Today we’d like to introduce you to James Kim.
Hi James, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
We’re James and Ming, two high school friends who decided to start a distillery in the Atlanta area. It all started as an idea and we sort of went down a rabbit hole. We had a thought about introducing a craft Korean alcohol without the artificial ingredients and sweeteners that the mass produced spirits often contain. James’ uncle used to make makgeolli in the family home in Korea so we reached out to him to get our initial recipe to start our journey. From there we went on the long path to getting our licenses and space built out. It was a long process but we had a conviction that we had something special so we continued building day by day. Today we have a tasting room in Doraville where we’re able to share our story and spirits with guests and it’s been gratifying to see happy guests visit us.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
From the day we discussed the idea to today, it has been anything but smooth. There aren’t any one stop shop guides out there on how to start a distillery and each state and local jurisdiction has different thoughts and laws about how to go about it or even if they’ll allow anyone to start one in the first place. It was a lot of self study to figure out all the regulations and also getting all the proper licenses. It was a years long process to get through all of that and also work on building out our physical spaces.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We’re an Asian American owned grain to glass distillery specializing in craft Korean spirits. We aim to make soju using traditional ingredients and methods. We do this to present a spirit to the market that acts as an homage to the old traditional methods.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Always show up. We’ve been to events where we didn’t know anyone or didn’t have any expectations but met great people at those events. People won’t be able to find you if you’re not out there.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.minhwaspirits.com
- Instagram: @minhwaspirits
Image Credits
Colette Collins
