Category: Distillery

Bound by a NDA, or lying?

A non-disclosure agreement (NDA) is a legal contract covering confidential information the parties wish to share with each other, but with restrictions on wider sharing. In the whiskey world, when you try to find out who made something, a non-distiller producer (NDP) may tell you that information is confidential because of a NDA? Is the NDP really prevented from revealing the whiskey’s source or sources because of a NDA?

Probably not.

By its nature, the use of NDAs in the world of NDPs is tough to research, but the distilleries that provide most of the whiskey bottled by NDPs say they don’t require them. In fact, distillers like MGP/Luxco, Tennessee Distilling Group, Bardstown Bourbon Company, and Green River Spirits encourage their NDP customers to tell their customers where the whiskey was made.

Producers who sell into the bulk market, often through brokers, are proud of their products, but also professionally discrete. As business-to-business producers, they consider that information as the customer’s, for the customer to reveal or conceal, at the customer’s discretion. They won’t tell you, except in general terms, who their customers are or what they make for them. In many if not most cases, they don’t know what happens to their liquid after it leaves their control so they have nothing to talk about. Their discretion is appropriate.

If most producers don’t require NDAs, why do so many NDPs claim to be bound by them?

They’re lying.

The only distillers who have much incentive to require NDAs are the majors. If Jim Beam, Jack Daniel’s, Wild Turkey, Maker’s Mark, or one of the other brand name producers sells some excess whiskey, as they all do, they don’t want the buyer to start advertising their ‘Jim Beam’ bottling. If there is a NDA in such a case, it may not require absolute secrecy. You can, for example, find bottlings of COSTCO’s Kirkland Bourbon that say ‘Clermont, Kentucky’ on them. That is obviously Jim Beam liquid, but they’re not using the Jim Beam name. No doubt, Beam-Suntory’s purchase agreement with the broker who ultimately sold the whiskey to COSTCO contained some non-disclosure wording.

Does that mean we should always interpret a NDP-NDA claim as indication of a major producer source? Dave Pickerell, when he was first promoting WhistlePig, claimed a NDA prevented him from revealing the name of the Canadian distillery that made it (Alberta) even as he told you who it was with a wink and a nudge. He was bound by a NDA and he honored it, but it was more about discretion than secrecy.

These days, although all of the majors occasionally offload surplus liquid, usually with some level of disclosure restriction, it’s a drop in the NDP bucket. You may safely assume 90 percent or more of the NDP whiskey in the market is not bound by any kind of NDA. The claim of a NDA is almost always for the NDP’s interest and convenience.

Why? Because we still have too many NDPs who try to pretend they’re makers, not fakers. When you point out they don’t have a distillery, they feed you some double-talk about “cooking in someone else’s kitchen.”   

So while some NDA claims are true, most are not, and the most adamant are the least likely to be true. Regard the claimants accordingly. If they are keeping their sources a deep, dark secret, there is a reason. The secret the NDP is protecting is the NDP’s, not the producer’s.

Regard also NDPs who always reveal their sources. Ever wonder how they are able to avoid those dreaded NDAs?

NOTE: I revised this post 3/3/22 to include new information about Stoli. I apologize for putting out misleading information. Sorry, fog of war. I’m doing the best I can.

Most of the world’s citizens are outraged and disgusted by Russia’s cruel and irrational invasion of Ukraine, and frustrated by their inability to do anything about it. There is a satisfying symbolism in rejecting all things Russian, so what about vodka? That’s Russian, right?

The short answer is, no, in that virtually all vodka sold in the United States and most of the rest of the world has nothing to do with Russia. It isn’t made there, nor is it made and sold by Russian companies. The only brand of Russian-made vodka you are likely to see in the United States is Russian Standard.

Yes, the word ‘vodka’ is Russian, but that’s about it. It literally means ‘little water,’ or something close to that, in Polish, Ukrainian, and several other Slavic languages in addition to Russian. The word comes from the ancient description of distilled alcohol as “water of life.” The word ‘whiskey’ has a similar etymology, based on that same phrase in Gaelic. “Eau de vie” is literally “water of life” in French, and usually describes a clear, fruit-based spirit. Since the typical ‘vodka’ in Russia and the wider region is a clear, neutral or nearly-neutral spirit distilled from grain, ‘vodka’ seemed like a more appealing name for that type of product than ‘grain alcohol,’ which is how grain neutral spirits (GNS) were generally sold before Prohibition. ‘Vodka’ sounds exotic.

