Granite is a very hard, crystalline, igneous rock that is formed of volcanic materials. Minerals, gases, and liquids penetrate the stone and create new crystalline formations with various colors. Those colors can range from grey, black, brown, gold, white and beige to yellow, red, blue, green, lilac, and rose.
Granite’s uses include: countertops, floors, walls, sinks, soaking tubs, shower surrounds, and exterior building cladding, is available in a large number of colors, and is found throughout the world.
According to stonecontact.com, the primary suppliers of granite are China, Brazil, India, Italy, Ukraine, US, and dozens of other countries.
In the US, granite is quarried in 34 states from 276 quarries. The top producing states are Texas, Massachusetts, Indiana, Wisconsin, Georgia, Minnesota, North Carolina, Colorado, South Dakota, and Vermont. Each geographic area has a different type of stone, in Minnesota the Cold Spring Granite Company operates six quarries.
The varieties of granite quarried in Minnesota are Lake Superior Green (Isabella), Mesabi Black (Babbitt), Echo Lake (Orr), Iridian (Isle), Rockville (Rockville), Rainbow (Morton).
Most of the slabs we use come from the quarry, or a distributor, with a polished finish. When our clients prefer a different look, The finish options may vary somewhat depending upon the current finish on the slab. The finishes that are possible on granite surfaces are: Leathered, Caressed, Honed, and Antiqued.
Our in-house slab-finishing capability effectively expands our slab inventory from 700 to 2,800. With the largest onsite slab inventory in SW Montana there’s a pretty good chance we have the perfect slab for your project.