If you’ve read about Sweetens Cove Tennessee Straight Bourbon Whiskey in the spirits press, you’re probably familiar with the premium whiskey’s backstory — it was inspired by and gets its name from a quirky golf course near South Pittsburg, Tenn. The fascinating nine-hole course offers challenges for golfers of all abilities and is often booked six months in advance. One of the interesting aspects of the ingeniously designed Sweetens Cove is the tradition of doing a shot of whiskey before teeing off to steel yourself against the travails that await on the course. Since the location first opened, guests and members have stashed bottles under the desk in the trailer that serves as a pro shop. That attitude morphed into a whiskey company, led by developer Mark Rivers.
If you’ve heard anything else about Sweetens Cove (the whiskey, not the golf course), it’s probably that two major investors in the company are star athletes Andy Roddick and Peyton Manning, both major ambassadors for the brand and actively involved in the product. What you might not know, however, is that another of the owners has a Nashville connection. Memphis-born Americana star Drew Holcomb is best known for his work with his backing band the Neighbors — so named because Holcomb and his bandmates all lived in the same East Nashville ZIP code when the group was formed. Over the past decade, Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors have toured all over the country spreading their brand of rootsy alt-rock, but Holcomb has managed to carve out time along the way for two of his passions: golf and whiskey.
Sweetens Cove Golf Club opened in 2014, after genius landscape architect Rob Collins wielded his earthmover like an artist to convert a former goat patch of a course into a track that has since won national design awards — and Holcomb has been a fan all along the way. He was intrigued when he heard about the chance to invest in a whiskey brand and the golf complex. “Two things I really love in my home state?” he says. “It was an easy yes.”
The first release of Sweetens Cove’s whiskey was a blend of five lots of 13-year-old Tennessee whiskey, selected and blended by rising whiskey star Marianne Eaves. Even at a premium price in the middle of a pandemic, the initial run sold out quickly to collectors and a few locations. In honor of the second release, which is just now hitting store shelves in Tennessee, the Scene jumped on a call with Holcomb as he was preparing to board a flight home from California to talk about his latest passion project. Read our interview below.
How did you get started with bourbon?Â
It actually started on the other side of the ocean. I studied in Scotland in college, and I was a 20-year-old in a random church near my dorm. I started at the top when a preacher poured me a glass of Johnnie Walker Blue Label. I was hooked!
I was an Old Charter 8 Year guy for a while, but then my manager got really into bourbon. He was a collector and taught me a lot about some amazing bourbons.
Are you a collector now?
I’m pretty deep into it now. I’ve probably got a 400-bottle collection at home, and I still love scotch. My collection runs the gamut. I’m a big fan of Wellers and the Blantons that people love to hunt. I’ve got a pre-fire Heaven Hill bottle and a bottle of Weller 107 from 1964, the last year that Pappy Van Winkle ran the distillery. I’ve got a bunch of the Willett purple tops and a few bottles of Pappy. I also have samples of all five of the batches from the original Sweetens Cove and got Marianne to sign the bottles, so those are really special. As for scotch, I’m a big Macallan fan.
How did you first connect with Sweetens Cove?
 I started playing the course pretty soon after it opened. I got involved through three parallel tracks. First of all, I was a big fan of the course, and Andy Roddick has been a golf buddy of mine. When I heard he was part of the group that was starting the whiskey brand, I was immediately interested. The third connection was through Peyton. He actually paid for me to go to college. He established the Manning Scholarship at the University of Tennessee, and I was the recipient in ’99. To his credit, he stayed in touch with me through the years. When Andy asked me to join the group, I jumped at the chance.
How were you involved in the process of creating the whiskey?
They had already started working with Marianne when I got involved, and I went with Andy and Mark to meet with her and taste all five batches. I learned a lot from her, and I love how being a blender is a mix of chemistry and artistry, picking the right barrels and choosing the profiles to blend into the final product.
Unlike some other celebrity-branded spirits where they just slap their name on the label, Peyton and Andy have done some serious work learning about the process and the industry, when they could’ve just coasted. Their names aren’t even on the label.
What was it like launching a new brand in the middle of a pandemic?
We launched in January of 2020, right before the world fell apart. All the bars closed, but people were at home really paying attention. It was really well-received.
What are you most proud of about Sweetens Cove?
When you go to high-end whiskey bars, the lists of Tennessee whiskeys are usually pretty short, while the Kentucky bourbon lists go on and on, especially in the premium categories. It’s nice to be able to add a premium Tennessee whiskey to those lists, to be at the forefront of that. Tennessee distilleries have really been upping their games lately, increasing production and getting into blending.
What can you tell us about the new release of Sweetens Cove?
While the first one was made from all 13-year-old barrels, this year’s is a blend of 16-, 6- and 4-year-old whiskey. It’s also a little higher proof — around 108 to 109, so it’s a little punchier. But the blend also shows off the more youthful and spicier notes, too.Â
My wife [singer-songwriter Ellie Holcomb] likes bourbon, but she doesn’t love it. If it’s higher proof and she can drink it, I know we’ve done well!
What are your hopes for the future of the brand?
We want to continue to explore different profiles every year — I love that picking barrels is like a treasure hunt within the distillery. We keep slowly finding our people as we explore state by state. For me, it’s a matter of telling people about it. The main thing we can do is keep telling the story. I just hope people find it. Enjoy it and share it with their friends!
Drew Holcomb will make an appearance at Bellevue’s Red Spirits & Wine (7066 Highway 70 S.) on Friday, Dec. 17. He’ll sign bottles from 5 to 7 p.m., just in time to pick up a special gift for whoever’s at the top of your holiday shopping list. He’ll also be happy to talk golf.
