Kentucky craft distillery Jeptha Creed is marking its 10th anniversary and Veterans Day simultaneously with the November 7 release of Red, White & Blue Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Batch 5, priced at $74.99 SRP. A portion of proceeds benefits K9s For Warriors, the nonprofit that rescues dogs and pairs them as trained service animals with military veterans suffering from PTSD, traumatic brain injury, or military sexual trauma — at no cost to the veteran.
The Bottle Itself
Batch 5 presents as a brilliant orange-brown amber, with a nose of red berry fruits, bread pudding, nutmeg, and clove. On the palate, the whiskey is rich and buttery, building through layers of caramel, toasted nuts, dried fruit, toffee, and cinnamon before finishing with sweet oak and warm baking spices. The expression is made using Bloody Butcher Corn grown on the distillery's own 64-acre Shelbyville farm — a grain-to-glass approach that has defined the mother-daughter operation since Joyce and Autumn Nethery opened the doors on Veterans Day 2016.
"Veterans Day has always held a significant place in our journey, as it's the day we first opened our doors ten years ago," said Joyce Nethery, Master Distiller and CEO of Jeptha Creed. "Collaborating with K9s For Warriors makes this year's release especially meaningful, as we support an organization making a tangible difference in veterans' lives."
Distribution and the Event
Batch 5 is available through the distillery's gift shop, online spirits shop, and select retail locations across 40 U.S. states, making it one of the more broadly distributed releases in the series. To mark the launch, Jeptha Creed will host a Veterans Day tribute on November 7 featuring a color guard ceremony, guest speakers, bottle signings, and light appetizers — an activation model that other craft producers have used effectively to build community loyalty around limited annual releases.
K9s For Warriors, founded in 2011, has to date paired more than 1,350 veterans with service dogs and rescued more than 2,500 animals. Daniel Bean, CEO of K9s For Warriors, noted that collaborations like this one help the organization continue providing service-dog pairings while also giving rescue dogs renewed purpose.
Why It Matters for Operators
For retailers and on-premise buyers, the Red, White & Blue series illustrates how craft distilleries can turn a calendar moment into a recurring, values-driven purchase occasion. The annual drop builds collector demand and story-driven sell-through, while the charitable tie-in gives retailers and bar programs a ready-made narrative for staff training and guest engagement around Veterans Day. Craft bourbon continues to be one of the stronger performers in the beverage industry's premium spirits segment, and limited charitable releases tend to outperform standard seasonal SKUs in both velocity and average selling price.
The release also reflects a broader trend in the hospitality and restaurant industry toward purpose-led brand partnerships — where operators increasingly seek supplier relationships that carry a community angle to share with guests. At $74.99, Batch 5 sits firmly in the premium craft tier, suitable for both retail gift sets and curated whiskey programs at full-service restaurants and hotel bars.
This story is also featured in our sister publication Food & Beverage Magazine, which covers the spirits and craft distilling market for industry professionals.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
