WHY HORSE SOLDIER BOURBON IS A RULE-BREAKER
Scott Neil’s band of brothers brings a Green Beret’s mindset to the business and enjoyment of whiskey. They built a brand from a 9/11 mission in Afghanistan and a movie premiere. They treat bourbon as a hundred‑year project that honors service and small‑town America. And the team started it all by a chance walk through a bar two hours from Pocatello, Idaho.
The first time I heard Scott talk about “chasing the elusive sunshine,” I knew his story would not sound like a typical bourbon origin tale. Snow in Kentucky, rain in Florida, and rain in Scotland; it felt like the weather kept pushing him forward.
That energy shows up in everything the Horse Soldier team does.
American Freedom Distillery, the parent company of Horse Soldier Bourbon, was founded in 2015 by retired Green Berets Scott Neil, John Koko, and John’s wife, Elizabeth Pritchard-Koko. As the Horse Soldier Bourbon brand was developed, fellow Green Berets Mark Nutsch and Bob Pennington joined as founding partners and ambassadors, helping shape the brand and its national identity.
The Horse Soldier story does not begin at a polished visitor center. It begins like a Quentin Tarantino film.
The Horse Soldier Origin Story
“The origin story of Horse Soldier starts in the middle,” Scott said. “The team served together as Green Berets and loved bourbon enough to start asking questions about how it is really made. We were military friends on a post‑retirement road trip.” They were not a group of investors in a conference room.
In 2015, after leaving the army, Scott and several retired military buddies drove to Yellowstone to figure out what came next.
“The Yellowstone trip wasn’t intended to start a whiskey company, Scott said. “It was a group of retired Special Forces soldiers trying to figure out what the next chapter of life looked like after military service.”
They drove on from Wyoming with new questions rattling around the truck. The buddies started talking mash bills instead of missions, wondering how they could make their new passion into a real business.
They walked into a small craft distillery in Driggs, Idaho, named Grand Teton Distillery.
The person behind the counter poured them vodka made from potato flakes. “He taught us about the ingredients behind what they make,” Scott explained. “That started our discovery.” When the distiller invited them into the back, they saw copper, steam, gauges, and the rhythm of real production. “My buddies realized for the first time there is a lot behind the whiskey bottle,” Scott said.
That simple tour shifted their path, and turned curiosity into a mission.
Whiskey Basic Training
The Horse Soldier crew approached the whiskey business the way a Special Forces team goes through basic and advanced training, with long days, hard lessons, and mentors who expected relentless, rigorous, and resilient effort.
Scott describes the team’s whiskey education with a martial arts metaphor that fits his Special Forces background. “Our education in all things whiskey was like Kung Fu,” he said. “You could watch The Karate Kid all day long, but unless you study with a master, you do not get the essence.”
The team felt the distilling world had plenty of beautiful bottles and not enough real training. So they created their own training pipeline. “We started pulsing our network worldwide,” Scott said. The first call went to a friend from the Royal Marines who had stayed in touch since Iraq.
The Royal Marine said, “We just started a Scotch distillery in Wolfburn, in Thurso, Scotland, the northernmost mainland distillery in Scotland. If you want to come to Scotland, work is available.” He did not offer a VIP tour, but he did offer sacks of grain and long days. So the Horse Soldiers went to Scotland. They opened grain sacks, milled grain, and turned on the stills.
“Most people go to Scotland and stay behind the velvet rope and talk about the nuances of nutmeg and fruit taste,” Scott said. “We got behind the ropes because Special Forces taught us to learn directly from masters in the field rather than from a classroom. We approached whiskey the same way.”
For the next two years, the team treated the whiskey world like a training rotation. They visited Ireland, Cuba, and distilleries across the United States. They watched mash bills in practice instead of only reading mash bills on labels. They handled two‑row, four‑row, and six‑row barley.
“The point was to understand nature, process, and time in a way that was earned,” Scott told me. They wanted to measure energy inputs, track yields, and connect those numbers to flavor. That mindset broke from the usual new‑brand playbook that leaned on sourced whiskey.
From Little Parts to 12 Strong: Naming Horse Soldier
At some point, every whiskey dream has to move from theory to liquid. For the American Distillery Company, the first step looked nothing like a big Kentucky distillery. “First, we ordered a little thing on Amazon,” Scott said. “It was a little crock-pot-looking still.” They filed for the required permits and began experimenting.
