Blaum Bros Distilling Co

Stopped here with my boyfriend on our way into Galena for the weekend. We each had a drink at the bar beforehand which we were able to keep with us during the tour. Our tour guide Dennis did a great job at explaining everything and really giving us an insight to the small family nature of the company. There were 3 tastings at the end which were nice. It’s a small 2 room distillery but finely executed. The barrel room smelled great with all the white oak and the bar had a nice feel to it. Overall, definitely a solid stop to the beginning of our Galena weekend and we will be recommending this to others who head out there as well.

No their stuff is not really yet theirs … They were totally honest about that but it’s made to their recipes until theirs is ready. And it’s good! Ted said it would make believers of anti gin drinkers… And he was right… we bought a bottle!

Every time I am in Galena, I always make a booze run to Blaum Bros.
I recommend doing a tasting if it is your first time.
They include 4 spirits that include their vodka, moonshine and Hellfyre
(I can’t remember the fourth one).
Vodka:They have some of the SMOOTHEST vodka you’ve ever had.
Hellfyre: Really bright notes of hot peppers. Smokey, but not spicy. This would be great in a Bloody Mary.
One time I was in there, they had a cinnamon apple pie moonshine. AMAZING. Not for sale though. :/​
Nice gift shop and they sell by the bottle so you can take some home.
I have been to Baum Bros. a few times now and I have always had a great experience.
My only gripe is they are about a mile out of downtown so you can’t walk there :(

The spirits are excellent and the staff is even nicer. You cannot go wrong with the gin (my favorite) or an old fashion. The tour is filled with great information and you can bring your kids (my daughters loved it). This is a must stop at place every time we are in town.

Just did the distillery tour… It was awesome… Ted was our host… And he is my new «guy» !!! Very knowledgeable! Their attention to detail is wonderful! They are sold in Illinois at Mariano’s and whole foods… Going to be buying some booze…

Great tour. Our guide was very informative and knowledgable. He was also eager to answer any questions our group had. My husband and I had an old fashioned at the bar and it was great. We can’t wait to go back.

This is a fantastic place to learn about the distilling process. Very educational and a knowledgable guide. Tasty tasting and a great prohibition champagne cocktail to finish with.

The tour was quite interesting. The tasting was great! I loved their watermelon Vodka drink and my husband enjoyed their Old Fashion!
Very interesting how they create alcohol and bourbon infused beer from the barrels!

Highly recommended this tour. So informative and interesting. Dennis our tour guide was fantastic. After tour had hellfyre margarita… So yummy! Cucumber Collins was refreshing.

I don’t think I can say enough good things about this place. I love the story of how the place came to be. Both Blaum brothers are highly educated and had successful careers before the decided to leave it all to make whiskey. It is a true story of following your dreams, live your passion, blah blah blah. We took the tour and I think it was worth the $ 10. I learned a lot and at the end you got to try three samples. Our tour guide was Ted Williams and he was awesome. Picture the guy from Independence Day who works at Area 51 giving you a tour. That’s him. He was just so pumped about distilleries. He really knew his stuff and I learned so much. Make sure you get a drink either before or after the tour. They have a drink called the pineapple express. Get it. Yes it has chipotle pineapple syrup and jalapeño vodka but live a little and try it. I was hesitant too but it is absolute perfection. I ended up buying the vodka and ordering the syrup off of amazon on my way home. If I was going to die tomorrow this would be the drink to go along with my last meal.

A friend arranged the tour for us. I went expecting an average experience and feared that the large group of us would make that a certainty. Our tour guide, Ted, not only did a great job of explaining what is a fairly complex process with a lot of unfamiliar terms, but his animated sense of humor had us all laughing together as he guided our large group easily around the distillery. A fascinating look at the distilling process that ends with a tasting flight– Perfect! That Hellfyre vodka is crazy good and if you stay for a mixed drink, we recommend you try the Redhead, which features it.

This place was fantastic. We got there early and enjoyed a cocktail before the tour. The tour guide, Ted, was excellent and made sure our kids and others on the tours were entertained. Totally enjoyed our experience and their product is really good too!

I had the opportunity recently to take a tour of Blaum Brothers. The tour is very informative and the guide extremely entertaining. He knew how to engage a group of strangers and make the tour more interactive. I learned that Vodka is not always made from potatoes, but grain, and that Scotch Whiskey, which is not available in this distillery, is always made in Scotland. You’d think I could have figured that one out myself. The tour, which runs about an hour, ends with tastings of their own bourbon whiskey, vodka, gin, hellfyre and moonshine. I don’t profess to be a whiskey connoisseur, but they all were pleasing to my palate. The other thing I learned is that there is a very nice regular bar space in the building, which would be a great spot to come with friends just about anytime. Tees and other Blaum Brothers merchandise available, too. It’s a great spot to visit near downtown Galena.

