Bulleit Proof

How I Took a 150-Year-Old Family Recipe and a Revolver, and Disrupted the Entire Liquor Industry One Bottle, One Sip, One Handshake at a Time

Tom Bulleit, Alan Eisenstock

• Publisher: Wiley
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN:
  9781394321643
  9781119597735
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9781119597759
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business Biographies
• Index: Business

The compelling story of how one man took a 150-year-old family recipe and disrupted the entire liquor industry one sip, one bottle, one handshake at a time

Tom Bulleit stood on a stage before a thousand people inside a tent the size of a big-top. It was both his thirtieth wedding anniversary and his birthday. But there was another thing to celebrate: the dedication of the new Bulleit Distillery in Shelbyville, Kentucky. His great-great-grandfather, Augustus, created his first batch of Bulleit Bourbon around 1830. A century and a half later, Tom fulfilled his lifelong dream, revived the old family bourbon recipe, and started Bulleit Distilling Company. Eventually, Tom was named a member of the Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels, and elected to the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame. Thinking back on all his achievements, Tom was overcome by a wave of emotion. He looked into the sea of faces and said, "I don't believe our lives are told in years. . . or months. . . or weeks. I believe we live our lives in moments."

Tom's book Bulleit Proof is just that—a life told in moments. Moments of joy, triumph, hardship, persistence, and success. His is a story of survival: in war, in business, in life. Tom faced death twice: in a foxhole and in a cancer ward. In Bulleit Proof, Tom reveals all, pulls no punches, and lets you into his heart. In this book, you will:

• Share Tom's personal story, including his loves, losses, and struggles
• Learn the history of one of America's most beloved and awarded brands
• Draw inspiration from the persistence and dedication Tom has shown throughout his life
• Explore how Bulleit Bourbon changed the liquor industry forever

Bulleit Proof is a fast-paced page-turner—not only for fans of Bulleit Bourbon and admirers of Tom, but for anyone who loves an emotional, hilarious, inspirational, and deeply honest story.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Be Proactive: (Problems Do Not Resolve Themselves)
• Presume Nothing: (“No, This Gun Isn't Loaded”)
• Be Prepared: (Embrace the Wisdom of the Boy Scouts)
• If It Doesn't Seem Right, It Probably Isn't: (Trust Your Gut)
• 20/40/60: (At 20, You Worry Yourself Sick About What People Think of You. At 40, You Say, “The Hell with ’Em.” At 60, You Realize They Were Not Thinking About You.)
• Go All In: (Without Commitment and Passion—Which Are Infectious—It Won't Happen)
• Be Afraid: (Today May Be the Day It All Turns to Shit)
• “No battle was ever won by spectators.”: —John Le Carré
• Be Result Oriented: (Nothing Was Built by Performing Tasks)
• Find Humility Before It Finds You: (Life Is Coming to Get Us All)
• Plan Ahead: (If You're in the Far‐Left Lane and You Need to Exit Right in 500 Feet, You May Arrive in the Afterlife Instead of Altoona)
• No News Is Not Good News: (Things Are Just Getting Worse)
• Follow the Money: (You Will Find the Answers to Life's Questions Along and at the End of the Money Trail)
• Know the Facts: (There Are Such Things and to Know Them Is Power)
• Focus on the Task at Hand: (If You Don't Complete What You're Doing Right Now, Nothing Comes Next)
• Bulleit Points
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Index
• Supplemental Images
• End User License Agreement