A Break for Gin

          Sitting back in his chair at a busy coffee shop, tweed jacket open over khakis, Ryan Bailey seems like the epitome of the cool, hipster English teacher who you’d want to be your friend.  Neatly trimmed facial hair, a balding head, and an easy smile complete this look and make it easy for students to connect with him.  This moment, with his short Biggby latté, is one of the few he has to himself lately.

“I always say I wish I had more free time,” Ryan says with a rueful grin, “but I find whenever I have a free moment, I’m always doing something.”  On top of being a high school English teacher at Kalamazoo Central, Ryan coaches the girl’s tennis team, leads anti-racism workshops, and co-owns a small gin business. 

Ryan was always an avid home-brewer and wine maker, but he knew he eventually wanted to get involved with something more exciting.  One of his good friends, Nate Jonjevic, had come up with the idea to start a small, local distilling business and he invited Ryan to join in this endeavor.  This seemed like just the thing Ryan had been looking for, and he jumped at the opportunity with little hesitation. 

The two young home-brewers started their journey to becoming entrepreneurs by taking a few distilling classes at Michigan State University, learning how to make several types of liquor.  With the help of an artistic friend, Nate and Ryan came up with the name Two Birds Artisan Spirits to represent their new endeavor.  “The name is representative of us,” says Ryan “we’re doing a new venture, we have a lot of freedom, and birds fly, fly to new places.”  Their logo is two black birds pecking at their name, the jury is still out on which bird is which.  

After they had taken enough classes to feel comfortable, they wanted to start production of Greyling Gin, their first spirit, but they were taken aback by the several thousand dollar price tag associated with buying a still, let alone renting a space to house it and paying to run it.  Instead, Ryan and Nate decided to rent space from a large distilling company in Wisconsin where their distilling teacher from MSU had recently gone to work. 

“We wanted to build a brand first before investing in equipment,” explains Ryan.  However, this has caused some problems in marketing their gin as a “Michigan product,” which had been there original plan.  Their website often gets comments from interested consumers who are confused and concerned about this contradiction.  All the grains and botanicals used in Greyling Gin come from Michigan, but sometimes it’s hard to appeal to local customers on that alone.

Two Birds first gin is called Greyling Gin, a modern twist on classic gin, with the infusion of lavender and citrus.  The name came from the Greyling fish, which started going extinct right around the time of the prohibition, which also caused a decline in small-batch distilleries.  Two Birds considers itself a post-prohibition revival of small-batch distilleries and so the name and spirit of Greyling Gin really fit their brand. 

Ryan and Nate plan to eventually branch out and do other things, but not quite yet. “We really, really liked the way Greyling turned out, and we don’t want our sophomore album to be a flop.”  Greyling Gin was donated to a small fundraising event for Fair Food Matters in early 2013 and received rave reviews by the diners.  America’s gin review blog, The Gin is In, gave Greyling Gin 3.5/5 stars.

Ryan says there is hardly ever a conflict between his professional life as a high school English teacher and his other business, gin distilling.  “I never really talk about the gin business unless it comes up.  There will be those students who will Google you, but they’re just trying to find something to use against you.” 

Ryan grew up in Grand Rapids, but came to Kalamazoo to attend Western Michigan University to study English education.  He never intended to stay here permanently, but he and his wife got married right after college, found jobs in the area, and never left.  Now at 35, Ryan doesn’t regret the decision to stay, but he could see himself moving on if things with his small business change.  “For such a small city, there are a lot of things going on in Kalamazoo,” he says.  Ryan hasn’t grown tired of the city and both he and Nate are open to moving the distillery here when the time comes.

Their first year has been hard, although things are picking up now.  “We started distributing in October 2012, but everyone had already done their orders by that time so we didn’t start in earnest until a few months ago.”  Food Dance and Salud were two of the first places in Kalamazoo to take a chance on Two Birds, and gave them support in the form of business and advice.  The owner of Salud even got them involved with a sales force that now goes around Michigan and Missouri, pitching their gin to stores so they don’t have to do the legwork.  Places like Bacchus, Tiffany’s, and Hardings have also picked them up, and things are looking bright.  With a price tag of $20, Greyling is accessible to many people in Kalamazoo, which is important to the two owners.

