April 17, 2025 • 30 mins
Joyce Nethery from Jeptha Creed Distillery shares her journey from chemical engineer to master distiller at her family's woman-owned, woman-run Kentucky bourbon operation. The distillery's signature Bloody Butcher corn creates distinctive flavor profiles in their spirits while honoring local heritage through sustainable farming practices. 🥃
- Joyce leveraged her chemical engineering background, teaching experience, and business skills to create an authentic ground-to-glass distillery
- The name Jeptha Creed honors the local Jeptha Knobs named by Daniel and Squire Boone in the 1700s
- Their signature Bloody Butcher Corn dates to 1845 and imparts unique, earthy, nutty characteristics to their bourbon
- Beyond bourbon, they produce vodka and moonshine from the same heritage corn
- Upcoming events include the Bacon Brothers concert on June 21st and their annual Harvest Festival in October
- Future releases include a special pink bourbon for breast cancer awareness month in October 2026
- Visitors can enjoy free tastings, tours, cocktail classes, barrel tastings, outdoor games, and the Creed Café
- Products are available in ten states with Pennsylvania and Virginia coming soon
Visit jepthacreed.com for more information. Open Thursday-Saturday 11am-6pm and Sunday noon-5pm.
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🥃 Plan a visit to Your Bourbon Destination® at www.visitshelbyky.com. Located in the heart of central Kentucky and less than an hour from Louisville and Lexington, ShelbyKY is the perfect Kentucky getaway. Complete with two great distilleries, action-packed outdoor adventures, and the best vacation rentals near Louisville, put ShelbyKY at the top of your list when planning a Kentucky Bourbon Trail® trip, romantic couples retreat, or a whole-family vacation.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Janette Marson (00:23):
Welcome to Kentucky Hidden Wonders.
I'm Janette Marson
and I'm Mason Warren.
Together, we're uncovering the secrets, stories
and hidden gems of Shelby County.
Mason Warren (00:32):
Kentucky From unforgettable places to
off-the-beaten-path adventures.
Join us as we explore Kentuckytreasures and Shelby County's
best-kept secrets.
Janette Marson (00:47):
County's best kept secrets.
Today on our show we havemaster distiller Joyce Nethery
from Jeptha Creed Distilleryhere in Shelby County.
Joyce, thanks so much for beingwith us.
And before we start, go aheadand introduce yourself and tell
the listeners a little bit abouthow you got started in this
wonderful industry.
Joyce Nethery (01:01):
Well cool, thank you all so much for having me.
This is an awesome experiencehere to be with you today.
Well cool, thank you all somuch for having me.
This is an awesome experiencehere to be with you today.
Oh, thanks, I am Joyce withJeptha Creed, and I am the
mother half of ourmother-daughter ownership team
and mother-daughter running ofthe distillery.
So it's a woman-owned,woman-run pretty awesome that
(01:23):
way way, and the whole family isinvolved in what we're doing.
So my husband is running thefarm side of everything and, um,
my son is helping us out hereand there on different pieces
and he is actually technicallyan owner of the distillery too
fantastic but we are stillmajority woman owned and and
(01:44):
woman-run and all those goodpieces.
Janette Marson (01:45):
We're going to stick with that Woman-owned yeah
Mother-daughter team.
Hardly any, but everybody elsein the US does that.
Joyce Nethery (01:52):
And we kind of came to the distilling from a
very securitist root and theactual idea for doing the
distillery was my husband's ideaand he grew up as a Shelby
County dairy farmer, so hisfamily has been running dairies
up until very recently in thecounty for three generations and
(02:17):
they had the largest you knowdairy herd, largest producing
dairy herd.
For a while here, until you know, the feed bill started
exceeding the revenue from themilk and that just changed
everything.
But we kept the farm and thetractors and the corn planters
and all of those pieces and myhusband thought that building a
(02:38):
distillery would be a fabulousidea.
And through another story Ieventually came to agree with
him and you know.
So now when I tell that story,I have to say my husband was
right Building a distillery wasa fabulous idea.
And that's when we got started,and that was in January of 2013
, that the whole family got onthe same pattern, same
(03:01):
wavelength about building adistillery.
And so we're approaching.
We started the distillery,actually opened it up to the
public in 2016, november of 2016.
So we're approaching, you know,nine years.
Janette Marson (03:16):
That's fantastic and being open to the public
now.
And you've got a sciencebackground, don't you?
Yes, so talk a little bit aboutthat, like what kind of science
and how that works in to thedistilling.
Joyce Nethery (03:28):
Well, my background, my degree, is
actually in chemical engineering.
I have a master's degree inchemical engineering from
University of Louisville SpeedScientific School and my first
job out of school was as aprocess engineer for a company
called Roman Haas, which is nowpart of DuPont, and I was a
process engineer in theirdistillation unit, distilling
(03:50):
methyl methacrylate, and methylmethacrylate is a founding
monomer in lots of differentplastics and plastics additives.
If you go get some acrylicpaint, there will be some MMA in
that.
Acrylic fingernails there'ssome MMA in that, a lot
fingernails.
So there's some MMA in that.
A lot of dental features Dentalthings have MMA in it.
So what I've learned over timeis if you are distilling MMA for
(04:14):
plastic or if you aredistilling ethanol for bourbon,
the principles and applicationsand techniques are all very,
very similar Wow.
But bourbon is a lot more fun.
But bourbon is a lot more fun.
Janette Marson (04:25):
Bourbon is a lot more fun.
Joyce Nethery (04:28):
Definitely.
Janette Marson (04:28):
Yeah.
Joyce Nethery (04:29):
So that is my science, chemical engineering
background.
But then I branched out, leftengineering to become a high
school chemistry and physicsteacher oh, that works into it
too Actually, at Shelby CountyHigh School.
So I was with the Rockets.
I graduated from Shelby CountyHigh School as a Rocket and I
went back to teach at ShelbyCounty High School as a Rocket,
(04:51):
taught for several years andthen left teaching to become a
chief financial officer for myhusband's company, and there I'm
dealing with accounts payableand accounts receivable and
depreciation schedules and taxes.
All that fun fun stuff and whatI've learned there.
You know you take those piecescombined with the engineering,
(05:14):
with the teaching, becauseteaching is important and it's
it's tough, and one of thebiggest things I learned from my
teaching um stint is classroommanagement skills.
And those classroom managementskills and those classroom
management skills come in reallyhandy when you've got bachelor
and bachelorette parties comingthrough the distillery.
Janette Marson (05:31):
Oh my gosh, indeed, I've got a mental
picture.
I do too.
Joyce Nethery (05:35):
I do too Sometimes they're kind of on the
same mental plane, you knowRight.
So that came in very, veryhandy also.
And then all the businessbackground with the chief
financial officer's positions.
So that came in very, veryhandy also, and then all the
business background with thechief financial officer's
positions.
So as I look at my career, Ifind it really serendipitous how
all of those crazy moves I madeall come together to be able to
(05:56):
run the distillery Absolutely.
Mason Warren (05:58):
So it's very, very awesome.
So I know you said it was yourhusband's idea to start the
distillery, but were you alwaysgoing to the master distillery?
But were you always going to dothe master distillery?
Even though you have thisbackground in chemical
engineering and everything?
