Brother’s Bond: Bourbon beyond borders

A lot can happen in 12 months. One year since Brother’s Bond Bourbon made its debut in global travel retail (GTR), the brand has evolved and expanded. But beneath that momentum, one thing has remained constant: the power of connection. It’s an ethos that has been embedded in Brother’s Bond from the outset, and a particularly fitting philosophy for a brand born in the midst of a global pandemic.

“The beauty of when we started in GTR was that we could connect with the world,” says Vincent Hanna, CEO of Brother’s Bond Bourbon, which he co-founded with The Vampire Diaries actors Paul Wesley and Ian Somerhalder. “At the end of the day, whether you’re in the US, in Europe, in Asia, it’s about the connection with people. The spirits industry really survives off of that intimacy.”

Wesley recalls: “I remember flying out of Vienna airport and suddenly seeing this whole row of Brother’s Bond sitting on the shelf. It was such an awesome surprise. There’s something really special about creating something then randomly coming across it thousands of miles from home. Those unexpected moments are probably the most rewarding – seeing the brand out in the world, connecting with people in places you never imagined when you first started.”

For the past year, Brother’s Bond has been working exclusively with family-owned GTR specialist Gebr Heinemann in the travel retail channel, bringing its flagship whiskeys – Brother’s Bond Straight Bourbon Whiskey, American Blended Rye Whiskey, Bottled-In-Bond Straight Bourbon, and Regenerative Grain Bourbon – to travellers far and wide.

“The Heinemann family and group really opened up their world to us,” Hanna adds. “We’re really happy we branched out internationally because we’ve seen that there’s demand; there’s a lot of love out there still for American whiskey.”

It’s been a huge learning curve for the brand, too, as it’s been navigating the GTR space and its “vast complexities”, as Somerhalder says. “We’re in about 51 countries now. Vincent and I will sit down and start going through market after market after market. Where are we? What’s going on? What needs to be done? Who are the contacts? What are the dates? What are the deadlines? We’re a small team running a business together as operators, but the vast complexities of these networks and how they work with such fluidity is mind-blowing, from border shops to cruise ships and airports to ferries – it is insane.”

Somerhalder says moving into GTR oddly makes you realise how small the world can be. Wesley adds: “What surprised me most is just how global it really is. You can be in an airport almost anywhere in the world and be introduced to consumers from so many different countries all at once.

“That is really exciting for us because we always believed Brother’s Bond could be a global brand. Bourbon is very American, but great whiskey travels incredibly well, and people everywhere understand the idea of sharing a drink with friends, family, or someone you have a connection with.”

The next year will see Brother’s Bond persist with its GTR strategy. While the exclusivity part of the partnership with Gebr Heinemann has concluded, Brother’s Bond will continue working with the GTR giant. “These are our forever people,” Hanna enthuses about the continuation of the distribution deal. “We went from not being international to 400 locations. We’ll never go away from Heinemann.”

It has been the perfect partnership to jump-start Brother’s Bond’s GTR journey. But now there’s even more room to grow. The brand has already agreed additional partnerships in GTR with B&S, Avolta, and Dubai Duty Free. Furthermore, Brother’s Bond will soon be the in-flight Bourbon on JetBlue planes, marking the brand’s first airline listing.

“We want to be able to support our partners the way we have been able to support Heinemann,” says Hanna. “We don’t want to be in every airport. We don’t want to be in every region. We want to do each region well, and give the time and resources that we can. So, the first was Europe. We’re going to be doing GTR in the UK, and with that is going to come things like ferries. We’re being strategic in how we roll it out. There are overlaps; Heinemann has South Africa and also Australia. So because we launched in Sydney [GTR], which was really successful, we’re going to be looking domestically in Australia for Q1 next year.”

It’s the reverse of the brand’s approach in the UK, where it launched domestically in February this year through distributor Maverick Drinks, covering the on- and off-trade, with a strong focus on e-commerce.

“Everywhere we go, Brother’s Bond comes up as a very top-level topic of conversation. That is not an accident,” Somerhalder says. “That comes with passion, dedication and consistency. We’re really good at nurturing relationships, like ‘Hey, we are here to help your business’. Yes, we want to help us grow too, but we want to drive the customer experience for your people. The more you sell, the better your business does, and the more we get to build our brand. It all comes back to human connection.”

Not just connection to people, but to the planet, too. Somerhalder in particular is a staunch advocate for embracing sustainable production practices, as demonstrated through the Brother’s Bond Regenerative Grain Bourbon. “Through whiskey, we’re connecting people in a social setting to a farm in the Midwest in the United States, growing grains in soil, sequestering carbon, producing oxygen, becoming this amazing thing, basically an artisanal product, and all of that can be enjoyed while being good for planet Earth. Think of all of those elements connected to that one bottle,” he says.

