| Woodford
Reserve
Kentucky Straight BourbonWhiskey
The Woodford Reserve Distillery
7855 McCracken Pike
Versailles, KY 40383
Phone: 859.879.1812
Viewer's Comments about Woodford Reserve
 The
historic Woodford Reserve Distillery is unlike any other in
America. Nestled amid the picturesque horse farms of Central
Kentucky, it is the distillery that crafts its bourbon in
copper pot stills and ages it in unique limestone warehouses.
Whisky was first produced on this site in 1812 and it was
here that some of America's earliest distilling pioneers perfected
their craft.
Discover Kentucky's Original Spirit - Once Small Batch At
A Time
In 1797, Elijah Pepper began making small batches of handcrafted
whisky in a small distillery behind the Woodford County Courthouse
in Versailles, Kentucky. As Pepper's business grew, so did
his need for a larger distillery and a ready supply of limestone
water. In 1812, on the Grassy Springs branch of Glenn's Creek
located just outside Versailles, Pepper found what he needed.
Perfecting A Distillery And Changing An
Industry
Elijah Pepper passed away in 1831, and in 1833 his son, Oscar,
hired Dr. James Crow, a trained physician and chemist from
Scotland, as his head distiller. Crow spent the next twenty-two
years working at the distillery, and his efforts changed the
face of the American distilling industry forever.
As much scientist as distiller, Crow perfected the sour mash
fermentation process - assuring a more consistent whisky from
batch to batch - still used by all bourbon distillers today.
He developed custom measuring tools which were quickly adopted
by other distillers. He also pioneered the use of charred
oak barrels for superior aging, a definitive standard in today's
industry.
Word of the quality bourbon produced in the distillery on
Glenn's Creek quickly spread. Devotees included Daniel Webster,
Walt Whitman, Mark Twain, Andrew Jackson and noted Kentucky
statesman Henry Clay.
The passing of Oscar Pepper in 1865 eventually led to a new
breed of owners. In 1878, a major Kentucky Midwestern whisky
broker named Leopold Labrot and his partner, Frankfort, Kentucky
merchant James Graham, bought the now famous distillery and
operated it as "The Old Oscar Pepper Distillery, Labrot
& Graham Proprietors".
Expansion of the distillery continued, and the two distillers
were careful to retain the unique limestone architecture in
the design of their aging rackhouses. While other distillers
in Kentucky used brick or tin-clad warehouses, Labrot and
Graham studied the industry and found that relatively small
warehouses with thick stone walls allowed their bourbon to
mature smoothly and consistently over time.
Prohibition
And A Renewed Spirit
In order to meet the growing post-prohibition demand, Louisville-based
Brown-Forman Corp. purchased the Labrot & Graham Distillery
in 1940. During the consolidations and mergers of the 1960s,
boutique distilleries, which were very small and expensive
to run, lost their viability and the distillery was closed
and sold as farm land.
Restoring Kentucky's
Heritage
In 1994, Brown-Forman recreated a by-gone era by repurchasing
and restoring the distillery to its pre-prohibition status.
The goal was to craft Kentucky's finest bourbon at the location
where its production process was perfected. Woodford Reserve
was introduced in 1996 to great acclaim and is the first bourbon
to win top honors at all three of the industry's most prestigious
tasting competitions. In 2003, the distillery was renamed
The Woodford Reserve Distillery to honor its leading brand.
Today, the Woodford Reserve Distillery, a National Historic
Landmark, is known throughout the world as the Homeplace of
Bourbon. The picturesque site in the heart of thoroughbred
country is the only place you can see Kentucky's two most
famous products - bourbon and Thoroughbred horses - maturing
side by side.
The Woodford Reserve Distillery has returned to its roots
as a small boutique distillery and remains prouder than ever
of its heritage. It is the only distillery in the country
where the traditional craft of bourbon production can be found:
a consistent supply of pure, cold limestone spring water,
small cypress fermentation vats, unique copper stills (the
traditional means of producing true small batch bourbons)
and 19th century limestone maturation warehouses.
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Woodford Reserve Visitor Center |
The result is a product with the unique quality and taste
that today's consumer of premium spirits demands - and that
Elijah Pepper himself would be proud to offer. It is more
than just the finest Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey produced today.
It's a rare taste of history.
Saveur Magazine describes Woodford Reserve as "...a
90.4 proof masterpiece that is soft and delicate, with an
irresistible apricot and honey flavor." Part of Underground
Wine Journal's description includes "...creamy
vanilla, sweet caramel, delicate buttery notes and balanced
fruitiness. One of the top bourbons we have ever tasted...."
Courtesy of Woodford Reserve |
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WOODFORD RESERVE KENTUCKY
STRAIGHT BOURBON WHISKEY Nose:
Cream-toffee and honeycomb. Vanilla and other gentle
oaky tones waft through. Brilliant.
Palate: Subtle spices
warm the palate only for the honey to calm things
down again. Sweetcorn, and brilliant, toasty brown-sugared
depth.
Finish: Some deft
rye; the oak adds dryness.
Comment: A bourbon
of stunning complexity that really has improved
in the last year or so as the depth has intensified.
Easily among the best on the market in the UK.
Tasting Notes by Jim Murray
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Woodford
Reserve Distillery
The Woodford Reserve Distillery is located in the heart
of Kentucky's Bluegrass hidden away between some of the
most scenic Thoroughbred horse farms in the country. The
Bluegrass Region sits on a huge limestone aquifer. The limestone
serves as a giant filter, removing unwanted materials from
the water and adding calcium. This is important to us because
the calcium reacts quite favorably with the yeast during
production, making for a better Bourbon. It's also that
same water that promotes strong bones and good bone conformation
in horses - more specifically - Thoroughbred racehorses.
