Drop Zone Distilling, LLC History

Welcome To Drop Zone Distilling

From a US Paratrooper to a TN State Trooper and now he’s the man behind the Mason Jars!

The founder of Drop Zone Distilling is Rod “Sarge” Parton, who is a 4th generation moonshiner with family recipes going as far back as 1934 belonging to his great-grandpap. Rod spent 28 years in law enforcement and 3 years as a firefighter where he was on the dive and recovery team in Blount Co., TN. Rod also spent 8 years in the US Army as a Paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division and is a Gulf War Veteran, thus the company name, Drop Zone Distilling!

Rod started working on going legal with their products and recipes in 2019 with Trademarks and Logo’s. Drop Zone finally opened on Veteran’s Day, Nov. 11, 2022 after many delays and supply chain issues. Rod, along with his son, Austin and some close friends stay true to the family heritage here where they make moonshine, whiskey, bourbon, vodka, and rums. Their products have already won several gold and silver awards with their family Shines, and Vodkas. Next up for competition is their whiskies that are already gaining a lot of popularity among the visitiors to the distillery. Rod is on a journey to introduce everyone to the real authentic unadulterated taste of hand-crafted Moonshine and Whiskies made famous from the back hills of Pittman Center, TN by his great-grandpap in the early 1930’s. Drop Zone plans to bring something different to the industry and they plan to stay true to the heritage of his product and not sell out like all the other commercialized distilleries have. Rod has secured a warehouse in the South Knoxville area where they can produce, bottle, label, and ship from. In this location they will bring the experience from the mountains of East TN to Knoxville where everyone who visits must currently drive to Sevier Co. to experience. Drop Zone Distilling offers tours of their facility and will explain the process of making mash the old mountain way all the way down to the bottling and labeling process. Drop Zone Distilling currently owns the title of, “KNOXVILLE’S FIRST MOONSHINE DISTILLERY”!!

Drop Zone Distilling is currently looking to expand in 2024 to a second location in order to bring the products to more people. Drop Zone is currently working to turn their distillery into an Event Center to host parties, gatherings, and special dinners. When not being used for events the back will be open for snacks and Whiskey and Cocktail flights using the small batch made items hoping to bring something new to Knoxville. Our plans for this area will include a venue for music and events as well as a full cocktail bar in the back. We will also have a small kitchen and we will offer simple southern comfort foods like your grandmother used to make.

Their current warehouse distillery is located at 806 E. Gov. John Sevier Hwy. This it is not only a production area but they also have a tasting bar and a retail area for purchase of their products and merchandise. Here they host events like Jeep, motorcycle, and car club get togethers where there are food trucks and cocktails on hand for these events. Drop Zone Distilling had 3 specialty brands of their products which are getting a lot of attention, these 3 are special labels that are tributes to our Military, Law Enforcement and Firefighters. These products are part of their give back program where a percentage of the sales will go back to the charities that support each label, such as… Wounded Warrior Project, Folds of Honor, Thin Blue Line of Tennessee, and Tunnels 2 Towers.

In 2023, Rod rolled out their first Whiskey and Bourbon Whiskey and American Single Malt under the name, “The Jumpmaster’s Reserve” to honor his family heritage in the liquor making and military tradition. Rod follows in his grandfather, great uncle and uncle’s footsteps of military service. His grandfather served in WWII and this great uncle who unfortunately didn’t return from that war. Rod’s has another Uncle was a Top Gun Fighter Pilot in the Navy during the Vietnam War. Their Bourbon and Rye Whiskey are made from their Gold Medal Award Winning Rye and Legacy Moonshine and are now ready to be enjoyed as a smooth whiskey.

Thank you for taking a moment to learn about Rod’s history and his vision for Drop Zone Distilling. Rod looks forward to meeting everyone when they visit. When you do visit, you will find the founder, Rod “Sarge” Parton working in the back just like everyone else! Rod said its just like when he was in the military he doesn’t expect anyone to do anything that he is not willing to do himself. You must lead your troops by example, from the front, not the rear!