Medium & Craft Distillery Founders
Southern U. S. States
(NOTE: FOUNDERS ARE LISTED IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER)
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Name
THIS FOUNDERS HISTORY WILL BE PUBLISHED SOON
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Scott Blackwell
High Wire Distillery
In 2013, Scott co-founded High Wire Distilling in downtown Charleston, South Carolina. The distillery was designed to celebrate the flavor that comes from raw ingredients: heritage grains, local farms, and regenerative practices. He began to investigate the usage of a near-extinct heirloom variety known as Jimmy Red corn.
1
Matthew Allen
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2
Graham Arthur
13th Colony Distillery
Graham didn’t always dream of making whiskey. Growing up, he was more interested in science and the outdoors. But one summer during college, he took a trip to Kentucky and toured a few distilleries. The scent of aging barrels, the bubbling of the mash, and the smooth taste of bourbon sparked something in him.
5
Amy Brown
Doc Brown Farm & Distillers
Doc Brown Farm & Distillers isn’t just a place where grain becomes bourbon; it’s a family story folded into 120 acres of Georgia soil, and at the center of that story is Amy Brown. A corporate warrior turned “bourbon farmer,” Amy’s path from mortgage investment banking to seed-to-glass distilling reads like a modern American reinvention
4
Trey Boggs
THIS FOUNDERS HISTORY WILL BE PUBLISHED SOON
6
Jim Chasteen
A.S.W. Distillery
As friends and University of Georgia roommates, Jim Chasteen and Charlie Thompson developed a passion for whiskey and conceived the idea of starting their own operation. A "craft startup", they produced their first brand, American Spirit Whiskey. After building their reputation and raising capital, in 2016, they opened the distillery in Atlanta's Amour Yard district.
7
David Cohen
Manifest Distilling
Cohen’s approach is practical and meticulous. He has spoken at length about learning the mechanics of distillation in Kentucky, then translating that discipline to Florida’s climate and consumer tastes. That means paying attention to fermentation parameters and raw ingredient selection, but also to logistics.
8
Austin Creel
Sweet Home Spirits
It started with a song. Or rather, with how a song followed him across the ocean. In 2017, Creel was traveling in Spain. A simple question: “Where are you from?” kept sparking an unexpected reaction. Whenever he said, “Alabama,” the response was almost magical—broad smiles, laughter, the unmistakable guitar lick of “Sweet Home Alabama”…
9
Clinton Dugan
Shortbarrel Distillery
Clinton is a storyteller who listens to whiskey, an impatient marketer who learned to wait for barrels, a husband and father who still posts the odd candid to Instagram, and the legacy distillery he kept alive for a city that loved it. The outcome is some of the South’s best craft whiskey.
10
Jeff Dugas
Dread River Distillery
In the spring of 2017, Jeff Dugas and John Cubelic formally began planning a new craft whiskey distillery under the name Dread River Distilling Company. The name “Dread River” reflects a combination of myth, metaphor, and place, inspired by the legend of a subterranean waterway flowing beneath the city of Birmingham, Alabama.
11
Austin Evans
Cathead Distillery
In 2008, the seed of Cathead Distillery took root when, at the Sunflower Blues Festival in Clarksdale, MS, Austin Evans and his future co-founder Richard Patrick sat among fans and players and began to imagine a brand that would honor Mississippi’s blues tradition as readily as it would make vodka and whiskey.
12
Ronny Folino
Oceanside Distillery
Ronny and his older brother, Lorenzo, grew up steeped in the quiet mechanics of distilling. Their grandfather, a skilled metalworker, fashioned makeshift stills and produced grappa as a hobby. That heritage stayed with Ronny even as his life took several practical turns: studies in engineering at the University of Central Florida, followed by architectural training in Italy.
13
J. Jeffrey Irons
Irons ONE Distillery
Jeff Irons emphasizes small batches and quality ingredients. Using locally sourced grains and natural resources allows this distillery to create truly remarkable spirits. His motto is “From my hands to yours” and it is printed on the label of every bottle he sells. It is not just a motto but a sentiment that drives him and the company to create the best whiskey they can.
14
Jim Irvin
Firefly Distillery
Jim Irvin didn’t just want to create any whiskey; he wanted to craft something uniquely Lowcountry, a spirit that spoke to the region’s heat, humidity, and the slow maturation that comes with coastal aging. He understood that the transition to great whiskey involved a profound understanding of the climate’s impact on the final product.
15
Clyde May
Conecuh Ridge Distillery
Clyde May made illegal moonshine for more than 40 years but was only arrested once, in 1973. May then served an eight-month stint incarcerated at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama. Upon his release, he set his stills back up and continued his moonshine operation, producing 300 gallons a week.
16
Philip McDaniel
St. Augustine Distillery
McDaniel currently serves as co-founder and CEO of the St. Augustine Distillery. He has worked diligently to push for updated legislation that would ease the restrictive liquor laws in the state of Florida. When the St. Augustine Distillery first opened, they could not sell bottles directly to consumers, nor could they sell their products by the glass. Fortunately, changes have been made that have recently eased restrictions.
17
Scott Neil
Horse Soldier Bourbon
Neil had a successful career serving in the United States Army Special Forces, including deployments to some of the most challenging environments in the world. He was on one of the first teams inserted in Afghanistan after 9/11.
Neal’s vision came to life in 2015 when he and his good friends John and Elizabeth, together, founded American Freedom Distillery.
18
John Sharp
John Emerald Distilling
Their flagship single-malt whiskey is made from 100% malted barley, aged in 15-gallon, virgin Ozark White Oak barrels with a level #2 char for two to four years. John Emerald Distillery also utilizes three-barrel high stacking and a temperature-controlled warehouse, in a peculiar attempt to artificially create season changes and speed up the aging process.
19
David Szlam
THIS FOUNDERS HISTORY WILL BE PUBLISHED SOON
20
Seth Watson
Distillery of Modern Art
Seth acquired a warehouse in Chamblee, Georgia, and began converting it into a living installation, equal parts distillery, gallery, tasting room, private events venue, and cocktail lounge. It was architecture as art, shifting appearance from day to night, a canvas just as much as a space. When the Distillery of Modern Art (DoMA) opened its doors in 2022, Seth’s vision sprang to life.
21
Billy Watterson
Burnt Church Distillery
Burnt Church Distillery is the fruit of Billy Watterson’s vision. From its physical building to its mission, the founders have aimed for something more than just making spirits. Billy sees the distillery as a way to bring Lowcountry history to life, to give back to the community, and to honor local culture.