The Distillery sits on Toledo’s west side along Heatherdowns Boulevard, occupying a converted industrial space that’s become the city’s craft spirits destination. Founded in 2014 by husband-and-wife team Steve and Amy Sabo, this operation started as a dream project when Steve left his engineering career to dive into distilling. The couple spent two years navigating Ohio’s complex liquor laws and converting their 8,000-square-foot facility into a working distillery and tasting room. What began as weekend experiments in their garage has evolved into Toledo’s premier craft spirits producer, specializing in bourbon, rye, and innovative grain-to-glass vodka. The Sabos didn’t take the traditional path here. Steve’s engineering background shows in their precise approach to fermentation and distillation, while Amy’s hospitality experience shaped their visitor-focused philosophy. They source corn from local Ohio farms within 100 miles and age their whiskey in 15, 30, and 53-gallon barrels to experiment with different maturation profiles. The distillery features custom copper stills from Vendome Copper & Brass Works, and they’re one of the few Ohio distilleries doing true grain-to-glass production on site. You’ll find a welcoming tasting room with exposed brick walls and industrial touches that reflect the building’s manufacturing past. The production area sits behind glass, so you can watch the process during tours. They’ve built a reputation for approachable spirits education and creative cocktails that showcase their base spirits. The atmosphere feels more like a neighborhood gathering spot than a sterile production facility, which was exactly what the Sabos intended when they designed the visitor experience.