Horse Soldier Bourbon Bottle Signing

Bob Pennington served in the US Army as a Green Beret, and was a member of the Special Forces team that was the first to land in Afghanistan in response to the September 11 terror attacks. The team of 12 traveled across Afghanistan on horseback in order to fight the Taliban, and their story was told in the book Horse Soldiers: The Extraordinary Story of a Band of US Soldiers Who Rode to Victory in Afghanistan, which was then developed into the film 12 Strong. Bob is now a Brand Ambassador for the Ultra-Premium Horse Soldier Bourbon, which is 100% American-owned and distilled with American ingredients. Each bottle of Horse Soldier is formed in molds made from steel from the Twin Towers, donated by the Post Authority, so it is literally a piece of history.

On Wednesday, April 3, he will be in the area and is graciously stopping at Bremer’s to sign bottles of Horse Soldier Bourbon for about an hour starting around 11/11:30. No worries if you can’t make it, as he will leave signed bottles here for sale while supplies last.

From Amazon.com:
Horse Soldiers is the dramatic account of a small band of Special Forces soldiers who secretly entered Afghanistan following 9/11 and rode to war on horses against the Taliban. Outnumbered forty to one, they pursued the enemy army across the mountainous Afghanistan terrain and, after a series of intense battles, captured the city of Mazar-i-Sharif, which was strategically essential to defeat their opponent throughout the country.

The bone-weary American soldiers were welcomed as liberators as they rode into the city, and the streets thronged with Afghans overjoyed that the Taliban regime had been overthrown.

Then the action took a wholly unexpected turn. During a surrender of six hundred Taliban troops, the Horse Soldiers were ambushed by the would-be POWs. Dangerously overpowered, they fought for their lives in the city’s immense fortress, Qala-i-Janghi, or the House of War. At risk were the military gains of the entire campaign: if the soldiers perished or were captured, the entire effort to outmaneuver the Taliban was likely doomed.

Deeply researched and beautifully written, Stanton’s account of the Americans’ quest to liberate an oppressed people touches the mythic. The soldiers on horses combined ancient strategies of cavalry warfare with twenty-first-century aerial bombardment technology to perform a seemingly impossible feat. Moreover, their careful effort to win the hearts of local townspeople proved a valuable lesson for America’s ongoing efforts in Afghanistan.