Doing anything for 25 years is hard, and doing it successfully… even harder. So, when I recently met Jefferson’s Bourbon Founder Trey Zoeller at New York’s Polo Bar to celebrate a quarter century of making award-winning bourbon, I was not only impressed by what he had accomplished but by how much he still loves what he does!
After sampling through some of his personal faves as the newly released Jefferson’s Ocean Rye, Zoeller and I talked about inspiration, accomplishments and how he continues to challenge himself and his team.
The Whiskey Lifestyle: Why did you start Jefferson’s?
Trey Zoeller: Being from Kentucky, I never thought about bourbon as it was so commonplace until I moved to half a dozen places around the US and found that very few people drank bourbon. My Kentucky pride came out and I would tell everyone who would listen how good it was. Around the same time, my Dad saw an ad in the back of a Delta magazine to purchase a single barrel of Irish Whiskey. I thought, if he can buy a barrel from Ireland, why can I not start buying some of the great old barrels of bourbon aging in Kentucky and then take that bourbon and do something with it to enhance it.
TWLS: One of the things the brand is best known for is its Ocean Voyage line. What inspired this series?
TZ: As my Dad is an Arthur who writes about the history of bourbon, I was very aware of how whiskey initially transformed into bourbon as it floated the rivers of America from Kentucky to New Orleans and then was put on ships and sailed around Florida and the east coast to Boston, New York, Philadelphia, etc. As I sat a friend’s boat drinking bourbon, I saw the bourbon sloshing around in the bottle and thought if this is happening in a bottle then it would certainly happen in a barrel and that would significantly change the maturation process by changing the agitation and the environment.
TWLS: What are a few of the challenges you’ve faced during your 25 years with Jefferson’s?
TZ: As a small family operation, the deck is stacked against you. At first the big bourbon distillers were not exactly welcoming and would work against me as I tried to gain distribution. It is a very capital-intensive business, so you have to carry inventory for years, which does not give you much money to support sales and marketing. As we source, contract distill and distill we have seen the landscape change dramatically and luckily, we have been able to rely on the relationships that we have managed over decades to ensure our quality and consistency.
TWLS: What’s your greatest accomplishment in 25 years?
TZ: Keeping our doors open! Making great friends within the industry and creating a new space in the bourbon industry through blending and innovation. I used to be surprised to find our bottles on the back bar, now I get a little upset when we are not there.
TWLS: You’ve been called the mad scientist of bourbon – and the Ocean Voyage line can attest to it. Can you share some of your other “experiments?”
TZ: We have experimented with different blending techniques, finishes and changing environments. One of my ah-ha moments came when I was invited to be a “Barrel Chef” back in 2012 for Independent Stave Company at their headquarters in Missouri, where they work with wine and spirit barrels from around the world. I saw that we were being very limited in bourbon by only utilizing 4 levels of char and not working with techniques that they have perfected over the last century by changing time and temperatures and utilized different types of wood and any number of different variables to design enhanced barrels.
TWLS: What’s the one piece of advice you would give to craft distillers starting out?
TZ: Don’t be undercapitalized and be very patient. You only have one opportunity to make a first impression.
TWLS: What’s next for Jefferson’s?
TZ: I cannot let the cat out of the bag; however, we have a couple innovations coming that are game changing and I am supper excited to get them on the market.
