Bardstown Bourbon Co. to build $25 million distillery in county industrial park
By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio
David Mandell, president and CEO of The Bardstown Bourbon Co., presents Gov. Steve Beshear with a commemorative barrel head Tuesday morning at My Old Kentucky Home State Park during the announcement the company is building a $25 million distillery in the Nelson County Industrial Park. Click to enlarge.
Thursday, June 26, 2014, 6 p.m. — The Bourbon Capitol of the World will soon be home to its fifth Bourbon distillery. Gov. Steve Beshear announced Thursday morning that The Bardstown Bourbon Co. will build a new $25 million Bourbon distillery in the Nelson County Industrial Park.
“The world can’t seem to get enough of our signature product,” Beshear said a crowd of about 75 people at the announcement at My Old Kentucky Home State Park.
The company will build a 45,000-square-foot building on a 100-acre tract, and expects to create 35 full-time jobs.
The company also plans to build a visitors center and warehouses.
David Mandell, president and CEO of The Bardstown Bourbon Co., told the crowd the company is proud to join the existing four distilleries in the county, who are some of the industry’s top bourbon producers. But Mandell said it wasn’t Nelson County’s rich bourbon heritage that sealed their decision to locate their business in Bardstown.
“At the end of the day, it was the people and the community of Bardstown that attracted us,” he said.
- Check the Gazette’s Facebook page for more photos from Tuesday’s announcement.
David Mandell, president and CEO of The Bardstown Bourbon Co., speaks about the company’s decision to build its new distillery in Bardstown.
The distillery will use local ingredients for its products, and will depend on local contractors for the distillery’s construction, he said.
The completed distillery and visitor center “will bring the enthusiast and the tourist as close to the Bourbon-making process as possible, while incorporating local culinary experiences and flavors,” Mandell said.
Former Maker’s Mark Master Distiller Steve Nally is returning to Kentucky to serve as the company’s master distiller after he helped build a new distillery in Wyoming. He brings 40 years of distillery experience to the job. He was inducted into the Kentucky Bourbon Festival Hall of Fame in 2007.
“The more involved I get in this process, the more exciting it is to have a chance to develop a new premium product for Bardstown,” Nally said. “I’m looking forward to being back.”
On behalf of The Bardstown Bourbon Co., president and CEO David Mandell presents a $5,000 check to Feeding America.
Mandell presented commemorative Bardstown Bourbon Co. barrel heads to Gov. Steve Beshear and other elected officials, and a $5,000 check on behalf of the company to Feeding America in order to support the company’s efforts to fight hunger.
The project qualifies for Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act tax incentives of up to $1 million in corporate tax credits, and another $300,000 recouped sales and use tax on construction costs, fixtures and certain types of equipment.
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