Old Forester Unveils Renderings of New Distillery in Kentucky
All images courtesy of Old Forester.
Old Forester unveiled 11 renderings of its forthcoming Old Forester Distillery on Whiskey Row in Louisville, Ky., showing the exterior and what various stages of a distillery tour would look like.
The renderings feature visitors walking through the rickhouse, browsing through various attractions, fermentation area, cooperage, and even the barrel-to-bottle process. The illustrations were released at a media event Tuesday, April 12 in New York.
Old Forester is owned by Louisville-based Brown-Forman; Louisville is home to the historic Whiskey Row area on Main Street downtown, an area that once was a hotbed of distilleries, saloons and speakeasies. The façade of the original buildings, 117 to 119 Main Street, will be preserved, but the rest of the structure will be built new.
Old Forester will be a 60,000-square-foot distilling operation and visitor center that showcases the making of the bourbon, the history and the brand, which bills itself “America’s First Bottled Bourbon.” Including fermentation, distilling, barrel making, aging and bottling, the distillery will produce 100,000 cases of Old Forester annually. It is scheduled for completion in late 2017.
In July 2015, a massive fire badly damaged adjacent properties at 111, 113 and 115 Main Street, but firefighters were able to keep the fire from penetrating the Old Forester properties. That property was under construction to be renovated into new lofts, plus retail and restaurant space.
Block away on Main Street, the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience has in its two and a half year life become a major attraction. Old Forester promises to succeed similarly.
“Upon Completion, the Old Forester Distillery will provide tourists and bourbon enthusiasts with an up close look at our bourbon making process and share with them a captivating story of entrepreneurship and achievement that characterizes Old Forester’s 146-year history,” Old Forester President and fifth generation family member Campbell Brown said in a press statement.
The tourist attraction will pay particular homage to Old Forester founder George Garvin Brown; his Old Forester brand is the longest, continuously distilled bourbon produced before, during and after prohibition by the same family.
“The Old Forester Distillery is a state-of-the art project that will add an additional layer of history and authenticity to Louisville’s Whiskey Row,” Project Manager Mike Beach said. “We are both proud and excited about the distillery’s capabilities to showcase the bourbon making process for visitors from around the world.”