“If this could be a full time thing that would be beyond my expectations, but I would be open to it.  We would love to see the business become sustainable and support full time work, because job creation is something Nate and I are invested in.”  For now, Ryan is fine with his busy life, finding each thing fulfills him in different ways.  “I think that teaching and the anti-racism workshops tap into my desire to do something transformative, not just individual, but systemic.  Having the gin business taps into my desire to be creative and make something.” 

Word Count: 991
Intended Publication: Kalamazoo Gazette

Process Writing - Final Piece

I definitely need to revamp my structure and focus in this piece.  I found it really hard to figure out a structure this time because I wasn't able to see Ryan in the context of his gin distillery...which is what I had planned to focus on.  When I interviewed Mel, my time spent with her just worked perfectly as the story structure and I think I tried to start off this piece like that, to no avail.  The beginning is pretty bad at the moment and I think before class on Wednesday I will try and do a Franklin outline to help a little bit.

I also had sort of a harder time interviewing Ryan than I did with Mel.  He didn't really give me anything beyond the questions I asked, so I ended up having to ask a bunch of little follow-up questions to get anywhere.  I have a few more interviews set up for later this week so hopefully those shed some light.  I just sort of need to figure out what conflict, if any, there is in this story and work to structure around that.  Any and all comments are welcome!  Thanks!

Final Piece Draft #1

            Teacher, coach, husband, leader, and small business owner, these are all words to describe Ryan Bailey.  Sitting in a coffee shop, Sherlock Holmes cap matching a tweed jacket, Ryan seems like the epitome of the cool English teacher who you want to be your friend.  Neatly trimmed facial hair, a balding head, and an easy smile complete this look.  Ryan has a rare free moment to enjoy a Biggby coffee in between his many duties. 

            “I always say I wish I had more free time,” Ryan says with a rueful grin, “but I find whenever I have a free moment, I’m always doing something.”  On top of being a high school English teacher at Kalamazoo Central, Ryan coaches the girl’s tennis team, leads anti-racism workshops, and co-owns a small gin business. 

            Ryan grew up in Grand Rapids, but came to Kalamazoo to attend Western Michigan University to study English education.  He never intended to stay here permanently, but he and his wife got married right after college, found jobs in the area, and never left.  Now at 35, Ryan doesn’t regret the decision to stay, but he could see himself moving on if things with his small business change.  “For such a small city, there are a lot of things going on in Kalamazoo,” he says, he hasn’t grown tired of the city just yet.

He describes many of his major life changes as just happening outside of his control, and he jumped on and said yes to them.  When the girl’s tennis coach retired, Ryan had no intention of asking for the position, he didn’t want to be “one of those teachers who gets the job just to coach a sport.”  However, one of his students knew he had played tennis, asked him to coach them so they could have a team, and he accepted.  Now, Ryan is very happy he made that choice.  “It’s really great to see the kids outside of the context of school.”

Ryan also tells the story of how he became a part of the gin business as if it were just a happy accident.  Ryan was always an avid home-brewer and wine maker, but he wanted to get involved with something more exciting.  One of his good friends, Nate Jonjevic, had come up with the idea to start a small, local distilling business and he invited Ryan to join in this endeavor.  This seemed like just the thing Ryan had been looking for, and he jumped at the opportunity. 

Two Birds Artisan Spirits was born when the two entrepeuners started their journey by taking a few distilling classes at Michigan State University, learning how to make several types of liquor.  “The name is representative of us,” says Ryan “we’re doing a new venture, we have a lot of freedom, and birds fly, fly to new places.”  Their logo is two black birds pecking at their name, the jury is still out on which bird is which. 

The decision to make gin as their first product “We like gin – so there’s something.  Mostly though, gin doesn’t require aging, which means an immediate return on our investment.”  Two Birds first gin is called Greyling Gin, with “secret ingredients” of two types of citrus and lavender.  The name came from the Greyling fish, which started going extinct right around the time of the prohibition, which also caused a decline in small-batch distilleries.  Two Birds considers itself a post-prohibiton revival of these small-batch distilleries and so the name fit.  Ryan and Nate plan to eventually branch out and do other things, but not quite yet. “We really, really liked the way Grayling turned out, and we don’t want our sophomore album to be a flop.”

After they had taken enough classes to feel comfortable, they wanted to start production of Greyling Gin, but they were taken aback by the giant price tag associated with buying a still.  Instead, Ryan and Nate decided to rent space from a large distilling company in Wisconsin.  “We wanted to build a brand first before investing in equipment,” explains Ryan.  However, this caused some problems in marketing their gin as a “Michigan product,” which had been there original plan.  All the grains and botanicals used in Greyling Gin come from Michigan, but sometimes it’s hard to appeal to local customers on that alone. 

