Back to Bardstown: Heaven Hill plans $135m bourbon distillery to replace one lost to fire
Heaven Hill, home to some of the biggest brands in bourbon, announced Wednesday the Kentucky company plans to return whiskey production to Bardstown for the first time since a devastating 1996 fire.
The parent company of Evan Williams plans to build a $135 million distillery to increase capacity to meet global whiskey demand, according to a news release. Evan Williams is one of the biggest selling bourbons in the world; other major Heaven Hill brands include Elijah Craig Bourbon, Larceny Bourbon, Pikesville Rye Whiskey, Rittenhouse Rye Whisky, Parker’s Heritage Collection and Old Fitzgerald.
The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority on March 31 approved up to $1.5 million in economic incentives for the project, which is expected to create 38 jobs over the next 10 years with an average hourly wage including employee benefits of $33.62, according to the state.
The state-of-the art distillery will replace the distillery lost in a 1996 fire that also destroyed seven rickhouses and almost 100,000 barrels of whiskey but will be at a different location. After that fire, Heaven Hill moved its distilling operations to the historic Bernheim Distillery in Louisville, although bottling, aging and other functions stayed in Bardstown.
“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, in the release. “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 be built on a vacant 61-acre site at 1015 Old Bloomfield Pike, off KY 245, according to the release. Construction is expected to begin this spring and the distillery is expected to be operational by the end of 2024. Initially, they expect to produce about 150,000 barrels a year at the site, ramping up to 450,000 barrels a year over time.
The Bernheim distillery in Louisville also will continue to operate at full capacity.
“Bourbon making is an old art, but we are applying forward-thinking approaches to ensure we are environmentally conscious and a good neighbor,” said Conor O’Driscoll, Heaven Hill Distillery master distiller. “Heaven Hill’s tradition of distilling with attention to detail, quality and craftsmanship will now be even more accessible as we grow our distilling heritage in Bardstown.”