Was that always the plan?
Joyce Nethery (06:10):
No, it actually wasn't always the plan.
Our thought when we firststarted is that because we
wanted this to be amulti-generational thing and we
built it for the kids mydaughter and my son so that we
could be building a legacy andthey could use this for their
careers in the future.
So our thought when we startedis that Autumn my daughter would
(06:32):
actually be the masterdistiller and at the time she
was underage and we found noplace in this country for her to
go to school and learn the artand science of distilling,
brewing and distilling adultbeverages because she was
underage.
Thank goodness that is changingsome and now there are programs
(06:54):
that are opening up where youcan study, you know, distilling
while you're underage.
You just can't taste anything,Right, which is still a problem,
but it's changing, thankgoodness, right, which is still
a problem, but it's changing,thank goodness, yeah.
So we sent her to Edinburgh,scotland, where she studied at
Harriet Watt University and shelearned lots of things while she
(07:15):
was over there.
One of the things she learnedis that she does not like
chemistry.
Janette Marson (07:22):
Gotcha, so that's kind of a Good place to
figure it out.
Mason Warren (07:24):
Yeah, right, yeah.
Joyce Nethery (07:24):
Kind of a problem for master distiller Gotcha, so
that's kind of a place tofigure it out.
Yeah, yeah, kind of a problemfor master distiller Right.
So she came home and finishedher degree and her true love and
true passion, which ismarketing and sales.
She does a good job which ishugely important for the whole
business.
Oh, absolutely, you cannot havea successful distillery without
good marketing and sales Right.
(07:45):
So after that I became masterdistiller.
Janette Marson (07:49):
Okay, defaulted back to me.
Now.
There is a wonderful story ofhow you came up with the name of
Jeptha Creed.
A little bit of the background.
Can you tell our listeners howthat all came about?
Joyce Nethery (08:01):
What's the story behind it.
Well, like I mentioned, myhusband grew up as a dairy
farmer and our dairy.
We had a dairy of our own for awhile also, but he grew up here
in Shelby County working ondairies here in Shelby County,
and he purchased property whenhe was 18, and this was the
start of our home farm.
He purchased this property andstarted his own tobacco and
(08:25):
dairy business and that propertyis still where we live and
that's our home farm.
So that home farm is at thefoothills of the Jeptha Knobs
and we've expanded out.
So now we actually have theJeptha Knobs too.
Not all of them, but we have apiece of the Knobs Gotcha.
(08:46):
And those Knobs were named bySquire Boone and Daniel Boone
when they came in and exploredKentucky in the late 1700s.
They were attracted to thosehills because there was a salt
lake up there.
So that's where the buffalo andthe deer and the turkey were.
So I like to say it was thegrocery store of their day.
(09:08):
Right, definitely.
And we found documentation.
At the Frazier History Museumand in several different places,
we found documentation thatsays they named them Jeptha
after the biblical warrior inJudges 11.
So we want to be all about ourlocal history, heritage and
culture.
(09:29):
My personal family history isright there.
That's where I still live,that's where I raised my kids.
I've got local and statehistory with the Boones and then
I've got Bible historyconnected to the name.
So we think Jeptha is perfectand then Creed is our promise to
honor those values as wecontinue to grow and expand.
(09:50):
So that's where we got JepthaCreed.
I love the name.
Janette Marson (09:54):
I love the story behind it too.
Your husband now has moved fromdairy to corn.
Jeptha Creed uses a wonderfulunique corn.
Can you talk a little bit aboutthe ground to glass portion?
Oh, she's brought a visual yes.
(10:14):
Folks that are listening.
It is dark red, so tell usabout this ruby red corn that
you're showing.
Joyce Nethery (10:21):
Yeah this beautiful red corn right here is
called Bloody Butcher.
It is non-GMO, it is openpollinated and it has been
documented in use since at least1845.
Yeah, so it's very, very old.
And open pollinated means thateach kernel on this cob is a
(10:42):
seed.
We save these seeds over thewinter, plant them back the
following spring and get thesame exact corn again.
So this is very sustainable.
It is the way ourgreat-grandparents lived and it
makes us seed savers.
So a lot of beautiful thingsconnected to this corn, and it's
(11:02):
red.
Janette Marson (11:03):
And it has a beautiful unique flavor profile
that we just love.
Well, your product is wonderful.
Mason Warren (11:11):
So the corn is kind of what we'll say, the base
ingredient for the bourbon.
You make an excellent bourbon,and so how does that impact the
flavor or the flavoring impactof the corn?
What is that on the bourbon?
Joyce Nethery (11:25):
Well, that's one of the things that we have found
over time with the otherexpressions of corn that we've
grown also and made bourbon withand we can talk about more of
those in a little bit.
But we have found that thevarietal of corn makes a flavor
difference in the bourbon, alittle bit like different
varietals of grapes makedifferent flavors in wines.
(11:47):
So there's a little bit of thatsame connection going on.
So the flavor of the bourbon,some of it, does get derived
from the corn and this BloodyButcher corn.
If you've tasted our product,you will notice that there's a
beautiful robustness to theflavor of our bourbons and that
there is what I'm going to callsome earthiness in the flavor of
(12:09):
our bourbons.
So you get some beautifulnuttiness but also some leather
and dark cherry notes and thingsalong those lines.
So beautiful earthy flavorsgoing on, and a lot of that is
derived from this Bloody Butchercorn.
Janette Marson (12:24):
Oh, very interesting.
Yes, so you alluded to otherproducts that you make In
addition to your fabulousbourbons.
What else do you distill?
Joyce Nethery (12:33):
Well, we also distill vodka, and our vodka is
distilled 100% from this BloodyButcher corn and we are also
making some moonshines, and thevodka and moonshines we actually
opened up to the public withback in 2016, because bourbon
has this thing where it needs toage for several years before
(12:55):
you can bring it out as aproduct, and vodka and moonshine
don't require that agingprocess.
So we started out with thevodka and the moonshine and we
are still producing the vodkaand the moonshine, but now that
we have our bourbon, the bourbonis our flagship, it was always
intended to be our flagship andit is the product that we are
really bringing out to the restof the country.
(13:16):
So the vodka and moonshinereally right now is it's
available in Kentucky, butspecifically, primarily at the
distillery gift shop.
Okay, yeah, what we're takingout to the rest of the country,
to our other states, where weare distributed, are our
bourbons.
Janette Marson (13:34):
Very good.
A lot of times we'll run very,you know, every now and again
you run into a person thatdoesn't like bourbon and we'll
say, oh, but they make a greatvodka and a moonshine, and
they're like, oh, okay, I'mthere, yes.
So I'm glad you've diversifiedyour product for all people.
Mason Warren (13:53):
Yeah, so switching gears a little bit.
And so Jep the Creed has hosteda ton of different events and
concerts and things over theyears and I have lots of great
memories from those.
But what's coming up?
Do you have anything on thecalendar that you can talk about
?
Joyce Nethery (14:06):
Yes, we do.
We have a concert coming up inJune and it's the opening of our
summer concert series.
It'll be a series of three andin June we have the Bacon
Brothers coming.
I'm very excited.
I already have my tickets.
Janette Marson (14:24):
I told my husband I canceled our vacation
and we're going to that instead.
