Redwood Empire Whiskey hits major milestone

Redwood Empire Whiskey’s “Buy a Bottle, We’ll Plant a Tree” commitment has resulted in 500,000 new trees planted since 2019 and underscores the craft whiskey’s connection with the ancient forests of the Redwood Empire in California.

“Since we launched our partnership with Trees for the Future in 2019, we never thought we’d plant so many trees in such a short time span,” says Derek Benham, founder and managing partner of Purple Brands. “We’ll continue to grow our efforts alongside the rapid growth of our craft whiskeys,” he added. In addition to working with Trees for the Future, Purple Brands also partnered nationally with One Tree Planted to coordinate volunteer planting days during Earth Month with the company’s team and wholesale partners.

The Redwood Empire’s majestic forests stretch from San Francisco north along the coast to the Oregon border. Located in a fog belt, the cool weather conditions and low humidity in this area allow a slow, even extraction of flavor from barrels throughout the year, resulting in whiskeys of exceptional complexity, balance, and subtlety.

Founded in 2015 as part of Purple Brands, Redwood Empire Whiskey is distilling California craft whiskey. The brand offers meticulously crafted grain-to-glass whiskeys comprised from its own distillate and complemented with sourced barrels up to 14 years old that add nuance and complexity. Each bottling is named for an iconic tree in the Redwood Empire, honoring John Muir’s profound respect for the natural world. The brand offers Lost Monarch, a blended whiskey; Pipe Dream, which is a Bourbon; and a Rye whiskey called Emerald Giant. Redwood Empire Whiskey recently launched their first bottled-in-bond, a high standard for distillers, which includes Rocket Top Rye and Grizzly Beast Bourbon.

With over half a million trees planted, Redwood Empire Whiskey’s impact is impressive. This translates to restoring 125 acres of degraded farmland, more than 18,000 metric tons of CO2 sequestered (over 20 years) and paving a pathway for over 1,000 people who were heading towards hunger and poverty. When looking at the entire impact of Trees for the Future, they have been responsible for planting more than 225 million trees around the globe in the last three decades and are on track to plant one billion trees by 2030.

About Redwood Empire Whiskey

Inspired by Northern California’s giant redwoods, Redwood Empire Whiskey is defining what it means to be a California whiskey. Established in 2015 by proprietor Derek Benham, the distillery is known for its collection of smoothly complex and balanced whiskeys created by the team of master distiller Jeff Duckhorn and head distiller Lauren Patz. Look for Redwood Empire’s distinctive bottles and discover California whiskey wherever quality spirits are sold across the country. The portfolio includes Pipe Dream Bourbon, Emerald Giant Rye, and Lost Monarch Blend of Straight Whiskeys. Signaling a new level of production and the purest expression of Redwood Empire Whiskey’s craft, the distillery released its first collection of Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon and Rye in fall 2021 from the spring 2016 distilling season. www.redwoodempirewhiskey.com

About Trees for the Future

Trees for the Future is a regenerative agriculture training organization. Local staff work with smallholder farmers in the developing world to restore landscapes and livelihoods through an agroforestry technique called the Forest Garden Approach. With more than three decades of experience, Trees for the Future has planted more than 225 million trees and helped more than 300,000 people. https://trees.org/sponsor/redwood-empire-whiskey/

About One Tree Planted

One Tree Planted is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit on a mission to make it simple for anyone to help the environment by planting trees. Their projects span the globe and are done in partnership with local communities and knowledgeable experts to create an impact for nature, people, and wildlife. Reforestation helps to rebuild forests after fires and floods, provide jobs for social impact, and restore biodiversity. Many projects have overlapping objectives, creating a combination of benefits that contribute to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. To learn more, visit onetreeplanted.org.

About Purple Brands

Founded by Derek Benham in 2001, Purple Brands is a brand-led business with an acclaimed portfolio of wines and emerging spirits brands. The company’s winery operations in the Russian River Valley, Sonoma County and Napa Valley are all Certified Sustainable by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance, a claim only 4% of California wineries can make. Raeburn Winery, a top-5 ultra-premium Chardonnay and Vivino-favorite Rosé, earned three consecutive IMPACT Hot Prospect awards. Joining Raeburn are Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon specialist Scattered Peaks, Avalon Winery, Four Vines, and a portfolio of exclusive brands. Purple Brands’ spirits portfolio was launched in 2015. Redwood Empire Whiskey, inspired by Northern California’s giant redwoods, is defining what it means to be a California Whiskey. The fast-growing distillery has amassed the largest inventory of aging whiskey in the state, including a bourbon, rye, blended whiskey, and two bottled-in-bond expressions. D. George Benham’s Gin rounds out the portfolio with a botanical-focused spirit. https://purplebrands.com/

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