Heaven Hill just lately broke floor on a $135-million distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky, in a homecoming that pays tribute to the family-owned firm’s authentic distillery that burned in a devastating fireplace in 1996.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear joined Heaven Hill President Max Shapira and Grasp Distiller Conor O’Driscoll to formally kick off development, they usually have been readily available to disclose the brand new distillery’s title … Heaven Hill Springs Distillery.
“We’re honored to have fun this homecoming with a return to distilling in Bardstown to reinforce our general bourbon-making capability, in addition to proceed to make an influence within the Bardstown neighborhood,” Shapira stated. “I’m proud to salute our historical past and the numerous Bardstown women and men who helped construct our manufacturers through the years by naming our new facility in honor of the unique Previous Heaven Hill Springs Distillery that my father and uncles based on this neighborhood 9 a long time in the past.”
Heaven Hill Springs Distillery (picture by way of Heaven Hill)
The brand new Heaven Hill Springs Distillery goes up within the coronary heart of the Bardstown neighborhood. It’s anticipated to be operational by the top of 2024.
Preliminary manufacturing requires 150,000 barrels a 12 months, and over time may have capability to ramp as much as 450,000 barrels yearly. That is along with the corporate’s distilling on the Bernheim Distillery in Louisville. That facility will proceed to function at full capability of 450,000 barrels yearly.
An announcement from Heaven Hill notes that as a part of their 2030 Environmental Sustainability Technique, the brand new distillery has been designed to create a extra environmentally acutely aware distilled spirits trade and guarantee a thriving atmosphere for years to come back.
Heaven Hill Springs Distillery is engineered to attenuate water use to beneath trade benchmarks and reuse sure water streams. The positioning will use native crops and pure methods to handle stormwater runoff and enhance habitat on the property.
The distillery will embrace a wastewater pretreatment system to make sure discharged water exceeds environmental requirements and significantly reduces the load on the town’s remedy plant.
Heaven Hill may also make the most of power creation and restoration, lessening the distillery’s demand on the town’s electrical grid.
“It is a vital day for Heaven Hill and Kentucky. The return of distilling operations to Nelson County is a return to the corporate’s roots, and the funding highlights the continued progress of bourbon and spirits within the commonwealth,” stated Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. “I’m extremely completely happy for the residents of Bardstown and the encompassing space, and I need to thank the leaders at Heaven Hill for this dedication to create new job alternatives and construct the corporate’s presence in our state.”
Max Shapira’s father and 4 uncles, together with a bunch of Bardstown-area traders, based “Previous Heaven Hill Springs” distillery in 1935, and crammed its first barrel on December thirteenth of that 12 months.
The corporate grew through the years and added a number of manufacturers, together with Evan Williams, Elijah Craig, Larceny, Henry McKenna and extra. Grasp distillers of the Previous Heaven Hill Springs Distillery through the years included Joe Beam, Harry Beam, Earl Beam, Parker Beam and Craig Beam.
In 1996, a hearth resulted within the lack of the distillery, seven rickhouses and almost 100,000 barrels of whiskey. After the hearth, Heaven Hill moved distilling to the Bernheim Distillery in Louisville.
Nevertheless, the bottling and growing older of whiskey together with different capabilities continued within the Bardstown space the place they continue to be immediately. As well as, in 2004, the corporate devoted the Heaven Hill Bourbon Heritage Heart, which most just lately expanded and was renamed the Heaven Hill Bourbon Expertise, and has greeted hundreds of thousands of holiday makers through the years.
For extra data on the brand new distillery, try www.heavenhilldistillery.com.
