Both Winery and Distillery? Texas and Kentucky Heritage Enhance the Combination
An Interview with Dr. Bob Young and Jennifer Cernosek, Bending Branch Winery
Last year Bending Branch Winery announced that they also had become a distillery offering premium bourbon in Texas…but building on their Kentucky roots. How has this combination worked? What are the opportunities and challenges of having both a winery and distillery? How do you take advantage of the new barrel-aging trends for both wine and bourbon?
We are LIVE in Comfort, Texas to ask those questions in an interview with Dr. Bob Young, MD, CEO and founder of Bending Branch along with his General Manager, Jennifer Cernosek.
Thanks to photographers Brian and Wendy Hatfield for their photos, video, and tasting notes.
The Benefits and Challenges of Having Both a Winery and Distillery
“The benefits are amazing…First of all… {Daughter Allison is in charge of our bourbon program] my family grew up in the middle of the Bluegrass area of Kentucky. Five miles down the road was Four Roses, and Wild Turkey and Woodford Reserve were nearby. The county I grew up in has an incredible heritage for bourbon. In 1775 the first corn whiskey was made right in my hometown….We wanted to bring that history and heritage to Texas and combine it with our winery program here.
The benefits…we found lots of people who like big, bold red wines like Malbec, Tannat, Petit Sirah, which we make here… also like bourbon. Our wine club members want to know when we’re coming out with a bourbon club.” – Dr. Bob Young, MD, CEO/Founder
The challenges…always continuing to find high quality “juice.” My daughter Allison and I source bourbon from top notch, well-known [that we can’t disclose] distilleries in Kentucky. We bring it to Texas to finish the aging process. It’s born in Kentucky and matured in Texas. It is very unique. It’s a combination like a marriage of a Kentuckian and a Texan.” – Dr. Bob Young, MD, CEO/Founder
Question: Has this combination increased the interest and sales in both wine and bourbon? Where is there overlap in the process of barrel aging?
“It has increased the interest in both. You have some overlap, people come out here to taste the wines and then they see the bourbon and get interested in it. The same with the other side…they come out for the bourbon and are interested in the wine.” – Jennifer Cernosek, GM
Question: Where is there overlap with wineries and distilleries in the process of barrel aging?
“A significant new growth in the bourbon industry are bourbons that are matured in barrel then finished in another, [like a wine barrel] for say 2-3 months. We have all these barrels! Other distilleries have to order these barrels and they are not fresh…We have fresh barrels! We have fresh port barrels, we have fresh Cab barrels, we even have fresh Pinot Noir barrels. We have rosé barrels... We already have these different barrels on our property [to finish aging] the bourbon… Also, there is a growing interest in using bourbon barrels to age wine. We are going to taste today a Bourbon-barrel finished Tannat wine called Double Barrel Tannat. That’s a growing trend in the wine world. It’s a big seller for us. We also do a bourbon barrel-aged Cabernet Sauvignon. There are many synergies going on…with both programs” – Dr. Bob Young, MD, CEO/Founder
Bending Branch Leads in Technology Innovation
Dr. Bob Young has had his hands on the pulse of new wine technology for decades. His much-awarded, quality wines have also been known to be high in antioxidants. See our interview, June 2021, “Have a Healthy Wine: Bending Branch Winery, An Interview with Dr. Bob Young.” It was not surprising to see that Dr. Bob has embraced/invented new advanced extraction technology for pushing the edge on bourbon as well. In referring to their ChickenDuck brand, Young stated,
“Our technology mimics aging characteristics and makes it taste older than it is. We like to celebrate tradition but embrace new methods.” - Dr. Bob Young, CEO
This innovative technology is also environmentally friendly and sustainable, including the reduction of evaporation of the alcohol or “Angel’s Share,” acceleration of aging, and reduction in barrel storage time including those associated costs.
Recommended Wines and Spirits
2019 Double Barrel Tannat, Texas $50
Gold/Top of Class, 2024 San Antonio Stock Show and International Wine Competition
1840 Bending Branch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey - $120 – Four Grain
This 4-grain mash bill includes: 64% corn, 12% rye, 12% malted barley, 12% wheat, Bending Branch’s signature mash bill. This is a small-batch blend of three barrels, revealing flavors and aromas of vanilla buttercream, caramel, rich brown butter, and tangerine peel. I liked to slow sip with a large ice cube.
1840 Bending Branch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey - $75 – High Rye
This is a higher-rye bourbon with scents of vanilla, orangesicle, and crème brûlée which open up to flavors of caramel and orange cordial.
These bourbons are crafted using sustainable methods and feature two mash bills with both “Wheated” and “High Rye” blends. Alison and Dr. Bob are committed to excellence in everything they do, and sometimes they have too much fun along the way ... and in waddles ChickenDuck- the birds frequently seen roaming Bending Branch.
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