Corsair Artisan

When childhood friends Darek Bell and Andrew Webber hit a snag while working on a biodiesel project in their garage, Webber joked that making whiskey would be far more satisfying. In 2008, they went on to found Corsair Distillery in Bowling Green, Kentucky – and in 2010, opening in Nashville made it the city's first craft distillery since Prohibition.

Unlike the major Tennessee producers Jack Daniel's and George Dickel, who build their identity around a single signature style, Corsair maintains a deliberately rotating, experimental range spanning whiskey, gin, rum, and absinthe – honoured with over 800 medals at national and international competitions.

How did a failed biodiesel project become a distillery?

Darek Bell and Andrew Webber, friends since childhood, first experimented with home-brewing beer and wine in the garage of Darek and his wife, Amy Lee Bell. When a biodiesel plant prototype failed, Andrew remarked that distilling whiskey would surely be far more satisfying. In 2008, the friends turned this idea into reality in Bowling Green, Kentucky, founding Corsair Distillery.

Why is Corsair's Nashville location so significant?

In 2010, Corsair opened a second location in Nashville, becoming the city's first craft distillery since the end of Prohibition. The site in the Wedgewood-Houston neighbourhood, housed in a former warehouse, became the flagship for the brand's experimental "artisan" approach. In 2016, a second Nashville location, the WeHo Headquarters, opened, providing additional office space, more barrel storage, and a higher production scale. Rather than committing to a single signature recipe, Corsair deliberately and regularly rotates its range – from unusually malted grains to experimental cask maturations.

Facts and figures

Founded: 2008, Bowling Green, Kentucky. Nashville location since: 2010 (the city's first craft distillery since Prohibition). Founders: Darek Bell and Andrew Webber. Awards: over 800 medals at spirits competitions.