The story of Four Branches Bourbon began with retired US Marine Corp Veteran Rick Franco. From his years in the Marines and CIA Franco was one of the lucky ones that made it home. Some of his friends, however, didn’t make it home and were later recognized with a Star on the wall at Langley Air Force Base.
Franco says, “Sometimes you hear voices in your head, [his advice is] don’t listen to them. But sometimes its ok.” One of those ‘ok’ times the voice in his head said he should buy a barrel of bourbon and sell it to friends on Facebook. He would use the money raised to give back to some of those Star families.
After doing a little research, he soon found out that selling bottles of bourbon on Facebook was highly illegal and decided he didn’t want to get arrested. That plan was put to bed while he worked on a new plan.
Four Branches Bourbon Begins to Take Shape
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“I went to Virgin Military Institute,” explained Franco. “I was an enlisted Marine. While there I became good friends with another cadet. We were commissioned, we were marine officers together at Camp Lejeune. I got out of the Marine Corp and got recruited into the CIA. I in turn, recruited Greg into the same branch of the CIA as a contractor with me.
“2005, December 7, Greg went on his first mission in Iraq. Greg saved everyone’s lives but Greg didn’t come home, and I had to go bring him home. He was then given a Star on the wall at Langley [Air Force Base] which was a big deal at the time because a contractor from our division had never received a Star. Since that time there have been five more Stars, a total of six. Men I’ve all worked with. So, this project started as a tribute of giving back and honoring the Greg’s and those who serve in the shadows.
“I share this story, ‘A lot of times you hear voices in your head? Don’t listen to them. But sometimes it’s ok.’ And this one said three years ago driving home from my day job, ‘Do a barrel of bourbon for the guys that didn’t make it home.’ And I thought it would be easy right? You buy a barrel, some bottles, print a label on my printer, slap it on the bottle, and sell it on Facebook. You can do that right? Apparently, you can’t. Uncle Sam takes exception to that.”
“And then I called Mike [Trott], and that is kind of how the team assembled. Then we called Harold [Underdown] because everyone needs a Navy SEAL on the team. And then a mutual friend said you guys have to call RJ [Casey]. So, this started as my idea as a giveback to Greg and those guys, the ones in the shadows.
Changing the Narrative – ‘Sip to Remember™’
“And then we decided as we were talking about this, we took a pause of conscious. We knew alcohol played a big part in men and women from our community making fatal decisions. We wrestled with that, with our conscious for a little bit. And then we said, you know what, it’s not going away so if it’s not going away, let’s change the narrative within the industry or let’s try to, as four guys with no experience in the industry or at least in our community. With our backgrounds, let’s try to use this to change the narrative.”
“For us, we don’t want someone that is struggling with alcohol to think that we are trying to sell them a product to push them down the wrong road,” added Co-Founder and US Navy SEAL Masterchief Harold Underdown. “We don’t want that. What we are saying is serve honorably, drink honorably and more importantly, we don’t want you to drink to forget anymore, we want you to sip to remember. And sip to remember the ones that we have lost. I’ve been to a lot of memorial services, we all have. Sip to remember and sip to remember the good things that happened. Don’t always think about the gray days of life, think about the blue sky days, and the beautiful times we’ve had. I have fun when it’s raining. It’s always like the glass if half full.” And that’s the way they approach the spirits business, the barrel is always half full.
We Are On a ‘No Fail Mission’
“The biggest flip a veteran has is transition, the transition from military life to private sector life,” said Co-Founder and US Air Force Veteran Michael Trott. “However, many years you had in military life you had a mission. And maybe now your mission is not as important. Or you come back, in the military you were a medic and your mission was saving lives. Now you come back and ask what’s my purpose. That struggle is real. I think the other example we were hoping to share with other veterans, who may be in their 50s or 60s, is we found a new mission, we found a new purpose.
“Don’t go at it alone, rally a team and find a new mission, find a new purpose whether it’s making cupcakes, mowing yards, bourbon or whatever it is. Giving back, building steps for vets, ramps, whatever it may be but find a new mission.
“As Harold said, we started this company and it’s a no fail mission. It’s something we refer to in the military, there is no failure. So, we had to think hard and deep when we started this business because if we fail, we fail the entire veteran community. And that’s a heavy, heavy load. So, we have to be a good example to all veterans that you can succeed at a new mission.” And that is the mission that Four Branches Bourbon is clearly focused on today.
Four Branches Bourbon found a partner in Bardstown Bourbon Company in Bardstown, Kentucky and they’ve been leaning into their mission for the past couple of years. Backed by a $2.5 million investment, they launched their first legal bourbon in 2023. Four Branches Bourbon Founders Blend is a four grain 96 proof bourbon. They have their second release, a nine-year-old bourbon blend finished in Caribbean rum casks in honor of the Black Ops community coming out this month.
What Does the Number 4 Stand for in the Name?
US Air Force – Represented by the large sweeping vertical mark stretching to the sky. Supports all branches with significant air superiority.
US Marine Corps – The leanest branch of the services, but their infantry is the backbone of amphibious warfare capabilities. They are often represented by the sword and bayonet.
US Navy – The vertical portion of our symbol represents a submarine sail or ship’s mast or as they maintain our freedom and security on the seas.
US Army – The base foundation mark represents the first branch of the military upon which all other branches and services are built.
Tip of the Spear – “We served in both the CIA and the Special Operations which is considered serving at the ‘Tip of the Spear’. We included a downward modern spear inside of the logo. Half of the spear is showing which represents those serving today. The other side of the spear is actually missing and that is in honor of those who are no longer with us.
So its more than just a 4, it represents the four branches of the military as well as the special operations at the tip of the spear.
Four Branches Bourbon is a spirit’s company founded by four veterans from the four branches of the military including US Marine Corp Veteran Rick Franco, US Air Force Veteran Michael Trott, US Navy SEAL Harold Underdown, and US Army RJ Casey. The brand’s mission is to honor those who serve, support the veteran community, and deliver exceptional bourbon.
Learn more about Four Branches Bourbon.
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