Earlier this month Jeptha Creed Distillery launched their first straight bourbon, a release six years in the making. To celebrate the release of Jeptha Creed Straight 4-Grain Bourbon, Master Distiller Joyce Nethery will be signing those beautiful bottles at Liquor Barn in Beaumont, 4131 Towne Center Dr, this Friday, May 31st, from 4 to 7 p.m.
According to a press release, the Nethery family, who is behind Jeptha Creed, has been farming in Shelby County Kentucky for five generations, and prides themselves on being a “ground-to-glass” distillery with dedication to being sustainable through every step of production. They now grow or locally source all of the grains used in their spirits, including the water from the creek on their farm. Since bourbon is always at least 51% corn, the Netherys wanted to be thoughtful about the corn that they used. They planted two fields: one of non-GMO yellow corn and one of their heirloom varietal Bloody Butcher corn. The release said they noticed “an intriguing behavior from the local wildlife: animals would walk through the yellow corn to eat the Bloody Butcher corn.” They went on to say this was a key discovery for the recipe of their bourbon and the future of Jeptha Creed.
In 2014, they distilled test batches of bourbon, hoping to test different grain levels for the mash. Due to a delivery accident, the rye, wheat, and barley all arrived malted. It was a lucky mistake: the Netherys said they tasted the bourbon made from the mash of malted grains and knew they’d landed on something special.
It was also around this time that the Jeptha Creed Distillery began to take shape in Shelbyville. In August of 2016, Jeptha Creed distilled and barreled the first legal barrel of bourbon in Shelby County since before Prohibition. Within a couple months, they were sending two barrels of bourbon to the warehouse each day. They barreled their one thousandth barrel of bourbon in February of this year and are now producing nine barrels per day.
Jeptha Creed Straight 4-Grain Bourbon is now available in Kentucky markets. It will be released in Tennessee and Indiana markets this summer of 2019. It retails for around $50.
Tasting Notes from their web site:
Mash notes:
70% Bloody Butcher Corn / 15% malted rye / 10% malted wheat / 5% malted barley
Nose:
Sweet cream candies, Hydrangeas, Morning Glories, Geranium, Dried Apricots and Red Berries, Peach cobbler, Brown Sugar and Blackberry Jam.
Palate:
Complex and rich with vanilla, nutmeg, clove and toasted pecans.
Finish:
A long finish of vanilla mint with a lingering hint of baking spices.