Joyce Nethery (14:28):
Awesome, that is so exciting.
Janette Marson (14:31):
But talk a little.
So I love Kevin Bacon.
I follow him on social media,and I know that he and his
brother sing.
What kind of music, though, dothey do?
I'm not really, you know.
He'll sing on.
Well, on his social media it'shim and his guitar, and he sings
with his goats, so I'm surehe's not bringing goats.
Joyce Nethery (14:49):
I have seen his social media where he sings to
the goats.
Janette Marson (14:52):
That is pretty awesome, and I have seen him and
his brother.
Well, we'll just I'll just sayit will be a surprise and I'm
looking forward to it, and he'sa big name.
To my knowledge, he's notbringing the goats though.
No, no goats people, no goats,but I'm excited about him, it
will still be fabulous.
Yeah, I mean, he's a big name.
That's a big name to bring toShelby County.
Joyce Nethery (15:11):
Well, we are super excited about it.
It's going to be awesome.
The ticket number is limited.
We have limited that number sothat we make sure we have a
fabulous experience foreverybody who comes, and we're
super excited it's going to beawesome.
So you bring a chair.
Yeah, you bring a chair withyou.
It is outside amphitheaterstyle, and so you bring a chair
(15:35):
and maybe, if you want to, ablanket to lay on.
You know something along thatline.
We will have food trucks there.
Obviously, we will have ourcocktails and bourbons available
at the bar and we will have acouple of you know beer tents
out in the yard so that everyonehas access to alcoholic and
(15:59):
non-alcoholic drinks.
It is family-friendly, so youcan bring the kids.
Obviously, they can't have thealcohol, but everyone is welcome
, and that's one of the fabulousthings about our experiences
with the concerts is that we canhave three generations come and
attend and everybody have agreat time.
The grandparents, the family,the kids.
(16:21):
Everybody can have a great time.
The grandparents, the familythe kids.
Janette Marson (16:24):
Everybody can have a great time at the
distillery.
Well, I think I bought mytickets.
I saw one of your Facebookposts and I bought them through
that link.
Is it through the website?
How can they purchase?
Joyce Nethery (16:34):
Yeah, go to the Jeff the Creed website and you
can get to the tickets throughthat.
Okay, so that's June.
Janette Marson (16:40):
That's in June.
June 21st, okay, and then yousaid there's a couple more.
Any names that you can mention?
Joyce Nethery (16:46):
Well, we're still working on the second one, so
the date has not yet beentotally pinned down, but the
first weekend in October will beour Harvest Festival and that
one we have lined up a lot, ourharvest festival, and that one
we have lined up a lot.
We are through our red, whiteand blue bourbon.
We are through that bourbon.
We are giving a portion of theproceeds of each bottle of
(17:06):
bourbon to a veteransorganization and this year we
are working with creative vetsin nashville and creative vets
works with a lot of warriors,veterans, to express some of the
stresses and things thatthey've had the PTSDs through
(17:26):
writing songs and also painting,paintings and several other
different artistic things.
Bringing on the HarvestFestival the first weekend of
October, a lot of differentveterans who have written songs
and played music and there'll beseveral different creative
bands that will be playing thatday.
Mason Warren (17:47):
It'll be awesome.
Yeah, that'll be fun.
The Harvest Festival is alwaysfun.
Has anyone gotten lost in thecorn maze and had to send out a
search team for anyone therebefore?
Joyce Nethery (17:56):
We haven't actually had to send out a
search team.
We have had people hang out inthere for quite a while, okay,
but everybody has made it outsafely.
Janette Marson (18:04):
Oh, I so badly want to do the corn maze, so
you're doing it this year, right.
Joyce Nethery (18:08):
We do plan on doing it this year.
Yes, Okay, good.
Janette Marson (18:10):
I will be there.
I will be there with somebodywith me my husband probably just
to make sure I get out safely.
A little tracker, or somethingjust in case.
Oh my goodness, I'm excitedabout that.
So, tours and tastings we areall about bringing people in and
they love the Kentucky BourbonTrail and talk about what people
(18:32):
can experience tours andtastings-wise when they come to
Jeptha Creed.
Joyce Nethery (18:37):
Well, at Jeptha Creed we've got several
different experiences for them.
So you come in if you don'thave a reservation or anything.
We have a tasting experiencethat is free, that they can
experience some of our bourbons.
And we have a cocktail barwhere you can come and just get
a cocktail and hang out in ourbackyard.
You can hang out in our giftshop.
(18:58):
We have some tables and chairs,just hang out and enjoy that
cocktail bar atmosphere.
In addition to that, we havetours of the distillery so you
can schedule to see how we makeour bourbon experience and see
our corn and see that wholeprocess and there's a tasting
associated with the tour of thedistillery also Awesome.
(19:21):
We also have experiences whereyou can come and do a cocktail
class and learn to make acocktail with our bourbons and
that's a whole lot of fun and awhole lot of shaking of the.
Oh, that'd be wonderful Of allthose pieces.
Janette Marson (19:34):
It's a lot of fun that way.
Joyce Nethery (19:35):
I can never get my piece unstuck, though, yeah
there's a special techniqueabout hitting it on the side.
Janette Marson (19:40):
Yeah, that needs to be.
Shakes it gets it loose.
Joyce Nethery (19:47):
And we have a barrel tasting experience that
you can schedule and we willtake you to the barrel barn
where you can thief from thebarrel and experience our
bourbon at Cask Street, straightfrom the barrel, surrounded by
more bourbon.
So it's a fabulous experienceand it's just hanging out,
hanging out in the yard in ourrocking chairs.
We've got cornhole and it'sjust a fabulous place to come
hang out anytime.
Janette Marson (20:07):
Yeah, for those people that have never been to
Jeptha Creed, all of those gamesand outdoor things and
activities.
I mean you literally couldspend an afternoon just relaxing
, having a beverage, evennon-alcoholic, and just enjoying
your time there.
Joyce Nethery (20:23):
Absolutely.
In addition to that, we haveour Creed Cafe, so we do have a
pizza, pizza that we make fromscratch, and so it's not
anything you just you know, buyfrozen.
We make it from scratch, it'swonderful.
Janette Marson (20:37):
I've had it.
It's really really good.
Joyce Nethery (20:39):
And we also have some other appetizers, some
pretzel bites and and macaroniand cheese bites.
Janette Marson (20:47):
Those are wonderful as well.
Joyce Nethery (20:50):
Several different appetizers.
Janette Marson (20:51):
So you can have lunch also.
Yes, everything is wonderful, Iknow.
Mason Warren (20:55):
I've met people out there before just to get
drinks and snacks and thingslike that.
My parents both have, and soit's always a very relaxed and
welcoming environment.
So that's always nice and Iappreciate that you can
accommodate visitors who don'tmake a reservation.
There are some otherdistilleries in the state that
(21:18):
just basically say, if you don'thave a reservation, don't show
up, and that's not really thewelcoming aspect that we're
going for as a state.
And so I have friends at otherdistilleries and I tell them you
all need to do what Jeff theCreed does, where they have that
tasting experience, where theydon't need reservations, and I'm
like well it does If things.
