Ones Ready Ep 494: US Navy Rear Admiral to Whiskey Mogul: Scott Sanders' Side Quest Is Better Than Your Main Mission
Scott Sanders didn’t just go from Navy E-2 to Admiral—he took that momentum and barrel-rolled straight into crafting world-record bourbon and hunting MIAs in Cambodia. The Ones Ready crew sits down with the Tobacco Barn Distillery co-founder and Tours of Duty partner to talk Navy aviation, smacking SEAL brothers, bourbon snobbery, and what it means to chase purpose post-uniform. If you’ve ever wanted to drink patriotism straight from a bottle or launch a 500-lb barrel out of a C-130, this episode’s for you. Oh, and PSA: don’t mix good bourbon with Coke unless you want to get dropkicked by Trent.
🔥 Key Takeaways:
- Scott went from E-2 Navy aircrew to Admiral—because why not?
- Tobacco Barn Distillery’s first bourbon set world records. Casual.
- Tours of Duty sends teams to recover America’s MIAs—Scott helps fund it with booze.
- His family makes Top Gun look like a JV team: SEALs, pilots, cyber command.
- Bourbon snobbery hits hard—mixing with soda gets you banned from the house.
- Want to solve world peace? Just send Scott with a bottle and a passport.
⏱️ Timestamps:
00:00 – Tasty Gains, caffeine problems, and the new merch drop
03:21 – Who is Scott Sanders? From Navy flight deck to distillery
06:05 – The Navy’s coolest patch and E-2 Hawkeye life
14:53 – Aviation chaos, comms confusion, and figuring it out on the fly
23:57 – Why becoming an Admiral from a Hawkeye is rare as hell
28:51 – Navy SEAL brothers and family military smack talk
32:08 – Entrepreneurial lessons from war zones to whiskey barrels
35:23 – Peaches gets roasted (again) for having it all together
38:22 – Bourbon snob rules: no Coke, no Crown, no excuses
40:09 – Partnering with Tours of Duty to bring heroes home
49:41 – Air-dropping bourbon barrels? Yes, please.
52:45 – How Scott might be the real path to global peace
56:03 – How to get the special edition Tours of Duty bottle
57:08 – Final thoughts, relentless obsession, and advice for the next chapter
🎯 Call-to-Actions:
👍 Like the episode
🔔 Subscribe to Ones Ready
💬 Comment with your favorite bourbon or Navy story
🌟 Leave a review on your platform
🪖 Join t
Join this channel to get access to perks: HERE
Buzzsprout Subscription page: HERE
Collabs:
Ones Ready - OnesReady.com
18A Fitness - Promo Code: ONESREADY
ATACLete - Follow the URL (no promo code): ATACLete
CardoMax - Promo Code: ONESREADY
Danger Close Apparel - Promo Code: ONESREADY
DFND Apparel - Promo Code: ONESREADY
Hoist - Promo Code: ONESREADY
Kill Cliff - Pr...