Pepper House is the New Home for Barrel Program

Woodford Reserve Distillery has thrown down the gauntlet and raised the bar for whiskey barrel tasting experiences.

“We need a spectacular venue for whiskey industry VIPs and when people come in to taste and select their own Personal Selection batches of Woodford Reserve,” one Brown-Forman exec said many years ago.

“Why don’t we restore one of the most historic sites in Kentucky distilling history. It overlooks the Woodford Reserve Distillery on a hill across Glenn’s Creek, the source of the water we use to make our whiskey,” another Brown-Forman exec answered. “And let’s spend a lot of money, so it is an absolute showplace like no other on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.”

This conversation might be imaginary, but this new tasting house is real, remarkable, and ready for visitors.

It’s called The Pepper House, in honor of early Kentucky distiller Elijah Pepper and his family. Pepper was the patriarch of three generations of distillers, including his grandson James E. Pepper, whose Old Pepper Distillery has been restored in Lexington, Kentucky.

The Peppers built a log cabin on this site in 1812 and began distilling whiskey, in addition to farming. The Peppers’ Glenn Creek distillery later became Labrot & Graham Distillery, and eventually Woodford Reserve Distillery; all on this same property.

I was fortunate indeed to attend the dedication ceremony last week of this beautiful new/old tasting house. All the top brass from Brown-Forman was there, including Brown-Forman President and CEO Lawson Whiting, Master Distiller Emeritus Chris Morris, and Master Distiller Elizabeth McCall.

“Many years ago, before we restored this property, it was in total disrepair,” McCall told me while standing on the back porch. The two-story property includes a high-ceilinged tasting room with a sitting area off of it; a library room with exposed logs and chinking on three walls and limestone fireplace; a comfortable bar; front and back porches; and a patio area.

Outside of the log cabin library room, it’s hard to say how much of the house was there before and how much is brand new. (“Next on ‘This Old House,’ we restore a barn that George Washington slept in once, using just a few original boards!”) But there’s no question the quality of the restoration and new construction is first class, and a great deal of money was spent on the project. From the wooden shingle roof, to the siding and hardwood floors, top-quality materials were used. The Pepper House should definitely make the cover of next month’s Architectural Whiskey House Digest.

“This home, with its rich heritage and deep-rooted connections to the birth of bourbon in the Commonwealth, stands as a testament to the enduring legacy of the Pepper family in shaping the bourbon industry as we know it today, I believe it’s a fitting tribute to reuse this house in modern ways. If these walls could talk, I can imagine the stories they could tell about early distilling life in Kentucky.”

Woodford Reserve Master Distiller Elizabeth McCall

In the winter, when the leaves are off the trees, you’ll be able to see the Woodford Reserve Distillery on the opposite hill across Glenns Creek.

“This place has great history,” McCall told me. “When you walk around the ground of Woodford Reserve Distillery and think about what the Pepper family was doing here in the 1800s. They settled here because of the springs, along Glenns Creek. They utilized that water, not only to make beautiful whiskey with, but as refrigeration fresh drinking water, and for their livestock. Back then it was very much a “farm to still” operation. We celebrate that and continue that heritage of making great whiskey here at Woodford Reserve. Now we can celebrate that with their home being restored. It’s amazing to go in and touch the walls that were part of this home back in the 1800s.”

Woodford Reserve’s Personal Selection Barrel Program

Woodford Reserve Distillery says its Personal Selection barrel program is “popular with bars, restaurants, liquor stores, and consumers around the world.” Participants get to taste from several barrels to custom-create their own two-barrel batch of Woodford Reserve Bourbon, Double Oaked Bourbon, or Rye Whiskey. The Woodford Reserve website describes it this way: “It’s Craft Bourbon, and you’re one of the craftsman.”

Just so you know, this isn’t your usual tour. You end up with several hundred custom-labeled bottles. That’s why the prices for a group to sit around the tasting table can run between $10,000 and $12,000, depending on the state they’re from.

Before the dedication ceremony started, I ran into Susan Banet, Personal Selection Marketing Manager for the Woodford Reserve and Old Forester barrel programs, in the tasting room. I asked her what was behind the creation of the Pepper House.

“We’ve always prided ourselves in trying to provide the best experience on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail,” Banet said. “As more distilleries joined the Trail, their experiences were getting more and more elevated. So, we wanted to make sure we are still the number one, premium experience. We want our visitors to feel like the VIPs that they are, hopefully making lifelong brand ambassadors, and encourage them to be repeat customers of the (Personal Selection) program.”

I asked Banet to walk me through what Personal Selection guests would experience.

“Guests arrive at our Visitors Center and are met by Chris Morris, Elizabeth McCall, or one of our certified tasters. They get a VIP tour throughout the distillery that lasts about an hour. They are shuttled up here and brought into the tasting room to be taken through our two-barrel blend experience. Most other distilleries do a single barrel. The experience takes about an hour and is limited to six guests to keep that experience unique.”

After that, guests spend some time in the bar tasting a “specialty product” before returning to the Visitors Center. Banet said there are plans to evolve and grow the Personal Selection program once it moves into its new home. “We’re really excited for everyone to come and experience this. To share our love and passion for Woodford Reserve,” Banet said.

Later, I asked McCall about the role she’ll play at the new tasting house.

“When we have guests here at the Pepper House, they will come from all over the world,” McCall said. “It’s a chance to peak behind the curtain and share some rare whiskies with folks. The other opportunity is to host people for Personal Selections and for them to create their own unique batch of Woodford Reserve. Depending on the day, it might be (led by) myself, or Chris Morris, or one of our great colleagues who we’ve trained to be wonderful Personal Selection hosts.”

For more information on the Woodford Reserve Personal Selection barrel program, go here.

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When you participate in Woodford Reserve’s Personal Selection barrel program, you’ll receive:

• 180-240 1 Liter bottles of your selected bourbon, offered in personalized, individually labeled bottles bearing your name
• Personalized barrelhead (upon request)
• Personalized barrel (upon request)
• A private tour of the distillery and lunch with tasting group
• Your name or company name on display at the Distiller

Cost is between $10,000 and $12,000 depending on the state.

(Source: Woodford Reserve Distillery)

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The Chris Morris Library

“Chris (Morris) has not stopped championing this project for many years.”

At the dedication ceremony, Brown-Forman President and CEO Lawson Whiting had a surprise for Master Distiller Emeritus Chris Morris. He presented him with a plaque naming the log cabin library in the Pepper House, “The Chris Morris Library.”

“Chris Morris, our Master Distiller Emeritus, has been dedicated to bringing back life into the Pepper House and restoring it,” McCall told me later. “Chris has not stopped championing this project for many years. He is also a steward of history and loves the history of these grounds. To celebrate him and commemorate him with the dedication of the “Chris Morris Library” – and to have it be a total surprise to him, was such an honor today. I’m so excited to share that with him.”

Brown-Forman is also making a $25,000 donation to the Woodford County History Room at the Woodford County Library in Versailles, Kentucky.

“On behalf of Brown-Forman and our 153-year legacy, we sincerely thank Chris for his exceptional leadership and unwavering dedication to the artistry of Kentucky bourbon. Over his five decades with Brown-Forman, Chris has consistently demonstrated that there is simply ‘nothing better in the market’.

Brown-Forman President CEO Lawson Whitling

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Maker’s Mark Lakeside Tasting Room