Our Story

Our Story Origin

Windows Distillery is the passion project of Chris Mayer. In 2016, Chris co-founded an equipment supply company for commercial growers. In just six years, his company became a leading supplier of everything from grow racks to LED lighting for growers of quality plants throughout North America. He also pioneered innovations for the indoor grower market.

The only thing you’ll ever hear a modest Chris brag about? “We did it all right here in the USA. No imports. Just American workers and American ingenuity.”

In the midst of the pandemic, Chris had time to focus on what would be next for him: “Over and over, I dreamt of starting a distillery with whiskey as the primary focus. The American craft distilling scene continues to grow fans both nationally and internationally. It has a lot of similarities to what we did with growers. Innovation and creativity, together with listening to what our clients really needed, fueled our growth. We are doing the same with distilling.”

Our Vision

Chris has never been a fan of boundaries. As he listened to both casual and avid whiskey lovers, he began to realize the limitations on craft distillers: “At the end of the day, every distiller puts their new make into a barrel and, based on experience and talent, wishes for a lovely spirit to appear at some point down the road. It’s not unlike how the farmer feels when they plant their crop each spring.”

But no matter what, a distiller has limitations. Their barrels will age where they’re at. The mash bill is what it is. And no matter what, every distiller has to sell every drop they make. Good. Bad. Average. It all gets sold to someone.

“There’re lots of great whiskeys in the world. There’re lots and lots of pretty good and just alright ones. I wanted to set out with a promise to our fans that we would listen, innovate, and create.”

That includes international as well as American spirits.

Our Whiskey

Chris’s vision allows his team to focus on blending and finishing.

“We look for spirits that combine to be better than the sum of their parts. We are creating spirits that folks say, ‘I’ve never tasted anything like that before… and it’s delicious!'”

And while blending is one of the focuses at Windows, finishing spirits is an entirely different art. New and unique used barrels are one staple. Creating a specific proofing water is another. And smoke… just wait until you taste the spirits that are coming from Windows Distillery. Post-distillation finishing of these exceptional spirits led to the concept of the team being “Spirit Benders.” As Chris describes, “If a spirit needs just a little something to elevate the taste profile, we spend our days figuring out just how to naturally and creatively bring the profile to life. It’s what drives us… make each barrel, each blend, each bottle something special that we’re delighted to share with friends.”