Colonel CRaig Duncan

   Email address:     ColonelCRaig@WhiskeyUniv.com

Appointed "Colonel" by both the Governor of Kentucky and the Governor of Tennessee as an Ambassador to the spread the word about the virtues of Bourbon and Tennessee Whiskey.

Colonel Craig Duncan, President and Founder of Whiskey University and Chairman of the Board of Directors
Colonel Craig Duncan, Whiskey Professor, Kentucky and Tennessee's Highest Honor. The Colonel's Mission; "To Lead"

Colonel Craig Duncan

Founder and President of Whiskey University

Colonel Craig Duncan is lifelong bourbon aficionado with a passion for history. He blends these two interests over an elusive glass of single barrel to form a truly unique and informative bourbon experience that you will never forget.

Duncan retired as the Vice President of Sales and Advertising for Gannett Newspapers stationed in Columbia, Tennessee. He has also served the General Manager of the Advertiser News of Spring Hill; Publisher of the Citizen-Statesman and the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Natchez Trace Media. Craig Duncan was born in February 1962 in Rheiland, Germany on a U. S. Army Base called Landstuhl. He was raised in Odenton and Gaithersburg, Maryland and now resides in Columbia, Tennessee which is in Maury County. He is happily married to his wife of over 30 years, Melissa Page Duncan and they have two adult children Miles Duncan and Lexie Duncan.

Craig Duncan was appointed by Governor Paul Patton of Kentucky on October 15th, 2003 as a Kentucky Colonel for being an Ambassador for the Bourbon Industry and espousing the virtues of Bourbon throughout the country on behalf of the Commonwealth. On August 15th, 2015 Colonel Duncan was appointed the title and honor of being a Tennessee Colonel by Governor Bill Haslam of Tennessee as well as an Aide-de-Camp to the Governor’s office for broadcasting the Historic stories that made Tennessee Whiskey so famous and popular.

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Colonel Craig Duncan was the leader and one of the three founding members of Whiskey University dating back as far as September of 2009. In May 2012 those three guys started hanging out a few times a month and formally training each other about what they learned about Bourbon or Whiskey. Duncan along with Jason Kyle and Ross Osborne started collecting as many brands as they could find from the nine major (at that time) bourbon distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. They each started contributing to the collection when they went to a local liquor store or traveled to another state or country. After about three years of collecting and contributing, it was nicknamed the Tenn-tucky Bourbon Bar. Now serving as Whiskey University’s unofficial library, the bar has over 1,670 different brands of whiskey and 1,020 different brands of bourbons. Now, with no duplications and it’s diverse selections of bourbon, it is one of the largest private collections in the world.

In 2015 Whiskey University began teaching formal in-person classes to their own social club and to other Bourbon Facebook groups in the Tennessee and Kentucky. In those days, they only taught the three most basic classes public in Whiskey 101, Bourbon 201, Tennessee Whiskey 202 despite having created about 40 classes at the time. Later they added some intermediate tasting classes about the twelve major distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. In 2016 Whiskey University began offering Bourbon Diplomas, Associate Degrees and a Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts Degrees based on the number of courses and tasting each member had taken. Ross Osborne was the first student to earn his Bourbon Diploma on January, 12th, 2016 and the first to earn his Associate Degree on May 5th, 2017. Since then over 4,500 Bourbon Diplomas and 1,850 Associate Degrees have been earned. They now teach over 110 classes in 47 States and 6 Canadian Provinces with their Brigade of over 300 Instructors.

In that January 2017, the Bourbon Brigade (a non-profit organization separate from Whiskey University) was formed as informal group of 15 guys that got together on a second and fourth Thursdays each month. In 2018 Whiskey University began giving credits for taking field trips to Bourbon or Whiskey Distillery around the country. They also recruited new members that earned their Bourbon Diplomas and taught Bourbon Tasting Classes of their own.