Joyce Nethery (21:39):
when the tourist season gets into full gear, I
would recommend, even for ourfree tasting experience, to have
a reservation because we doduring that time can fill up.
Yeah, full gear.
I would recommend, even for ourfree tasting experience, to
have a reservation, because wedo during that time can fill up.
But even if it's filled up, youcan still get a flight at the
cocktail bar and taste.
It's just you have to pay forit.
But you can get a flight, youcan get a cocktail, you can get
(22:01):
lunch.
You can have a fabulousexperience, even if the tasting
experience is awful.
Yeah, yeah.
Janette Marson (22:09):
So there's a lot of wonderful things that you do
at Jeff the Creed.
What is one thing that youthink sets you apart from other
distilleries?
Our corn, absolutely Well, yeah, definitely.
Joyce Nethery (22:23):
You know, being woman owned and woman run and
all those pieces, that's reallycool and awesome and I'm humbled
that people find that youknow's a unique, beautiful red
varietal Bloody Butcher, amongother varietals of corn, and
(22:50):
that we are very authentic intruly doing this ground to glass
and saving the seed andplanting them back, and that we
are truly working that processall the way through.
I think that ground to glass,that we are planting the seed,
growing the corn, harvesting itand going all the way through
(23:10):
the process that way is whatmakes us truly unique, Because
we just put out a six-year agedweeded bourbon.
Well, that took us seven yearsto make because it takes a year
to grow the corn.
So we have additionalinvestment in our bourbon
compared to all the otherdistilleries because of our
(23:30):
ground-to-glass concept.
So that is the piece that makesus truly unique.
Janette Marson (23:35):
Mason and I go to a lot of travel shows and
every time we meet anotherdistillery, especially a craft
distillery, they'll mentionJeptha Creed and what a great
job you do.
There are so many eyes on you,watching what you do and then
wanting to do the same orwhatever you're doing is working
.
Yeah, people are noticing.
Mason Warren (23:58):
So we've talked a lot about what you've done in
the past and things like that.
But what's next?
What's coming up for JepthaCreed?
Any news you can tease, oranything like that.
But what's next?
What's coming up for Jeff theCreed?
Any news you can tease, oranything like that.
Joyce Nethery (24:09):
Well, we've been laying down a lot of different
corn varietals of bourbon aswe've been going along, and one
of them is a pink varietal.
So we have grown a pink Hopicorn and have put some of that,
laid some of that down.
In addition to that, we havecombined our Bloody Butcher Red
(24:31):
and our white to make pink, youknow, and distilled a pink
bourbon that we will bereleasing in October in 2026.
Okay, All right.
Mason Warren (24:41):
Probably Hopefully .
Janette Marson (24:42):
Well, that sounds neat when you were saying
pink.
Mason Warren (24:44):
I was picturing like an October release tying
the breast cancer awareness.
Janette Marson (24:48):
Yes, yes, things like that.
Is that the tie-in?
That is the tie-in.
Yes, that's what.
I was wondering as well.
That's amazing.
That is the tie-in.
Yeah, Okay.
Joyce Nethery (24:55):
So for breast cancer awareness for sure.
So that will be coming up inthe future.
This fall we will our fourthrelease of our red, white and
blue, so that will be justabsolutely awesome.
And then you know, after thatwe have other varietals of corn
bourbons that we will be doingsomething with in the future
(25:16):
Possibly.
We've laid down some of what Icall my husband's Bruce's Blue
corn bourbon and we've laid thatdown, and could we have some
special releases of Bruce's Bluecoming out.
Janette Marson (25:27):
Oh, that's fantastic, yeah, wonderful.
It's good to know.
I'm especially interested inthe pink and how each of the
colors changes the flavor.
Joyce Nethery (25:36):
Yes, I'm excited to.
So the pink bourbon will be aunique its own beautiful bourbon
.
Janette Marson (25:42):
Oh, I'm excited.
I'm very excited.
How can people learn more ortalk about your what's your
website and hours of operation?
Just go into a little bit moreon that.
Joyce Nethery (25:55):
Well, obviously you can go to our website, which
is jeffthecreedcom, and we gotlinks to all kinds of
information there.
So our online store, all AboutUs and our hours.
So we are open Thursday throughSunday to the public.
Thursday through Saturday we'reopen 11 to 6 pm, and then on
(26:18):
Sundays we're open noon to 5.
So you can come in and justexperience everything we got
going on.
Janette Marson (26:23):
Oh, that's fantastic.
Now you mentioned Sundays.
Are you still doing the specialSunday?
We still have the giant BloodyMary.
Joyce Nethery (26:31):
The giant Bloody Mary, yes, and in addition to
the giant Bloody Mary, we havean individual Bloody Mary that
you can get, with all thedifferent food pieces on it.
Mason Warren (26:41):
So if you don't quite need a gallon of it.
Joyce Nethery (26:43):
Yeah, if you don't have six people to come
and hang out with you, right?
Janette Marson (26:48):
Is it a gallon?
It looked huge.
Joyce Nethery (26:50):
I think it's a half gallon and it's designed to
serve four, but there's enoughthere that you could get more
than four.
Janette Marson (26:55):
It looked like chicken strips and all kinds of
egg rolls and all the thingswere coming out of it.
Joyce Nethery (27:02):
There's a meal.
There's a meal hanging on those, for sure.
Janette Marson (27:07):
And Sundays.
What are your hours again for?
Joyce Nethery (27:09):
the.
Janette Marson (27:09):
Noon to five.
Noon to five.
Okay, anything else you want totell us about?
About Jeptha Creed, anything wehaven't gone over, or?
Joyce Nethery (27:18):
Well, we're very proud to be part of Shelby
County.
We are Shelby County Inns andobviously built our distillery
and invested in Shelby County.
So we're very, very proud andhappy to be here and being right
there on the interstate.
We kind of see ourselves asbeing an entryway into Shelby
County, so we're very happy tobe the opening for everybody.
Janette Marson (27:39):
Yeah, when we talk to people that have come on
the highway, oh, you mean thatbeautiful red building, so they
maybe haven't stopped, butthey're thinking about it, and
definitely the entryway.
I knew what we were talkingabout when we said it yes, one
last question before we wrap up.
Mason Warren (27:54):
When we kind of look at the stats of people who
are listening to this, we've gotalmost coast to coast a few
pockets here and there of states.
Where can people find yourbourbon?
Which states are youdistributed?
Joyce Nethery (28:06):
We are distributed in, obviously,
Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois,Missouri, Texas, Florida,
Georgia and Colorado.
Also, this year we are openingup and starting in Pennsylvania
and Virginia.
Mason Warren (28:18):
Okay, Exciting, and did I say Ohio?
Joyce Nethery (28:20):
Ohio also.
Mason Warren (28:21):
You might have, If not Ohio.
Janette Marson (28:23):
Yes, Ohio also All right.
Oh, that's fantastic.
Well, each year that you'rearound, more and more people are
hearing about you, no matterwhat city we're in.
We say Jeptha Creed and oh yeah, I've heard about that, so
definitely the word.
You're not a hidden wonder,You're just a wonderful wonder.
Yes, we're just a wonder.
(28:44):
Yes, you are just a wonder.
Joyce Nethery (28:46):
Absolutely but.