There is a fine line between what we now call ‘vodka’ and what used to be called ‘common whiskey’ in America, known later as ‘white whiskey,’ since neither is aged in wood. The difference is in the purity of the alcohol and that itself can be a fine line. Although an American straight whiskey such as bourbon cannot be distilled higher than 80% ABV (alcohol-by-volume), generic whiskey just has to be less than 95% ABV. After 95% it’s ethanol, i.e., vodka. So, 94.5% ABV = white whiskey, 95.1% ABV = vodka. Then, of course, it is diluted with water to 40-50% ABV for bottling.

Americans first heard the term ‘vodka’ when Smirnoff was introduced in the United States in the 1930s, after Prohibition. They didn’t do much business at first, until the brand launched its “Smirnoff Leaves You Breathless” advertising campaign in 1958. The idea was that if you drank vodka at lunch, instead of whiskey or beer, no one would be able to smell it on your breath! It was a huge success.

It was more than that, of course. Americans had long since begun to mix their whiskey with soft drinks and fruit juices, and for the first several decades after Prohibition’s repeal, the best-selling distilled spirits had been blended whiskey, either scotch or American. Some of them had very little whiskey flavor. When Americans became aware of vodka’s existence through Smirnoff’s advertising, millions simply switched from using Imperial Blended Whiskey to Smirnoff Vodka in their cocktails. Vodka sales exploded in the 1960s and, therefore, every company needed a vodka brand. Most of them got Russian-sounding names. Most were just that, Russian-sounding names, with no connection to Russia. All of them were made in the United States.

But because of Smirnoff, which had an actual history in Czarist Russia, and all of the made-up Russian names, the whole ‘Russia’ thing hung around, through all the ups and downs of the Cold War and beyond. Then came Stolichnaya (‘Stoli’), which proudly advertised itself as Russian vodka. It was introduced in the United States in 1972 and quickly became huge. Suddenly, premium, imported vodka was a thing. Stoli was followed by Absolut, made in Sweden; and Grey Goose, made in France. Followed by others too numerous to name.

A lot of imported vodka sold in the United States is made in Poland. Some of the better known brands are Sobieski, Chopin, and Belevedere. Poland is a member of NATO and, therefore, a U.S. ally. It shares a long border with Ukraine and is receiving many of the refugees.

Ukrainian vodka is not widely distributed in the United States but some of the brands available on Drizly are Khor, Shevkoff, and Nemiroff.

Almost every distilled spirits company sells vodka, typically under multiple brand names. Very few of those companies distill the spirit themselves. Although producers typically process the spirit before bottling, such as charcoal filtering it, and some even redistill, most do not make the grain neutral spirit (GNS) from scratch. Instead, they buy it from a handful of specialist companies who produce ethanol from grain (usually corn) for beverages but also for pharmaceuticals, fuel, weapons, textiles, and other industrial uses. In the world of beverage alcohol, that same grain neutral spirit is used to make gin and liqueurs. Ethanol, and therefore vodka, can also be made from sugarcane and fruit.

Although the standards are slightly different for what goes into your body versus what goes into your car, it’s all essentially the same stuff, i.e., ‘pure’ (95%) ethanol, and it is considered a commodity. All of the major vodka producers buy their ethanol from the same group of manufacturers, usually on the basis of price and availability, although some have a better reputation for quality than others. Although some craft vodkas are scratch-made, most are not. They’re based on that same GNS. That’s fine if they do something else ‘crafty’ with the spirit, such as flavoring it. Since it really is a commodity, there isn’t much reason to make it yourself, but a few people do and they will make sure you know it. Again, none of this has anything to do with Russia, but now you know a little bit more about vodka.

The major U.S. ethanol distillers, the folks who make GNS from scratch, are:

Those are the major operators I know about in the beverage space. There are many others who distill vast amounts of ethanol for non-beverage uses.

And that’s about it. That’s where vodka comes from. Ukraine, by the way, is much like the American Midwest in being a huge grower and exporter of wheat and other cereals. Egypt, the ‘bread basket’ of the Mediterranean in Roman times, is now a major importer of wheat, most of which comes from Ukraine and Russia.

Between July 25th and July 30th, 2022, several thunderstorms brought heavy rain, deadly flash flooding, and devastating river flooding to eastern Kentucky and central Appalachia. These thunderstorms, at times, caused rainfall rates in excess of 4″ per hour across complex terrain that led to widespread devastating impacts. Radar-based rainfall estimates suggest that upwards of 14-16″ of rain fell during this 5-day period in a narrow swath, with many more locations receiving 6-10″ of rain.

While it did not rain continuously during this 4-day stretch, the overwhelming amounts of rain and resultant flooding led to at least 37 deaths (as of August 2nd) and widespread catastrophic damage. Entire homes and parts of some communities were swept away by flood waters, leading to costly damage to infrastructure in the region.

Over 600 helicopter rescues and countless swift water rescues by boat were needed to evacuate people who were trapped by the quickly rising flood waters.

