Call leaving Green River Spirits

Jul. 14—Jacob Call, the man who brought the old Green River Distilling Co. in western Owensboro back to life, starting in 2014, is leaving at the end of July.

But Call, the distillery's master distiller and director of operations, says he's not leaving the bourbon industry — and he's not leaving Owensboro.

He said that's all he can say until the no-compete clause in his contract expires on Oct. 31.

Wednesday was the day Bardstown Bourbon Co., a division of Pritzker Private Capital, took over ownership of Green River Spirits and its Owensboro-based Green River Distilling Co.

Mark Erwin of Bardstown, the new CEO of Green River Spirits, said, "I was very disappointed that Jacob decided to leave. He's someone I trust. He's been helpful to me in the past. I was looking forward to working with him."

Call said it's a "bittersweet" decision, but he wants to do something on his own in the future.

The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority gave preliminary approval in May to provide $1 million in tax incentives for The Kentucky Whiskey Co. LLC — an Owensboro-based start-up — if it builds a distillery in Ohio County.

No information has been released about the company since then.

Call said he could not comment on whether he will be involved.

He's the eighth generation of his family to make bourbon since Samuel Call in 1791 in what's now Bourbon County.

Call started his career in banking, but joined his father at Florida Distillers in 2007.

"But being from Kentucky, I wanted to come back and make bourbon," he said recently.

Call got the chance in 2014 when what was then South Carolina-based Terressentia Corp. bought the old Charles Medley Distillers Kentucky.

Call made his first bourbon there in 2016.

And he's created more than 20 recipes for bourbon and rye since then — including the new Green River Kentucky Straight Bourbon.

Fifteen of them carry his name on the label.

Call said Green River Spirits "has been on the market for awhile" and he began to make plans during that time.

"Mark is a great guy, and he'll do a fine job here," he said. "I wish him well. It's a friendly breakup."

Call said, "I always want to leave something better than I found it."

What he found was a derelict distillery that hadn't made whiskey in more than a generation.

Call brought it back into a distillery that produced 94,000 barrels of bourbon and rye last year.

He's worked with football legend Terry Bradshaw, country singer Alan Jackson and others to create bourbon recipes for them.

"So far, that's been the highlight of my career," Call said.

Keith Lawrence, 270-691-7301 klawrence@messenger-inquirer.com