A spirited

venture

At the age of 25, Jon Bullinger, BSB/M ’08, traded his corporate career to pursue his passion for the art of tequila making.

Early in his career, Jon Bullinger left a promising career at Intel Corporation for some agave plants, plenty of red tape and a dream. Four years later, he is pursuing his passion for the art of tequila making at his company, Unique Liquid, with his very own YEYO Tequila brand.

Jon Bullinger, BSB/M ’08
Owner, Unique Liquid
Portland, Oregon

The secret to his success?

“Hard work. Honestly, it’s about pushing it as hard as you can
and putting in the hours.”  Jon Bullinger

After an internship at Intel turned into a successful five-year stint at the company, Bullinger decided it was time for something more. “I didn’t feel like I was supposed to work for someone else,” he admits. “I wanted to create something that could live beyond me.”

He had toyed with the idea of having his own spirit for a few years, and he decided the time was right to take the leap into entrepreneurship. “I hired a business partner, built a framework and did my research.”

He decided to focus on tequila, the spirit made from the blue agave plant in the Mexican state of Jalisco whose production is regulated by the government, as Champagne is in France or Parmigiano-Reggiano is in Italy. “The tequila category wasn’t oversaturated like he other spirits,” he explains. “I felt like I could improve it and come up with my own.”

Once he decided which spirit to pursue, Bullinger had to tackle the most important detail: finding a distillery in Mexico to make it. After touring the tequila-producing region of Jalisco, he decided on the Distillery Feliciano Vivanco in the city of Arandas, two hours east of Guadalajara.

“This distillery has been family owned for 94 years—going on five generations,” says Bullinger. “These guys aren’t in it for the money. They are what they do, and they have a huge respect for the agave plant.”

“I didn’t feel like I was supposed to work for someone else. I wanted to create something that could live beyond me.”

Jon Bullinger, BSB/M ’08

Breaking in

However, when the time came to market his tequila, Bullinger was in for a rude awakening. “I had predicted that breaking into the liquor industry was going to be rough, but it is cut-throat in states that are not regulated,” he says. “In Mexico, all the [competing tequila producers] get together to drink tequila and have fun together,” he says. “It is about the love of making tequila. It’s not like that here.”

Bullinger persevered, though, despite initial setbacks. “At first I got turned down left and right,” he recalls. “Tequila was doing just fine without me.” But fast forward to today, and YEYO has become a successful brand, available in more than 400 locations in Bullinger’s home state of Oregon, as well as in Texas and New Mexico. “In 2010, we became the number three-selling ultra premium tequila in Oregon,” he adds.

According to Bullinger, there are a few things that set YEYO apart from its competitors. First, it’s organic. Bullinger says that it will get its official organic certification from the USDA next year. It’s also produced on a single estate, which means it offers consistency in quality because the agave is from the same region and never outsourced. “It’s cooked in stone for 72 hours,” he notes, compared to other tequila producers who cook their agave in stainless steel for a shorter period of time.

And his distillery waits eight years before harvesting agave, despite the fact that the Mexican government will allow harvesting after just five. YEYO is also distilled twice in copper instead of the standard aluminum.

Bullinger maintains that these measures add up to a superior product. “A lot of brands today don’t focus on quality,” he says. “They focus on the name and not the stuff that’s in the bottle.”

Looking ahead

Though Bullinger has seen success in his short time as a tequila proprietor, he has big plans to expand into additional markets, including Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona; South Beach and Miami, Florida; and Washington State. He is excited about what the future holds, both for YEYO and himself. “I love doing what I’m doing every day,” he says with pride. “It doesn’t feel like work. Life’s too short not to be happy with what you’re doing.”