A behind-the-scenes look at UK’s first-ever bourbon release

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 12, 2025) — In August of 2024, a select group of students headed to their first day of class in a new course, not knowing what to expect. Today, they have created the first distilled spirit brand at the University of Kentucky.

Honorary Professor Herb Heneman’s Commercialization of Distilled Spirits course at the UK James B. Beam Institute for Kentucky Spirits (JBBI) taught students how a bourbon brand is born after the spirit is made. In the fall, Heneman split the class into teams to brainstorm and pitch ideas to one another — what to name the brand, what the label should look like, how to bottle and process the spirit.

“We wanted to give students a foundation for actually taking a bourbon from concept to completion,” Heneman said. “What better way to learn than by doing?”

The four class groups hit the ground running to create a name and label ideas for the spirit. Heneman gave students complete creative freedom here and looked forward to learning what inspired them.

Mary Grace Vest, a senior studying biomedical engineering, was in the group that pitched WildCask.

“I thought since this was the first brand, it had to be something that represented not only the university, but the institute itself,” Vest said. “WildCask sort of just popped into my head, because it sounds like wildcat. The cask is the center of the story when it comes to bourbon. It spoke to the university, but it also speaks to the craft.”

To make their product stand out the most, students wanted the label to be different than the understated branding with minimal logos and text that can often be found on liquor store shelves. Vest explained another element of keeping craft and tradition front and center on the label: the White Oak tree centerpiece.

The tree, in combination with the sketch of the Beam Institute building and the bright blue label, perfectly encapsulates WildCask’s message: This spirit is for and inspired by the UK community. William Bahan of WBahan Design took the final brand pitch, a collaborative effort of the whole class during the second semester and created the artwork.

“I couldn’t be happier with what it looks like now. It’s so much better than our original pitch, so it’s awesome,” Vest said.

The JBBI team, led by Director Seth DeBolt, has been waiting for this moment since before the Beam Institute was officially formed. Even before ground was broken on the building, they knew the goal: to make the first-ever distilled spirit from the world’s largest teaching distillery.

DeBolt knew Heneman could be vital to reaching that goal.

“Herb is a real industry legend, and he spent 30 years commercializing products in the industry across many categories,” DeBolt said. “His Rolodex of contacts and knowledge is second to none.”

Heneman got the project off the ground by donating bourbon from his personal stock at Bardstown Bourbon Co. to the Independent Stave Co. Boswell Family Warehouse on campus. The 12 donated barrels were a variety of ages, with a total value of just under $40,000. The liquid from Heneman’s barrels was combined with the product of barrels donated by Freddie Noe and the James B. Beam Distilling Co. to make the unique blend that is WildCask. The class also used the Bardstown Bourbon Co. bottling facility, allowing for a behind-the-scenes look at how they bottle thousands of spirits every day.

“I’m so grateful to Herb for sharing his knowledge with us,” Vest said.

JBBI offered the opportunity to reserve a bottle of the first batch at the 2025 JBBI Industry Conference in March. Individuals who reserved bottles were invited to purchase and pick them up on campus on April 28. The in-person payment and pickup requirement allowed patrons to meet Heneman, DeBolt and the student creators, many of whom autographed bottles. Proceeds from the sales of the inaugural release will be invested in students, research and JBBI programming.

WildCask creators also learned a lesson in distribution through Heneman’s class. As a result, a small portion of bottles were sent to retailers like Liquor Barn and Kroger Wine and Spirits.

“Making the liquid is one very important part,” DeBolt said. “But when you look at a pie chart of all the employment opportunities in this industry, probably about two-thirds of those opportunities are in the sales, marketing, procurement and other commercial aspects. Bringing this class in fills out our ability to meet our mission of creating the best graduates for the next generation of distillers and distillery workers.”

For more information on the Distillation, Wine and Brewing Certificate offered at the Beam Institute, visit https://beaminstitute.ca.uky.edu/.