These days it takes two things to build a successful whiskey brand from the ground up: exceptional liquid and a compelling story. It seems that the Mary Dowling Whiskey Company has both of those bases covered. Launched as a joint venture in late 2023 by global spirits behemoth Pernod Ricard and Kaveh Zamanian, the co-founder of Rabbit Hole Distillery in which Pernod Ricard acquired a majority stake in 2019, the brand could well become a player in the premium whiskey market.
A passion project for Zamanian, a member of the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame, the brand pays homage to Mary Dowling, a pioneering female distiller whose story had been lost to time. Described as the “Mother of Bourbon,” her life would make a grand Hollywood movie. She became the first woman to run a major distillery in Kentucky, weathered a major distillery fire, founded a bank, battled law enforcement during prohibition, and ultimately relocated her distillery to Juárez, Mexico, to escape government oversight.
“Long obscured by the mists of time, Mary Dowling’s story is one of the most motivational and compelling in the annals of whiskey-making,” says Zamanian. “We wanted to create a whiskey to honor her extraordinary character, celebrate her legacy and her iconic distillery, Waterfill & Frazier.”
Even before Pernod Richard acquired Rabbit Hole, Zamanian had been considering launching a new whiskey brand. Long a believer in progressive whiskey-making techniques, he designed Rabbit Hole’s 55,000-square-foot distillery, which opened in 2018, to be an incubator for new ideas and techniques. He had laid down numerous “opportunity” barrels crafted using different recipes and techniques with an eye to the future. That liquid formed the backbone for the first two distinctive expressions launched by Mary Dowling Whiskey.
Kaveh Zamanian, the president of the Mary Dowling Whiskey Company.
“What’s really exciting about American whiskey is that you can be so creative with it, the possibilities are endless when it comes to crafting new expressions,” says Zamanian. “I have always said that one of the most beautiful things about bourbon is that it is 51% corn and 49% possibilities. Once you have the corn to provide the base sweetness, you have an unlimited landscape to play around to create something special. I think that our first two releases for Mary Dowling Whiskey highlight that perfectly.”
Each of the brand’s first two bourbons pays homage to Mary Dowling and leans into secondary maturation of its bourbons distilled at the Rabbit Hole Distillery in casks designed to impart distinctive flavors.
The first, Tequila Barrel, is a high rye Kentucky Straight Bourbon finished in Reposado tequila barrels. It has a mash bill of 70% corn, 25% malted rye, and 5% malted barley that adds a spiciness and is bottled at 93 proof. It retails at $75. The second, Double Oak Barrel, is a wheated Kentucky Straight Bourbon that undergoes two agings in new American Oak barrels. Its mash bill is 65% corn, 25% wheat, and 10% malted barley that produces a sweeter whiskey that is bottled at barrel strength. It retails at $130.
After a quiet launch in the summer of 2023, the brand is poised to make some big moves in 2024. Available in eleven states and online, it plans to expand its presence quickly, with national and international distribution in its sights.
Mary Dowling Whiskey is working with Castle Brands, the developer and international marketer of wines and spirits that Pernod Ricard acquired in 2019, to create a presence in the marketplace. To help establish their bourbon’s credibility with consumers and tell Mary Dowling’s tale brand commissioned a historian to research her story. They plan on releasing a book around her story in the fall.
The first two offering from the Mary Dowling Whiskey Company.
Plus, they are entering the awards circuit to establish the brand’s credibility with drinkers. In its first year of existence, it has won several medals from the San Francisco World Spirits Competition for both bourbons. Its distinctive decanter-styled bottle was also just awarded a gold medal for excellence in packaging at the Adi International Spirits Competition.
It remains to be seen if Mary Dowling Whiskey can become a presence in an increasingly crowded premium bourbon field, but so far, it seems that the brand is making the right moves. Zamanian already stuck gold once with Rabbit Hole, and this time, he has the heft of Pernod Ricard behind him to drive his latest creation forward. It seems that Mary Dowling might be ready to take her place in the bourbon world again.