About Us
About the Owners of Soldier of the Sea Distillery
Mark Davis
Mark Davis has roots in Virginia and Georgia and has enjoyed the culture of the Southeast his entire life. He enlisted in the Marines at 17. He was fortunate as a “soldier of the sea” to travel the Mediterranean and North Africa with a marine detachment, on the USS Little Rock. With the GI bill, Mark graduated from the UGA College of Agriculture with a BS. Because of his love of the corps he returned to the Marines and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant and became an artillery officer. After more world travel, Mark returned to civilian life but stayed in the reserves where he served in artillery and as an arial observer during desert storm. As a veteran, he landed a job with a world class pharmaceutical company where he learned fractional distillation. This is a common practice in the manufacturing of pharmaceuticals but is also a mandatory skill in the making of a fine whiskey. Due to Mark’s background in agriculture, he made it a priority to encompass local farm products for the distillery. His love of beekeeping led him to experiment with the fermentation process. His other passion is to honor the military by dedicating a whiskey for those who have served their country in the air, on land, and sea. Mark’s background and experience has led to the evolution of Soldier of the Sea Distillery.
Jennifer Berry
For over 22 years, Jennifer Berry has been the Apicultural Research Professional and Lab Manager for the University of Georgia Bee Program. Her research objectives have focused on queen breeding, improving honey bee health, IPM techniques for varroa and small hive beetle control, sub-lethal effects of pesticides on beneficial insects, weeds for bees, and what best to plant in traditional and non-traditional horticultural landscapes to enhance pollinator populations and diversity. Jennifer’s extension duties include teaching beekeeping to folks all over the world, including those incarcerated in Georgia’s medium and maximum security prisons. Her other passion is all about protecting pollinators on a local, regional and national scale. Recently she has become a PhD student and is teaching the “Bees, Beekeeping and Pollinator Conservation” course at UGA.
Jennifer Berry and Mark Davis with their dogs