Janette Marson (28:46):
Joyce, thank you so much for being on the show
with us.
Thank you for telling us moreabout Jeptha Creed and all that
you're doing and things that arecoming up.
Joyce Nethery (28:54):
Well, thank you all for having me.
I very much appreciate it andthank you for everything that
you're doing with Shelby CountyTourism.
Mason Warren (29:00):
Oh well, thank you .
Thank you, this has beenKentucky Hidden Wonders.
Thank you to Joyce Nethery forcoming on the show to talk about
Jeptha Cree Distillery, andthank you for listening.
If you've made it this far,make sure you subscribe and
leave us a review.
It means the world to us.
We'll return with a brand newepisode of Kentucky Hidden
(29:22):
Wonders in two weeks.
Bye everyone.
Kentucky Hidden Wonders is aShelby KY Tourism production.
We'll see you next time.
Welcome to Kentucky Hidden Wonders.
I'm Janette Marson
and I'm Mason Warren.
Together, we're uncovering the secrets, stories
and hidden gems of Shelby County.
Mason Warren (00:32):
Kentucky From unforgettable places to
off-the-beaten-path adventures.
Join us as we explore Kentuckytreasures and Shelby County's
best-kept secrets.
Janette Marson (00:47):
County's best kept secrets.
Today on our show we havemaster distiller Joyce Nethery
from Jeptha Creed Distilleryhere in Shelby County.
Joyce, thanks so much for beingwith us.
And before we start, go aheadand introduce yourself and tell
the listeners a little bit abouthow you got started in this
wonderful industry.
Joyce Nethery (01:01):
Well cool, thank you all so much for having me.
This is an awesome experiencehere to be with you today.
Well cool, thank you all somuch for having me.
This is an awesome experiencehere to be with you today.
Oh, thanks, I am Joyce withJeptha Creed, and I am the
mother half of ourmother-daughter ownership team
and mother-daughter running ofthe distillery.
So it's a woman-owned,woman-run pretty awesome that
(01:23):
way way, and the whole family isinvolved in what we're doing.
So my husband is running thefarm side of everything and, um,
my son is helping us out hereand there on different pieces
and he is actually technicallyan owner of the distillery too
fantastic but we are stillmajority woman owned and and
(01:44):
woman-run and all those goodpieces.
Janette Marson (01:45):
We're going to stick with that Woman-owned yeah
Mother-daughter team.
Hardly any, but everybody elsein the US does that.
Joyce Nethery (01:52):
And we kind of came to the distilling from a
very securitist root and theactual idea for doing the
distillery was my husband's ideaand he grew up as a Shelby
County dairy farmer, so hisfamily has been running dairies
up until very recently in thecounty for three generations and
(02:17):
they had the largest you knowdairy herd, largest producing
dairy herd.
For a while here, until you know, the feed bill started
exceeding the revenue from themilk and that just changed
everything.
But we kept the farm and thetractors and the corn planters
and all of those pieces and myhusband thought that building a
(02:38):
distillery would be a fabulousidea.
And through another story Ieventually came to agree with
him and you know.
So now when I tell that story,I have to say my husband was
right Building a distillery wasa fabulous idea.
And that's when we got started,and that was in January of 2013
, that the whole family got onthe same pattern, same
(03:01):
wavelength about building adistillery.
And so we're approaching.
We started the distillery,actually opened it up to the
public in 2016, november of 2016.
So we're approaching, you know,nine years.
Janette Marson (03:16):
That's fantastic and being open to the public
now.
And you've got a sciencebackground, don't you?
Yes, so talk a little bit aboutthat, like what kind of science
and how that works in to thedistilling.
Joyce Nethery (03:28):
Well, my background, my degree, is
actually in chemical engineering.
I have a master's degree inchemical engineering from
University of Louisville SpeedScientific School and my first
job out of school was as aprocess engineer for a company
called Roman Haas, which is nowpart of DuPont, and I was a
process engineer in theirdistillation unit, distilling
(03:50):
methyl methacrylate, and methylmethacrylate is a founding
monomer in lots of differentplastics and plastics additives.
If you go get some acrylicpaint, there will be some MMA in
that.
Acrylic fingernails there'ssome MMA in that, a lot
fingernails.
So there's some MMA in that.
A lot of dental features Dentalthings have MMA in it.
So what I've learned over timeis if you are distilling MMA for
(04:14):
plastic or if you aredistilling ethanol for bourbon,
the principles and applicationsand techniques are all very,
very similar Wow.
But bourbon is a lot more fun.
But bourbon is a lot more fun.
Janette Marson (04:25):
Bourbon is a lot more fun.
Joyce Nethery (04:28):
Definitely.
Janette Marson (04:28):
Yeah.
Joyce Nethery (04:29):
So that is my science, chemical engineering
background.
But then I branched out, leftengineering to become a high
school chemistry and physicsteacher oh, that works into it
too Actually, at Shelby CountyHigh School.
So I was with the Rockets.
I graduated from Shelby CountyHigh School as a Rocket and I
went back to teach at ShelbyCounty High School as a Rocket,
(04:51):
taught for several years andthen left teaching to become a
chief financial officer for myhusband's company, and there I'm
dealing with accounts payableand accounts receivable and
depreciation schedules and taxes.
All that fun fun stuff and whatI've learned there.
You know you take those piecescombined with the engineering,
(05:14):
with the teaching, becauseteaching is important and it's
it's tough, and one of thebiggest things I learned from my
teaching um stint is classroommanagement skills.
And those classroom managementskills and those classroom
management skills come in reallyhandy when you've got bachelor
and bachelorette parties comingthrough the distillery.
Janette Marson (05:31):
Oh my gosh, indeed, I've got a mental
picture.
I do too.
Joyce Nethery (05:35):
I do too Sometimes they're kind of on the
same mental plane, you knowRight.
So that came in very, veryhandy also.
And then all the businessbackground with the chief
financial officer's positions.
So that came in very, veryhandy also, and then all the
business background with thechief financial officer's
positions.
So as I look at my career, Ifind it really serendipitous how
all of those crazy moves I madeall come together to be able to
(05:56):
run the distillery Absolutely.
Mason Warren (05:58):
So it's very, very awesome.
So I know you said it was yourhusband's idea to start the
distillery, but were you alwaysgoing to the master distillery?
But were you always going to dothe master distillery?
Even though you have thisbackground in chemical
engineering and everything?
Was that always the plan?
Joyce Nethery (06:10):
No, it actually wasn't always the plan.
Our thought when we firststarted is that because we
wanted this to be amulti-generational thing and we
built it for the kids mydaughter and my son so that we
could be building a legacy andthey could use this for their
careers in the future.
So our thought when we startedis that Autumn my daughter would
(06:32):
actually be the masterdistiller and at the time she
was underage and we found noplace in this country for her to
go to school and learn the artand science of distilling,
brewing and distilling adultbeverages because she was
underage.
Thank goodness that is changingsome and now there are programs
(06:54):
that are opening up where youcan study, you know, distilling
while you're underage.
You just can't taste anything,Right, which is still a problem,
but it's changing, thankgoodness, right, which is still
a problem, but it's changing,thank goodness, yeah.
