From Bulleit to Father's Finish: How Chris Parsons Took Over Peyton Manning's Cult-Favorite Bourbon Brand

Welcome back to the BoozeMakers Interview Series, where we sit down with the spirit makers across America who are shaping what we drink and how we think about craft distilling. This time we're heading to a bourbon brand born from a 9-hole golf course tucked into the Tennessee mountains — and the man who left a career launching Bulleit, Cîroc, and Don Julio at Diageo to come run it.

Meet Chris Parsons

When Sweetens Cove Spirits launched in 2020, it arrived in style — a $200 inaugural bottle, an ownership group that included Peyton Manning, Andy Roddick, and Jim Nantz, and a backstory tied to one of the most cult-favorite golf courses in America. The bourbon won critical acclaim. It also, in Roddick's own words, "created a lane that was a little too precious."

Enter Chris Parsons.

Parsons joined as CEO in June 2024 after a career at Diageo, where he was part of the leadership team behind some of the most successful spirits brands of the past two decades — Bulleit, Cîroc, and Don Julio. He'd been an early investor in Sweetens Cove, but stepping in to run it wasn't part of the plan. He came back into whiskey for one reason: this place, and these people, had something he couldn't manufacture anywhere else.

On May 7, the brand releases its 2026 First Release of Father's Finish — a limited-edition bourbon timed to Father's Day and the U.S. Open finale. Just 1,000 cases nationwide. A blend of aged Kentucky and Tennessee bourbons, finished in cuvée wine barrels, bottled at 98 proof, with the brand's signature magnetic ballmark embedded in the cork.

We sat down with Parsons to talk about the new release, the strategic shifts since he took over, and where Sweetens Cove goes from here.

---

The News Hook: Father's Finish

BoozeMakers: Father's Finish lands May 7, timed to Father's Day and the U.S. Open. Walk us through how that concept came together — was this release built around the calendar moment, or did you have the blend first and the timing fell into place?

Father's Day has always meant something at Sweetens Cove. It lands on one of golf's biggest days — the U.S. Open finale — and it's also a reminder of the people who got most of us into the game in the first place.

So this felt like an opportunity to create something special to commemorate that. It was certainly intentional for the occasion — a bottle you can gift, share, or even just enjoy for yourself.

BM: You went with cuvée wine barrel finishing on an aged Kentucky and Tennessee blend — not a sugar maple spiral like Kennessee, not a straight bourbon like the 5-Year or Dunwoody. Why cuvée, what does it do to the underlying blend, and what was each state's whiskey bringing to the table?

We actually layered techniques with this one — starting with the sugar maple influence people loved in Kennessee, then finishing in cuvée barrels.

We were working with four-year-aged Tennessee and even older Kentucky whiskies we already loved, and cuvée just brought them together in a really seamless way. It adds a soft fruit character and rounds everything out without losing the bourbon backbone.

We tried to make it a bit like the course — approachable, but more going on than you expect.

BM: 98 proof — higher than your 93.7 flagship, lower than Kennessee's barrel-strength 110.7. What's the story behind that number for this release?

We tested a range of proofs, and 98 just hit the sweet spot. It's got nice presence, but it definitely drinks easier than the number suggests, so watch out.

And yes, there's a bit of a joke in there around my average score… but we'll leave that where it is.

BM: Only 1,000 cases nationwide, available in eight states plus online. How do you think about the tradeoff between building genuine scarcity and making sure the people who want a bottle can actually get one?

It's always a difficult equation, but in our case we're focused on just a handful of states, so it felt like the right balance for our first release.

We're also not in the business of creating artificial scarcity to drive price. In part, that reflects our golf experience: demand is high, but you don't pay through the nose. We also plan to bring Father's Finish back annually and grow it based on demand — so we'll see how this first release does and take it from there.

BM: If you were pouring Father's Finish for someone right now, how would you describe what they're about to taste? Give us the full sensory walkthrough.

On the nose, you get ripe plum — maybe a little tannin in there.

On the palate, it leans into cherry and softer fruit, with some of those maple bourbon notes still coming through.

And the finish is probably the longest we've had across the range — balanced, a bit layered, and the kind that pulls you back to the next visit to the glass.

---

Behind the Blend

BM: You told The Spirits Business recently that Marianne Eaves is now focused on her own projects and Sweetens Cove is "navigating our own pathway." Who's leading the blending work on Father's Finish, and how would you describe the brand's approach to blending now that you're charting that path yourselves?

We've got a group of really experienced people involved — folks who've spent a lot of time at some of the big spirits companies, including Diageo.

We've leaned into more of a team approach rather than making it about one person's style. The thinking is that gives us a broader lens, and it probably reflects our drinkers a bit better over time.

---

Parsons in the Driver's Seat

BM: You joined as CEO in mid-2024 after years at Diageo, where you were part of the team behind brands like Bulleit, Cîroc, and Don Julio. After a career like that, what did you see in Sweetens Cove specifically that made it worth coming back into the whiskey world for?

