OUR 90 YEARS HISTORY
A Legend is Born
Lorine Sextro was born in Halbur, Iowa November 22, 1911. She married Frank Sextro in 1932. They made their home on Frank’s family farm between Templeton and Manning in Carroll County.
Iowa Votes on Prohibition
With pressure to criminalize the sale and consumption of alcohol rising, Iowa voters reject a state Prohibition referendum on October 15, 1917, by 50.1% to 49.9% allowing alcohol sales to continue.
18th Amendment Passes
The Federal government passes the 18th Amendment on October 28, 1919, banning all alcohol production and sales in the United States.
Prohibition Begins
A nationwide constitutional ban on the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages in the United States begins January 17, 1920.
The Legend Begins
As the Great Depression continues to have an effect on the economy, the Sextro family begins housing a bootlegger in the attic of their Carroll County family farm in January 1932.
Lorine Sextro Begins Distilling
With a family to support, Lorine Sextro learns from the bootlegger she’s housing and begins distilling her own small-batch 100 percent rye whiskey at her Carroll County farm in May 1932.
Feds Raid Farm
ContentDue to an error identifying the correct address, a neighboring farm was raided by Federal agents looking for illegal whiskey in May 1933. Barrels made at the Sextro farm are said to be buried in nearby fields in Carroll County. Their whereabouts are still a mystery today. The Sextro family was never caught.
18th Amendment Repealed
President Roosevelt ratifies the 21st Amendment on December 5, 1933, repealing the 18th Amendment in the process. It ends the unpopular nationwide prohibition of alcohol.
The Family Secret is Revealed
Lorine Sextro, now a grandma, shares her bootlegging past and passes on her secret rye recipe at aged 78 to a family friend. She refused to let her children know in case they got in trouble with the law.
The Legend Resurrected
Iowa Legendary Rye begins production using Grandma Sextro’s Prohibition-era recipe and distilling process. Rye is made in 26-gallon stills and aged in 15-gallon barrels. When Grandma Sextro was asked why she did it this way she responds, “Have you ever tried running from the law with a 40-gallon barrel?!”
First Bottle Sold Legally
The first bottle of Iowa Legendary Rye ever made legally is sold in December 2015.
Keeping it in the Family
Grandma Sextro’s grandson Heath Schneider joins Iowa Legendary Rye after learning about his family’s past in a news story.
Buried Treasure
The hunt for the Prohibition-era barrels of rye said to have been buried in a Carroll County field continues using specially trained sniffer dogs.
Present Day
The Legend Continues …