Kentucky Bourbon Groups Create Online Auction

The Kentucky Distillers’ Association, the Bourbon Crusaders charitable organization and Bourbon curator Fred Minnick are joining forces again to support recovery and rebuilding efforts from this catastrophic flooding in Eastern Kentucky.

The Kentucky Bourbon Benefit will feature an online auction of exclusive private barrel selection experiences, rare and vintage spirits, and unique tasting and tourism offerings from Kentucky’s signature distilling industry and hospitality and charitable partners.

“Kentucky’s Bourbon industry was there for our Western Kentucky families following the tornadoes, making the single largest donation to that relief fund – and now I am proud to see this industry stepping up once again to support our Eastern Kentucky families affected by the devastating flooding,” Gov. Andy Beshear said. 

“I know this will make a tremendous impact for our people and I am grateful for the continued support.” 

The partnership raised about $3.4 million in December during a similar auction to help ease suffering and restore hope for residents of Western Kentucky whose communities were ravaged by a tornado outbreak. 

“We prayed that we’d never have to get this group together again in the face of disaster, but our friends, families and neighbors in Eastern Kentucky are braving through unspeakable tragedy and devastation,” Kentucky Distillers’ Association President Eric Gregory said. “It’s our duty as a signature industry to help.

“We were so impressed and humbled by the outpouring of support for Western Kentucky, and we hope that Bourbon aficionados and bidders show the same unparalleled generosity for the thousands of Eastern Kentucky residents who desperately need our assistance.”

Online Bourbon Auction to Run August 11-21, 2022

The online auction will begin Thursday, Aug. 11, at noon EST and run until Sunday, Aug. 21, at 11 p.m. EST.  Go to Kentucky Bourbon Benefit to view auction items and bid. Westport Whiskey & Wine in Louisville is coordinating collection and distribution of donated items. 

All proceeds will go directly to the state’s official Team Eastern Kentucky Flood Relief Fund to assist those impacted by flooding. Those that prefer to make a cash donation can do so now at the Team Eastern Kentucky Flood Relief Fund website.

RJ Sargent, President of The Bourbon Crusaders, said, “The core purpose of the Bourbon Crusaders is to make a difference in the lives of others, and once again the state we love so much needs our help. 

“When the tornadoes hit Western Kentucky last year, we joined the KDA and Fred Minnick to help raise over $3 million from our generous supporters. Now with the recent flood disaster, many more Kentuckians have had their lives upended. We are joining forces again and hope our friends will step up, too. The Bourbon community sticks together.”

Minnick said, “I wish we didn’t have to do this. But the Bourbon community deeply feels for their neighbors in Eastern Kentucky, as we did for the Western Kentucky tornado victims, and we will do everything within our power to ease the situation for the flood survivors. 

“This is about our friends, family, and neighbors. We must be there for them.”

Chris Zaborowski, owner of Westport Whiskey & Wine, said, “We were heartbroken to see the devastation brought to Eastern Kentucky with the recent flooding. We knew we wanted to team up with the KDA again to help raise the much-needed funds for our fellow Kentuckians.”

Gregory said many Kentucky Distillers’ Association members are once again offering private barrel experiences where Bourbon enthusiasts can personally taste and select their own one-of-a-kind barrel. Each barrel usually yields 150-200 bottles depending on age and proof.

Whiskey aficionados with the Bourbon Crusaders are raiding their collections and donating dozens of limited edition and single barrel expressions of Bourbon, rye and Scotch whiskies. Distillers also are donating rare bottles that disappeared from retailer’s shelves long ago.

Minnick, a best-selling author, and expert on all things Bourbon, is using his renowned distilling and celebrity connections to reap a treasure trove of bottles, private experiences and memorabilia to fulfill any whiskey lover’s dream. 

Kentucky Distillers Are Sending Tankers Full of Water

Kentucky distillers also are sending tanker trucks and totes of fresh water to Eastern Kentucky, along with contributing thousands of dollars to organizations and relief funds involved in the cleanup and recovery.

“We deeply appreciate the support of all our member distilleries and friends with the Bourbon Crusaders, Fred Minnick and the team at Westport Whiskey & Wine for their partnership in helping our fellow Kentuckians,” Gregory said.

“Bourbon is America’s native spirit and Kentucky is its birthplace. It’s our honor and obligation to step up and help our fellow Kentuckians in times of need. Thank you to everyone who is helping in the recovery and rebuilding efforts, and please continue praying for our beloved Commonwealth and its people.” 

Learn more about Kentucky Mist Distillery.
View all Kentucky Distilleries.
View all U.S. Distilleries.

Please help to support Distillery Trail. Sign up for our Newsletter, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram and Twitter.