Scott Feuille
Scott Feuille was born in December 1967 and raised in El Paso, Texas. Coming of age in the late 1960s, a period marked by rapid technological advancement, he gravitated early toward pursuits that required precision, discipline, and technical mastery. Those inclinations would ultimately guide him into aviation. Feuille (whose name is pronounced “fuel”) attended college at the University of New Mexico before pursuing a career as a pilot, first serving as a naval aviator in the United States Navy. In that role, he operated in environments where accuracy, timing, and procedural discipline were not merely professional standards but matters of safety and survival. The constant attention to mechanical performance, environmental conditions, and human factors helped shape his working mindset, instilling habits that would later translate directly into distillation.
After completing his military service, Feuille transitioned into civilian aviation, becoming a commercial airline pilot for American Airlines. Over the course of that career, he accumulated thousands of flight hours within a highly structured and regulated industry. Commercial aviation reinforced the same principles he had learned in the Navy: consistency, repeatability, and a deep respect for process. At the same time, it exposed him to a wide range of places and cultures, gradually broadening his perspective and shaping interests beyond aviation.
During these years, Feuille developed an increasing interest in distilled spirits, particularly whiskey. What began as an appreciation for the finished product evolved into a technical curiosity about how it was made. As in aviation, he approached the subject methodically, studying the variables that influence flavor, from grain selection and fermentation to distillation techniques and barrel aging. Over time, this curiosity became more focused, and he made the deliberate decision to shift his career toward distilling. The transition was not immediate. It required stepping away from a stable, established profession into a field that demanded long-term investment and offered no guaranteed return. Nevertheless, the appeal of building something tangible, rooted in both science and craft, proved decisive.
Feuille eventually settled in Albuquerque, New Mexico. There, in 2021, he founded Taylor Garrett Spirits. The distillery was conceived as a grain-to-bottle operation, maintaining full control over production from mash through bottling. From the outset, Feuille positioned the company as a whiskey-focused enterprise, even as it produced other spirits. The name “Taylor Garrett” carried personal significance. In 2012, he married his wife, Jodi, and the distillery’s name was drawn from their children, Brooke Taylor, age nine, and Tyson Garrett, age eleven (as of 2025). The choice reflected a broader pattern in his work, where technical precision and personal meaning coexisted.
Feuille’s approach to whiskey production combined traditional principles with unconventional methods. While he adhered to the fundamental processes of fermentation, distillation, and maturation in oak, he became particularly interested in the role of time. Traditional whiskey aging often requires years or decades, a timeline that can be challenging for new distilleries. Feuille instead explored ways to influence maturation more efficiently while maintaining control over flavor development. This led to the adoption of an accelerated aging process, which became a defining feature of Taylor Garrett Spirits. Rather than relying solely on extended time in barrel, he experimented with techniques designed to enhance the interaction between spirit and wood. His goal was not to replicate traditional aging exactly, but to produce a whiskey that met his standards of balance and complexity within a shorter timeframe.
This use of accelerated aging placed Feuille at the intersection of tradition and innovation. Within the whiskey industry, such methods have often been met with skepticism, particularly among those who emphasize long-term barrel aging. Feuille’s work, however, was grounded in a broader philosophy centered on systems and control. As in aviation, where new technologies are evaluated based on measurable performance rather than tradition, he approached whiskey-making as a field open to refinement and improvement.
At Taylor Garrett Spirits, Feuille has maintained a hands-on role. As founder and lead distiller, he oversees mash formulation, fermentation parameters, distillation runs, and maturation protocols. Operating in New Mexico presents both challenges and opportunities. The state’s high desert climate, characterized by low humidity and significant temperature variation, affects the behavior of whiskey in barrel. Evaporation rates differ from those in more humid regions, and the interaction between spirit and wood is continually shaped by environmental conditions. Feuille has incorporated these factors into his approach, recognizing that location is not a constraint but a variable to be managed.
As the company has continued operating into the 2020s, its identity has remained closely tied to its founder. The name itself ensures that Feuille’s legacy remains embedded in the brand, while the distillery’s methods reflect his willingness to challenge established norms. In an industry often defined by history and tradition, his work represents a parallel path, shaped by modern experience and a different kind of expertise.
In the final analysis, Scott Feuille’s story is one of adaptation and the transfer of skill. From naval aviation to commercial flight and ultimately to distilling, he moved between disciplines while carrying forward a consistent approach to problem-solving and execution. Through Taylor Garrett Spirits, he has established a place within American craft whiskey, defined not by imitation but by a deliberate and technically informed reimagining of how whiskey can be made in the New Mexico desert.
Sources:
New Mexico True, “Taylor Garrett Spirits”, newmexico.org
Taylor Garrett Spirits official website, “About”, taylorgarrettwhiskey.com
Albuquerque Tourism, “Taylor Garrett Spirits”, visitalbuquerque.org
New Mexico Distillers Guild, “Member Directory”, www.nmdistillers.org
Contributed by Tracy McLemore, Fairview, Tennessee
