SAN ANTONIO - Azar Family Brands of spirits is putting a twist on the traditional vodka and gin.
Trey Azar grew up around the beverage industry.
"My dad and my grandfather were Coors beer distributors," Founder & Master Distiller, Azar Family Brands, Trey Azar said.
Azar said he always knew he wanted to create his own signature brands.
"I wasn't sure if it was beer or spirits and as I got older I really became more of a vodka drinker," Azar said.
Azar knew he wanted to do it differently than the traditional European style vodkas we know and love.
"We decided to make a vodka that used wheat," Azar said. "American wheat is hard to do because most vodka is made from corn in the U.S. So we came up with this recipe that was just fantastic."
Azar ended up naming it Cinco after his five kids. Their product, slowly distilled to perfection in what is known to be the largest hand hammered copper pot in Texas.
"Cinco has the benefit of a lot of the sweetness that most vodkas have in the front pallet, but the wheat keeps it from getting very hot on the finish," Azar said.
Distilling Cinco for about seven years now, the Azar family realized there was a new spirit regaining momentum, gin. Azar once again wanted to give it their own twist from the traditional European style.
This time, they threw in some of that southern charm.
"We decided we wanted to make our own style of gin and make it taste more citrusy and a more floral," Azar said. "It still has the Juniper so it gives it a great backbone and complexity, so the gin drinkers still love it."
After a year of tweaking their recipe, Seersucker, a first of its kind southern style gin, was born.
"I think it's a beautiful opportunity for people who have been drinking vodka for a long time and feel like they have been scared of gin to just try it,” Azar said.
Seersucker has only been out to the public for a year now but it has taken off. You can find it on the east coast and as far west as Colorado and Nevada.
"It really is the most incredible feeling to go out in the world to see something that you made and you created out at a restaurant or a bar,” Azar said.
All of Azar's creations are still made by hand on the far southeast side Bexar County.
"The reality is that some of the best vodka and gin made in the world is being made right here at this distillery in San Antonio," Azar said. "I think that that's pretty awesome."