Their first year has been hard, although things are picking up now.  “We started distributing in October 2012, but everyone had already done their orders by that time so we didn’t start in earnest until a few months ago.”  Food Dance and Salud were two of the first places in Kalamazoo to take a chance on Two Birds, and gave them support in the form of business and advice.  The owner of Salud even got them involved with a sales force that now goes around Michigan and Missouri, pitching their gin to stores so they don’t have to do the legwork.  Places like Bacchus, Tiffany’s, and Hardings have also picked them up, and things are looking bright.

“If this could be a full time thing that would be beyond my expectations, but I would be open to it.  We would love to see the business become sustainable and support full time work, because job creation is something Nate and I are invested in.”  For now, Ryan is fine with his busy life, finding each thing fulfills him in different ways.  “I think that teaching and the anti-racism workshops tap into my desire to do something transformative, not just individual, but systemic.  Having the gin business taps into my desire to be creative and make something.” 

Reading Response Week 9: Jon Ronson

Jon Ronson is probably one of my favorite writers of all time.  Ronson writes mostly profiles on people from Stanley Kubrik (post-mortem) to a man who thought he was a superhero.  My favorite part about his writing style is that he is able to write from his point of view in a way that it makes it easier to connect with the person he is profiling.  I think he is a real master at creating character in a very short amount of time and I appreciate that he is very open about his anxieties while reporting!  Ronson ends up in a lot of very dangerous situations, with a drug dealer for example, because when he does his reporting he goes all in, which is very inspiring.

This is a piece about Rebecca Coriam, a girl who "got lost" while on a Disney Cruise in 2011.  It's a bit lengthy so don't feel like you have to read all of it.  If you do like his work, check out "The Psychopath Test" and/or "Lost at Sea" for more.  I'd love to hear your thoughts on his use of the I character.  Do you think it works or is it distracting?  Hope you enjoy!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/nov/11/rebecca-coriam-lost-at-sea

Dreams and Pickles - Final Draft

Sunglasses on and golden-brown hair flying, Melody Daacon – Mel - cruises along the streets of Kalamazoo, MI in a large green van.  Wind whips through the interior, almost drowning out the sound of the old tape playing in the tape deck.  Making a sudden turn, Mel pulls into the parking lot of Bacchus Wine and Spirits, fidgeting with her glasses, hair, and notebook.  She is nervous for the cold call she is about to make to the store’s owner in the hopes of convincing him to stock her pickles, Veggie Bites. 

 “I’m always nervous for the first minute or so and then everything is fine,” she says of making cold calls, “sometimes if I’m by myself, I’ll just drive away.”  This time, however, she goes in, introduces herself and asks for the owner.  He’s not there but she gets a business card and leaves a few samples for him to try.  The new owner is interested in local products, according to the ladies at the register, so Mel is hopeful she’ll get a call back.

Mel has been working with the small business, Veggie Bites, since shortly after she returned to Kalamazoo two years ago.  A family friend, Ron, owns the business, but Mel does most of the day-to-day work; including marketing, going to farmers markets, and pickling vegetables.  Mel usually pickles alone in a small room full of counters and several sinks.  All of the vegetables are delivered from Russell Farms in Parchment; Veggie Bites is a local, Kalamazoo product and proudly markets itself as such.  Bell’s Eccentric Café goes through six large buckets of Veggie Bites each week, pairing them with each of their sandwiches.  Bronson Hospital also carries them in their cafeteria.  Ron has been asking Mel to take over the business from him fully so he can move on, but she is hesitating.  She isn’t sure if she’s ready for such a time commitment yet, or even if she’s ready to settle down. 

Mel grew up in Parchment, a small town just outside of Kalamazoo.  When she graduated high school she wanted to leave Kalamazoo as quickly as possible, attending Central Michigan University for a bachelors in health administration.  There she met someone, the two started dating and were married soon after.  Mel often drops this fact casually, with an “I was married once” and then moves on with the conversation.  The two graduated and moved on to pursue higher degrees at Saint Louis University and eventually settled down in New Jersey.

After graduate school, Mel found a job working in New York City for the Health Department while her husband worked as a lawyer for a firm.  Her experience at the Health Department was stressful and degrading.  Every day she had to convince doctors to give them patients using all sorts of tactics, this is not what Mel had imagined when she said she wanted to go into health administration.  As Mel gradually understood that this was not her dream job, she also began to realize that she and her husband were different people than they had been when they had met back in Kalamazoo. The relationship wasn’t working any more and Mel decided that it was time to move on.