The crew bought a thirty-two‑gallon still from Hillbilly Stills and set it up with a fish tank for cooling water. “We were Frankensteining every aspect ourselves,” Scott said. Each batch taught them about temperature, cook time, and the consequences of burning a mash. The team made mistake after mistake and learned with every run.
Eventually, they connected with Ryan Lang at Middle West Spirits. “He said the same thing as our warriors in Scotland,” Scott recalled. “Come here and learn how to create your recipe and grow it.” They brought the mash bills they wanted. Ryan walked them through a 500‑gallon still, then a 1,000‑gallon still, then a 1.5‑million‑gallon continuous still.
That was the moment Horse Soldier truly became a whiskey‑making business.
Then came an opportunity to attend a movie premiere in New York. The film “12 Strong,” based on the book Horse Soldiers and the 9/11 Green Beret mission.
They did not plan to attend the posh premiere, but that changed when their wives were invited and wanted to go. Before they flew to New York, the team asked if they could also bring their young whiskey to the after‑party. The answer came back: “Bring some of your horse soldiers’ whiskey.”
The New York trip was “a bunch of guys with some barrels and no plan.” The team knew what whiskey they liked. They had learned how whiskey was made and how to make the whiskey they liked to drink. What they did not have was a brand deck, a distributor, or even a legal-pad sketch of a business plan. A movie invitation, a stack of young barrels, and a Ground Zero–statue logo pulled their story into focus in one night.
Even then, they still did not have a brand. “We did not think about selling it,” Scott said. “This truly was a hobby among friends.” They made barrels because they loved whiskey and wanted to drink the whiskey they liked.
The name arrived in a rush, thanks to Hollywood. The crew loved the name of the book upon which the movie was based. And Horse Soldier Bourbon was born.
To start, the partners filled plain bottles with their own whiskey. They printed a label featuring the Ground Zero Horse Soldier statue and wrote “Horse Soldier Bourbon” on it. This improvised label at a movie premiere became the brand’s name.
Forged in Fire
If you have ever seen a bottle of Horse Soldier on the back bar, you know it stands out. The shape, weight, and metal label look different from those of common glass forms. That difference is on purpose; they wanted a bottle steeped in symbolism.
The team met with Anchor Glass, whose spirits-glass operation was in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. “They said, ‘Here are thirteen cheap glasses that look like every brand,’” Scott told me. “‘Just put a label on [one], and it will be yours.’”
However, the founders wanted something recognizably American—and personal.
They learned that the highest cost in creating a custom bottle is the mold. The mold needs high‑grade steel. They asked a question that few people would ask. “If the team brought the steel,” he said, “could there be a discount on the mold?” The glass company did not know what he meant at first.
They called friends. A ton of steel arrived at the foundry. When workers cut into it, they realized it was World Trade Center steel from Ground Zero. Steel recovered from the World Trade Center became part of the steel used to manufacture the molds that produce every Horse Soldier bottle.
The phrase “forged in fire” on their glass is literal, not just poetic.
The wives added another layer. John Koko’s wife, Elizabeth Pritchard-Koko, whom Scott calls Snow White, came from a perfume and skincare background. She thought about packaging as “bar jewelry.” She wanted a bottle that looked beautiful and distinctive behind a bar. She added broad shoulders for weight, a metal label that feels like a piece of gear, and a hatchet and an arrow, along with other distinctive symbols.
The team created twelve hidden meanings, from the challenge coin in the top to the oak topper and the heaviness of the glass. The result is a bottle that tells a story before the cork pops.
Horse Soldier became one of the most popular gifts in military and first-responder circles, especially at retirements and changes of command.
The Liberty Edition
The founders of the firm grew up in a world where patriotism was part of everyday life.
“We were taught patriotism, Minutemen, the history of the Revolution, the foundation of the Constitution, and about protecting those ideas today,” Scott said. That foundation led him into Special Forces. It also shapes Horse Soldier Bourbon.
This year marks the 250th anniversary of American independence. Scott remembers the 200th as a kid. He recalls banners, flags, parades, Jeeps, and the feeling that every town wanted to celebrate. Those memories drive their Liberty Edition at Horse Soldier Farms in Somerset, Kentucky.
The Liberty Edition bottle looks like a statement. Many describe it as “a beautiful, faded-copper bottle” topped with the Statue of Liberty torch.
