In whiskey news we really didn’t see coming this week, it appears that the controversial Alex Jones is set to release his own whiskey brand in the weeks ahead.

Alex Jones, who hosts a variety of far right media productions promoting conspiracy theories, has been in the news recently. Notably, this is thanks to a series of monumental judgements against him. A series of defeats in widely publicized defamation cases related to the Sandy Hook school shooting have left the controversial figure with nearly a billion dollars owed to various parties in damages.

Seemingly unable, or unwilling, to decouple himself from alternative news and conspiracy theories, we’re now seeing reports that Jones is planning a whiskey brand release. The whiskey could be available online as soon as December 2022, per industry journalist Fred Minnick:

This just in. Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is starting a bourbon called “Conspiracy,” to which the TTB gave federal label approval two weeks ago. Thoughts?

— FredMinnick (@FredMinnick) November 25, 2022

The TTB is the bureau who is responsible for reviewing and approving new spirits labels before they come to market. While a TTB approval is never a guarantee of a product coming to market – many brands submit series and variations of labels – Minnick claims it is set to release very shortly, with the majority of sales planned to take place via online retailers.

More. It’s a Kentucky Straight Bourbon and will hit stores in three weeks, but it’s mostly being sold online at $60+.

— FredMinnick (@FredMinnick) November 25, 2022

There’s some key information on the labels, which are posted in the same thread (see below). Conspiracy Bourbon is aged a minimum of 2 years, and bottled by an LLC in Shelbyville, Kentucky.

Hideous label regardless. pic.twitter.com/dXYa6l7VpQ

— Michael Moeller (@michaeldmoeller) November 25, 2022

Shelbyville is home to relatively few distillers, notably Bulleit, Jeptha Creed, and a one Rut N Strut Distillery, which does not currently appear to be active. Bulleit, the largest of the three, is owned by Diageo.

It’s hard to believe that a global conglomerate like Diageo, who typically shies away from controversy and risk whenever possible, would embrace this type of venture. That’s not to say it’s a guarantee that Jeptha Creed is the likely source, although some have suggested it.

UPDATE (11.25.2022): Jeptha Creed distillery has shared with Whiskey Raiders that they are unrelated, in any way, with Conspiracy Bourbon.

An entirely new operation could be the bottler, for instance. Additionally, there’s nothing to say that the whiskey has to be coming from Shelbyville, as no distilling source is listed on the label. It’s not required by law, although it does inject some uncertainty into the picture. The blurry label suggests this will be bottled at 46% ABV, although ABV placeholders are acceptable on TTB submissions.

A Surprising Figure

Given Jones wide publicity and recent judgements, it is surprising to see reports of him developing a whiskey brand. Sure, controversial figures have released their own brands in the past. That said, Alex Jones entering the whiskey market is a completely new and unprecedented event. It’s unclear whether any, or all, profits from this whiskey operation could even be claimed by Jones, who’s currently appealing a number of verdicts that seek to leave him penniless for decades.

On the topic of the whiskey itself, the labels themselves are clearly generated to reflect redacted paperwork. They also seem to promote continued belief in conspiracies. Notably, this label hints at the American public living in the dark regarding an unspecified war.

The whiskey is labeled to be at least 2 years old. Notably it is a product of Kentucky. This detail erases the possibility of it being sourced from another state, and merely bottled in Shelbyville. $60+ for 2 year old whiskey is certainly a tough value proposition for consumers today.

Jones, as far as we can tell, appears to have no former connections to the spirits industry. We will continue to follow this release closely. The currently unnamed whiskey producer, and any online retailers who host this whiskey release will certainly be of interest.

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