Meet the Moonshine Millionaire
How this Tennessee serial entrepreneur hopped from moonshine to beer
Moonshine has a romantic aura of danger in these United States. The clear, un-aged corn whiskey gets its name from the way it used to be produced: at night, in a clandestine backwoods location, under the light of the moon.
Believe it or not, until 2009, distilling moonshine — or any kind of whiskey, for that matter — was unlawful in the state of Tennessee, save for the three counties where alcohol industry giants Jack Daniels, George Dickel, and Prichard’s Rum were located. Because of its outlaw stigma, obtaining moonshine was an elusive and unregulated task, only possible through word of mouth and personal connection.
But when the state found itself in need of new revenue at the height of the Great Recession, Tennessee legislators amended the post-Prohibition law to issue distillery licenses statewide. Suddenly, moonshine began to experience a veritable renaissance.
“Unaged whiskey products would be available with much less risk,” said Nashville developer Jim Massey, in a press release in 2009. “Customers who like the product could buy it legally at a store, rather than from a guy in the hills.”
One Tennessee lawyer was watching legislation unfold. As soon as the law went into effect, Joe Baker and some of his law partners opened a distillery in Gatlinburg, the mountain town that attracts over 2 million tourists a year abutting the Great Smoky Mountains National Park . Endowed with a 200-year-old family recipe, Baker sought to infuse the rich Southern heritage and flavors of the local Smoky Mountain community into the product, crafting unique whiskies such as Apple Pie and White Lightning moonshine. Thus, Ole Smoky Distillery, LLC was born in 2010.
The lore of illegal moonshining in Tennessee combined with an authentic product has been great for business at Ole Smoky. What began as a seven-person operation quickly grew into a 230-employee enterprise.
“We had no idea what we were doing in the beginning stages,” said Baker. “It’s a challenge to manage a business when you’re growing 300 to 400 percent in a year.”
Baker, a UT football fan and all-American family man, grew up in a small town nestled in the Great Smoky mountains named Sevierville, 14 miles from Gatlinburg.
In May 2013, Baker hired former Pabst Blue Ribbon CEO John Cochran as chief executive of Ole Smoky. Over the next few months, Baker sold shares in a private equity transaction to Centerview Capital, a private investment firm based in San Francisco. With Centerview’s capital injection and a beverage industry veteran at the helm, Ole Smoky became one of the world’s most iconic distillers of premium moonshine, with sales topping $46 million in 2014.
As of today, the most-visited distillery in America has 40 percent of the U.S. moonshine consumer market and is expanding internationally. “I was ready to be happy with growing the distribution into all 50 States,” Baker said. “I had no idea it would grow into 30 countries.”
With Ole Smoky thriving, Baker decided to launch another large-scale beverage production operation in Appalachia; except this time, it’s a brewery.
“I was ready to be happy with growing the distribution into all 50 States … I had no idea it would grow into 30 countries.”
In July 2015, Yee-Haw Brewery opened in Johnson City in the restored historic CC&O train depot, in what elected officials tout as a downtown “cornerstone.”
As an entrepreneur who surrounds himself with experts in areas in which he is not, Baker brought aboard Brandon Greenwood, former vice president of brewing at Lagunitas Brewing Co., as Yee-Haw’s head brewmaster. Opening with four craft brews and 40 employees, Yee-Haw Brewery boasts a 9,000 square foot brewing facility and the largest production capacity of any brewery in Northeast Tennessee.
Baker pulled out his phone in our interview and showed off a photo of the former, dilapidated site where the new brewery now sits. He pointed his finger at the screen. “Seeing that,” he said, “is what really drives me — making a difference in a community.”
To Baker, business is about creating things. “The most satisfying part of my work is not the profit — there are only so many cars and dirt bikes. It’s the ability to create jobs,” he said. “Do you know what it’s like to have someone come up to you at a company Christmas party and thank you for providing them with the ability to purchase a home?”
His plan is to grow Yee-Haw in the same way as Ole Smoky and see it become an American classic, a representation of Southern brewing artisanry.
The name for the brewery came from an adventure when he was skiing in Jackson, Wyoming. At the crest of a steep run, he paused before the descent when his friend shouted, “What are you going to do?” Baker turned and lunged forward, screaming at the top of his lungs, “YEE-HAW!!”
“What is your ‘yee-haw moment’?” Baker asked. “What makes you feel alive? That is the story behind the name of the beer.”
Takeaways:
- There are only so many cars and dirtbikes. If you haven’t tasted the emptiness of having things yet, just give it time. Start asking yourself the question now: In your work, how can you create opportunities for others to succeed?
- What makes you feel most alive? It could be risk, people, love, family, travel — whatever it is, how can you amplify it with your career?
- What is your “200-year-old family moonshine recipe”? Your family is built on the shoulders of great people — from cousins to siblings to grandparents. What unique experiences or assets are in your family tree that you can channel into a business opportunity?
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