On May 10th, 2018 Carl Ingrum became the first student at Whiskey University to earn his Bachelor of Arts Degree, the title of "Master Bourbon Taster" and the rank of Captain in the Bourbon Brigade. In the first quarter of 2019, three students at Whiskey University earned the highest rank and honor; Carl Ingrum, Ross Osborne and Dale Robinson all finished the University requirements for their Master of Arts Degrees, the title “Senior Chartered Master Bourbon Taster and the honorary of Lieutenant Colonel.”

In order to earn their Associate Degree a student must take 18 Tasting classes and quizzes. For a Bachelor of Science Degree and a Bachelor of Arts Degree the student must take 26 and 34 tasting classes and quizzes for credit respectively as well as teach a tasting class of their choice in public. In order to earn their Master of Science and Master of Arts Degree the member take 42 and 50 classes for credit respectively and must teach two tasting classes of their choice, a basic and an intermediate class.

Colonel CRaig Duncan’s “Designations” & Credentials:

1.) Kentucky Colonel

(from the Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky)

2.) ”Tennessee Colonel”, Aide de Camp to Governor

(from the Governor of the State of Tennessee)

3.) Senior Chartered Master Bourbon Taster

(from Whiskey University)

4.) Executive Bourbon Steward

(from the Stave & Thief Society)

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5.) Ambassador for Life with Maker’s Mark

6.) Tennessee Squire from Jack Daniel’s

7.) Coopers Club with Nelson’s GreenBrier Distillery

8.) Blade and Bow’s Five Keys Club Member

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10.) Sagamore Spirits Ambassador; A Whiskey Thief

11.) Member King’s Circle- George Remus and M.G.P.

12.) Family Tree Ambassador at Wilderness Trail

13.) Heaven Hill’s Bardstown Whiskey Society Member

14.) Whiskey Baron from Wyoming Whiskey

15.) High West Whiskey Club Utah

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

16.) Alchemist Ambassador with Jefferson’s Bourbon

17.) Band of Rebels, Rebel Yell Association

18.) Member of the Mellow Moments Club, Four Roses

19.) Wild Turkey’s Rare Breed Society Member

20.) Member At Large in Beam Around The World

21.) Collector,International Assoc of Jim Beam Clubs

22.) Founder, The Bourbon Brigade

 
 

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Supporter and Member of all of the following

Facebook Bourbon Groups in Tennessee & Kentucky

1.) Member, Dad’s Drinking Bourbon, Franklin, Tennessee

2.) Member, The Nashville Bourbon Social Club, Nashville, Tennessee

3.) Member, Nashville Whiskey Society, Nashville, Tennessee

4.) Member, Music City Bourbon Club, Nashville, Tennessee

5.) Member, Nashville Bourbon Barrel, Nashville, Tennessee

6.) Member, The Bourbon Collective, Nashville, Tennessee

7.) Bourbon 615, Nashville, Tennessee

8.) Member, Murfreesboro Bourbon Society, Murfreesboro, Tennessee

9.) Member, Sumner/Wilson Bourbon Social Club, Gallatin. Tennessee

10.) Member, East Tennessee Bourbon Society, Knoxville, Tennessee

11.) Member, Knoxville Bourbon Society, Knoxville, Tennessee

12.) Member, Private Bourbon Society, Knoxville, Tennessee

13.) Member, Midsouth Bourbon Brotherhood, Memphis, Tennessee

14.) Member, Clarksville Bourbon Society, Clarksville, Tennessee

15.) Member, Chattanooga Bourbon Society, Chattanooga, Tennessee

16.) Member, East Tennessee Bourbon Society, Greenville, Tennessee

17.) Member, Tennessee Elite Bourbon Group, Corryton, Tennessee

1.) Member, Bourbon Brotherhood, Louisville, Kentucky

2.) Member, The Original Bourbon Society, Louisville, Kentucky

3.) Member, Bourbon Collectors, Louisville, Kentucky

5.) Member, Bourbon Club of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky

6.) Member, Louisville Bourbon Club, Louisville, Kentucky

7.) Member, Bourbon Info Exchange, Louisville, Kentucky

8.) Member, Kentucky Bourbon Society, Lexington, Kentucky

9.) Member, Lexington Bourbon, Lexington, Kentucky

10.) Member, Bluegrass Bourbon, Lexington, Kentucky

11.) Member, The Gentleman’s Club of the Bluegrass, Lexington, Kentucky

12.) Member, Kentucky Bourbon Distillery Tours, Lexington, Kentucky

13.) Member, Historical Bourbon, Lexington, Kentucky

14.) Member, The Bourbon Lifers, Lexington, Kentucky

15.) Member, The Bourbon Club, Lexington, Kentucky

16.) Member, Frankfort Bourbon, Society, Frankfort, Kentucky

17.) Member, Kentucky Bourbon Collection, Frankfort, Kentucky

18.) Member, Kentucky Bourbon Society, Paducah, Kentucky

19.) Member, Bourbon Fanatics, Owensboro, Kentucky

20.) Member, Southeastern Kentucky Bourbon Hunters, Williamsburg, Kentucky

21.) Member, What is on the Bourbon Trail today?, Lexington, Kentucky

22.) Member, Kentucky Bourbon Festival, Bardstown, Kentucky

23.) Bowling Green Bourbon Group, Bowling Green, Kentucky

24.) Member, Tri-State Bourbon Buddies, Grayson, Kentucky


Facebook Bourbon Groups in MidAtlantic States

(Maryland, D.C., Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Delaware)

1.) Member, Maryland Whiskey, Baltimore, Maryland

2.) Member, Maryland's Whiskey Bourbon Society, Westminster, Maryland

3.) Member, Old Line Bourbon, Gaithersburg, Maryland

4.) Member, My Bourbon Club, Owings Mills, Maryland

5.) Member, Bourbon Bros, Baltimore, Maryland

6.) Member, Backyard Bourbon Club, Cordova Maryland

7.) Member, Bourbon Lovers of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia

8.) Member, Virginia Whiskey Syndicate, Arlington, Virginia

9.) Member, Virginia Bourbon, Staunton, Virginia

10.) Member, DMV Bourbon Lovers, Fairfax, Virginia

11.) Member, NoVa Bourbon, Fairfax, Virginia

12.) Member, Coastal Virginia Whiskey Society, Virginia Beach, Virginia

13.) Member, DMV Whisk(e)y Club, Richmond, Virginia

14.) Member, Tri-State Bourbon Buddies, Huntington, West Virginia

15.) Member, West Virginia Bourbon Locator, Wheeling, West Virginia

16.) Member, WV Bourbon Society, Liberty, West Virginia

17.) Member, West Virginia Whiskey Lovers, West Virginia

18.) Member, Bourbon Hunters, Raleigh, North Carolina

19.) Member, RB&B (the Original Raleigh Bourbon & Banter), Raleigh, North Carolina

20.) Member, Bourbon Community of North Carolina, Charlotte, North Carolina

21.) Member, Triad Bourbon and Beer aficionados, Greensboro, North Carolina

22.) Member, Greensboro Bourbon club, North Carolina

23.) Member, NC Bourbon and Co., Greensboro, North Carolina

24.) Member, Southern Bourbon Society, Salem, South Carolina


Facebook Bourbon Groups in Southern States

(Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas)

1.) Member, Alabama Whiskey & Cigar Group, Birmingham, Alabama

2.) Member, Alabama Small Batch, Birmingham, Alabama

3.) Member, North Alabama Whiskey aficionados, Huntsville, Alabama

4.) Member, South Alabama Bourbon, Dothan, Alabama

5.) Member, East Alabama & West Georgia Bourbon Club, Auburn, Alabama

6.) Member, Veterans Whiskey Club, Atlanta, Georgia

7.) Member, BS & Bourbon, Atalanta, Georgia

8.) Member, Bourbon Finders and Braggers, Dalton, Georgia

9.) Member, Southern Bourbon Hunters, St. Petersburg, Florida

10.) Member, South Florida Bourbon Society, Miami, Florida

11.) Member, Palm Beach Bourbon Society, Palm Beach, Florida

12.) Member, South Florida Bourbon Aficionados, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