Naturally, the celebrity connection with Wesley and Somerhalder is also still there. To millions, they are still Damon and Stefan Salvatore. “One in eight people in the world have seen The Vampire Diaries, or know the show based on a certain number of episodes watched,” Somerhalder notes. The show’s fans were a natural first audience for Brother’s Bond, but it has also proven its credibility with whiskey enthusiasts and experts – and recently secured the top accolade of American Whiskey Taste Master 2026 for its Bottled-In-Bond Straight Bourbon in The Global Spirits Masters Competitions. It’s the latest award the brand has received from around the world.

The brand sits in a unique intersection where it can clearly appeal to both whiskey connoisseurs and the whiskey curious. “We’re really good at speaking to a generation that would perhaps never look [at whiskey],” Hanna says. “The next generation of consumers, they do indeed drink, and they will continue to drink, but differently. We want them to realise you don’t have to drink Bourbon like your grandfather did; you can drink Bourbon how you like it. The next step is how do you keep them interested, and appeal to those traditional whiskey drinkers like myself at the same time? You have to think in different ways.”

“Uncompromising quality” is how the brand is able to execute this, stresses Somerhalder. “There’s something for everyone and, again, that’s not an accident. There is no reason why every layer and level of whiskey enthusiast, consumer, or newbie can’t enjoy this; that’s what’s special.

“It all came from two core foundational tenets: immediate approachability, yet with a complexity and a nuance that even the most astute or refined palate can say, ‘Wait a minute, hold on. This is a really well-crafted spirit’.”

While Somerhalder stepped back from acting altogether several years ago to focus on Brother’s Bond (alongside his other business ventures), Wesley has continued acting while balancing his commitment to the brand. When Wesley’s not on set filming the next Star Trek blockbuster or prepping for Hulu’s next big show, his efforts are equally poured into Brother’s Bond.

“Ian and I have been friends for a long time, but building Brother’s Bond together has definitely added another layer to that relationship,” Wesley says. “When you actually build a business together, you see different sides of each other and you learn pretty quickly where everyone’s strengths are. In a funny way, the name Brother’s Bond has become even more meaningful over time. The bond between all of us has genuinely become stronger through building this business together.”

In tandem together, the trio continue to live and breathe all facets of Brother’s Bond, from blending and bottling to meeting retailers, bartenders and consumers. “I always say Paul and Ian are like yin and yang, but that’s why they get along and why their friendship has lasted this long,” Hanna observes. “If you want a critical eye, you talk to Paul; he’s very strategic in that he knows how it’s going to work. Ian’s the one who’s going to come up with the creative idea. And it helps that there’s three of us. When Ian can’t be there and they want some more social stuff, Paul can be. Then Ian jumps back in.”

Somerhalder says: “Vincent taught us so much about how the business works and how to pace ourselves, and really structure things properly. We have a really strong foundation across the company and our small team who are incredibly talented. And that’s the formula: skill plus passion equals purpose.”

This equation is what drives Brother’s Bond forward, even in the current challenging economic environment.

“It’s 100% a very tough market out there, and specifically for American whiskey,” Hanna says. “The US market is oversaturated with barrels, and this is because investors got over-excited during the pandemic – we know the story, why it happened. The ones who are going to make it through are the big guys – and they’re suffering, which is never good for the industry – and the ones that understood what was happening, and protected themselves.

“In the coming months and next year, what we come out with and how we do it is going to be very different from a traditional Bourbon brand. We’ve always been a little non-traditional. It’s going to continue, I think, to be a tough market, but there is longevity in alcohol and in American whiskey – and whisky overall. You have to look beyond borders, at how consumption is shifting, and in time, I’m confident we’re going to see the global landscape grow overall.”

Somerhalder adds: “People often say, ‘Oh, you’re in the alcohol business’, and I say, ‘No, I’m in the experience business’. We’re creating opportunities for experiences. Does it enrich lives? Does it connect people in any way, shape or form? Global consumption is down, but this was bound to happen. There was going to be a correction.

“Where we’re hopeful is that we’ve got this brand with quality, with one celebrity, one former celebrity, and a visionary CEO who understood how to elevate the specific strong suits of those individuals and build a global network around this brand. Because it’s not just a brand; it’s a feeling, a lifestyle, an experience. That’s what makes us feel steadfast in our conviction that we will continue to slowly grow and build a brand that will be around much longer than we are.”