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About Sweet Home Spirits

Alabama has always played an important role in America’s pantheon of pop culture. Alabama football – Roll Tide. Forrest Gump, the Swampers of Muscle Shoals and, of course, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Sweet Home Alabama –perhaps the most iconic song of the South.

But through all those years, she’s never had her own whiskey, well, legal whiskey, that is. Lotta stills in those hills, but until 2015, not a single distillery.  It is here that Sweet Home Spirits wants to champion Alabama’s own whiskey and become a brand that exudes Alabama culture and a love of one’s home.

The brainchild of University of Alabama graduate, Austin Creel, Sweet Home Spirits pays homage to Alabama’s deep southern roots and its agrarian history. Its products are Alabama owned and Alabama proud.

What we are not is a reflection of Kentucky bourbon or Tennessee mash. We are here to define what makes an Alabama whiskey. Our’s is a blend of 75% sweet corn, 21% rye and just the right amount of malted barley to provide a smooth finish. This young whiskey is less about aging than about a proprietary filtering design that not only complements the traditional American whiskey profile but gives it a style all its own.

Our 100% corn vodka is three times filtered after a 10x distillation process. We have put a lot of time and distillation to make our vodka as smooth as can be. In fact, blind tastings have shown Sweet Home Vodka as the preferred spirit over other highly considered premium brands. This is largely due to the time and extra steps we take in distillation. This extra effort removes any lingering vodka after taste that often tarnishes other premium brands.

Sweet Home Spirits is grass roots. And in that, we are Alabama. And we want our spirits to celebrate all that Alabama has to offer – from her rich history to the promise of her future – her quaint towns to her bustling cities – her rolling farmland to her beautiful coastline. Ultimately, we want folks who’ve never even considered a visit Alabama to sip our spirits and imagine what it’s like to spend some time in Alabama.

About the Founders

 

Austin Wade Creel

Austin - Founder

Immediately upon graduation from UA, Austin took a job as a Supply Chain Manager with a Fortune 300 manufacturer in Alabama and began building a nest egg of capital which would culminate in the launching of a number of entrepreneurial projects in 2015. And until 2019, his portfolio consisted of two Domino’s pizza stores in the US Virgin Islands, a Tuscaloosa-based startup in the e-liquids market and five AirBNB properties. In 2019 he divested from these ventures so that he could return home and focus on his passions: community advancement and whiskey. In Sweet Home Spirits, Austin believes he’s found a venture that he can build and champion, and hopes it becomes an enterprise profitable enough to fuel his non-profit vision of bettering Alabama’s education and sustainability.

Carl Baldone

Carl - Founder

After receiving his degree from UA, Carl spent seven years working as a customer experience research analyst for a Fortune 50 company. Most recently, he served as a digital analytics specialist – optimizing digital experiences, eCommerce and SEO. His specialization in business strategy during his MBA work led him to immerse himself in marketing research. During Carl’s MBA he spent 4 months in Qingdao, China studying global business. It was during his time in China that he witnessed a lounge full of Chinese citizens break into song when someone played Sweet Home Alabama over the jukebox. That may be what brought him home where he was able to reconnect with his former classmate, Austin, and become a co-founder of Sweet Home Spirits. Carl is a self-proclaimed foodie and was born and raised in Hoover, Alabama. Carl’s passionate about sharing Alabama’s traditions with people outside of the state.

About the Founders

Austin Wade Creel

Austin - Founder

Immediately upon graduation from UA, Austin took a job as a Supply Chain Manager with a Fortune 300 manufacturer in Alabama and began building a nest egg of capital which would culminate in the launching of a number of entrepreneurial projects in 2015. And until 2019, his portfolio consisted of two Domino’s pizza stores in the US Virgin Islands, a Tuscaloosa-based startup in the e-liquids market and five AirBNB properties. In 2019 he divested from these ventures so that he could return home and focus on his passions: community advancement and whiskey. In Sweet Home Spirits, Austin believes he’s found a venture that he can build and champion, and hopes it becomes an enterprise profitable enough to fuel his non-profit vision of bettering Alabama’s education and sustainability.

Carl Baldone

Carl - Founder

After receiving his degree from UA, Carl spent seven years working as a customer experience research analyst for a Fortune 50 company. Most recently, he served as a digital analytics specialist – optimizing digital experiences, eCommerce and SEO. His specialization in business strategy during his MBA work led him to immerse himself in marketing research. During Carl’s MBA he spent 4 months in Qingdao, China studying global business. It was during his time in China that he witnessed a lounge full of Chinese citizens break into song when someone played Sweet Home Alabama over the jukebox. That may be what brought him home where he was able to reconnect with his former classmate, Austin, and become a co-founder of Sweet Home Spirits. Carl is a self-proclaimed foodie and was born and raised in Hoover, Alabama. Carl’s passionate about sharing Alabama’s traditions with people outside of the state.