Claudia Peppenhorst
Staff Writer
It was a significant moment for the city of Troy as leaders of the Troy community and the state break ground on the new Clyde May’s distillery Monday.
The event featured speakers from Clyde May’s family and Gov. Kay Ivey, who said this distillery would be a visited spot for the state of Alabama.
“This distillery is going to be a tourist destination where a lot of people from in-state and around the country are going to come to see this facility, and that’s a good thing for Troy,” Ivey said. “People can come tour and maybe have a sip.”
Clyde May’s legacy dates back to 1946 when he was a moonshiner in Troy, Alabama.
L.C. May, a grandson of Clyde May, spoke at the ceremony and said this distillery not only means a lot for the state, but for his family as well as they bring Clyde’s legacy back home to Troy.
“It’s hard for me to put into words how much this means for our family,” May said.
“My grandfather worked so hard his entire life to make something special, and he had to do it in a way where he couldn’t brag about it as a moonshiner.
“We are just so honored that we are able to come home, right here in his backyard, to build this state-of-the-art distillery.”
Clyde May’s whiskey was named the official state spirit of Alabama in 2004 after the state legislature voiced that May represented what it was to be a true Alabamian.
“I believe it was done for many reasons,” May explained.
“They felt Clyde May embodied what it meant to be an Alabama citizen as a hard-working, blue-collared American and a World War II veteran.
“To have that designation, I think, says a lot about who my grandfather is and what this brand means to the state of Alabama.”
Phase one of construction will be the actual distillery, where the whiskey will be aged in barrels and bottled.
Phases two and three will follow soon after, which will begin the construction of the tourism side of the distillery.
The distillery will be located off Trojan Way on the north side of town, on the newly constructed road “Clyde May Way.”