So we sent her to Edinburgh,scotland, where she studied at
Harriet Watt University and shelearned lots of things while she
(07:15):
was over there.
One of the things she learnedis that she does not like
chemistry.
Janette Marson (07:22):
Gotcha, so that's kind of a Good place to
figure it out.
Mason Warren (07:24):
Yeah, right, yeah.
Joyce Nethery (07:24):
Kind of a problem for master distiller Gotcha, so
that's kind of a place tofigure it out.
Yeah, yeah, kind of a problemfor master distiller Right.
So she came home and finishedher degree and her true love and
true passion, which ismarketing and sales.
She does a good job which ishugely important for the whole
business.
Oh, absolutely, you cannot havea successful distillery without
good marketing and sales Right.
(07:45):
So after that I became masterdistiller.
Janette Marson (07:49):
Okay, defaulted back to me.
Now.
There is a wonderful story ofhow you came up with the name of
Jeptha Creed.
A little bit of the background.
Can you tell our listeners howthat all came about?
Joyce Nethery (08:01):
What's the story behind it.
Well, like I mentioned, myhusband grew up as a dairy
farmer and our dairy.
We had a dairy of our own for awhile also, but he grew up here
in Shelby County working ondairies here in Shelby County,
and he purchased property whenhe was 18, and this was the
start of our home farm.
He purchased this property andstarted his own tobacco and
(08:25):
dairy business and that propertyis still where we live and
that's our home farm.
So that home farm is at thefoothills of the Jeptha Knobs
and we've expanded out.
So now we actually have theJeptha Knobs too.
Not all of them, but we have apiece of the Knobs Gotcha.
(08:46):
And those Knobs were named bySquire Boone and Daniel Boone
when they came in and exploredKentucky in the late 1700s.
They were attracted to thosehills because there was a salt
lake up there.
So that's where the buffalo andthe deer and the turkey were.
So I like to say it was thegrocery store of their day.
(09:08):
Right, definitely.
And we found documentation.
At the Frazier History Museumand in several different places,
we found documentation thatsays they named them Jeptha
after the biblical warrior inJudges 11.
So we want to be all about ourlocal history, heritage and
culture.
(09:29):
My personal family history isright there.
That's where I still live,that's where I raised my kids.
I've got local and statehistory with the Boones and then
I've got Bible historyconnected to the name.
So we think Jeptha is perfectand then Creed is our promise to
honor those values as wecontinue to grow and expand.
(09:50):
So that's where we got JepthaCreed.
I love the name.
Janette Marson (09:54):
I love the story behind it too.
Your husband now has moved fromdairy to corn.
Jeptha Creed uses a wonderfulunique corn.
Can you talk a little bit aboutthe ground to glass portion?
Oh, she's brought a visual yes.
(10:14):
Folks that are listening.
It is dark red, so tell usabout this ruby red corn that
you're showing.
Joyce Nethery (10:21):
Yeah this beautiful red corn right here is
called Bloody Butcher.
It is non-GMO, it is openpollinated and it has been
documented in use since at least1845.
Yeah, so it's very, very old.
And open pollinated means thateach kernel on this cob is a
(10:42):
seed.
We save these seeds over thewinter, plant them back the
following spring and get thesame exact corn again.
So this is very sustainable.
It is the way ourgreat-grandparents lived and it
makes us seed savers.
So a lot of beautiful thingsconnected to this corn, and it's
(11:02):
red.
Janette Marson (11:03):
And it has a beautiful unique flavor profile
that we just love.
Well, your product is wonderful.
Mason Warren (11:11):
So the corn is kind of what we'll say, the base
ingredient for the bourbon.
You make an excellent bourbon,and so how does that impact the
flavor or the flavoring impactof the corn?
What is that on the bourbon?
Joyce Nethery (11:25):
Well, that's one of the things that we have found
over time with the otherexpressions of corn that we've
grown also and made bourbon withand we can talk about more of
those in a little bit.
But we have found that thevarietal of corn makes a flavor
difference in the bourbon, alittle bit like different
varietals of grapes makedifferent flavors in wines.
(11:47):
So there's a little bit of thatsame connection going on.
So the flavor of the bourbon,some of it, does get derived
from the corn and this BloodyButcher corn.
If you've tasted our product,you will notice that there's a
beautiful robustness to theflavor of our bourbons and that
there is what I'm going to callsome earthiness in the flavor of
(12:09):
our bourbons.
So you get some beautifulnuttiness but also some leather
and dark cherry notes and thingsalong those lines.
So beautiful earthy flavorsgoing on, and a lot of that is
derived from this Bloody Butchercorn.
Janette Marson (12:24):
Oh, very interesting.
Yes, so you alluded to otherproducts that you make In
addition to your fabulousbourbons.
What else do you distill?
Joyce Nethery (12:33):
Well, we also distill vodka, and our vodka is
distilled 100% from this BloodyButcher corn and we are also
making some moonshines, and thevodka and moonshines we actually
opened up to the public withback in 2016, because bourbon
has this thing where it needs toage for several years before
(12:55):
you can bring it out as aproduct, and vodka and moonshine
don't require that agingprocess.
So we started out with thevodka and the moonshine and we
are still producing the vodkaand the moonshine, but now that
we have our bourbon, the bourbonis our flagship, it was always
intended to be our flagship andit is the product that we are
really bringing out to the restof the country.
(13:16):
So the vodka and moonshinereally right now is it's
available in Kentucky, butspecifically, primarily at the
distillery gift shop.
Okay, yeah, what we're takingout to the rest of the country,
to our other states, where weare distributed, are our
bourbons.
Janette Marson (13:34):
Very good.
A lot of times we'll run very,you know, every now and again
you run into a person thatdoesn't like bourbon and we'll
say, oh, but they make a greatvodka and a moonshine, and
they're like, oh, okay, I'mthere, yes.
So I'm glad you've diversifiedyour product for all people.
Mason Warren (13:53):
Yeah, so switching gears a little bit.
And so Jep the Creed has hosteda ton of different events and
concerts and things over theyears and I have lots of great
memories from those.
But what's coming up?
Do you have anything on thecalendar that you can talk about
?
Joyce Nethery (14:06):
Yes, we do.
We have a concert coming up inJune and it's the opening of our
summer concert series.
It'll be a series of three andin June we have the Bacon
Brothers coming.
I'm very excited.
I already have my tickets.
Janette Marson (14:24):
I told my husband I canceled our vacation
and we're going to that instead.
Joyce Nethery (14:28):
Awesome, that is so exciting.
Janette Marson (14:31):
But talk a little.
So I love Kevin Bacon.
I follow him on social media,and I know that he and his
brother sing.
What kind of music, though, dothey do?
I'm not really, you know.
He'll sing on.
Well, on his social media it'shim and his guitar, and he sings
with his goats, so I'm surehe's not bringing goats.
Joyce Nethery (14:49):
I have seen his social media where he sings to
the goats.
Janette Marson (14:52):
That is pretty awesome, and I have seen him and
his brother.
Well, we'll just I'll just sayit will be a surprise and I'm
looking forward to it, and he'sa big name.
To my knowledge, he's notbringing the goats though.
No, no goats people, no goats,but I'm excited about him, it
will still be fabulous.
Yeah, I mean, he's a big name.
