Bourbon & Bars

The Spirit of Kentucky: When distillers need a still, they call Vendome

By Janet Patton
Vendome Copper and Brass Works in Louisville is one of the industry's biggest still makers. There is no showroom floor. Every still is custom designed and takes seven to nine months to make, including the polishing that Josh Smith did here. If you want a still, vice-president Mike Sherman said, "First, try to figure out what you want to make, then how much you want to make, then are you going to be in a tourist area?" A standard 250- to 1,000-gallon copper still costs $80,000 to $250,000. Extras and upgrades might bring the price to $600,000. A mirror finish alone adds 30 percent to the price.
Vendome Copper and Brass Works in Louisville is one of the industry's biggest still makers. There is no showroom floor. Every still is custom designed and takes seven to nine months to make, including the polishing that Josh Smith did here. If you want a still, vice-president Mike Sherman said, "First, try to figure out what you want to make, then how much you want to make, then are you going to be in a tourist area?" A standard 250- to 1,000-gallon copper still costs $80,000 to $250,000. Extras and upgrades might bring the price to $600,000. A mirror finish alone adds 30 percent to the price. Herald-Leader

LOUISVILLE — Bourbon makers have few secrets from the men who build their stills. After 110 years in the business, there is little that people at Vendome Copper and Brass Works don't know about where the industry has been — or where it's going.

Long before a certain Tennessee distillery announced a $100 million expansion in August, cousins Rob and Mike Sherman, fourth-generation still makers at Vendome, knew that the company was getting more stills. Vendome has 25,000 pounds of German-milled copper plates in stock and another 25,000 on order, but for the Jack Daniel's project, even that might not be enough.

In Vendome's warehouses are shrink-wrapped pieces of future distilling glory, headed all over the country. Seems everybody wants a still.

"There's nothing more lucrative than alcohol," Rob Sherman said.

This story was originally published December 7, 2013 at 7:41 PM with the headline "The Spirit of Kentucky: When distillers need a still, they call Vendome."

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