Our Story
Steam & Co. isn't just a distillery — it's a resurrection of Detroit's industrial soul.
Inspired by the forgotten stories of Corktown and the towering legacy of the nearby Michigan Central Station, our story begins not in the present, but in the furnace of the 1800s.
THe legend of walter steam
In 1806, U.S. Army Colonel Cornelius Steam welcomed a son: Walter Steam. Fascinated by machines, Walter worked on America’s first locomotives in the 1830s and '40s. After surviving a boiler explosion in 1850, Walter crafted a metal mask to hide his disfigurement — and forged a new identity.
He moved to Detroit in 1861, just blocks from where the grand Michigan Central Station would one day rise. There, Walter continued his family's distilling tradition, blending fire, steam, and spirit into something timeless.
The rediscovery
Walter’s name faded with time, his story buried — until two friends, during renovations in Corktown, uncovered a strange mask beneath old floorboards. That discovery became the spark behind Steam & Co. Distillery.
In the shadow of the historic station, Walter’s spirit returns — one pour at a time.
The train station legacy
The Michigan Central Station, built in 1913, once stood as one of the tallest train stations in the world. It now watches over Steam & Co., just a quarter-mile away.
Walter Steam’s dream of steam and steel lives on not only in architecture, but in every drink, every brick, every gear on our walls.