“But Always Fine Bourbon.”

This is more than a promise or a commitment. It’s more than a tagline or an oft-repeated dedication. It is the backbone of our company and the legacy we proudly uphold. Of course, it applies to the bourbon that is the heart of our heritage, but it also reminds us that at the forefront is a commitment to quality in the form of craftsmanship.

Craftsmanship is, of course, a display of quality. It is a mark of artistry, skill, creativity, and innovation. It is integrity in design and attention to detail. It usually indicates that something has been made by hand and often by someone so skilled in just that one particular trade to be wholly dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in one arena. This shows dedication to a singular craft - an effect that can be easily seen and felt - and - in the case of bourbon, tasted. 

“Just a taste is all we ask…it’s all we’ve ever needed.” 

Along with the plaque adorning the ivy-covered brick wall exterior welcoming you to the original Stitzel-Weller distillery with the now famous “We make fine bourbon at a profit if we can, at a loss if we must, but always fine bourbon,” was another sign. Perhaps not as well known, but to us, equally as indicative of the underlying commitment. Another promise that, before you even stepped foot inside the warehouse, was this simple declaration that you could glean all you need to know from one sip of the “good stuff.” 

That one taste would be all you would need to recognize the superior quality, flavor, and craftsmanship that Pappy Van Winkle promised. That hasn’t changed. We still maintain this rigid dedication to quality and craftsmanship and believe you need no more than one taste, one look, and one puff of a cigar to recognize the difference. 

“You can’t make good bourbon when you speed things up.”

While this Pappy-ism obviously speaks to the aging required for good bourbon, a certain patience that is even more impressive in today's far more fast-paced world - it is also clear to us that this quite obvious statement made by our great-grandfather on a long-ago tour of the distillery is just as applicable to the belief in high-quality craftsmanship. 

There are simply no shortcuts, workarounds, alternative methods, or materials that can replace those of skilled craftsmanship, quality materials, and a dedication to a specifically designed end goal over all else. 

“No chemists allowed…if you make the stuff right, you don’t need chemists and laboratories to fix it up.” 

In another promise famously proffered by Pappy, we see the origins of the belief in a similarly important basis of our dedication to craftsmanship. For it is more thanhow something is made; it is also thewho, where, and why that ultimately delivers on our promise of craftsmanship. When you do things the way they are meant to be done, you don’t need anyone or anything else to, as Pappy said,fix it up. 

All of these things are considered before, during, and after introducing a new product. Our partnerships are part of this. We work with partners who share a similar passion and belief in the old-fashioned way of doing things. These partners embody that singular-minded dedication to perfecting one method, skill, or product so much that they are known for it in the same way Pappy is synonymous with bourbon.

Our why is evident. It is a continuation of Pappy’s promises and a desire to share this heritage in innovative ways. It is also a desire to uphold a promise of sustainability. This belief that the one-of-a-kind flavor, slowly perfecting its unmatched taste, crafted with simple ingredients including “our limestone water” and asleep for years in the barrel -aided only by time and “our celebrated Kentucky air,” can still be released. The belief that the story of the bourbon is still hidden within the bourbon-soaked barrel staves and the marks of craftsmanship and dedication are tangibly recognizable in the barrel heads and barrels themselves. 

This is the craftsmanship that is evident in the entirety of our barrel-aged, barrel-crafted, and bourbon-inspired collections. This whispered promise from the walls of the distillery to our warehouse today to deliver only the highest quality and most dedicated craftsmanship above all else. A promise of creativity, imagination, ingenuity,  innovation, attention to detail, and products that are built to last and made with the utmost goal - to be enjoyed.