Lifted Spirits Distillery

What Lifted Spirits Distillery does

Lifted Spirits Distillery, operating as Lifted Spirits Distillation, LLC, is a Kansas City craft distillery founded in 2016 by Michael Stuckey. The company produces handcrafted small-batch spirits including flagship gins (Bright Gin, Bold Gin, Supernova Navy Strength Gin), vodkas (Brilliant, Jalapeño & Herb Infused), Madeira cask-finished rye whiskey, and Absinthe Verte, the first absinthe distilled in Kansas City. Production runs on copper pot stills using combined vapor and traditional distillation with proprietary multi-botanical recipes (17 botanicals for Bold Gin, 11 for Supernova) and is supplemented by a cask-finishing program drawing on Madeira, absinthe, and Missouri white oak barrels; limited release Barrel Reserve expressions incorporate local inputs such as hand-processed pawpaw fruit and a 7-year collaboration brandy with KC Wineworks.

The commercial model is integrated direct-to-consumer and anchored at the distillery's single site at 1734 Cherry St. in Kansas City's East Crossroads Craft Beverage District. Revenue streams include on-site and local-pickup retail bottle sales (Toasttab), tasting room cocktail service with happy hour programming, guided distillery tours (2–20 guests, via AnyRoad), The Hayloft event venue (175-person capacity, weddings and corporate clients), custom cocktail catering, and a Spirits Club membership with free and paid tiers. Spirits are distributed strictly within the KC metro; no wholesale, e-commerce shipping, or out-of-state retail channel is referenced. Pricing spans $19.99–$54.99 for flagship 750ml bottles and up to $79.99 for limited releases like the Triple Cask Finished Rye; cocktails price at $8–$20.

The company is founder-owned with no institutional capital, parent company, or disclosed headcount; Michael Stuckey serves as Founder and CEO. Awards—including NYISC 2022 Missouri Gin Distillery of the Year, Double Gold (Supernova) and Gold (Bold), and Wine Enthusiast's Top 100 Spirits of 2021 (Bold Gin, 93 points)—provide the primary third-party validation of product quality. Operating geographies are limited to the Kansas City Metro with no expansion signals beyond that footprint.

Name

Lifted Spirits Distillery

Legal name

Lifted Spirits Distillation, LLC

Website

https://liftedspiritskc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Lifted Spirits Distillery is a Kansas City craft distillery producing award-winning small-batch gins, vodka, rye whiskey, and absinthe. The company operates a tasting room, distillery tours, and The Hayloft event venue at its Crossroads Arts District headquarters, selling directly to local consumers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Craft Distilled Spirits

NAICS

Distilleries (31214), Distilleries (312140), Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (7224)

SIC

Beverages (2080)

akta.pro primary industry

Distilled Spirits Production & Distilling (AFAFAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Spirits Distilling & Brands (CRADAIAC), Distilleries (Tasting Rooms) (THAFALAG), Spirits/Cocktail Bars Operated by Producers (THAFALAJ), Spirits Distillery Tours & Tastings (Whiskey, Rum, Gin, Vodka) (THAJAGAF)

Keywords

• Craft distillery
• Small batch spirits
• Gin whiskey vodka
• Distillery tasting room
• Event venue rental

Headquarters

HQ city

Kansas City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Spirits Retail — Bottle Sales: Direct retail sales of bottled spirits (gin, vodka, whiskey, absinthe) through the tasting room and local Kansas City pickup via online ordering platform (Toasttab). One-time purchase model per bottle.
2. Tasting Room — On-Premise Consumption: Cocktail sales at the tasting room. Classic cocktails priced at $12-15, signature cocktails at $15, highballs at $9, with happy hour specials (5-7pm). Also includes spirit tastings during distillery tours.
3. Event Space Rental & Catering: The Hayloft event venue (175-person capacity) hosts weddings, corporate events, and private parties with custom cocktail catering. Venue rental and custom cocktail service as additional-cost add-ons.
4. Spirits Club Membership: Paid membership program (Spirits Club) offering perks and exclusive access to elevate the customer experience and drive recurring revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Lifted Spirits Distillery is a Kansas City craft distillery that produces handcrafted small-batch spirits including flagship gins (Bright, Bold, Supernova Navy Strength), vodka (Brilliant, Jalapeño & Herb), Madeira Cask Finished Rye Whiskey, and the first absinthe distilled in Kansas City. Beyond spirits production, the company operates a tasting room serving classic and signature cocktails, offers guided distillery tours with tastings, and runs The Hayloft, a 175-guest event venue for weddings, corporate events, and private parties.

