College research, family support helping potato vodka distillers realize dream

By Traci Storti Wilde
Special to the Pioneer Times
    Historically Houlton has been known for a lack of support for the sales of liquor. It may be unusual, then, to think of a vodka company as having similar high ethical standards. Potato vodka, however, is the product of a second business venture at the new AKTEM Business Park, the former site of Houlton International.
Contributed photo
    PACKAGING DECISIONS — Northern Maine Distilling Company owners Scott and Jessica (Jewell) Galbiati hope to soon produce potato vodka from their location in the AKTEM Busines Park, formerly Houlton International Corp. Scott and a group  of college peers wrote a detailed business plan about distilling potatoes for vodka. Now he and Jessica, both engineers, plan to put theory and research into real world practice with a Houlton distillery.
    A conversation with Northern Maine Distilling Company owners Scott and Jessica (Jewell) Galbiati makes it clear that a connection to the area, family values and social responsibility are tantamount to their desire to succeed financially: for them, success is not measured by money alone.
    Currently, parts of the distilling machine leave a less than formidable impression as they sit in pieces on the office floor. The Galbiatis have decided to downgrade from the Cadillac of their dreams to just a seat and four wheels born of sheer ingenuity.
    Scott Galbiati, an engineer like his wife, explained that the original idea came from a project during their senior year of college. He and a group of peers wrote a detailed business plan about distilling potatoes for vodka. While the other group members were interested in the class grade, Scott and Jessica managed to see the potential hidden in the risk.
    “That [collaboration],” he claims, “gave us something. We were able to put our arms around the project, if you will, and see that it’s pretty doable.”
    The dream would have remained just that if it had not been for the support of both sides of the couple’s family. On separate but decidedly coincidental occasions, a family member approached the couple to spur them into action. Scott took the support as a sign, but anyone in business knows that the wheels of progress do not run on good will alone. Their families have also demonstrated financial support.
    For the Galbiatis, money is not just borrowing from family: this is a verified corporation who has been willing to navigate the excess of governmental red tape that comes with a serious business venture. Family members have purchased shares in this new corporation.
    The Galbiatis have no intention of taking without just reciprocation. In addition to shareholder profits, the initial plan is to bring jobs — directly and indirectly — to the greater Houlton area. Scott explains, “Jessica has always talked about being her own boss, running her own business, doing something for herself, and coming back to the County, but bringing something with her.
    That something is the opportunity to give back to the area. The company hopes to employee Scott, Jessica and at least another full-time employee, but numbers are still preliminary and are based on production needs. In a related connection, the couple will be using Buzzy Jewell, Jessica’s father, as their potato broker, a fact that Scott calls “an attractive component of the project.”
    Family support, however, cannot overshadow the Galbiatis’ own dedication to the project. This project has turned in to a four-year love affair, a relationship requiring sublime dedication and commitment.
    It takes only a brief time talking to Scott to understand the depth of his new found knowledge. He fluently connects facts about the distilling industry — all the way back to ancient Egyptian roots — with details of federal and state regulations, fusing even the roots of both in America’s 1930s era Prohibition.
    According to Galbiati, many U.S. based potato vodka companies are all working from the same base product. The Galbiati product will be unique, being created from scratch with local materials.
    The attraction to this business may have first come from a school project, but the continued interest is maintained by an industry that echoes similar core values: social responsibility.
    “Social responsibility is huge. It is a movement by the industry,” explains Galbiati. “The theory is let us address it now before it is regulated. It is important and key, and I don’t think you’ll find anybody who thinks it’s a waste of time or money. Drinking alcohol responsibly is the way it should be done.”
    The Galbiatis are members of DISCUS, the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S. Some movements include concepts like strong enforcement of identification standards and self-review of advertising, making sure commercials are appropriate and in line with the industry standards of responsibility.
    Despite all of this planning and support, the Galbiatis have faced some setbacks and disappointments. The biggest disappointment was not being able to locate the business in Monticello, the true roots of the Jewell family. “I tried my best to be in Monticello, and I just couldn’t make it work,” Scott Giabalti said.
    That problem, however, is what has given Twenty2 Vodka the home it has today. With owner knowledge and making connections with the right people, Scott and Jessica are implementing their plans at approximately 27 percent of the original cost.
    Business park owner Chad Walton was quick to support the Galbiati efforts.
    Walton asserts, “I believe they are really onto something here. This is an opportunity that if they stay at it, and put 150 percent into it with never looking back, they will have a very nice and profitable business.”
    Galbiati looks to tap into his shareholder’s business knowledge and other local resources. He credits the Northern Maine Development Corporation and the Southern Aroostook Development Corporation for making Houlton such an attractive location for business.
    The couple is projecting April 2009 as date for true inception and product launch. Further information about Northern Maine Distilling Company may be found at www.twenty2vodka.com.