Matt Hofmann to Lead the Whiskey Program at Washington Distiller Talking Cedar

Since Matt Hofmann’s departure last year from Seattle-based Westland Distillery—a pioneer American single malt maker that he co-founded in 2010—he’s quietly had new projects percolating. While he’s not quite ready to share everything just yet, one item has come to light: He’s now directing the whiskey program at Talking Cedar, the first tribal-owned U.S. distillery.

Talking Cedar opened its doors in Rochester, Washington, about an hour and a half south of Seattle, on Chehalis Tribal lands in 2020. A combination distillery, brewery, and restaurant, Talking Cedar boasts a 25-foot continuous still, the tallest on the West Coast (and west of the Mississippi for that matter), in addition to three pot stills. While the distillery has been operational from the start, it has focused primarily on gin, with a few a la carte whiskeys and cask-finished brandies available on a smaller scale. But that’s set to change with Hofmann in the driver’s seat.

Hofmann first became acquainted with Talking Cedar last year, not long after leaving Westland. He was in search of a place to contract distill a personal project (that’s as-of-now-unnamed and unreleased) when he learned of Talking Cedar and discovered its distilling ethos aligned well with his own. “Philosophically there wasn’t any big gap between us,” he says. “They work with farmers in the area, take advantage of local agriculture, and also have an amazing facility; I love working with them.” The “them” in question is a small distilling team that includes head distiller Ryan Myhre, along with members of the Chehalis Tribe.

Given that Talking Cedar has a variety of stills and equipment in its arsenal, there’s plenty of room for Hofmann to play. “I’m focused on looking at how we tie everything together into one big picture. I want to bring to the table what I know about the whiskey industry, where it’s headed, and what people are interested in,” he explains. “They have the ability to do single malts and pure pot still, as well as bourbon, rye, grain whiskeys, and blends, so there’s capacity for a ton of versatility.” The distillery has thus far dabbled in flavored expressions and, coincidentally, made a blended malt in partnership with Westland that debuted last year (Hofmann wasn’t involved in that one).

Considering his experience, Hofmann’s primary contribution to Talking Cedar initially will be pot still single malt, but he’s looking forward to exploring other styles more thoroughly while learning the ins and outs of column still distillation. Whiskeys made from Pacific Northwest grains—barley, wheat, and rye—will be at the fore, but as Talking Cedar comes of age, bourbon and other whiskeys may very well join the mix. That said, the whiskeys are still years away, with Hofmann anticipating a 2028 or 2029 release date for the first whiskeys made under his stewardship.