Most craft spirits come with a founding story about passion. This one comes with a punch list.
Before founding Tradesmen Distillery in Auburn, Washington, Kim Johnson spent more than 40 years working in architecture, engineering and construction. In that world, the work either holds up or it does not, and eventually everyone finds out which. In 2019 he founded Tradesmen Distillery in Auburn, Washington, and started applying the same standard to vodka.
Forty Years of Building
Born on Mercer Island, Washington, Kim developed an early interest in understanding how things worked. His father worked in the wholesale plumbing business and encouraged a practical, can-do approach to repairing and building things. By age five, Kim was already taking bicycles apart and putting them back together.
Kim followed his father into the wholesale supply business, stocking shelves on weekends while he was still young. After earning a degree in business management, he began a career in construction that would eventually span more than four decades. He moved his way up the ladder, eventually owning his own firm.
How Kim Johnson Discovered Distilling
Kim’s two careers first began to overlap when he worked on distillery design and renovation projects, including work at Wildwood Spirits Co. near Seattle. Seeing the production environment up close sparked his interest in distilling. His interest grew through a colleague who operated a distillery and began teaching Kim the fundamentals of the craft. The colleague not only taught Kim how to distill but eventually sold him the original equipment used to launch Tradesmen Distillery.
Building Tradesmen Distillery in Auburn
In 2017, Kim began navigating the licensing and permitting process and leased a 3,800-square-foot space in Auburn. Drawing on his construction background, he designed the production layout and helped build the distillery himself. He also installed the distillery’s piping himself, using stainless steel for the drains and copper lines to feed the equipment.
The First Major Order
Tradesmen’s first major test arrived almost immediately. Family members working in distribution helped secure an opening order for 3,600 bottles of vodka for 272 Safeway stores. To fill the order, Kim kept production running 24 hours a day for 30 consecutive days.
“I didn’t shy away from the24/7 challenge,” Kim said. “My wife was incredibly supportive. She even brought a mattress to the distillery so I could sleep between runs.”
Why Tradesmen Vodka Starts with Washington Apples
Washington is the nation’s leading apple-producing state and typically grows more than half of the apples produced in the United States. When Kim began developing Tradesmen Vodka, he knew its base ingredient should reflect Washington. Rather than beginning with a commodity grain spirit, he chose apples grown in the nation’s leading apple-producing state.
Apple fermentation behaves similarly to grain fermentation, but it demands more attention at every stage. Fermenting apples requires close control of yeast, nutrients and temperature. According to Kim, even small environmental changes can affect how the fruit ferments, so the team documents each batch and adjusts the process as conditions change. Kim believes the apple base gives Tradesmen Vodka a fruit-derived character that distinguishes it from vodka made with grain.
What Construction Taught Kim About Distilling
Construction and distilling may appear to be very different professions, but Kim sees the same disciplines at work in both: planning, sequencing, documentation, quality control and respect for small tolerances.
“Environment variables can change from day to day, with elements like rain, temperature, and barometric pressure affecting the distillation process. We monitor the variables we can control and adjust the process to maintain consistency from one batch to the next. I document everything I do so we can repeat the process as consistently as possible.”
The Tradesmen Standard
After more than 40 years spent designing and building projects for others, Kim now puts his standards into something that carries the Tradesmen name. Every bottle reflects the same principles that guided his construction career: plan carefully, document the work, inspect the result and do not release it until it meets the standard.
“We have a deep and abiding pride in what we do,” Kim said. “I personally inspect every distillation run for purity and quality.”
He also conducts a final inspection during bottling and labeling.
“We are not just making vodka,” he said. “We are making a distinctive product that people can share while building memories.”
Taste the result of Kim’s approach in Apple Crisp Vodka and Triple Distilled Vodka, both made from a Washington apple base. Explore the Tradesmen Distillery collection and order online.