That's a big name to bring toShelby County.
Joyce Nethery (15:11):
Well, we are super excited about it.
It's going to be awesome.
The ticket number is limited.
We have limited that number sothat we make sure we have a
fabulous experience foreverybody who comes, and we're
super excited it's going to beawesome.
So you bring a chair.
Yeah, you bring a chair withyou.
It is outside amphitheaterstyle, and so you bring a chair
(15:35):
and maybe, if you want to, ablanket to lay on.
You know something along thatline.
We will have food trucks there.
Obviously, we will have ourcocktails and bourbons available
at the bar and we will have acouple of you know beer tents
out in the yard so that everyonehas access to alcoholic and
(15:59):
non-alcoholic drinks.
It is family-friendly, so youcan bring the kids.
Obviously, they can't have thealcohol, but everyone is welcome
, and that's one of the fabulousthings about our experiences
with the concerts is that we canhave three generations come and
attend and everybody have agreat time.
The grandparents, the family,the kids.
(16:21):
Everybody can have a great time.
The grandparents, the familythe kids.
Janette Marson (16:24):
Everybody can have a great time at the
distillery.
Well, I think I bought mytickets.
I saw one of your Facebookposts and I bought them through
that link.
Is it through the website?
How can they purchase?
Joyce Nethery (16:34):
Yeah, go to the Jeff the Creed website and you
can get to the tickets throughthat.
Okay, so that's June.
Janette Marson (16:40):
That's in June.
June 21st, okay, and then yousaid there's a couple more.
Any names that you can mention?
Joyce Nethery (16:46):
Well, we're still working on the second one, so
the date has not yet beentotally pinned down, but the
first weekend in October will beour Harvest Festival and that
one we have lined up a lot, ourharvest festival, and that one
we have lined up a lot.
We are through our red, whiteand blue bourbon.
We are through that bourbon.
We are giving a portion of theproceeds of each bottle of
(17:06):
bourbon to a veteransorganization and this year we
are working with creative vetsin nashville and creative vets
works with a lot of warriors,veterans, to express some of the
stresses and things thatthey've had the PTSDs through
(17:26):
writing songs and also painting,paintings and several other
different artistic things.
Bringing on the HarvestFestival the first weekend of
October, a lot of differentveterans who have written songs
and played music and there'll beseveral different creative
bands that will be playing thatday.
Mason Warren (17:47):
It'll be awesome.
Yeah, that'll be fun.
The Harvest Festival is alwaysfun.
Has anyone gotten lost in thecorn maze and had to send out a
search team for anyone therebefore?
Joyce Nethery (17:56):
We haven't actually had to send out a
search team.
We have had people hang out inthere for quite a while, okay,
but everybody has made it outsafely.
Janette Marson (18:04):
Oh, I so badly want to do the corn maze, so
you're doing it this year, right.
Joyce Nethery (18:08):
We do plan on doing it this year.
Yes, Okay, good.
Janette Marson (18:10):
I will be there.
I will be there with somebodywith me my husband probably just
to make sure I get out safely.
A little tracker, or somethingjust in case.
Oh my goodness, I'm excitedabout that.
So, tours and tastings we areall about bringing people in and
they love the Kentucky BourbonTrail and talk about what people
(18:32):
can experience tours andtastings-wise when they come to
Jeptha Creed.
Joyce Nethery (18:37):
Well, at Jeptha Creed we've got several
different experiences for them.
So you come in if you don'thave a reservation or anything.
We have a tasting experiencethat is free, that they can
experience some of our bourbons.
And we have a cocktail barwhere you can come and just get
a cocktail and hang out in ourbackyard.
You can hang out in our giftshop.
(18:58):
We have some tables and chairs,just hang out and enjoy that
cocktail bar atmosphere.
In addition to that, we havetours of the distillery so you
can schedule to see how we makeour bourbon experience and see
our corn and see that wholeprocess and there's a tasting
associated with the tour of thedistillery also Awesome.
(19:21):
We also have experiences whereyou can come and do a cocktail
class and learn to make acocktail with our bourbons and
that's a whole lot of fun and awhole lot of shaking of the.
Oh, that'd be wonderful Of allthose pieces.
Janette Marson (19:34):
It's a lot of fun that way.
Joyce Nethery (19:35):
I can never get my piece unstuck, though, yeah
there's a special techniqueabout hitting it on the side.
Janette Marson (19:40):
Yeah, that needs to be.
Shakes it gets it loose.
Joyce Nethery (19:47):
And we have a barrel tasting experience that
you can schedule and we willtake you to the barrel barn
where you can thief from thebarrel and experience our
bourbon at Cask Street, straightfrom the barrel, surrounded by
more bourbon.
So it's a fabulous experienceand it's just hanging out,
hanging out in the yard in ourrocking chairs.
We've got cornhole and it'sjust a fabulous place to come
hang out anytime.
Janette Marson (20:07):
Yeah, for those people that have never been to
Jeptha Creed, all of those gamesand outdoor things and
activities.
I mean you literally couldspend an afternoon just relaxing
, having a beverage, evennon-alcoholic, and just enjoying
your time there.
Joyce Nethery (20:23):
Absolutely.
In addition to that, we haveour Creed Cafe, so we do have a
pizza, pizza that we make fromscratch, and so it's not
anything you just you know, buyfrozen.
We make it from scratch, it'swonderful.
Janette Marson (20:37):
I've had it.
It's really really good.
Joyce Nethery (20:39):
And we also have some other appetizers, some
pretzel bites and and macaroniand cheese bites.
Janette Marson (20:47):
Those are wonderful as well.
Joyce Nethery (20:50):
Several different appetizers.
Janette Marson (20:51):
So you can have lunch also.
Yes, everything is wonderful, Iknow.
Mason Warren (20:55):
I've met people out there before just to get
drinks and snacks and thingslike that.
My parents both have, and soit's always a very relaxed and
welcoming environment.
So that's always nice and Iappreciate that you can
accommodate visitors who don'tmake a reservation.
There are some otherdistilleries in the state that
(21:18):
just basically say, if you don'thave a reservation, don't show
up, and that's not really thewelcoming aspect that we're
going for as a state.
And so I have friends at otherdistilleries and I tell them you
all need to do what Jeff theCreed does, where they have that
tasting experience, where theydon't need reservations, and I'm
like well it does If things.
Joyce Nethery (21:39):
when the tourist season gets into full gear, I
would recommend, even for ourfree tasting experience, to have
a reservation because we doduring that time can fill up.
Yeah, full gear.
I would recommend, even for ourfree tasting experience, to
have a reservation, because wedo during that time can fill up.
But even if it's filled up, youcan still get a flight at the
cocktail bar and taste.
It's just you have to pay forit.
But you can get a flight, youcan get a cocktail, you can get
(22:01):
lunch.
You can have a fabulousexperience, even if the tasting
experience is awful.
Yeah, yeah.
Janette Marson (22:09):
So there's a lot of wonderful things that you do
at Jeff the Creed.
What is one thing that youthink sets you apart from other
distilleries?
Our corn, absolutely Well, yeah, definitely.
