Interview with Mark Brown, April 30, 2009

Interview Summary

Mark Brown is the president and C.E.O. of the Sazerac Company, parent company of Buffalo Trace. Brown grew up in a small town in England where his parents owned a pub, later coming to the United States, where he took a position with Sazerac. In this interview, Brown explains that he came to Kentucky to work with Sazerac's holding, Buffalo Trace, which was struggling during the bourbon industry's downturn in the 1970s and 1980s. He describes the restoration of the distillery and lists the successes it has since enjoyed. Brown talks about Buffalo Trace's commitment to innovation and mentions its development of experimental bourbons. He also describes the distillery's effort to preserve the historic architecture on the site. Brown discusses the future of Buffalo Trace and the bourbon industry's potential for success in international markets. In addition, he explains the benefits that bourbon tourism and the growth of the industry could have for the state of Kentucky.

Interview Keyword

England--Social life and customs Tourism--Kentucky Brown, Mark--Interviews Bars (Drinking establishments) Whiskey in Kentucky Family-owned business enterprises. Sales promotion. Quality of products.

Interview LC Subject

Bourbon whiskey Buffalo Trace Distillery Distilleries--Kentucky Brown-Forman Corporation Sazerac Company, Inc. Whiskey Whiskey industry--Kentucky Business enterprises, Foreign Economic conditions Export marketing Alcohol industry

Interview Rights

All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.

Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.