by There is no end in sight for the ongoing bourbon renaissance in Kentucky. Distillers are spending billions of dollars to make sure the bourbon pipeline stays flowing for many years to come.
Buffalo Trace recently announced a doubling of its production capacity. The Frankfort distillery debuted its new still and stillhouse in February. It will produce 60,000 gallons a day and double whiskey production of brands including Buffalo Trace, Eagle Rare, Weller, Blanton’s, E.H. Taylor Jr, and others.
You’ll be able to see the new still as part of an expanded Hard Hat Tour. That tour is restarting after being closed since 2019 during the distillery’s $1.2 billion expansion projects.
But wait, there’s more! Let’s look at a few of the new distilleries and expansions that have been announced over the past year.l
Bue Run Spirits Unveils Spectacular Vision of New Distillery
Blue Run Spirits made a big splash a few weeks ago with the first look at the whiskey distillery and headquarters building it’s planning to build in Georgetown Kentucky, just outside of Lexington.
Blue Run Spirits will break ground on the 35,000-square-foot-distillery and 20,000-square-foot rickhouse later this year. The $50 million projects are each expected to open in 2025.
The distillery says the unique design, called “Meander,” represents “the journey of the limestone-rich water of the Royal Spring in Georgetown as it winds its way through the distilling, aging and blending process to becoming fine Blue Run bourbons and rye whiskeys.”
The distillery building is being designed by Bjarke Ingels Group, the international architectural firm that designed Google Headquarters in California. Blue Run Spirits started in late 2020 and has released 13 different rye and bourbon whiskies so far.
Buzzard’s Roost Opening New Whiskey Experience in Louisville
Buzzard’s Roost Sipping Whiskey recently announced both a new product rollout and the opening of a new whiskey experience in downtown Louisville.
The whiskey blender and bottler will expand its current micro-distillery and tasting room on Main Street (Whiskey Row) into a 6,000-square-foot space with a larger bar, tasting room, and retail shop. The larger micro-distillery will create 5 to 7 barrels of newmake bourbon or rye each week.
“This is an important next step for us,” said Buzzard’s Roost CEO and co-founder Judy Hollis Jones. “We’ve had significant success expanding our distribution into 10 states plus Canada in the last three years, and we launched our online shop in late 2022. The new micro-distillery and tasting room will let even more people – including the growing number of visitors to Louisville – experience Buzzard’s Roost bourbons and rye whiskeys in fun and creative ways.”
Western Kentucky Distilling Coming to Beaver Dam
The Western Kentucky Distilling Co., late last year, broke ground on a new $30 million bourbon and rye whiskey distillery in Beaver Dam, Kentucky.
Eighth-generation master distiller Jacob Call (formerly with Green River Distilling) will be the Master Distiller and COO of the new distillery. He joins Kentucky native J.D. Edwards, who is President.
The 25,000-square-foot distillery is on 80 acres that used to be farmland. It will include 15 warehouses, totaling 300,000-square-feet.
Pernod Ricard plans $250 Million Distillery for Jefferson Bourbon Brand
Pernod Ricard, the second largest wine and spirit company in the world, said in December it will spend $250 million over five years to build a new distillery, warehouses, and visitors center in Marion County, Kentucky, southeast of Bardstown. It will be home to the company’s Jefferson Bourbon Brand.
Jefferson’s Bourbon has been distilled by Kentucky Artisan Distillery in Crestwood, Kentucky.
The new Jefferson Bourbon distillery promises to be carbon-neutral when it opens and will have a capacity of 7.5 million proof gallons. Construction will begin after the first of the year and should be completed sometime in 2025.
Ann Mukherjee, Chairman and CEO, Pernod Ricard North America, noted the new plant will meet growing consumer demand, while still maintaining the company’s sustainability commitment. “American whiskey is booming, and Jefferson’s growth has been phenomenal,” Mukherjee said. “We’re very bullish on the brand’s potential, and we’re committed to making our new Jefferson’s facility one of the most exemplary distilleries in the world in order to achieve it.”
Willett Distillery Expanding on New Site
Willett Distillery in Bardstown announced in December that it will spend $93 million to build a new distillery operation and warehouses in Washington County, near Springfield.
Construction on the 70,000-square-foot facility on 150 acres began after the first of this year.
“Kentucky’s bourbon industry is experiencing incredible momentum throughout the entire state,” said Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear. “The demand for our bourbon is stronger than ever, and that’s a testament to the companies and distillers we have in the commonwealth who produce high-quality, world-class bourbon. Willett Distillery, which has been a staple of Kentucky bourbon for over eight decades, is bringing quality jobs to Washington County. I want to thank their leadership for continuing to support the commonwealth and look forward to many more years of their success.”
The original Willett Distillery will continue to operate just outside Bardstown. The family distillery first opened its doors in 1936.
Heaven Hill to Build a New Distillery in Bardstown
Heaven Hill Distillery announced last April it will build a new $135 million distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky. Heaven Hill hasn’t had distillery facilities in Bardstown since 1996 when a massive fire claimed its distillery, seven warehouses, and nearly 100,000 barrels of whiskey. Since the fire, Heaven Hill has made whiskey at its Bernheim Distillery in Louisville.
Our vote for what to call the new one: The Phoenix Distillery.
“The people of Bardstown have helped us create and build our brands over all these many years, so it’s a special homecoming to bring distilling back to this community,” said Max Shapira, President of Heaven Hill. “Our new distillery will honor our long-time Bardstown roots while applying state-of-the-art equipment and processes to produce the highest quality American Whiskey and build upon our meaningful partnership with Bardstown and the Commonwealth of Kentucky.”
The new distillery will debut in 2024 with a capacity to make 150,000 barrels a year. It can grow to produce 450,000 barrels per year. Construction is now underway on the 61-acre vacant site .
Bluegrass Distillers Building an $8 Million Operation in Midway, Kentucky
In February, Governor Beshear was on hand in Midway, Kentucky to help Bluegrass Distillers break ground on a new $8 million production operation on the historic Elkwood Farm property.
The company began distilling in 2013. The new craft distillery should open this fall and “will include a 36-inch column still and six 18,000-gallon fermentation tanks with room for future growth, as well as barrel warehouses, a bottling line, tasting room, visitor center, and event space.”
A restored 1835-era historical mansion will serve as the visitor’s center, gift shop, tasting rooms, and origin of the tours. Two-thirds of the 62-acre farm will grow blue and yellow corn for use in the distilling process.
Bardstown Bourbon Company is Coming to Louisville
In November, Bardstown Bourbon Company announced it’s coming to Whiskey Row in Louisville. The company said it will have a visitors’ center “brand experience” on Main Street by the end of this summer.
It will include a bar and lounge, bottle shop, and classroom space for consumer classes.
This is made possible by a new law in Kentucky that allows distilleries to sell bottles in gift shops and open remote satellite locations.
So, even if you’ve been to Kentucky bourbon country and think you’ve seen and sipped your way through the Bluegrass, it’s time to plan another trip. New bourbon experiences will continue to open over the next few years (and if we’re lucky, even longer.)
