Bruce’s Blue Bourbon: Jeptha Creed’s Heirloom Corn Expression

Bruce’s Blue Bourbon is the newest expression from Jeptha Creed Distillery in Shelbyville, Kentucky — a Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey built on a proprietary heirloom blue corn varietal that the distillery developed, planted, and harvested exclusively on its own 64-acre farm. Bottled at 100 proof from a mash bill of 75 percent Bruce’s Blue corn, 20 percent malted rye, and 5 percent malted barley, Bruce’s Blue Bourbon represents the realization of a vision driven by Bruce Nethery, husband of Master Distiller Joyce Nethery and the force behind the family’s farming operation. At $59.99, it arrives in limited 750ml bottles at the Distillery Visitor Center and select Kentucky retailers.

The Corn Behind Bruce’s Blue Bourbon

What separates Bruce’s Blue Bourbon from every other bourbon on the shelf is the grain itself. Bruce’s Blue is not a commercially available corn — it is an exclusive heirloom varietal that Bruce Nethery developed over years of agricultural work on the Jeptha Creed farm. The distillery already built its reputation on Bloody Butcher Corn, a deep-red heirloom variety used across its full lineup of vodka, moonshine, and bourbon.

Bruce’s Blue Bourbon extends that ground-to-glass philosophy into new territory, proving that the flavor of a bourbon can be shaped as deliberately in the field as it is in the rickhouse. The estate-grown grain movement in American whiskey has been gaining serious traction, and Jeptha Creed has been running that playbook longer than most.

How Bruce’s Blue Bourbon Drinks

Bruce’s Blue Bourbon opens on the nose with clover honey, rich cocoa, orange marmalade, almond amaretto, and blonde roast coffee — a complex entry that signals the heirloom grain’s influence before the first sip. The palate is round and velvety with notes of classic cola, sugary dates, cocoa powder, aged maple wood, and toasted clove. The finish lingers with crushed white pepper, sugary muddled mint, crème brûlée, and charred pipe tobacco. At 100 proof, the intensity is there without heat dominating the experience — this is a bourbon that rewards patience and a clean glass.

Jeptha Creed and the Force Behind Bruce’s Blue Bourbon

Jeptha Creed is owned and operated by the mother-daughter duo of Joyce and Autumn Nethery — one of the few women-owned craft distilleries in Kentucky. Joyce serves as Master Distiller and CEO, and her approach has always started with what grows on the farm rather than what the market expects from a bourbon label. Bruce’s Blue Bourbon carries her husband’s name and his agricultural vision into the bottle, cementing Jeptha Creed as a benchmark for heirloom grain spirits and a distillery that continues to push the boundaries of what Kentucky bourbon can be. More information at jepthacreed.com.

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