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Hotel Tango Artisan Distillery, jointly founded by IU McKinney alumni Travis Barnes, Nabeela Virjee, Adam Willfond, and Brian Willsey, has won three awards at the 2015 New York International Spirits Competition. The distillery won a silver medal for its Romeo Rum, a bronze medal for their Golf Gin, and won Indiana Distillery of the Year. The event was held in October.

All four are 2013 graduates of IU McKinney, who started the business during their third year of law school. Hotel Tango is the first disabled combat veteran owned distillery in the state and in the nation. Barnes is the veteran, and the leader of the company.

Barnes was in his first semester of college in 2001. After the terrorist attacks on September 11, he left school and enlisted in the infantry of the United States Marine Corps, where he was selected out of recruit training for Marine Recon. Barnes served three combat tours in Iraq with the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion. His military service completed, Barnes completed his undergraduate studies at IUPU Fort Wayne. He finished in 2010 and entered law school the same year. In addition to friends and future business partners, Barnes also met his wife, Hilary, while in law school.

“We are all very proud to be IU McKinney grads, and could not have gotten Hotel Tango off the ground without the wonderful education you folks provided us,” Barnes said. “We are extremely proud and humbled to win these awards. It shows the world Hotel Tango is at the top tier of international spirits, and a brand that can coexist somewhere between local and global.”

While he may be a few years removed from law school, Barnes still remembers how challenging it could be at times. “I may not have gotten the best grade on the Secured Transactions final exam” Barnes said of Professor Max Huffman’s class, “but you gotta give me an A for practical application.”

Photo: Hotel Tango founders Adam Willfond, ‘13; Travis Barnes, ‘13; Hilary Barnes, ‘13; Nabeela Virjee, ‘13 and Brian Willsey with host David Plough, following their interview for the “Is It Legal?” podcast.