Enjoyed the tasting room! Everyone needs to try the HELLFYRE — it is definitely something unique!!!
This business definitely provides an open environment to enjoy a couple of drinks and being able to see into the distillery.

We went on the tour that was very informative with much detail to the making of each different type of liquor. It was interesting that in their production of gin, they are reaching back to the older methods of making gin with only 5 botanicals added to the mix. I just read an article about how the industry is starting to change and they are ahead of the curve. I bought a bottle for the long winter nights.
Since I am not a vodka drinker, the vodka did nothing for me but Kathy thought they had an interesting taste.
I can’t wait for the whiskey to be ready in about 6 years.
To get it a little quicker, I bought a small oak cask that takes two bottles of their Moonshine and in 5 – 6 weeks you will have whiskey. I will let you know if it works.
The signature drink is a Moscow Mule which requires a copper cup. Kathy, who is my expert on that drink said it was very good but strong.
I like that all the ingredients are locally grown so they have better control over their quality.

Tour was fun and informative– thanks Ted!
All the liquor we tasted– vodka, gin, and hellfyre– was shockingly smooth.
Great atmosphere in bar/​tasting room.
Go! They were running more tours than listed online so try calling if the regular tour times don’t work with your schedule just in case.

Really wanted to like this place… I mean who doesn’t want to support a local distillery that utilizes only ingredients from the county’s numerous farmers? As you walked in, you could definitely catch the aromas of the rye, wheat, and corn they use to make their booze. We arrived too late for a tour, so we just walked around the gift shop, peered through the windows at the machinery, and then finally went to the whiskey lounge to sample some of the goods.
The atmosphere was unique, and the set-​up in the lounge area was more like someone’s very large great room complete with overstuffed leather seating and dart boards. We proceeded to order some cocktails, and then found some comfy chairs to sit in. Two of us ordered the Bloody Mary’s with the spicy vodka. It was a decent drink and it definitely had a spicy kick to it. Our other companions ordered a gin and tonic and from the look on their faces after their first sips, we knew it wasn’t good. Both avid gin drinkers, they proceeded to go back to the bar and ask for a taste of their tonic straight up to see if maybe that ingredient was throwing the taste off. It wasn’t. So they returned their drinks and ordered Moscow Mules instead which turned out to be «ok».
I would have rated our experience higher, as I don’t want to be that negative for a place such as this, but the fact that they allowed children in the whiskey lounge was unsettling. We just wanted to relax and have a good conversation, and instead we had little ones running amuck without any parental supervision, even throwing darts which of course never hit their intended target. The screams and giggles would have been fine at a Chuck e Cheese but not welcome in a whiskey lounge.

This place was awesome! Our tour guide Ted was both funny & informative during the tour. Afterwards, they give complimentary tasters of the very alcohol they are working on making! They also have a very nice modern, yet country style bar area right here in the distillery! Drinks were great, prices were right & the atmosphere was amazing! I would definitely recommend this for a groups of friends on a rainy afternoon & for drink fanatics alike!

Tour guide was informative and funny. Awesome to know they have bottling parties that we may check out In the future.
Tasting after tour included their vodka, gin and moonshine. Looking forward to watching this company grow and check out their whiskey in the upcoming years!!!

Why is there no love for the distiller? You see people go on and on about wineries and craft breweries, but what about craft distilleries? Blaum Bros. Distilling Co. is doing a good job bringing the Craft Distillery into the mainstream.
Located just on the outside of Galena on US 20, they have converted an old automobile museum into a trendy distillery that has a lot of pop culture references. If you blink you’ll miss one or 30. The bar area is beautifully done in a more refined atmosphere including a copper top bar, couches and whisky barrel tables.
As they have just opened their doors (at the time of this review) the only distilled spirit they had for sale was Vodka. They are in the works to make many other spirits, but barrel aging takes a while. Take the tour and you’ll learn all about why! As they are a new distillery they have their ups and downs. The vodka is okay, not really something I would want to drink straight or in a Martini (which I tried while there so I’m talking from experience), but it makes for a great mixer, especially in their Bloody Mary. With more experience, I can only see it getting better.
Since I jumped to mixed drinks, they do have a board with some of their signature mixed drinks, but they will make you anything you want… with their vodka. They don’t sell any spirits other than what they make. I tried three of their signature drinks and each was good. I highly recommend the Captain Reynolds (Bonus points if you understand the reference).
Definitely take the tour. When we went the tour guide was extremely nice, personable and informative on the process. I’ve been on multiple tours and the only tour I found more educational and entertaining was for a major distillery. On the plus side, our tour guide was one of the distillers.
When we were there, we met both of the Blaum brothers and their wives. They were some of the nicest people I’ve met in the industry. Answered questions and even let us sample some of their barrel aging spirits that aren’t ready yet. I can’t wait till they get those done! So when you go, you have a good chance of actually getting a chance to talk to the family.
So if you are in the area, you really should stop in, even if you don’t drink. Just for the tour.