Malt, Barley, Wheat, and Rye at Jeptha Creed

Malt, Barley, Wheat, and Rye — the cats of Jeptha Creed Distillery

Photos courtesy of Jeptha Creed Distillery

October 20, 2026

Malt, Barley, Wheat, and Rye

Four orange sisters have been working the night shift at a Kentucky distillery since 2017. Well, sort of.

In 2017, employees at Jeptha Creed Distillery in Shelbyville, Kentucky, were spreading straw around the property when four tiny orange kittens tumbled out of a bale. Their mom was nowhere to be found, and the kittens were hungry and far too young to look after themselves. The staff took them in, bottle-fed them, and gave them names that fit their new home: Malt, Barley, Wheat, and Rye.

Two of the Jeptha Creed kittens on a cat tree

Early days at the distillery Photo courtesy of Jeptha Creed

Two orange kittens, one mid-yawn, on a cat tree

Still figuring out the third shift Photo courtesy of Jeptha Creed

Jeptha Creed had opened just the year before. The family-run distillery makes its spirits using grains grown on its own farm, including the heirloom Bloody Butcher corn used in its bourbon. The kittens quickly became part of the place, even if their roles were pretty different from everyone else's. They were supposed to be the distillery's “third shift,” roaming around at night after everyone else went home. Apparently, Barley took her job more seriously than the others.

Fast forward nearly a decade, and all four sisters still work at Jeptha Creed. We spoke with Christian Kern, the distillery's marketing director, to find out how the sisters are doing these days.

The third shift

These days, Malt, Barley, Wheat, and Rye mostly hang out in the warehouse where the distillery keeps its grain. They still roam freely in the evenings, doing a little mousing, but things are different during the day. They have a very large cat condo where they sleep, play, and meet people who come by for distillery tours. And it looks like their job descriptions have changed a bit.

“Even if they weren’t useful, they are members of the family,” Christian says. “These days they do a bit of mousing, but their main job is being adorable and greeting all the lovely guests that come to visit them.”

So the third shift is still employed, but customer relations has turned into a bigger part of what they do.

The girls

The sisters have really become part of everyday life for the people who work at Jeptha Creed.

Malt, an orange and white cat at Jeptha Creed Distillery

Malt Photo courtesy of Jeptha Creed

Barley, an orange tabby at Jeptha Creed Distillery

Barley Photo courtesy of Jeptha Creed

Wheat, an orange and white cat beside a whiskey barrel

Wheat Photo courtesy of Jeptha Creed

Rye, an orange and white cat on a blue blanket

Rye Photo courtesy of Jeptha Creed

“One thing the sisters definitely contribute to is better morale,” Christian mentions. “If anyone is ever having a bad day, we tell them to go play with the girls and it tends to do the trick.”

If the cats are up and about during the day, there's a good chance someone is playing with them. Some visitors also come back to the distillery regularly just to hang out with the sisters.

“They are our little celebrities!” Christian says.

It's been almost ten years since those four kittens tumbled out of a bale of straw at Jeptha Creed. They still live together, still occasionally catch mice, and still have a place in the distillery's daily life. Looks like the third shift has worked out pretty well.