New release honors MLB Hall of Famer Jim Bunning

The newest batch of Kentucky Senator Bourbon is here! Named after the beloved Jim Bunning, this 8.5 year small batch Kentucky bourbon comes in at 107 proof. The bourbon has a mash bill of 75 % corn, 21 % rye, and 4 % malted barley.

Jim Bunning grew up in Southgate, Kentucky, just across the river from Cincinnati. He lettered in three sports in high school, earned an economics degree from Xavier University, and in 1952 married his childhood sweetheart, Mary Catherine Theis. They would stay married for more than sixty years and raise nine children together.

Bunning signed with the Detroit Tigers in 1950, but honored his parents’ wishes and finished college first. When he finally arrived in the majors, he made it count. By 1957, he led the American League in wins. A year later, he threw a no-hitter. Over 17 seasons, he earned nine All-Star selections and built a reputation as one of the most durable competitors in the game.

But his defining moment came on Father’s Day, 1964. Bunning was a Philadelphia Phillie by then, with something to prove and seven kids waiting back home. On June 21, at Shea Stadium, he took the mound against the Mets. Twenty-seven batters came to the plate. Twenty-seven sat back down. A perfect game. The first in the National League in 84 years. In the ninth inning, catcher Gus Triandos walked out to calm him. Bunning asked if Triandos could tell him a joke. Triandos just laughed and walked back behind the plate. Bunning struck out the final two batters to seal history. When he retired in 1971, Bunning had 224 wins and 2,855 strikeouts. The Phillies retired his number 14. Cooperstown followed in 1996.

To this day, he remains the only Major League player ever elected to both the Baseball Hall of Fame and the United States Senate. After baseball, Bunning brought his competitive fire into politics—city council, state senate, U.S. House, then two terms in the U.S. Senate from 1999 to 2011. Bold, plainspoken, and fiercely independent, he never backed down on budgets, principle, or the Commonwealth.

It was during those Senate years that Bunning made his most lasting mark on Bourbon. On August 2, 2007, he introduced Senate Resolution 294, officially designating September as National Bourbon Heritage Month. Bunning’s resolution gave Bourbon an enduring title: “America’s Native Spirit.” That phrase now lives on distillery walls, in tasting rooms, and in the hearts of Bourbon lovers everywhere. Jim Bunning passed away in 2017 at 85. He left behind a legacy that, like a fine Bourbon, only deepened with time.