College programs that teach alcohol manufacturing aren’t rare. The University of California–Davis offers a degree in Viticulture and Enology. Central Washington University confers a degree in Craft Brewing. Students at Appalachian State can get a degree in Fermentation Sciences—the bedrock of all alcohol manufacturing. Most of these programs focus on the science (chemistry, engineering, and their brethren) behind wine, beer, or spirits.
At the University of Kentucky, however, students across a variety of majors can get a certificate in Distillation, Wine, and Brewing Science from the James B. Beam Institute for Kentucky Spirits (JBBI), part of the Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment. They don’t learn just the mechanics of making booze. They get hands-on experience in everything that comes after, from branding and marketing to pitching a new product in a sales meeting—skills that are quite valuable in Kentucky’s bourbon industry.
The certificate program is open to students across the university, whether they’re majoring in Chemistry, Economics, Communication, or even Appalachian Studies. A 12-hour course, it’s designed to fit into the undergraduate curriculum’s elective options, meaning just about any student can choose to participate.
“We want them to have those degree strengths, and then we want that specialization in this area,” says Seth DeBolt, the JBBI’s director and a professor of horticulture. “Those two combine really nicely in the fact that we will have finance or marketing majors, the next generation of entrepreneurs, that understand the bourbon industry really well.”
Course options within the certificate include “Beer, Wine, and Spirits Tourism Principles and Practice” and “Spirit Chemistry,” but it’s a two-semester class that wraps up this month which DeBolt says “shows our range.” The class, called “The Business of Bourbon: Commercializing Your Craft,” has seen students conceive, create, and pitch a new bourbon brand–known as Wildcask, in honor of the school’s mascot–that’s now stocked by supermarkets around Lexington.
“I wanted to keep it as true to life as possible—I’m a firm believer that you learn by doing,” says Herb Heneman, the course instructor and a longtime spirits industry veteran. “I only wanted to do this if it wasn’t theoretical, if we’re able to actually commercialize a bourbon. The complexity of getting from concept to completion is what counts.”
The class’ process, which Heneman says would take a real-world distiller 12 to 18 months, was condensed into about six months over two semesters but, he emphasizes, “it was a very real timeline.” He told the students, “If we don’t get this product to shelf by the time you guys finish the second semester, we haven’t done our job.”
They did: Wildcask is currently sold for $55 a bottle at about a dozen Kroger stores, with additional retail outlets likely to sign on shortly.
Students in the course had help from corporate partners, including the JBBI’s eponymous benefactor, the James B. Beam Distilling Company, which donated some of the bourbon that made up the final product. A distributor with ties to the university agreed to take on the necessary logistics of getting bottles to stores, even though the volume of 400 cases is much smaller than they’d normally carry. Students still had to pitch the distributor, however.
“It’s been as real world as possible,” Heneman says, and that has been intimidating for some students. “I think a lot of folks thought this just sort of happens.”
Heneman plans to teach the course again in the next academic year, and ultimately, he’d like the students to work with bourbon that’s being made right on campus. The JBBI has a fully functional distillery and an on-site bonded warehouse for aging barrels. Distillation only started a year ago, however, so it’ll be a while before the whiskey is ready.
But in the meantime, Wildcask will fund research and scholarships at the JBBI. And the state’s bourbon industry, which Heneman said “came out in droves to help with this project,” is likely to keep providing support.
“It really is an investment in the future of the talent pool that supports Kentucky distilling,” he says. “It’s our single most important industry here and so [this program] is not purely altruistic. It’s a bit selfish in the fact that you want to do it for not just the students, but also the industry and the state.”
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