The team bottled a 13‑year‑old bourbon and produced exactly 1,776 bottles, a nod to the original 13 colonies and the year 1776.
The liquid comes from barrels they selected after years of learning about maturation from their production partners. “The barrels the team selected were almost at 140 proof,” Scott said. “We did not want to put that in a bottle.” They proofed the whiskey down to 100 because they wanted the bourbon to drink beautifully, not simply impress with a big number.
The bottle created an unexpected problem. “The bottle is so striking, and the price is high enough that many people want to display it instead of drink it,” Scott said. His advice? “Just drink it. If you want to display the bottle, put some iced tea in it so if somebody is sneaking your great bourbon, they will know that you know.”
Building the Biggest Small‑Town Fourth of July in America
Horse Soldier’s Liberty Edition is only one expression of Scott’s rule‑breaking patriotism. The other took shape as celebration. For several years, the team had been building a large, modern production facility in Somerset, Kentucky, called Horse Soldier Farms.
In July 2026, Horse Soldier Farms officially opened with ribbon-cutting ceremonies, professional bull riding, nationally recognized musical acts, fireworks, and thousands of visitors.
“The goal was to create a premier American whiskey destination experience,” Scott said.
Horse Soldier intentionally chose Somerset because it represents the best of small-town America while serving as the southern gateway to the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and Lake Cumberland.
Families come from all directions to spend weekends on the water. “People can stay, play, drink great bourbon, and spend a day on the lake. That’s the small‑town experience we want.”
Horse Soldier Farms represents the next chapter of the company—bringing together bourbon production, hospitality, tourism, history, agriculture, and American patriotism into one destination.
Three Cheers to Three Tiers
The team’s early attempts at distribution sound like field improvisations. They did not know a three-tier distribution system from a new team rucking into the mountains,
After the 12 Strong premiere and that first Horse Soldier moment, they brought some whiskey to a charity event.
The owners of ABC Fine Wine & Spirits in Florida happened to be there. “They said if you have bottles, they will buy some.” That is how their first real order appeared.
The partners loaded bottles into a car and drove them to a store. “We said to the store clerk, last weekend, the owner said he wanted us to bring a couple of cases for you to sell in the store. Pay us,” he recalled. The staff explained that it does not work that way. They introduced the team to a distributor instead.
Eric at Breakthru Beverage Group, a beverage distributor, heard the story and also heard the part about hand‑delivering bottles. “You cannot do that,” he told them.
There is no playbook for first‑time whiskey founders. Scott and his partners had to learn each legal and logistical rule on the fly.
However, Eric agreed to take five hundred cases. The Horse Soldier team flew back, spent about eighteen hours hand‑bottling in the warehouse, then rented a U‑Haul and drove the load to the distributor’s address. “We rang the doorbell and said: ‘Here you go, this guy said he wanted five hundred,” Scott said. The learning curve was steep, but they learned fast.
Growing with Gallo
Today, Horse Soldier works with the Gallo organization.
Gallo made a strategic investment in Horse Soldier in 2022, assuming national distribution while keeping the founding team in control of whiskey making, brand vision, and storytelling.
That structure allowed American Distilling Company’s team to keep doing what they do best—crafting bourbon and leading the brand. At the same time, Gallo’s sales organization helped turn Horse Soldier into one of the fastest‑growing ultra‑premium American whiskey brands.
“We can focus on making great bourbon and being the face of the brand, ” Scott said. Instead of U‑Hauls, the product now moves by train and truck. The evolution mirrors a mission profile, from small teams on the ground to full supply chains.
Today, Horse Soldier Bourbon is distributed nationally through Gallo and continues to expand both retail distribution and destination tourism through Horse Soldier Farms.
Whiskey as Conversation
One of the most unusual parts of the team’s outlook is how they talk about drinking. Many brands cheer for bigger pours and longer nights. Horse Soldier does not. “We are on the celebration side of a good drink,” Scott told me. He sees bourbon as a way to mark a moment, honor a friend, or toast a hard‑earned milestone.
He drew a sharp line he would not cross. “I am never on the weapons-of-mass-consumption side of bourbon,” Scott said.
To him, drinking just to drink kills the thing that makes whiskey special. The bottle becomes background noise instead of the center of a conversation. Scott wants Horse Soldier in the middle of the table when people share stories.
