Shelton Hull
Photo by GQ Magazine
Words by Shelton Hull
The full list of celebrities with their own liquor companies is almost impossible to compile, in part because it’s been growing on an almost monthly basis for years, but here’s just a few, out of the dozens and dozens to choose from: Dan Ackroyd has Crystal Head Vodka; David Beckham has Haig Club whiskey; Bob Dylan has Heaven’s Door Tennessee Bourbon; Kate Hudson has King St. Vodka; Duval’s own Chipper Jones has Sugarlands Shine Sweet Tea Moonshine; Bruno Mars has SelvaRay Rum; Conor McGregor has Proper Twelve Irish Whiskey; Ryan Reynolds has Aviation American Gin; Snoop Dogg has Indoggo Gin; Lil’ Wayne has Bumbu Rum.
Bill Murray partners with Mikhail Baryshnikov on Slovenia Vodka. Nick Offerman has a brand deal with Lagavulin whiskey, as does Matthew McConaughey with Wild Turkey, and even the mighty GWAR have Catoctin Creek Ragnarok Rye, which might be the best whiskey name of all-time. Florida Georgia Line has Old Camp Peach Pecan Whiskey, and they partner with Jason Aldean for Wolf Moon Bourbon.
The trend seems positively acute in terms of tequila: George Clooney helped kick this trend off by founding Casamigos in 2013. He’s since been joined by LeBron James with Lobos; Kendall Jenner with 818; Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson with Termada; Michael Jordan with Cincoro; Cheech Marin with Tres Papalote Mezcal; and George Strait with Codigo 1530. Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul have Dos Hombres Mezcal, while Sammy Hagar and Guy Fieri are partners in Santo Fino, which actually had one of their trucks hijacked late last year, causing the Mayor of Flavortown himself to put a cash bounty on their heads, allegedly. (Also, to be fair, Elon Musk has Tesla Tequila, which we would love to try, but only for free.)
The newest name on that list is Glenn Franklin Howerton III (born 1976), an actor, writer, director, producer and podcaster, best-known as a co-creator of “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”, one of greatest TV shows ever made. Howerton plays Dennis Reynolds, aka the one who is probably a serial killer. Howerton and his colleagues Rob McIlhenny and Charlie Day founded Four Walls whiskey in tribute to Paddy’s Bar, which serves as the centerpiece of their iconic show. Their website describes it as “a blend of smooth, triple-distilled grain and malt Irish whiskeys from Great Northern Distillery in Dundalk, Co. Louth, Ireland, mixed with a hint of bold American rye from the award-winning Cedar Ridge Distillery in the rolling hills of Swisher, Iowa”. Their approach to marketing is almost wistful, betraying a bit of the sweetness and emotion that fights its way out through all the superficial meanness of their show.
Howerton will be personally bringing their product to local consumers during a barnstorming run through Northeast Florida on Saturday, March 8. All three locations are owned by ServStar Bar Management Group, which also owns Mango’s, Lucky’s, Dos Gatos, Shim Sham Room, Pete’s Bar, Surfer the Bar (formerly Freebird), RP’s Fine Food and Drink, 5 Points Liquor Lounge (formerly Wall Street) and both Hoptinger locations.
The day’s events kick off at 1pm, when Howerton makes his first stop at Riverside Liquors, which is located near the intersection of King and Park Streets, on a block built largely around video game bars like Dart Bar and Keg & Coin. Second stop is Jupiter–just kidding, Sun Ra fans, it’s actually Birdies, nestled in the heart of 5 Points on Park Street. That session starts at 5pm, with DJ Trevrolet commencing his weekly Saturday evening spot at 5, an hour early for the occasion. After that, Howerton heads north, to Neptune Beach, for his final appearance of the day at Pete’s Bar, the oldest bar in Northeast Florida. All these locations carry Four Walls at the bar, with bottles for sale, although RSL is the spot for all your retail needs
Having created the second-greatest TV show ever about bars (behind only “Cheers”, of course), it will be interesting to see Howerton’s reaction to Florida bar culture. The Four Walls website features heartfelt tributes to various bars, pubs, clubs and taverns they’ve encountered along the way, and one hopes that one of these bars ends up there, too. One thing is absolutely certain: He is destined to meet a number of people who are just as weird as the characters he helped create. Please try not to scare him!
Follow FOLIO!