The marriage ended and Mel realized that she had nowhere to go except to the place that she had so readily left 10 years before.  She said coming back felt like, “being hugged by Kalamazoo,” it felt right.  Two years later and now thirty, Mel is taking the chance to have more freedom.  “I feel like I’m in a semi-transitional period…but it’s okay,” she says with a rueful smile.  Setting her own schedule is something she was never able to do at the Health Administration and the change is freeing. 

After the meeting, Mel hops back into her van, breathing more easily now that the suspense is over.  She answers a phone call from someone asking about what grants the Kalamazoo River Valley Trail has applied for this year.  In addition to her pickling work, Mel works part time for the Kalamazoo River Valley Trail writing grants and doing social media.  She also does some bookkeeping for a local patent lawyer.  Mel is a very active volunteer at the Kalamazoo Food Co-op and sits on the board of Fair Food Matters, a local non-profit focused on food sustainability and accessibility.  “This is the kind of town where you can do that,” Mel says, “that” being the ability to be involved in so many things and being very connected to the community.

Although Mel seems to be loving life, there are outside pressures that worry her.  “I think that there are expectations, maybe they aren’t spoken as loudly now, but they’re there.  My mom sort of mentions kids, or just being safe, having a base for whatever you want to do.  She never said ‘do this, do that’ but it’d be nice for you to have health insurance.”  Mel considers that maybe this desire for a free lifestyle comes from her decision to settle down so early in life and trying to regain her younger twenties.  “I think I’m trying to do both, I’m trying to be free and do what I want to do…and then also think about the future, in any relationship, and in being almost thirty this year.  Family, do you want to start a family?  Is it in the future?  Well if it is then you have to have some sort of foundation before you build on that.”

Two weeks later and she still hasn’t heard from Bacchus, but sitting outside of Black Owl café, drinking an iced Sweet Matcha tea, she seems more concerned with her big life decisions than small losses.  She’s made big decisions before, leaving her husband and moving back to Kalamazoo, but deciding whether or not to take on a new business or keep on in her mobile lifestyle makes Mel nervous.  One thing does bring her comfort, considering a different outlook.  “There are expectations from my friends, and that is just to be happy.  I think I could be happy doing anything, and I just need to realize that.”  

Intended Publication: Kalamazoo Gazette
Word Count: 1024

The Events of October response (Week 8)

The whole time I was reading this book I was in awe of how much reporting Gail Griffin did in order to complete this book.  There was never a time when I felt there was a lack of anecdote or quotes, there were always many different sides of the story being told.  In a way, this piece was similar to the profile done on Frank Sinatra by Gay Talese, in that the main characters of the story aren't interviewed at all, yet we get a good picture of their relationship.  I'd like to one day try a profile where I don't interview the person it is about at all and just talk to people in Kalamazoo who know them, I think that could be a really interesting experiment.

I found so many aspects of this book worth talking about, but I wanted to focus in on Gail's choice to include herself in the story.  I felt that this was definitely one of those times where using the "I" character worked to the book's advantage and I felt that she really committed to going that route.  In a story like this that's so emotional and has the potential for bias, it was definitely good for her to be up front.  I think that if she had been some outsider the book would have read much differently and she may not have gotten her subjects to say as much about their experiences.  I did have one thought as I was reading the book though and I was wondering if any of you were thinking the same:  If we are to consider this as a narrative journalism piece, did Gail have uncontaminated access to the story?  I'm sure that Kalamazoo College wouldn't have fired her over the book, but she definitely had quite a few of the connections to subjects and to the story that we were warned against.  Just wanted to hear your thoughts!

Final Story Pitch

I am thinking for my final piece I will try and go back to my original profile idea that fell through because my subject fell ill and couldn't meet with me in time.  He has already expressed an interest in letting me profile him so hopefully he will have some time in the next few weeks for me.

As a reminder, my first idea was to profile a man named Ryan Bailey, a teacher at Kalamazoo Central and also the co-owner of a small gin distillery.  He is also apparently the tennis coach for Kalamazoo Central and leads anti-racism workshops.  There's definitely a lot to go into here, I kind of want to get to the root of what his true passion and desire is amidst all this randomness.  Hopefully it works out this time!  What do you all think?