Challenge

Bardstown Bourbon Company (BBCo) built its name with consumers, but its biggest growth opportunity was B2B. Through its Contract Distillation program, BBCo became a leading name in crafting custom spirits for other bourbon brands. As the category boomed and new competitors piled in, BBCo needed to become the definitive authority in contract distilling. That is a specialized sale with long research cycles and high consideration, and the buyer’s journey starts with a search like “how to start a bourbon brand” or “contract distilling in Kentucky.” To win it, BBCo had to own that journey: be the first and most trusted name on the screen, in both paid and organic results.

The Idea

Own the whole first screen. PriceWeber built a full-spectrum search strategy that unites paid and organic search into a single engine designed to capture, convert and keep high-intent searchers. Paid would seize immediate top-of-page control and crowd out competitors. SEO would build the durable, credible authority underneath it. Together, they would make BBCo hard to miss at every stage from discovery to decision.

The Work

On the paid side, PriceWeber ran tightly curated campaigns against the highest-intent B2B queries, including “contract distilling,” “private label bourbon” and “how to start a brand,” holding top-of-screen control and delivering BBCo’s message 100% of the time. On the organic side, comprehensive content, new service pages and technical optimization (including structuring content for Google’s AI Overview) drove rankings up fast.

A single reporting framework tied search visibility directly to business leads. And a media protection plan was built in advance to carry that hard-won authority through the contract distilling business’s rename to Lofted Custom Spirits.

The Results

The strategy delivered immediate visibility, durable authority and, ultimately, more leads.

Organically, BBCo rose from #24 to #2 for “contract distilling” in 90 days and has held the #1 to #2 position since. On paid, it captured a 95% top-of-page impression share at an 11% click-through rate, keeping rivals off the first screen. As the program matured, the business results followed: outreach actions (form fills and emails) doubled, giving BBCo more qualified B2B leads, with higher engagement from conversion-ready visitors.

And when BBCo’s contract distilling business was renamed Lofted Custom Spirits under the new Lofted Spirits parent company, the search equity did not reset. PriceWeber’s paid-and-organic “bridge” strategy preserved 80% of search visibility within three months, protecting years of authority through the rename.

The result is a replicable blueprint for B2B in spirits: not just a ranking, but a strong position on the question B2B buyers ask first, where do I make my bourbon?

Whether the assignment is designing a dynamic brand story or overhauling the SEO strategy for our contract distilling business, PriceWeber is in the elite class of spirits agencies.

Jim Lake, Vice President of Marketing, Lofted Spirits