Joyce Nethery (22:23):
You know, being woman owned and woman run and
all those pieces, that's reallycool and awesome and I'm humbled
that people find that youknow's a unique, beautiful red
varietal Bloody Butcher, amongother varietals of corn, and
(22:50):
that we are very authentic intruly doing this ground to glass
and saving the seed andplanting them back, and that we
are truly working that processall the way through.
I think that ground to glass,that we are planting the seed,
growing the corn, harvesting itand going all the way through
(23:10):
the process that way is whatmakes us truly unique, Because
we just put out a six-year agedweeded bourbon.
Well, that took us seven yearsto make because it takes a year
to grow the corn.
So we have additionalinvestment in our bourbon
compared to all the otherdistilleries because of our
(23:30):
ground-to-glass concept.
So that is the piece that makesus truly unique.
Janette Marson (23:35):
Mason and I go to a lot of travel shows and
every time we meet anotherdistillery, especially a craft
distillery, they'll mentionJeptha Creed and what a great
job you do.
There are so many eyes on you,watching what you do and then
wanting to do the same orwhatever you're doing is working
.
Yeah, people are noticing.
Mason Warren (23:58):
So we've talked a lot about what you've done in
the past and things like that.
But what's next?
What's coming up for JepthaCreed?
Any news you can tease, oranything like that.
But what's next?
What's coming up for Jeff theCreed?
Any news you can tease, oranything like that.
Joyce Nethery (24:09):
Well, we've been laying down a lot of different
corn varietals of bourbon aswe've been going along, and one
of them is a pink varietal.
So we have grown a pink Hopicorn and have put some of that,
laid some of that down.
In addition to that, we havecombined our Bloody Butcher Red
(24:31):
and our white to make pink, youknow, and distilled a pink
bourbon that we will bereleasing in October in 2026.
Okay, All right.
Mason Warren (24:41):
Probably Hopefully .
Janette Marson (24:42):
Well, that sounds neat when you were saying
pink.
Mason Warren (24:44):
I was picturing like an October release tying
the breast cancer awareness.
Janette Marson (24:48):
Yes, yes, things like that.
Is that the tie-in?
That is the tie-in.
Yes, that's what.
I was wondering as well.
That's amazing.
That is the tie-in.
Yeah, Okay.
Joyce Nethery (24:55):
So for breast cancer awareness for sure.
So that will be coming up inthe future.
This fall we will our fourthrelease of our red, white and
blue, so that will be justabsolutely awesome.
And then you know, after thatwe have other varietals of corn
bourbons that we will be doingsomething with in the future
(25:16):
Possibly.
We've laid down some of what Icall my husband's Bruce's Blue
corn bourbon and we've laid thatdown, and could we have some
special releases of Bruce's Bluecoming out.
Janette Marson (25:27):
Oh, that's fantastic, yeah, wonderful.
It's good to know.
I'm especially interested inthe pink and how each of the
colors changes the flavor.
Joyce Nethery (25:36):
Yes, I'm excited to.
So the pink bourbon will be aunique its own beautiful bourbon
.
Janette Marson (25:42):
Oh, I'm excited.
I'm very excited.
How can people learn more ortalk about your what's your
website and hours of operation?
Just go into a little bit moreon that.
Joyce Nethery (25:55):
Well, obviously you can go to our website, which
is jeffthecreedcom, and we gotlinks to all kinds of
information there.
So our online store, all AboutUs and our hours.
So we are open Thursday throughSunday to the public.
Thursday through Saturday we'reopen 11 to 6 pm, and then on
(26:18):
Sundays we're open noon to 5.
So you can come in and justexperience everything we got
going on.
Janette Marson (26:23):
Oh, that's fantastic.
Now you mentioned Sundays.
Are you still doing the specialSunday?
We still have the giant BloodyMary.
Joyce Nethery (26:31):
The giant Bloody Mary, yes, and in addition to
the giant Bloody Mary, we havean individual Bloody Mary that
you can get, with all thedifferent food pieces on it.
Mason Warren (26:41):
So if you don't quite need a gallon of it.
Joyce Nethery (26:43):
Yeah, if you don't have six people to come
and hang out with you, right?
Janette Marson (26:48):
Is it a gallon?
It looked huge.
Joyce Nethery (26:50):
I think it's a half gallon and it's designed to
serve four, but there's enoughthere that you could get more
than four.
Janette Marson (26:55):
It looked like chicken strips and all kinds of
egg rolls and all the thingswere coming out of it.
Joyce Nethery (27:02):
There's a meal.
There's a meal hanging on those, for sure.
Janette Marson (27:07):
And Sundays.
What are your hours again for?
Joyce Nethery (27:09):
the.
Janette Marson (27:09):
Noon to five.
Noon to five.
Okay, anything else you want totell us about?
About Jeptha Creed, anything wehaven't gone over, or?
Joyce Nethery (27:18):
Well, we're very proud to be part of Shelby
County.
We are Shelby County Inns andobviously built our distillery
and invested in Shelby County.
So we're very, very proud andhappy to be here and being right
there on the interstate.
We kind of see ourselves asbeing an entryway into Shelby
County, so we're very happy tobe the opening for everybody.
Janette Marson (27:39):
Yeah, when we talk to people that have come on
the highway, oh, you mean thatbeautiful red building, so they
maybe haven't stopped, butthey're thinking about it, and
definitely the entryway.
I knew what we were talkingabout when we said it yes, one
last question before we wrap up.
Mason Warren (27:54):
When we kind of look at the stats of people who
are listening to this, we've gotalmost coast to coast a few
pockets here and there of states.
Where can people find yourbourbon?
Which states are youdistributed?
Joyce Nethery (28:06):
We are distributed in, obviously,
Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois,Missouri, Texas, Florida,
Georgia and Colorado.
Also, this year we are openingup and starting in Pennsylvania
and Virginia.
Mason Warren (28:18):
Okay, Exciting, and did I say Ohio?
Joyce Nethery (28:20):
Ohio also.
Mason Warren (28:21):
You might have, If not Ohio.
Janette Marson (28:23):
Yes, Ohio also All right.
Oh, that's fantastic.
Well, each year that you'rearound, more and more people are
hearing about you, no matterwhat city we're in.
We say Jeptha Creed and oh yeah, I've heard about that, so
definitely the word.
You're not a hidden wonder,You're just a wonderful wonder.
Yes, we're just a wonder.
(28:44):
Yes, you are just a wonder.
Joyce Nethery (28:46):
Absolutely but.
Janette Marson (28:46):
Joyce, thank you so much for being on the show
with us.
Thank you for telling us moreabout Jeptha Creed and all that
you're doing and things that arecoming up.
Joyce Nethery (28:54):
Well, thank you all for having me.
I very much appreciate it andthank you for everything that
you're doing with Shelby CountyTourism.
Mason Warren (29:00):
Oh well, thank you .
Thank you, this has beenKentucky Hidden Wonders.
Thank you to Joyce Nethery forcoming on the show to talk about
Jeptha Cree Distillery, andthank you for listening.
If you've made it this far,make sure you subscribe and
leave us a review.
It means the world to us.
We'll return with a brand newepisode of Kentucky Hidden
(29:22):
Wonders in two weeks.
Bye everyone.
Kentucky Hidden Wonders is aShelby KY Tourism production.
We'll see you next time.
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