(l-r) Stoner, Feerrar, Saunders, Bartlett
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A faculty-student research team at Lycoming College has spent the summer working closely with nearby, alumnus-owned Four Birds Distilling Co., to help advance innovation in speeding the time required to age American bourbon. The manufacturing project was made possible by a $64,955 grant awarded by The Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development.
Community and Economic Development Grant
The Lycoming College-Four Birds project is part of Manufacturing PA’s fellowship program, which embeds the commonwealth’s best and brightest graduate and undergraduate students with local manufacturers in an effort to help advance innovation in manufacturing. Lycoming students Logan Bartlett ’25, biochemistry major from Lewisburg, Pa.; and Marshall Stoner ’25, biochemistry major with a minor in French from Spring Mills, Pa., were chosen for the task. Allison Saunders, Ph.D., assistant professor of biochemistry at Lycoming College, and Lycoming alumnus and Four Birds owner Joe Feerrar ’02 are leading Bartlett and Stoner in the research, which aims to prepare quality bourbon in a shorter period of time using ultrasound sonication technology.
“This research has provided a unique experience for Logan and Marshall to aid a local business in optimizing product production using chemistry knowledge from the classroom."
“Working with Dr. Saunders and Marshall this past summer has helped me learn new lab skills and more importantly helped me learn to think critically about experimental design and procedure,” said Bartlett.
“It was great to able to work alongside a local company and further my education in the process. I learned a lot during my time working with Dr. Saunders and Logan in the lab, including how to utilize various techniques to analyze an unknown sample,” said Stoner.
Research Process
The research team plans to test different types of wood, levels of charring of the wood, and oxygen pressurization, to produce small batches of bourbon under various conditions in a Lycoming College laboratory. The optimal lab conditions will be adjusted for larger-scale production at Four Birds, then analyzed for aroma, color, taste, and chemical makeup using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatography (GC) to ensure the same quality product is being produced at the distillery.
“This research has provided a unique experience for Logan and Marshall to aid a local business in optimizing product production using chemistry knowledge from the classroom. They have been involved in the early stages of the project this summer, which included experimental design and testing methods to detect compounds present in bourbon. These learned techniques can be applied to other areas of research that they can use at Lycoming College and after graduation,” said Saunders.
“Our goal is to produce a bourbon that is comparable to 6-10-year oak barrel-aged, but in a fraction of the time, shortening the ageing process for bourbon from years to weeks,” said Feerrar. “The grant award allowed for the purchase of necessary materials and equipment, but more importantly, it has provided the support that student researchers need to be successful in this innovative and collaborative research, and will soon help to create manufacturing jobs in Pennsylvania.”
The project will likely see additional Lycoming student researchers join the project next summer, with a goal of producing a sonication-aged bourbon for consumption within one year.
About Four Birds Distilling Co.
Four Birds Distilling was launched in 2020 with locations in Jersey Shore, PA and Havertown, PA. They are currently able to distill vodka, gin, bourbon, various whiskey, agave and other spirits. They partner with local farmers like Pine Creek Seed Farm (Jersey Shore, PA) wherever they can to highlight the best ingredients PA has to offer. Four Birds has the largest craft still (4000 L) in PA and will partner with other labels to help manufacture their beverages. More information can be found at https://www.fourbirdsdistilling.com/.