Welcome to Founding spirits
Our Founding Farmers scratch-made, source-matters mission has expanded. Growing our love of handcrafted food and drink, we started crafting our own spirits in 2009, slowly and sustainably creating a line of award-winning spirits meticulously crafted and quickly beloved.
In 2016, we custom-built our very own small-batch distillery, Founding Spirits, in the heart of downtown Washington, D.C. inside our restaurant, Founding Farmers & Distillers.
A Farmer-Owned Distillery
Founding Spirits is majority owned by American family farmers and their values are at the heart of our distilled spirits. Every step of the process, from grain to glass, shows our commitment to farmers, hiqh-quality ingredients, and handcrafting premium products. Our distilling team cultivates unique and tasty spirits from American wheat, barley, corn, rye, and many botanicals.
We invite you to get a taste of our award-winning spirits on site at our distillery in Founding Farmers & Distillers and at any Founding Farmers location. Founding Spirits is also available for purchase by the bottle in person and to go from our DC restaurants, and online for nationwide shipping.
Drink extra responsibly by spending your dollars mindfully and supporting American family farmers.
Team
Founding Spirits was born of our passion for exceptional craft cocktails and more than a decade of experience running the award-winning bar & beverage programs for Founding Farmers Restaurants. Our Distiller, Bob VanLancker, has spent years bartending and managing our bar programs and knows the difference that great spirits make. After ensuring each spirit is just right, he and his team bottle and hand label our Vodka, Dry Gin, Bourbon, and other spirits. It’s a labor of love fueled by a love of good spirits.