13.) Member, Pensacola Bourbon Society, Pensacola, Florida

14.) Member, Bourbon Society of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida

15.) Member, Bourbon Society of Northwest Florida, Panama City, Florida

16.) Member, Bourbon Lovers of Pinellas County, St. Petersburg, Florida

17.) Member, South Florida Bourbon Boys, Miami, Florida

18.) Member, Miami Bourbon Society, Miami, Florida

19.) Member, Southwest Florida Bourbon Society, Ft. Myers, Florida

20.) Member, Bourbonr, Jacksonville, Florida

21.) Member, The Bourbon Aficionados Collective, Tampa Bay, Florida

22.) Member, Bourbon Nation 2.0, St. Petersburg, Florida

23.) Member, Southeastern Bourbon Finders, Pensacola, Florida

24.) Member, Pensacola Whiskey Society, Pensacola, Florida

25.) Member, Greater Jackson Bourbon & Whiskey Society, Jackson, Mississippi

26.) Member,


Facebook Bourbon Groups in Northeast States

(New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont)

1.) Member, Bourbon Lovers-New Jersey Chapter, Trenton, New Jersey

2.) Member, Central Jersey Bourbon Society, Middletown, New Jersey

3.) Member, Connecticut Bourbon and Whiskey Enthusiasts, Hartford, Connecticut

4.) Member, New England Whisky, Providence, Rhode Island

5.) Member, New York Whisky Enthusiasts, New York, New York

6.) Member, All Things Bourbon, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

7.) Member, Portland Bourbon and Spirits Society - Bottle Share, Portland, Maine


Facebook Bourbon Groups in Midwest States

(Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Missouri)

1.) Member, Bourbon Lovers, Chicago, Illinois

2.) Member, Chicago Whiskey Society, Chicago, Illinois

3.) Member, Whiskey Mavens, Chicago, Illinois

4.) Member, Fox Valley Whiskey Society, Chicago, Illinois

5.) Member, Indiana Whiskey/Whisky & Bourbon Collectors, Indianapolis, Indiana

6.) Member, Big 4 Bourbon 2.0, Cincinnati, Ohio

7.) Member, Ohio Bourbon Lovers, Columbus, Ohio

8.) member, Ohio Bourbon Hunters, Columbus, Ohio

9.) Member, Bourbon Lovers-Michigan Chapter (BLMC), Detroit, Michigan

10.) Member, Bourbon Junkies, Midland, Michigan

11.) Member, All Things Bourbon, Miami, Ohio

12.) Member, Brothers in Bond Bourbon enthusiasts, Covington, Ohio

13.) Member, Bourbon Nation, Indianapolis, Indiana

14.) Member, Indiana Bourbon Finder, Indianapolis, Indiana

15.) Member, Southern Indiana Bourbon Club, New Albany, Indiana


Facebook Bourbon Groups in Great Plain States

(Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, North & South Dakota, Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas)

1.) Member, Bourbon Lovers Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska

2.) Member, Bourbon Locator, Corpus Christi, Texas

3.) Member, North Dakota Bourbon Drinkers, Bismark, North Dakota

4.) Member, Bourbon with the Ladies, Bismark, North Dakota

5.) Member, Dakota Whiskey Territory, Sioux Falls, South Dakota

6.) Member, Oklahoma City Whiskey Society, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

7.) Member,


Facebook Bourbon Groups in Mountain States

1.) Member, Denver Whiskey Club, Denver Colorado

2.) Member, Wyoming Bourbon and Whisk(e)y Enthusiasts, Casper, Wyoming


Facebook Bourbon Groups in Pacific States


 
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