SoMo Walls developer Bugra Demirel is crying foul after the launch of a homegrown gin created through a collaboration involving his political nemesis, Tallahassee City Commissioner Jeremy Matlow.
Warhorse Whiskey Bar began serving its own barrel-aged gin in an arrangement with Ology Brewing Co., which operates a small-batch, craft distillery called Ology Distilling. The bar, one of several businesses owned by Matlow, began selling it late last month.
The gin’s debut comes four months after the Blueprint Board approved a controversial $1.8 million funding request for SoMo Walls that will be anchored by an on-site distillery, Walls Distilling Company — a venture Matlow voted against after dragging it on social media as a conflict of interest for commissioners who benefited from Demirel’s political activities with Grow Tallahassee in the 2022 election cycle.
Demirel told the Tallahassee Democrat the Warhorse/Ology gin demonstrates that it’s Matlow who faced an ethical conflict. He maintains Matlow should have recused himself from the Blueprint vote if he was getting into the local distilled spirit business.