I wasn't really planning to return to the industry, although I was an early investor in this concept.

I was pulled in because Sweetens just had something about it — the story, the people, the feel of the place. It's one of those things that's hard to manufacture.

And I loved that the golf connection felt real, not just bolted on. When you combine that with the people involved — Peyton, Roddick, and Nantz — I felt like it could become a brand that brings joy to a great number of whiskey drinkers. I'm excited to see what we can do with it.

BM: Andy Roddick has joked publicly that you've "saved them from their own arrogance" in how the brand was run early on. The 5-Year, Dunwoody, and now Father's Finish are all launches you've driven. What's the most significant strategic shift you've made since stepping in — and what have you intentionally left alone?

We probably underplayed the golf connection early on, so leaning into that was a big shift. That's really our DNA. At the same time, we wanted the whiskey to reflect the course — high quality, but not intimidating. Something you'd actually drink.

What hasn't changed is the focus on the liquid. That has always been our cornerstone and will remain so. And we're certainly not trying to turn this into a "celebrity brand." It's a golf brand that happens to have some great, famous people around it.

BM: Sweetens Cove launched with a $200 bottle that became more collector's item than drinkable bourbon. How do you think about the balance now between premium limited releases people collect and bottles people actually pour on a Tuesday — and where does Father's Finish sit on that spectrum?

Our core 5-year bourbon is a great option whenever you fancy a pour. Our Dunwoody won't be around forever — it's a rare 6-year-aged wheated expression that we only have in limited quantities. That rarity is also the case for Father's Finish, with only 1,000 cases available.

We like the idea of rare, but not inaccessible. Pricing them where we did means you can buy more than one and keep one as a collectible if you prefer.

---

The Golf-Whiskey Intersection

BM: The magnetic ballmark embedded in the cork is back for Father's Finish. Whose idea was that originally, and how do you think about those kinds of details — the touches that only make sense if you understand the golf side of this brand?

This was a great idea I inherited from the prior team and an example of how to cleverly integrate golf in a subtle way into our proposition.

And there's a rumor it helps your putting… which we're happy to let run.

BM: You told The Spirits Business that nobody can be as authentically golf as Sweetens Cove given your heritage. When you see other brands trying to muscle into the golf lane, what separates a genuine connection from a marketing play?

Well, no other brand was actually born from a golf course tradition. Our brand name is our course name, and for as long as the course has been around, there's been a tradition of a shot of bourbon before your round.

So while you can sponsor a golfer, a tournament, or even a governing body, nothing compares to having your own course that has one of the coolest vibes in the world of golf.

---

The Category & The Future

BM: The celebrity spirits category has gotten crowded fast, and plenty of brands have come and gone. What's the biggest mistake you see celebrity-backed spirits making, and how are you deliberately avoiding those traps?

I made some of those mistakes and also benefited from some of the wins, so I have some perspective.

You need authenticity of connection and a clarity of where a celebrity's role impacts the business overall. Sometimes it's the consumer face, sometimes it's through a network, and sometimes it's through the capabilities they bring to the brand's marketing strategy.

We have a bit of everything in our celebrity involvement, but we're not trying to make this Peyton or Andy's brand. We are a golf brand that they love — and want everyone else to love the same as we do.

BM: The Reef Capital partnership is bringing cabins, a par-3 course, and an on-site small-batch distillery to Sweetens Cove, with the brand home slated for 2027. When that opens, what's the one experience you most want a visitor to have that they can't get anywhere else?

When you arrive at Sweetens Cove, you are immediately consumed by one of the most wonderful sites in golf. The course is nestled in the Tennessee mountains and expands out in front of you as you approach our world-famous and most welcoming "shed."

I'd argue we have one of the best locations for a whiskey experience in the world. And beyond that, we have many fun activities planned when you engage in our program.

What other whiskey experience will offer you the chance of putting on one of the largest putting greens in the US while drinking one of the finest US whiskies you can buy?

BM: Five years from now, what does Sweetens Cove Spirits look like if you've done it right — and what does "done right" mean to you personally?

If we've done it right, we've successfully converted the essence of our unique course — with its undeniably cool vibe — into the whiskey experience.

We like to say we take our golf seriously at Sweetens, but everything else is approachable and fun. Taking our whiskey seriously while bringing a fun and easy connection to a category that can sometimes feel unapproachable to the uninitiated — that would be a big win.

---

One For Fun

BM: When you're at home on a Tuesday night and you're not pouring Sweetens Cove — what are you reaching for? Be honest.

Ha! I am British. So I can't shake a good G&T — and my Diageo roots have me reaching for Tanqueray every time!

---

The BoozeMakers Interview Series profiles the spirit makers shaping America's craft distilling scene. Know someone we should talk to? Drop us a line.