Jeptha Creed Distillery

On a working farm in Shelby County, Kentucky, a mother and daughter grow their own corn, mash it, ferment it, distill it, and bottle it without ever sending a drop off the property. Jeptha Creed Distillery calls this philosophy "Farm to Glass," and it is not a marketing phrase so much as a literal description of how every bottle in its lineup comes to exist.

History & Heritage

Jeptha Creed opened to the public on November 11, 2016, initially offering vodka and moonshine before its bourbon program matured. It was co-founded by Joyce Nethery and her daughter Autumn Nethery, who built the distillery from the ground up on the Nethery family's farmland at 500 Gordon Lane in Shelbyville. The family owns roughly 2,000 acres in Shelby County, including the distillery property and the home farm where the signature grain is grown. Joyce Nethery, a chemical engineer by training, serves as master distiller, owner, and co-founder, leading fermentation control and distilling. Autumn Nethery is co-owner and, as of March 2026, was promoted to Vice President of Operations, having previously served as Director of Operations. The distillery uses a Vendome Copper & Brass Works pot still, a maker long associated with Kentucky's craft distilling revival.

Central to Jeptha Creed's identity is Bloody Butcher corn, a non-GMO, open-pollinated heirloom variety with a deep red kernel that the distillery grows itself and uses across its spirits. In March 2025, Jeptha Creed joined the Estate Whiskey Alliance, an organization that recognizes whiskeys made with at least two-thirds of their mash bill grains grown on estate-owned or controlled land, a formal acknowledgment of the farm-to-still model the Netherys had already been practicing for nearly a decade.

The Whiskey

Jeptha Creed's flagship is its Four Grain Bourbon, aged at least four years and bottled at 49% ABV (98 proof), with a mash bill of 70% Bloody Butcher corn, 15% malted rye, 10% malted wheat, and 5% malted barley. The Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon steps up to 50% ABV (100 proof) under federal bond requirements, built from 75% Bloody Butcher corn, 20% malted rye, and 5% malted barley. The 6 Year Wheated Bourbon swaps rye for wheat in its secondary grain, running 75% Bloody Butcher corn, 20% malted wheat, and 5% malted barley at 46.5% ABV (93 proof). The Red White & Blue Bourbon takes the most experimental approach: Batch 4 blends three corn varieties in equal thirds, 25% Bloody Butcher, 25% heirloom white corn, and 25% Bruce's Blue corn, alongside 20% malted rye and 5% malted barley, at 50% ABV (100 proof). A portion of its sales supports charitable partnerships benefiting veterans and military families.

The whiskey has drawn recognition beyond the farm gate. The Four Grain Bourbon carries a 2024 San Francisco World Spirits Competition Gold Medal, and Jeptha Creed's bourbons as a line earned a 2024 SIP Awards Double Gold. The Red White & Blue Bourbon specifically was awarded 98 Points Platinum in the 2024 Chilled 100 Spirits Awards.

Why It Matters

Jeptha Creed is owned, as of July 2026, by Joyce Nethery and Autumn Nethery, with no acquisitions or ownership changes reported since founding. That continuity matters because so much of what makes the brand distinct depends on the family controlling every step, from the field to the bottle. In an industry where "craft" often means a sourced mash bill dressed up with a new label, Jeptha Creed's insistence on growing its own Bloody Butcher corn and refusing outside sourcing is a genuinely uncommon commitment, one now formally recognized by its membership in the Estate Whiskey Alliance. The distillery has also built a reputation with visitors, earning a spot in TripAdvisor's 2024 Travelers' Choice Awards among the top 10 percent of listings worldwide.

Visiting the Distillery

Jeptha Creed's visitor center is open Thursday through Saturday from 11am to 6pm and Sunday from 12pm to 5pm, closed Monday through Wednesday. The standard Distillery Tour runs one hour through the production area, explains the bourbon-making process and the role of Bloody Butcher corn, includes adult sampling, and is capped at 18 guests; it runs Thursday through Sunday at noon and 4pm, priced at $15 for adults and $10 for minors. The distillery also offers a Single Barrel Thieving Experience, which pairs a brief tour with thieving a cask-strength bourbon straight from the barrel, and a Farm to Your Glass Experience that walks guests through the production floor with a focus on the heirloom corn.