Medium & Craft Distillery Founders
The Bluegrass Region
(NOTE: FOUNDERS ARE LISTED IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER)
1
Shane Baker,
Wilderness Trail
Shane has a familial lineage in the distilling industry starting in the 1940s when his future grandparents, Doris and Hubert Ballard, met at the Kentucky River Distillery at the young ages of 14 and 16. Doris later retired from the famed Stitzel-Weller distillery after more than 50 years in the bourbon industry.
2
Catherine Spears Frye Carpenter
At 16, Catherine and her husband John Frye followed kin and neighbors west into untamed Kentucky, joining a migration led by her brother-in-law and sister. By 1780, the group of families, clustered at what they later called Carpenter’s Fort, a wilderness settlement in modern-day Lincoln County, Kentucky.
3
Mark Coffman,
Town Branch
Coffman’s career has read like a master class in building things from the ground up. He hasn’t just kept equipment humming; he designed and launched it. By the time Alltech expanded into beer and then whiskey, he had already built a career as the company’s Director of Engineering.
4
Marianne Eaves,
Castle & Key
Although Marianne Eaves was raised in Kentucky, she grew up in a dry county; furthermore, her parents never drank alcohol much, so she wasn’t really exposed to the whiskey culture that is pervasive in that state. A tomboy who enjoyed auto shop, Marianne eventually obtained her dream car - a 1972 Oldsmobile.
5
Dr. Patrick Heist,
Wilderness Trail
In February 2013, Dr. Heist once again partnered with Shane Baker, this time to found Wilderness Trail Distillery, which has become one of the fastest-growing bourbon distilleries in the world. Wilderness Trail distillery produces numerous bourbons, including both high rye and wheated bourbons, and rye whiskey using their own proprietary yeast strains.
6
Wes Henderson,
True Story
Wes Henderson grew up in the warm light of Kentucky bourbon. His father was already a legend-in-the-making at Brown-Forman, and whiskey talk was as common in their home as weather and ballgames. But the son did not trace a straight line from family lore to a rickhouse, he first chased airplanes.
7
Dr. Pearse Lyons
8
David Meier
9
Amir Peay
10
Amir Peay,
James E. Pepper
Quoting the Grateful Dead, Amir describes his journey as an entrepreneur to owning and restoring The James E. Pepper Distillery - “What a long, strange trip it’s been.”
Born in Marin County, California, Amir’s family moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico, when he was 3 years old and later to the Washington, DC area.
11
Oscar Pepper,
Labrot & Graham
When Elijah died in 1831, his son Oscar took over the business, and soon it became known as the Oscar Pepper Distillery. While working for Oscar, Crow continued his work, and the two refined the sour mash fermentation technique while using Crow’s scientific and medical training to perfect the art of managing temperature for the purification of the final product.
12
Elijah Pepper,
Labrot & Graham
Elijah Pepper was born in 1760 in Culpeper, Virginia, and started the generational distilling tradition of the Pepper family around 1780. In 1786, Elijah married 16-year-old Sarah Neville O’Bannon. Around 1790, the Pepper clan along with John, traveled to Kentucky, ultimately settling around the area known today as Versailles.
13
Jim Rutledge,
Four Roses
Jim Rutledge was born in 1943 and began working for the Seagram’s Company in 1966. He worked in the R&D department in Louisville, KY, and in 1975 was the head of Industrial Engineering and Budgets. By 1994, Jim Rutledge was named Master Distiller of Four Roses
Jim Rutledge was born in 1943 and began working for the Seagram’s Company in 1966. He worked in the R&D department in Louisville,KY and in 1975 was the head of Industrial Engineering and Budgets. By 1994 Jim Rutledge was named Master Distiller of Four Roses.
14
Jacob Spears
“Savvy Marketer”
Jacob Spears, a name that may not ring as familiar as other early figures in American whiskey history, was a pioneer whose influence on the bourbon industry is undeniable. Born in 1754 in Rockingham County, Virginia, Spears’ story stretches across states, wars, and centuries, leaving a lasting imprint on the distilling world and the legend of Bourbon whiskey.