Columbus, Ohio-based Middle West Spirits is pushing a new cause-marketing SKU through its Old Elk Distillery brand with the nationwide launch of the Old Elk Folds of Honor Blended American Whiskey, a $49.99 SRP expression tied to Folds of Honor, the 501(c)(3) nonprofit that has awarded 62,000 scholarships totaling $290 million to families of fallen or disabled service members and first responders.
The Liquid
The expression is a blend of Old Elk High Malt Bourbon and Old Elk Rye, two existing pillar SKUs in the distillery's portfolio. Tasting notes lead with toasted oak, leather, and vanilla on the nose, transitioning to sweet and tart cherry, baking spices, and cherry vanilla on the palate. The blend strategy allows Middle West to leverage its existing grain-to-glass production infrastructure in Columbus — including on-site grain processing, distilling, aging, and bottling — without requiring incremental capacity investment, a clean route to bringing a cause-tied expression to shelf quickly.
Route to Market
The SKU is currently available for preorder through the Old Elk DTC bottle shop and will also be sold at the Middle West Spirits Courtland Avenue distillery bottle store in Columbus. Broader off-premise and on-premise distribution channels were not specified at launch, though the nationwide positioning signals that wholesaler network activation is part of the commercial roadmap. For an independently owned distillery operating across the three-tier system, cause-affiliated labels like this can accelerate retailer placement conversations — shelf buyers and category managers increasingly respond to SKUs with a built-in narrative that drives consumer pull.
For distributors weighing planogram space in the blended American whiskey segment, the $49.99 price point positions the expression above the commodity tier but well within the accessible premium range that has driven the most durable depletions growth in domestic whiskey over the past three years. Middle West's track record — more than 200 awards across competitions including the ASCOT Awards, PR%F Awards, and Beverage Tasting Institute — gives the brand credibility with on-premise buyers and off-premise chain buyers alike.
Partnership Context
"Our goal is to help our hard-working service members and their families," said Luis Gonzalez, Chief Commercial Officer of Middle West Spirits. "Through this partnership, we hope to make an impact in the lives of those who have sacrificed so greatly for our country." Luke Sherman, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development for Folds of Honor, framed the commercial relationship as mission-aligned: "Working with Old Elk showcases the power of two American organizations coming together to support a critical cause."
The Folds of Honor partnership fits a broader trend in the spirits category where supplier-nonprofit alignments are used to differentiate SKUs at a crowded shelf. For distributors and their supplier partners, cause-linked expressions can generate earned media and on-premise visibility — particularly in markets with large veteran or active-duty populations — that would otherwise require significant trade spend. Middle West's established portfolio, which spans OYO Vodka, Vim & Petal Gin, and multiple whiskey expressions, gives the brand existing wholesaler relationships to leverage as distribution for the Folds of Honor SKU scales. Industry observers tracking spirits distribution trends and cause-marketing SKU launches will want to watch whether the expression moves from DTC and distillery-direct into broader chain and independent retail channels in the coming months.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
