Meet Our Incredible Distillers
Brad Irwin
Owner
Oregon Spirit Distillers owner and head distiller started distilling because of his interest and curiosity for different variations of spirits and how they are made. He learned, to craft a well-made spirit you needed three things: good grain, good water, and passion. Luckily, he found all these things in his hometown of Bend, Oregon. As a bartender, Brad had a passion for different spirits and enjoyed sharing history and facts about them with his customers. As a distiller, he has used this passion to create fine spirits that are unique and exceptional in their class.
Brandy Pieper
Head Distiller
Brandy graduated from the University of Tennessee with a BS in Biology. After finishing school, she moved to Bend and joined the Oregon Spirit Distillers team within one week of moving to town. In the past, she has worked as a potter making handcrafted dinnerware and as a food microbiologist, a job she describes as weird and gross! In the winter, she snowboards and is trying to learn to ski. She also loves to thrift and collects two dollar bills! When working in the distillery, she is usually listening to Paul Simon or Gillian Welch. When she makes the time, she is a skilled potter on the wheel.
Favorite Oregon Spirit Distillers spirit: J. Becher American Rye Whiskey and enjoys it best neat, maybe with a splash of cool water.
Michael May
Production Distiller
Michael is a transplant from Ohio, where he earned a BS in Chemical Engineering before embarking on a career dedicated to Health, Safety and Environmental Engineering. He joined the Oregon Spirit Distillers team; laughingly declaring that he is now fulfilling his passion for fermentation. Leaving behind an epic journey in the environmental field - investigating and cleaning up toxic, hazardous and radioactive waste sites - he finally is able to relax and (remarkably) measure the product of his work … by Taste!
When he’s not making spirits, Michael loves to travel – exploring the desert landscapes, waterfalls, mountain trails and ocean vistas that have been preserved here in Oregon.
Oregon Spirit Distillers drink of choice: Irish Coffee (with Corpse Reviver # 2 a close second).