Heaven Hill Distillery

Although we'd been here before, we decided to go back to Heaven Hill Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky.  Heaven Hill was founded by several investors shortly after the repeal of Prohibition in 1935 including a prominent distiller, Joseph L. Beam (Jim Beam's first cousin), and a member of the Shapira family.  As the company grew, the five Shapira brothers bought out the other investors.  Joe Beam remained as Master Distiller, along with his youngest son, Harry.  Descendants of the Shapira Brothers own and operate the company today.

All of the Master Distillers since its founding have been members of the Beam family.  Following Joe Beam was his son, Harry, who was followed by Earl Beam, the son of Jim Beam's brother, Park.  Earl Beam was succeeded by the current Master Distillers, Parker Beam and his son, Craig Beam.

We decided on the Bottled-in-Bond tour which is described as "During this experience, you'll learn about the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897 and why we're proud to be the #1 producer of Bottled-in-Bonds.  You'll enjoy a tasting of four Bottled-in-Bond whiskeys while touring two of our bonded rickhouses."  Sign us up!

We met our tour guide, Grace, and she gave us a lot of information about the distillery and the Bottled-in-Bond Act.

It's pretty cool that they give each participant a lanyard with a tasting glass so you can taste along the way.

The Bottled-in-Bond Act made the federal government the guarantor of a spirit's authenticity, gave producers a tax incentive for participating and helped ensure proper accounting and the collection of tax that was due.  To be labeled as bottled-in-bond or bonded, the liquor must be the product of one distillation season (January-June or July-December) under U.S. government supervision for at least four years and bottled at 100 proof.  The bottled product's label must identify the distillery where it was was distilled and, if different, where it was bottled.

In 1996, the production plant was almost completely destroyed by fire due to a lightning strike.  The fire started in an aging warehouse and spread to other buildings and vehicles.  90,000 barrels (approximately 7.7 million gallons) of flammable bourbon was consumed.  From one account of the fire: "Flames leapt hundreds of feet into the air and lit the sky throughout the night.  Witnesses reported seeing whiskey barrels explode and rocket across the sky like shooting stars....a two-mile long stretch of the creek that supplied process water to the distillery was set ablaze for a brief time."

After the introduction, we walked over to the first rickhouse.

No smoking allowed!

A rickhouse is a warehouse where whiskey barrels are stacked in multiple racks for uniform aging and thorough ventilation.  Stacks are called ricks and the rickhouse holds multiple stacks of whiskey.  At Heaven Hill, there are over 60 rickhouses where the bourbon is aged.  They sit on seven different sites across bourbon country and hold between 10,000 and 60,000 barrels each.

This rickhouse was one of the oldest on the property.

Our first tasting stop - our glasses were going to come in handy.

And then on to another.

It was interesting to see the elevator that carries the barrels to the upper floor - the workers have to use the stairs.

We went to the second rickhouse which was one of the newer ones.  Quite a difference between the two.

Perfect timing as one of the employees was rolling barrels.  The approximately 550 pound barrels are put on these rails so that they are easier to roll and metal bands don't cause friction with floor nails in order to reduce the risk of fire.  Each barrel produces about 160-180 750 ml bottles before being "proofed" (when you might add water).

The loading dock is close by so it's easier to get them on the trucks.

Time for another tasting.

As the bottles are produced, they mark each "milestone" barrel.

Barrels #1,700,000 and #2,000,000

And then everyone who worked on the production signed the barrel.

One of the Heaven Hill brands is Elijah Craig.  The brand is named in honor of Revered Elijah Craig, who was a Baptist preacher, educator, and entrepreneur in Fayette County, Virginia, which became Scott County, Kentucky following Kentucky statehood in 1792.  In about 1789, Craig founded a distillery there.  Heaven Hill dubiously credits him with the invention of "true Kentucky bourbon" and calls him "The Father of Bourbon".

Heaven Hill/Elijah Craig is sponsoring this year's PGA golf championship which is being held in Louisville.  Stay tuned for more about that.