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Whiskey’s color isn’t all that different from copper.

With Butte slated to become the home of the largest distillery west of the Mississippi River, the Mining City might become as known for liquids as well as metals.

Headframe Spirits on Wednesday announced plans to acquire 20 acres in the historic Kelley Mine Yard on the Butte Hill and build a manufacturing plant capable of churning out a barrel of whiskey every seven minutes – products for its own brand and bulk buyers across the nation.

It could mean 50 jobs for Butte.

It will be the largest distillery in the United States built from the ground up since the 1940s, using Headframe’s proprietary continuous flow distillation technology, which the company manufactures and sells.

“What we really all want this project to be is an anchor for economic development in Butte,” said John McKee, who owns Headframe Spirits with his wife, Courtney. “This isn’t just a place for us to make hooch.”

The McKees spoke to the Council of Commissioners Wednesday night. They didn’t discuss how they plan to finance the venture.