University of Kentucky students launched their own brand of bourbon last month as part of a new course from its teaching distillery.
Kentucky Wildcask Bourbon is the first offering from UK’s James B. Beam Institute. It’s part of the institute’s course on the Commercialization of Distilled Spirits.
Students learn how to brand, market and launch a product as part of the year-long course.
Seth DeBolt is the director of the Beam Institute. He calls the program “transformative” for students.
“The whole goal in this was, how do you really create a product? It's good to kind of go through the theory, but let's do that as a class," DeBolt said.
DeBolt says students are taught by industry leaders during the hands-on class.
“You've got experts from every aspect of the industry giving their time, encouraging you, teaching you what they know. And that's just really great to see as part of a university curriculum," he said.
The bourbon itself is a blend. Course instructor Herb Heneman used some of his private stock, combined with donations from the Fred B. Noe Distillery. It’s available at local Kentucky retailers.
