LOHMAN, Mo. - A lot has changed for the owners of Blacksmith Artisanal Spirits over their past two years of operation.
From starting as an "expensive hobby," as chief tasting officer and patriarch Michael J. Broker Jr. called it, to an award-winning business, there must be something about those award-winning spirits.
In 2020, its Quench Tank Gin won gold in the Craft Distiller's Spirits Competition and gold in the John Barleycorn Awards with its Iron Forge Corn Whiskey - a whiskey made with 100 percent Missouri corn.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the crew produced 80 percent alcohol hand sanitizer using a recipe approved by the World Health Organization to donate boxloads of sanitizer to first responders and retirement homes in Missouri.
That June, Blacksmith had the opportunity to work with Cole County and create the Cole County Bicentennial Bourbon for its celebration. Now a year later, they have worked with state officials to make 200 bottles of the Missouri Bicentennial Bourbon.
Bicentennial coordinator Michael Sweeney said the commission is only using locally made products to partner with local businesses, highlighting Missouri classics like bourbon.
"It's such a boom for the state," Sweeney said, "particularly to have the historic tie stand out among other products. Missouri has had bourbon historically, so returning to that is very exciting."
"Just to be affiliated with so many segments and groups has been huge for us," said Russ Broker, cofounder and certified executive bourbon steward. "Who knows about a weekend-only distillery out of a 1950s dairy barn?"
But their opportunity has been generations in the making.
'It's in our blood'
The families of Mike Jr. and his wife, Loretta, were distillers. At some points, especially during Prohibition, it was more under wraps.
The crew still displays the mugshots of Loretta's uncles proudly in their showroom. Tom and John McIntyre ran a bar in Lexington, Missouri, when Prohibition hit, and they had to revert to selling soda instead. However, they weren't entirely out of options.
When a customer came in "wishing he could find something stronger," Broker said, one of them reached under the bar and came up with a bottle of alcohol. They were arrested and served time in USP Leavenworth for a year and a day.
As time went on, the tradition of homemaking spirits also remained in Mike's family. He remembers gathering supplies every summer with his siblings to make homemade wine with their father. It was a teacher to him in taste - and also to the do-it-yourself distiller process. His father, the original Michael John Broker, was the blacksmith who inspired the distillery's name.
"Self-sufficiency was the root of everything," Broker said.
The Brokers eventually had the hankering to move back to the countryside and raise one more generation on the farm. Mike Jr. and Loretta continued making spirits with their family - gin-making is always a group effort, with the whole family stepping in to combine flavors of cilantro, mint, cucumbers, sugar snap peas, Japanese mountain peppers, juniper and Missouri cedar berries.
"When I think about it, I think of the involvement of everyone else," Russ said. "There are photos of us busting open 15 pounds of sugar snap peas."
Mike Jr.'s love for making homemade alcohol continued, which sparked another "gnawing feeling" - and added something to his bucket list.
After Mike worked on a homemade distillery with his friend, he added making his own distillery, not thinking it would happen. When his sons found out, they came up with a plan and found the materials to bring the distillery to life. They presented it as a surprise at Broker's 70th birthday party: a homemade still.
In shock, he asked, "What do I owe ya?" His sons reassured him it was indeed his personal still.
They started with a rudimentary setup that involved a milk can, propane tanks, tubes and their family's 80-year-old corn whiskey recipe, which Mike had long ago gathered from his living siblings, and made their first batch.
"It wasn't very good," Mike Broker III said.
But as they tried new recipes, grew in experiences and alcohol tasting certifications, their recipe improved. Friends began hearing about a distillery in Lohman and asking for samples.
Samples turned into sales, and after doing the Cole County Bicentennial Bourbon, it helped them gain publicity to take Blacksmith Distillery - the business - even further off the ground.
"We decided we might try this thing," Mike Jr. said.
Four generations
As customers near and far have been drawn to the distillery - some as far as Hawaii have ordered their Bicentennial Bourbon - family members have drawn near, too.
Out of the seven Broker children, Mike III, Russ, John and their sister, Leah, have remained part of the Blacksmith team today. Mike Jr. said the other siblings and Loretta all support the business in one way or another.
When any of the siblings come home, they look forward to having a place to stay and a home-cooked meal, but also helping with orders and restocking for their friends and family.
"The distillery thing has pulled almost everybody together, and I think that's one of the great things," Mike Jr. said.
He said he's proud of their paths in life - with many paying their own way through college and becoming successful - but he's most proud of their "good personalities, kind and knowing when to say they don't understand something."
The Broker siblings have been pleasantly surprised for the years they've been able to work with their dad - as they don't know how much time they have left with him.
'Superman'
There was more to come out of Broker's 70th birthday than just the homemade still and the start of the business: It continued the generational chain of distillers.
"They all thought I might die or something," Mike Jr. said.
He has had more than a dozen heart stents and multiple surgeries, including two quadruple bypasses and most recently beat cancer. In one incident, he almost died. After seeing all of these happen from the children's formative years into the present, they are fully aware of the time they have left with him.
Russ Broker was 13 the first time his dad had a heart attack, "which was obviously very impactful," he said.
"Although you never want to think of him leaving, it's just been crazy with one thing after another how he bounces back. Mom calls him 'Superman,'" Russ said. "It's been important and great that we were able to do this on the farm."
Mike Jr. said there's also something revitalizing about working with your family. There will be highs and lows, but he is reassured of the capabilities of everyone on the team - and the inspiration they've brewed in the process of working together.
Bottling the dream
Like a familiar Missouri whiskey in a small batch barrel, Blacksmith plans to improve with age.
As their business grows and reaches more milestones, the Brokers are looking to expand the distillery to a larger location they would build nearby on the property.
Mike III said they'd also like to grow their equipment and staff so they can maximize how much product they can make on the weekends. Russ' son, Jake, has started helping at tastings and retail locations and could keep promoting at their new location. They hope to make it part of their retirement plan to get the larger distillery going.
"I hope my kids are interested in this, and they want to start learning how to make it and work with us," Mike Broker III said.
After all, the family aspect has helped Blacksmith Distillery to move forward, Mike Jr. said.
"The family story seems as important as people (wanting to) drink something good and homemade," he said. "Being a family operation, I think the satisfaction has to be darn good because we're starting out small. They like our story, and our taste, so we don't mess with that."
Russ added: "We've got the history, and the passion is there. So it's really great to hear about (the public support). They want us to succeed."
Explore the Blacksmith Artisinal Spirits website at blacksmithartisanalspirits.com, or stop by for a tour 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at 11517 Branch Road in Lohman.