

This phase of the run can be slowed and prolonged to produce the most complex flavors in the finished product.

“From one ingredient (in the wash) you can pick out several flavors,” Morton said. “You slow down the run to get them.”

The end of the run is called the “tail,” and is also undesirable and is discarded.

“We will only use the best part of the wash,” Morton said.

In addition to the ingredients in the wash, the still itself also affects the flavor of the distillate.

“No two stills are the same,” Morton said. 

The Second Chance still was made in Germany, incorporates extensive use of hand-hammered copper, and took about a year to construct, Morton said. 

He learned his distilling skills while he was employed by Dry Fly Distilling, a craft distillery in Spokane.

Second Chance will be one of only four distilleries in the state, Morton said. 

One of those, in Ellensburg, doesn’t have its products available for sale, he said, and a distillery in Woodinville produces only limited quantities of vodka and gin.

Morton sees a big opportunity in craft distilling, producing what he characterizes as “an elite, top-shelf product,” and he is confident in his company’s ability to capitalize on it.

“We have no problem taking on the competition,” Morton said. 

That competition will likely include the largest corporate producers of spirits, Morton said, who are now beginning to enter the market with their own hand-crafted products.

That prospect doesn’t blunt Morton’s enthusiasm.

“Washington needs to be known as the spirit manufacturer on the west coast,” he said.  

He sees Second Chance playing an important role in developing that reputation.

“The possibilities are so large. You could change a lot of lives,” he said. “I take great pride in being the best.”

At press time, Morton said he expected final approval from the state in a matter of days to begin production.

Though Blue Flame whiskey won’t be available for some time because of the required aging, the company’s vodka and gin could be ready for consumers in a few weeks after production begins.