Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/391612
october 2014 / the tasting panel / 61 If anyone deserves the title of pioneer, it would be William "Bill" Foley II. Much like his great-great-uncle Charles Goodnight—who served as a Texas Ranger, Confederate soldier in the Civil War and cattle rancher, and was immortalized in the classic book and movie Lonesome Dove—Foley has carved a path as both a businessman and an innova- tor. After successful careers in multiple areas of business—including Chairman of the Board for Fidelity National Financial Inc., a Fortune 500 company, and founder of Foley Family Wines—he's using his business acumen and creativity as a launch pad for his next business venture: bourbon. Foley first took notice of bourbon as a possible investment several years ago, when he recognized that the popularity of brown spirits was growing—and fast. To get in the game before it was too late, he talked to some of his friends in the hospitality and liquor business for advice and soon concluded that bourbon would be the right fit. After working closely with Wild Turkey Bourbon in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, he selected the perfect blend, which he recently released under the label Charles Goodnight Kentucky Bourbon, in a nod to his late ancestor. "I worked with the distiller, tasted through some blends and a friend of mine who's very knowledgeable with bourbon helped me choose the right blend," Foley says. "I had to learn how to work with bourbon. I've been in the wine busi- ness for 17 years, so I understand distribution and marketing. But with spirits, I had to learn everything." While the bourbon has been aging—roughly six years—Foley has spent the past 15 months or so preparing for the label's launch, which has involved getting licensing squared away, signing up distributors and marketing the launch, all while nurturing his other businesses. "It's been a lot of work," he says. Over the next few years, Foley plans to release the bourbon in a dozen states, which will include New York, Florida, California, Texas and Colorado, where the Goodnight-Loving Trail—a trail used by cattle drivers in the 1860s and named after Charles Goodnight—ended. WINE MOGUL BILL FOLEY DEBUTS HIS SPIRITS PORTFOLIO WITH CHARLES GOODNIGHT BOURBON Created by an artist in Montana, the bottle's label contains an illustration of Foley's great-great-uncle, as well as a Texas Ranger star—a nod to Goodnight and Foley's great- grandfather, Leigh Dyer, who was also a Texas Ranger and Charles Goodnight's business partner.