FOUNDER + MASTER DISTILLER + BRICOLEUR

Gate 11 Distillery is the brainchild and distilled spirits playground of distilling visionary Bill Lee. It is a unique small batch distillery intentionally built to create and share many wonderful new tastes and flavors.

Equal parts entrepreneur and mad scientist, this Sequatchie Valley native, grew up around Chattanooga during his formative years. Bill built a successful career as research chemical engineer for two different Fortune 500 food companies. before becoming a pioneering and innovative leader in the US biofuels and bioenergy industries.

Along the way he developed a side gig that has now morphed into a full-time passion – Craft Spirits. Bill developed the spirits that became Shakers and Prairie Organic Vodka during his Minnesota biofuels days. Since returning home in 2009, he has helped good friend Scott Bush design and build the Foundry craft whiskey distillery in Des Moines and has supported whiskey production at Sugarlands, Old Forge and other Tennessee distillers with consulting and gas chromatography testing.

Bill leads product development at Gate 11 as the team continues to explore and develop new distilled spirits products and present them in exciting ways at the cocktail bar.

DISTILLER + BUSINESS MANAGER

Wanda left the peaceful life of a retired schoolteacher to join husband Bill in developing Gate 11 Distillery and her contributions to the company have been profound.

First and foremost is her role as botanical formulator and distiller of Gate 11 Dry Gin. This highly awarded spirit has become our flagship product and its success is a direct result of her keen insights and fine palate. Wanda also distills our Absinthe spirits and assists with whiskey and agave distillations.

Wanda continues to play a major role in new product development at Gate 11. She was the driving force behind our ventures into Absinthe and Agave spirits challenging and pushing partner Bill to undertake what turned out to be significant investments in time and resource. Importantly, her fine-tuned taste buds continue to help us differentiate between new product alternatives.

In addition to distilling duties, Wanda manages the business side of Gate 11 and is responsible for cocktail bar and retail operations. Her background in education and theatre has prepared her well for fronting retail and bar operations.

CREATIVE DIRECTOR + BRAND STRATEGY

For Tavis Salazar, a Senior Brand Executive and Creative Director now boasting over 30 years of experience in his field, the impulse for artistic expression has always been undeniable.

Early on, Tavis found himself compelled to create—he played guitar in garage bands, jotted poems on napkins, and discovered a knack for cooking. He's now a vinyl-addicted music lover, prolific show-goer, cocktail/cuisine aficionado, minority owner of Gate 11 Distillery, and passionate all-around patron of the arts.

Tavis's creative capacity has inspired a lifelong professional pursuit of helping businesses express themselves, cultivating better relationships with their audiences and driving returns through comprehensive brand development.

His natural talent has earned him opportunities to work on brands such as Bigelow Teas, Crabtree & Evelyn, Dillard’s, Macy’s, Bacardi, Guatemalan Tourism Board, Lynskey Performance, Kevin Murphy, Malin + Goetz, Hirshleifers, Dee Ocleppo, and L’Oreal.