High Mark Distillery launches distinctive barrel program.
The price of bourbon has risen 586 percent over 10 years, making it — along with other brown liquids — a worthy investment opportunity, one High Mark Distillery in Reno is extending to customers.
“It’s a win-win,” says owner/distiller Felicia Keith-Jones. “[The process] helps our barrel house grow organically.”
The Investor’s Barrel Club at High Mark Distillery was born out of another program the distillery launched years ago for private members, allowing interested parties to create barrels of bourbon using their own recipes (and Keith-Jones’ guidance), store it in the barrel room, sip it throughout its aging process, and then bottle it to keep or give as gifts.
The club capitalizes on people’s interest in bourbon development and makes it an investment opportunity — and the payback is all but guaranteed. Starting with a five-gallon barrel for $800, investors will see $875 when it ages in nine months (the typical aging period for these barrels). For the 10-gallon barrel, $1,600 turns into $1,850, and for the 30-gallon barrel, a $4,800 initial investment turns into $5,800 after two years (with a sliding scale of return if it ages early).
According to Keith-Jones, there are two types of investors. One is those with robust investment portfolios who seek opportunities to diversify (as well as the fun that comes along with investing in bourbon and other liquors). The other type is those who have long followed the rise in popularity of whiskeys and choose to invest for the gains.
In the end, High Mark can purchase more barrels because the liquor is funded up front.
“It protects our cash flow,” Keith-Jones says.
For investors who were just letting their money sit anyway, there’s a healthy return — 21.7% on a 30-gallon barrel and up to 12.69 percent on a five-gallon barrel (although barrels that take nine months to age will see a 9.38 percent return instead).
It’s not all business, though. Much of the experience is about enjoying the process. Everyone who invests in a barrel, for example, gets to have a barrel-filling party with up to 10 guests. A specialty cocktail is made for the group, and charcuterie platters are served. Keith-Jones calls on her past experience as a teacher to educate members on bourbon, even allowing them to taste the liquor as it goes into the barrel to compare it to a finished product. Then, every month, investors can come in and sip their spirits and compare their colors, aromas, and flavors.
“One month it might taste like cinnamon and cloves … and then the next month it might taste like nice vanilla tones,” she says.
In the end, when the whiskey is ready for barreling — and Keith-Jones says only the whiskey can decide when it’s ready — a bottling party is held and the investor is invited to join in the process, which includes corking and labeling the goods.
“They get to do the entire process as if they were a distiller,” she says.
For now, there’s no limit on the number of barrels to be sold, as long as the craft distillery doesn’t exceed its maximum gallon count to remain classified as “craft.” Keith-Jones says there’s still plenty of wiggle room, and serious investors have purchased up to 20 barrels at one time. One investor even purchased five-gallon barrels monthly to enjoy a small kickback each month after they matured.
Looking ahead, Keith-Jones and her crew plan to add whiskey to the offerings once the barrels are available, since whiskey must be aged in used bourbon barrels.
If you’re interested in putting your money where your mouth is (quite literally), Keith-Jones is thrilled and ready to take your investment. Call the distillery to place your order or visit to learn more in person.
Writer Nora Heston Tarte is a longtime Reno resident. You can follow her local exploits and travel adventures on Instagram @Wanderlust_n_wine.
High Mark Distillery & Barrel House
4690 Longley Lane, Ste. 28, Reno
775-622-9188 • Highmarkdistillery.com
