Maryland's first certified organic distillery is turning production waste into a retail product. McClintock Distilling Co. and Frederick-based Savage Soaps have collaborated on "FORAGER," a handmade cold-process soap that repurposes botanical byproducts from McClintock's gin production rather than sending them to the waste stream.
How the Collab Formed
The partnership grew out of a chance encounter at a local manufacturing event. Misti Morningstar, owner of Savage Soaps, met McClintock co-founder Braeden Bumpers at a Frederick Top 50 Manufacturers gathering, where Bumpers floated the idea of upcycling the gin's spent botanicals. Morningstar developed a complementary blend of essential oils — ginger, lavender, peppermint, rosemary, orange, and juniper — to work alongside the botanical mixture, producing a first small batch that she described as a success. The result is a product that carries a direct sensory connection to the spirit it grew from.
The Zero-Waste Business Case
For operators and beverage producers tracking sustainability metrics, the FORAGER project illustrates a straightforward upcycling model: botanical leftovers that would otherwise be composted or discarded become a co-branded retail SKU with tangible story value. McClintock, which already produces its spirits from scratch in-house and operates a cocktail bar adjacent to its production facility, frames community partnership and environmental stewardship as core operational pillars — not just marketing language. Bumpers noted that working with local farmers, communities, and businesses is central to the distillery's mission.
The soap itself is formulated as a natural, olive oil-based bar using non-toxic, cruelty-free ingredients — attributes that align with the growing consumer and trade preference for transparency in both food and personal care supply chains. Savage Soaps, which also produces salt scrubs, body butters, and facial serums, sources locally where possible and carries dermatologist-recommended positioning across its line.
Implications for the Broader Industry
Craft distillers and brewers generate significant quantities of botanical, grain, and fruit byproducts with each production run. Partnerships like this one point toward a practical channel for that material — not just as compost or animal feed, but as differentiated co-branded goods that extend a brand's retail footprint and sustainability narrative simultaneously. As beverage producers face growing pressure around circular economy practices, arrangements that monetize byproducts without major capital investment deserve attention from operators looking to reduce waste costs.
For the hospitality sector specifically, distillery-retail hybrids are increasingly common, with on-site shops and bar programs driving ancillary revenue. Adding a locally made, spirit-adjacent personal care product to a distillery gift shop shelf is a low-friction upsell that reinforces brand identity. Restaurant and hospitality operators sourcing locally made amenity or retail products may find similar cross-category collaborations with nearby food and beverage producers worth exploring.
FORAGER soap is available through both the McClintock Distilling Co. and Savage Soaps websites.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