That attitude may be the most radical part of his philosophy. The industry often chases volume, promotions, and quick-repeat sales. The American Distillery team talks about patience, context, and memory.
“A good bourbon is worth a good conversation,” Scott said. If the drink does not help create a memory, the team sees it as a missed opportunity.
You can feel the same mindset in the way the firm pictures the Fourth of July. Scott wants people to lift Horse Soldier during a toast that means something, not just during another round.
He imagines families and friends at Horse Soldier Farms every year, fireworks lighting the sky above, bull riding finished for the day, and someone raising a glass to service, sacrifice, and the long, messy story of America.
The Horse Soldier team knows that grief sits at the same table as joy. “Sometimes you are celebrating a loss of a friend,” Scott said. The mood changes, but the glass stays in play. In the Horse Soldier world, whiskey belongs at funerals, promotions, homecomings, and quiet nights when a story finally gets told out loud. That range gives Horse Soldier a different role from that of a party brand.
To me, this is rule‑breaking in its purest form. Horse Soldier does not push people to chase excess. They invite them to slow down. They want fewer, better pours to give people the comfort needed to actually talk to each other in person, not over social media.
Expanding the Brand Experience
The veterans who had learned to build teams under pressure applied their same discipline to crafting a restaurant as a brand experience.
Horse Soldier’s parent company, American Freedom Distillery, built the Urban Stillhouse restaurant as an extension of the brand’s story and a training ground for hospitality. Scott likes to say, “If the bottle tells our story in your hand, the Stillhouse lets you walk through it.”
The first Urban Stillhouse opened in Florida in 2020, after years of planning and a delayed launch during the pandemic, followed by a second location in Kentucky tied to their distillery expansion.
Every detail of atmosphere, service, and presentation was engineered to deepen a guest’s connection to the brand. Rather than a place to simply eat and drink, each Stillhouse functions as a fully realized brand environment, part storytelling venue, part hospitality showcase, part premium consumer touchpoint.
“Hospitality is critical,” Scott told me. Staff at each Stillhouse lead guided bourbon tastings paired with curated small plates. They treat every table as a personal introduction to the brand. Reviewers have praised the environment as attentive and family-like.
“We also wanted the décor to tell an immersive story,” Scott said. “Our décor evokes a ski lodge crossed with a bourbon library, with open fires and shelves of Horse Soldier bottles that place guests inside our 2001 mission narrative.”
Scott also told me that, as part of their brand, they want guests to have a premium experience. “We created an exclusive Commander’s Club membership that turns the Stillhouse into a true destination,” he said. “We’ve built an intimate, fireplace-lit private club, and offer hundreds of rare spirits beyond bourbon.”
Consumer engagement comes through guided “bourbon 101” sessions that invite guests to learn the craft firsthand, while retail shelves stocked with Horse Soldier bottles let them carry the experience home.
Closing Call: Why Scott Neil is a Whiskey Rule‑Breaker
American Freedom Distillery’s Horse Soldier Bourbon has earned a place among my whiskey rule‑breakers because the team of founders treats bourbon like a mission. They learned from masters, built a brand from a 9/11 story and a movie premiere, and shaped glass from World Trade Center steel.
Their vision for Horse Soldier blends patriotism, discipline, and small‑town celebration into a different kind of American whiskey culture.
When I think about rule‑breakers in American whiskey, I picture people who care enough to do things differently when the easy path would be cheaper or easier. The Horse Soldier team lives in that space.
They learned distilling by lifting grain sacks in the north of Scotland instead of reading blogs about barrels, treated the craft like Kung Fu, and built a brand name from a surprise moment at the 12 Strong premiere instead of using a tested slogan.
The brand pressed their glass in molds made from World Trade Center steel. They built a faded-copper Liberty Edition bottle that people want to save, then encouraged those people to drink the whiskey anyway and refill the glass with iced tea.
They chose Somerset, Kentucky, and Lake Cumberland as a stage for America’s 250th, then planned bull riding, fireworks, and a modern distillery to match the moment. They moved from hand‑carts to U‑Hauls to national trains without ever losing the sense that Horse Soldier is, in Scott’s words, “our own.”
Sometimes a Green Beret walks into a distillery and never really walks out. The mission became far larger than whiskey. It became preserving history, strengthening communities, honoring service, and building an American destination that future generations can experience.