HELENA — On St. Patrick’s Day, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte visited Gulch Distillers in downtown Helena to showcase the state’s Growth Through Agriculture grant and loan program. This state initiative, established in 1987, offers grants up to $50,000 and loans up to $100,000 to projects enhancing Montana’s agricultural products. March, being National Agriculture Month, highlights these efforts.
The program enabled Gulch Distillers to relocate to a larger facility in Downtown Helena from a smaller tasting room. They secured a $25,000 grant, requiring matching funds, which was part of an announcement involving 24 other Montana businesses last March. “Montana is a tremendously entrepreneurial state, and we love celebrating entrepreneurs wherever they are,” Gianforte remarked, emphasizing the importance of small businesses during National Ag Month.
Gulch Distillers crafts spirits using local ingredients like barley, wheat, and rye, except for the sugarcane in their rum. Owners Steffen Rasile and Tyrrell Hibbard transformed their passion for cocktails into a thriving venture, developing award-winning products such as the Burrone Fernet, recognized at the 2023 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. The distillery’s tasting room, a cozy spot with a long bar, operates from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday, at 4 W. Lawrence Street. It neighbors popular downtown spots like Old Salt Co-op, Gold Bar, and the Western, and is a stone’s throw from the Last Chance Gulch walking mall.
The relocation has significantly increased their visibility and customer traffic, as noted by Hibbard and Rasile during Gianforte’s tour. “It’s made us more visible and we get more traffic in the tasting room,” Hibbard said, acknowledging the state program’s role in their expansion.
