After several years with few opportunities to engage with customers, master distillers and blenders at Lux Row Distillers™, Limestone Branch Distillery™, Ross & Squibb Distillery™ and Destiladora Gonzalez Lux™ have been chomping at the bit to get back on the road and in front of customers, key accounts and spirits-industry influencers.

The past two years have offered creative opportunities to reach out through Zoom and other platforms, but there’s no substitute for meeting face-to-face with fans of Luxco® brands. Following are just a handful of the customer-engagement efforts undertaken by those responsible for creating Luxco’s family of brands:

Limestone Branch Distillery

At the end of 2022, Limestone Branch Distillery master distiller Steve Beam hit the road in a Yellowstone-branded tour bus for a multi-city tour to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Yellowstone National Park and its namesake bourbon. Along the way, he enjoyed meeting – and sipping a glass of Yellowstone® Bourbon – with customers, key-account reps and interested local media. The tour culminated with a visit to St. Louis, where Steve presided over a popup event at St. Louis’ City Foundry, followed with a bottle signing at local account Dogwood Social House in nearby Ellisville, Missouri. His passion for shelter dogs on display, Steve was accompanied on the tour by his two shelter dogs, Case and Char, and found time to participate in a fundraiser benefiting St. Louis’ APA Pet Adoption Center. While no formal plans have been made as yet in 2023, Steve is looking to get out on the road to entertain, educate and engage with Yellowstone Bourbon fans.

Lux Row Distillers

Since Lux Row Distillers opened more than five years ago, John Rempe has worn two hats: that of master distiller AND master blender for the Ezra Brooks®, Rebel® and Daviess County® brands, as well as for the Blood Oath® series of bourbons. In early 2023, John put his blending skills on display for a blending session, featuring the Daviess County family of bourbons, at a series of events in St. Louis. Joined by Missouri Field Sales Manager Dustin Parres, John played host at two events. The first event – an industry luncheon for 40 local bar owners and bartenders – featured a blending tutorial, where John showed the “class” how Daviess County variants (including Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Cabernet Sauvignon and French Oak) could be blended to bring out new tasting notes and create unique new flavors to enjoy and share. John and Dustin then took the tutorial directly to consumers via a similar blending session for members of the St. Louis Bourbon Society. Similar tasting events are planned throughout 2023, with the goal of creating new blends and new fans of Daviess County Bourbon.

Ross & Squibb

Less than halfway into 2023, Ross & Squibb Distillery Master Distiller Ian Stirsman has crisscrossed the United States and ventured to Europe and the U.K. in support of the Remus® and Rossville Union® brands. From distributor meetings in Los Angeles to a tasting with the Philadelphia Whiskey Society and stops in Kansas and Missouri for National Bootleggers Day, Ian has maintained a full calendar including barrel picks and events closer to the Indiana distillery. Hot on the heels of a successful European campaign, Ian offered to host members of the European media he engaged with at the ProWein event and subsequent media tour in London. Plans are in the works for several in-bound visits from European media outlets. (You can read more on ProWein in this newsletter.)

Destiladora Gonzalez

Graciela “Grace” Gonzalez, fourth-generation distiller and daughter of Rodolfo Gonzalez, master distiller at Destiladora Gonzalez Lux, is embarking on a U.S. tour in 2023 to meet with El Mayor® distributors, sales teams and consumers. During the multi-city tour, Grace will promote the award-winning brand through on- and off-premise tasting events. 2023 marks the 25th anniversary of the El Mayor brand and provides the perfect opportunity for Grace to share the rich history of Destiladora Gonzalez Lux and the craft of tequila making. She’ll also introduce El Mayor’s latest limited-edition offering: El Mayor 25th Anniversary Extra Añejo Tequila.