Governor, local officials mark opening of Log Still tasting room with ribbon cutting
NC GAZETTE / WBRT RADIO
STAFF REPORT
Wednesday, May 12, 2021 — Gov. Andy Beshear was in southern Nelson County Tuesday with members of the Dant family who lead Log Still Distillery and local officials in Nelson County to cut the ribbon on the distillery’s tasting room.
The event represented a major step forward for a two-phase project expected to create 146 full-time jobs with $36 million in total investment.
“Today is a great day for Nelson County and Kentucky’s thriving bourbon industry,” Beshear said. “Log Still Distillery’s campus embodies everything that makes the bourbon industry so important to our state. This project will provide economic growth for the surrounding area while attracting visitors from across the state and beyond our borders. I want to thank Wally Dant and everyone at Log Still Distillery for bringing this promising investment to the commonwealth. We’re building a better Kentucky, and we’re doing it with companies that share our vision for the future.”
Built by Buzick Construction, the tasting room’s primary focal point is a Vendome Copper mini-still. It also features an overhead bi-fold door that opens as weather allows so visitors can enjoy outside tastings with a view of the Kentucky countryside.
The tasting room opens to the public May 18 and will premiere Log Still’s initial spirits. Debut products include Monk’s Road Dry Gin, Monk’s Road Barrel Finished Gin and Monk’s Road Fifth District Series Bourbon: Cold Spring Distillery, the first in a rotating series of bourbons named for historic pre-Prohibition distillers in the region. Company leaders plan additional products, including bourbon and rye whiskey under the Monk’s Road name and Tennessee whiskeys under the Rattle and Snap label.
Leaders of the startup distillery on Dee Head Road in southern Nelson County moved forward last month with a $24 million Phase 2 investment to establish Dant Crossing, a 300-plus-acre campus that is home to the distillery, including the newly opened tasting room, and other amenities. The announcement followed a Phase 1 investment of $12 million unveiled in 2019 to establish the operation at the historic site.
New jobs created across both phases of the project include distillery and bottling operations, hospitality, event operations and restaurant positions.
Dant Crossing’s first amenities debuted earlier this year with the opening of the Homestead Bed & Breakfast and the Poplar Cottage rentals. Additional amenities are expected to open later this year, including an amphitheater, restaurant, train depot and event/conference center, with plans to add a visitor’s center, museum and gift shop in 2022.
“This is a monumental day for the Dant family, and we are grateful that Gov. Beshear could be with us to celebrate,” said Log Still President Wally Dant. “We can’t wait for everyone to come out to campus and try our Monk’s Road bourbon and gins.”
Log Still’s recent investment adds to a wave of recent economic momentum in the commonwealth, as the state builds back stronger following the effects of the pandemic.
Nelson County Judge/Executive Dean Watts noted the company’s place within the historic bourbon industry in Central Kentucky.
“Log Still’s project further enhances the rich history of making bourbon in Nelson County,” Judge/Executive Watts said.
Kim Huston, president of the Nelson County Economic Development Agency, said the newly unveiled tasting room lies at the center of the rapidly growing operation.
“The tasting room at Log Still Distillery is at the heart of this beautiful 300-plus-acre distillery campus and is designed to make a unique experience out of the tasting of its crafted products,” Huston said.
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