All of the Woodford Reserve stone buildings are over a 100
years old, but the Distillery building is the oldest. The
first section went up in 1838, and although it expanded
over the years, it kept its classic design.
Tour Information
Open Tuesday thru Saturday from 9 a.m. until 5
p.m.
Open on Sundays from 12:30 p.m. until 4:30 p.m.
April thru October
Closed on all major holidays
Picnic on the Porch - Enjoy Our Popular Seasonal Lunch Service!
March 31, 2009 - October 31, 2009
Wallace Station will now be onsite in our Visitor's Centre
offering a variety of fabulous, homemade sandwiches on their
famous, fresh baked bread, hearty soups, crisp salads, and
mouth watering pastries, pies, and sweets. Take your lunch
outside on our porch and enjoy our sweeping views of the
Distillery, Glenn's Creek and the surrounding countryside.
Admission
$5 per person age 18 and older (guests under 18
are free).
Directions from Louisville
Take I-64 East to U.S. 60 (Frankfort / Versailles exit).
Turn right towards Versailles. Travel for 2.6 miles to Rt.
3360 (Grassy Springs Rod). Turn right and follow the road
until it ends. Turn right onto McCracken Pike to the Visitors
Center.
Directions from Lexington
Follow U.S. 60 (Versailles Rd) from Lexington towards Frankfort.
Shortly after passing the intersection of U.S. 60 and state
road 1685, turn left onto Rt. 3360 (Grassy Springs Rd).
Follow this road until it ends. Turn right onto McCraken
Pike to the Visitors Center.
Distillery Tour Information
Until you can make it to the Woodford Reserve Distillery,
we'll take you through a tour now.
Cooking & Fermenting Corn, rye and
malted barley start the life of a batch of Woodford Reserve.
The corn brings the sweetness to the taste while the rye
adds spice. The grains are milled then cooked with limestone
water. To keep things consistent, we use a portion of the
prior batch (called 'set back') to sour the next batch.
While cooking, the corn and rye release starch, which is
then turned into fermentable sugar by enzymes in the malted
barley.
Next we pump the mash into our small cypress fermentation
tanks. Some distillers might use stainless steel, but we've
found that cypress doesn't add any unwanted flavor to our
Bourbon. Plus, we like to stick to tradition. It's in the
tanks that we introduce our proprietary strain of yeast
to the mix converting the fermentable sugar into alcohol.
We let the sour mash ferment up to seven days being sure
to take our sweet -and sour - time.
When fermentation is complete, you've got what is known
as the 'distiller's beer'. The next stop for the 'beer'
is the Still Room. At this point, it's only about 18 proof,
so it has some growing up to do.
Distilling Specially made all the way from
Rothes, Scotland, our copper pot stills hold our product
during this process. The first 2,500 gallons (called a 'charge')
is pumped from the fermenter into still #1 which is known
as the 'beer still'. It's during distillation that the alcohol
is separated from the water. The copper pot still process
is one that's not so commercial - just another small detail
that sets our distillery apart.
Next we inject steam, and the alcohol vaporizes up the gooseneck.
It then cools as it passes through a condenser and is turned
back into a 40 proof liquid - a little something we call
'low wine'. Now, we're ready for the second round of distilling.
The low wine is pumped into the 'high wine' still and gets
heated, causing the alcohol to vaporize again. It goes through
condensation and comes out as a 100 - 110 proof liquid that
we call - you guessed it - high wine.
The high wine goes into the 'spirit still' and is distilled
a third and final time resulting in a lovely 158 proof spirit.
At this point, we're done distilling and ready to put our
new spirit into barrels.
Barrels We don't fill an enormous amount
of barrels each week, so we're sticklers about their quality.
We have to be. The barrels play a critical role in the maturation
of our Bourbon. While oak barrels became the standard because
of their strength, sugar content and other excellent properties
for maturing whisky.
We buy our barrels from Bluegrass Cooperage in Louisville,
KY. A barrel maker - called a 'cooper' - is a craftsman
in every sense of the word. After sanding and tapering the
rough white oak, a cooper uses skill and experience to make
the staves fit perfectly into the iron circle. No nails,
no glue. Just a steam fitting to achieve the proper permanent
shape.
Next, the barrel gets toasted for approximately 22 minutes.
This causes the sugars in the wood to caramelize, providing
the Bourbon that sweet vanilla taste and caramel aroma.
The barrel then gets set on fire for about 20 seconds, forming
a layer of char on the inside surface of the barrel. It's
the char that contributes to the rich amber color of the
finished product.
Finally, our specially and charred barrelheads are installed
and the barrels are ready to receive the product.
Maturation Demineralized water brings the
158 proof product down to 110 which is 'entry proof'. The
barrels move from the Distillery Building to the warehouse
via our 500 foot barrel run. It's in the warehouses that
the new spirit matures into Bourbon. It goes in clear and
comes out years later a rich amber color. And, yes, there
is an explanation for this magical color change. It's all
in the weather.
The hot Kentucky summer causes the whisky in the barrel
to expand, forcing its way into the layers of the barrel
and charred wood. Wintertime makes the barrel contract,
bringing the whisky back through the layers. This passage
in and out of the layers is called a cycle and every cycle
gives the product more color and aroma.
As previously stated, we're sticklers about quality. Throughout
maturation, every barrel is sampled. We have to be confident
that the taste, aroma, and color are exactly where they
need to be to become Woodford Reserve Bourbon. And, it's
only official when Master Distiller Chris Morris and Distillery
Manager Dave Scheurich say so. They give the word and the
product gets bottled.
Courtesy of Woodford Reserve |
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