Man and woman do not live by whiskey alone.
That’s why Black Band Distillery will have gin and vodka, too. And a food menu. And beer and wine from external providers.
But the emphasis for the Peoria craft distillery will be on the liquor it makes in its remodeled, three-story building at 1000 SW Adams St.
First revealed publicly last May, Black Band Distillery probably will open in mid-to-late March or early April, according to Chris Ober, the primary owner and distiller. It would become the first distillery in years in the city, which has a rich history of alcohol manufacture.
“It’s Whiskey City,” said Ober, a Peoria native. “I think that Peoria has deserved a high-quality distillery for along time, and it’s almost wrong or a sin that we haven’t had one.”
Peoria might soon have two. A reboot of J.K. Williams Distilling, which closed about two years ago in East Peoria, was announced last August, although no opening date has been confirmed.
Like Black Band, J.K. Williams would be based in the Warehouse District. On Jan. 28, the City Council is expected to consider approving liquor sales at the Black Band site.
Through a custom-made German still, Ober is to prepare spirits. They include alcohol that requires aging, like whiskey, and alcohol that doesn’t, like gin and vodka.
Ober also plans to offer seasonal liqueurs. He said he’s planning to offer as many as a dozen products within the first year.
“We should have a wide-enough variety to hopefully satisfy people who aren’t just whiskey drinkers, or who aren’t just vodka drinkers,” Ober said.
State law allows Black Band to serve beer and wine but not spirits that aren’t made in house.
“We’re a distillery. We’re not a bar,” Ober said. “So the focus needs to be our distilled product and not other people’s distilled products.”
Black Band also is to have a kitchen. Ober said he doesn’t have a definitive menu yet, but it’s to include entrees and appetizers. Including a beer garden, seating capacity is expected to be about 130.
The multi-million-dollar project has been germinating for seven years, according to Ober, who took his first distilling class about a decade ago.
“We’ve taken a lot of time to decide on equipment, to decide on the style, to decide on the overall feel and concept of the location and the brand in general,” Ober said. “Where it can be done in a real high-quality way, where people can see it wasn’t slapped together.
“I didn’t want to go into it and not put in the effort. We’re definitely fully committed to its success.”