Product overview

Lifted Spirits Distillery is a Kansas City craft distillery producing handcrafted spirits including flagship gins (Bright Gin, Bold Gin, Supernova Navy Strength Gin), vodka (Brilliant Vodka, Jalapeno & Herb Infused Vodka), whiskey (Madeira Cask Finished Rye Whiskey), and Absinthe Verte. The product portfolio includes limited release spirits (Barrel Reserve Pawpaw Gin, Barrel Reserve Brandy, Triple Cask Finished Rye) and gift sets (Gin Sampler Box). The distillery also operates a Tasting Room for cocktails and hospitality experiences, offers distillery tours, and provides The Hayloft event venue for weddings and corporate events. All spirits are crafted with carefully curated botanical ingredients and distillation techniques.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bright Gin

Quantifiable outcome

• Double Gold Medal — one of only 7 Double Gold medalists in the gin category at NYISC 2022 (from 1,400+ submissions across 39 countries)
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Veterans Community Project (VCP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLifted Spirits runs the annual Going Bold for the Brave campaign in November, donating a portion of Bold Gin proceeds to Veterans Community Project. VCP provides housing, wraparound support, and services to Veterans experiencing homelessness in Kansas City. Lifted hosts a Bold Bash patio party event to raise awareness. The partnership aligns brand values with community impact and drives sales during the campaign period.
• KC WineworksminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLifted Spirits collaborated with KC Wineworks to create Barrel Reserve Brandy, using Traminette wine from KC Wineworks as the base for distillation. The brandy was aged 7 years in Missouri white oak barrels. This collaboration reflects Lifted's focus on local Kansas City sourcing and community partnerships.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Corsair Distillery: Tennessee craft distillery producing gin, whiskey, vodka, and experimental spirits with a tasting room. Comparable in experimental cask finishes, novel botanical approaches, and tasting room revenue model.
• Green Hat Gin: Washington DC-based craft gin distillery with a tasting room and experiential focus. Comparable in gin-centric portfolio strategy, small-batch production, and DTC event-driven model.
• J. Rieger & Co. Kansas City-based craft distillery founded in 2014 in the same East Crossroads area. Operates a tasting room, event venue, and produces gin, vodka, whiskey, and coffee liqueur — the most direct geographic and operational peer to Lifted Spirits.
• Tuthilltown Spirits: New York craft distillery producing gin, vodka, and whiskey with farm-distillery tasting room. Comparable in small-batch production, cask aging programs, and venue-driven experiential business model.
• St. George Spirits: California craft distillery known for botanical-forward gin, vodka, absinthe, and limited releases. Comparable in absinthe production, multi-botanical gin innovation, and tasting room experience model.
• Smooth Ambler Spirits: West Virginia craft distillery producing gin, vodka, and award-winning whiskey with a tasting room. Comparable in craft spirits portfolio breadth, award-winning positioning, and small-batch DTC approach.
• Tom's Town Distilling Co. Kansas City craft distillery producing gin, vodka, and whiskey with a tasting room and cocktail bar in the Crossroads district. Directly comparable in product mix, venue operations, and DTC-only distribution model.

Broad incumbents

• Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey: Premium American whiskey brand with broad national distribution. Comparable in cask-finishing innovation and craft-to-scaled brand trajectory, though operating at much greater scale than Lifted Spirits.

Regional players

• Catoctin Creek Distilling: Virginia craft distillery producing rye whiskey and gin with a tasting room. Comparable in rye whiskey focus, small-batch craft approach, and DTC tasting room operations, though serving Mid-Atlantic rather than Midwest markets.
• Blaum Bros. Distilling Co. Illinois-based craft distillery producing gin, vodka, and whiskey with a tasting room. Comparable in small-batch craft spirits production and regional DTC model, though serving a different geographic market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/liftedspiritskc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lifted-spirits-distillery

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lifted Spirits Distillery