From chasing cattle on Yellowstone’s 1883 television series to Bucking Bull Bourbon, actor and producer Eric Nelsen knows his way around an award-winning product.
He’s best known for his work as Ennis in the Yellowstone prequel 1883. The Emmy and Tony award-winning actor and producer sat down recently to talk about his relationship with Bucking Bull.
“What I love about this bourbon,” Nelsen said, “is that at 100 proof, you’d think it would pack a punch, but it’s silky, it’s so smooth. I just never had anything like it and I wanted to be a part of it.”
Today, Nelsen is the brand ambassador, the face of Bucking Bull Bourbon. His work is helping the newly-launched whiskey brand expand its footprint outside of Fort Worth. The eventual goal is to expand outside of Texas.
Eric Nelsen’s Introduction To Bucking Bull Bourbon
Whilst Eric Nelsen grew up in Minnesota, horses played a big part in his family life and his upbringing. Later, as an actor, Nelsen plied his trade across the country. He even starred opposite Ariana Grande in Broadway shows and acted in more than 30 television series.
It was when his first child was born that Nelsen was looking for a place to put down roots outside of Los Angeles. They moved to his wife’s hometown of Fort Worth, Texas, just before the pandemic hit. Then, once things opened back up, Hollywood came to Texas in the form of the Yellowstone prequel 1883.
The success of the show and the reaction to his character, Ennis, brought a new level of recognition for Nelsen. It was during the height of Yellowstone’s popularity when he was invited to a charity event for cancer research in Fort Worth.
“One event they had,” he said, “was a horse cutting contest featuring celebrities from Yellowstone versus 1883. And I ended up winning the whole thing.”
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He said that a gift bag that day had a bottle of whiskey in it, Bucking Bull Bourbon as it was, and “I ended up falling in love with it. I knew right then I had to get involved with this whiskey.”
Eric Nelsen said he especially loved the story of the bourbon, founded by the husband and wife team of Phil Neason and Sarah Pfaff. “Family owned and operated, you can’t beat the story, what it stands for and how it tastes. … I got in touch with them and said, ‘Whatever I can do to help out, let me know.’”
Fast-forward a few months, and Nelsen is the brand ambassador and chief spokesperson for Bucking Bull.
Eric Nelsen X Bucking Bull: A Perfect Partnership
The new whiskey is inspired by the modern west, sports, and bull riding, Nelsen said, and it’s now available in Dallas-Fort Worth bars and retailers. It’ll be available throughout the state of Texas by the end of the summer.
Nelsen said Bucking Bull is meant to attract a new generation to bourbon, a younger, premium bourbon-buying crowd. Bucking Bull Bourbon breaks the mold as it uses a bright, colorful label and graphics, originally produced videos and music as well as direct-to-consumer marketing.
“We’re lucky and proud to have Eric Nelsen and his team as our partner,” said Phil Neason, Bucking Bull’s co-founder. “Eric represents the face of the younger bourbon-buying crowd that is seeking to be part of something fun, something special, something they can celebrate. Eric will be a big part of our success in ‘making whiskey fun again.’”
Bucking Bull’s footprint is expanding out of the D-FW metro area and into the larger market of the Lone Star State. Nelsen said it’ll take a minute, but it’s going nationwide. Maybe even “across the pond,” he said.
A Thoroughly Texan Whiskey
But to be sure, Nelsen added, Bucking Bull is a Texas brand of bourbon through and through. “Bucking Bull is prominent in the city of Fort Worth. In a state that’s emerging, in a city with staggering growth, we see a parallel with Bucking Bull. It’s great to be a part of that.”
Fort Worth is now home to the Professional Bull Riders world finals. The whole area trades on its Western roots.
And so to, the Western genre of television and films is alive and well, something Nelsen knows intimately.
While his Ennis character from 1883 rests in peace, Nelsen looks to an upcoming Will Rogers project to keep his place in the Western genre firmly in the saddle.
As an actor, Nelsen said he’s worked in many places across the country. Working on 1883 in Texas “was something like I’ve never experienced. The pride that you see, it’s everywhere.”
He said the independent streak and the care that’s given for people and products was an eye-opener for him. “And that’s certainly the case for the spirits world (in Texas).”
For that Bucking Bull Bourbon that Nelsen first fell in love with … “the proof is always in that first taste, and in this case, 100 proof.”
He said that while the bourbon has “a little kick, it’s also got five years in the barrel, aged, cut, and blended in Texas. It’s as smooth as a baby bull’s hide, yet sweet and silky. It’s mashed with a higher than average bit of rye and a lot of straight corn, with a dash of malt to open up all that flavor.”
Keep up with Nelsen and Bucking Bill on Instagram: @ericnelsenofficial and @buckingbullbourbon. Alternatively, check out www.buckingbullbourbon.com.
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