Prescribed Spirits’ A.J. Fazendin Distills Craft Gin in Fort Lauderdale

This article appeared in the Broward Palm Beach New Times. By David Minsky.

Photo of A.J. Fazendin with a batch of his new gin. — CMC Culinary Institute graduate and professional sous chef A.J. .Fazendin is pursuing his dream of becoming a small craft distiller. through with his dream of becoming a distiller. He recently finished his very first batch of Prescribed Spirits gin, slated for a bottle release later this year. Photo: A.J Fazendin.

It’s hard to find a craft cocktail with locally made gin in Broward County. It’s even harder for a small-time distiller to make it without boatloads of money. A.J. Fazendin is changing that.

By contracting with another distiller, Fazendin is able to follow through with his dream of becoming a distiller. He recently finished his very first batch of Prescribed Spirits gin. The 20-gallon batch crafted with his own faculties and labor will be part of his first bottle release slated sometime before the end of the year, Fazendin said.

Alcohol is not the only thing Fazendin crafts: He’s also a chef. Graduating from Colorado Mountain College Culinary Institute, 28-year-old Fazendin has been at it for nearly a decade. He’s originally from Dillon, Colorado, but traded the mountains for beaches and moved to Miami with his girlfriend some time ago. He now works as a sous chef at StripSteak by Michael Mina at the fancy Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach.

Fazendin learned how to distill by helping out at various distilleries. Without having a place to make his own gin — and lacking the hundreds of thousands of dollars to purchase a building and buy his own equipment — how does a self-starting distiller get by? Click for full article