The Bardstown Bourbon Company was founded in 2014 by men with vision. Although relatively new to the often-historic list of bourbon distilleries in Kentucky, it has made a lasting imprint in the bourbon landscape.
The plan
Bardstown Bourbon Company, from the outset, was going to produce whiskey stocks for others; it was a business plan that, in hindsight, was correct on the pulse of what NDP (non-distilling producers) needed and required. It is truly one of the most modern and technologically advanced distilleries in the Kentucky landscape. If you have not visited you should, to see the glass-fronted rickhouse featured on their campus in Bardstown.
Their first release
In 2019, the distillery released its first Kentucky Straight Bourbon Fusion Series number one. The bourbon was a transparent blend of Bardstown’s own wheat and high rye bourbon combined with an eleven-year-old Kentucky Bourbon. Bardstown Bourbon Company continues to show transparency in its releases. For an earlier look at Bardstown Bourbon Company in 2019, see my earlier review here.
Brand producer
The Bardstown Bourbon Company produces mash bills for bourbons that have become preferred brands to many who enjoy America’s brown water. Belle Meade, Hirsch, Jefferson’s, James E. Pepper, and Calumet are recognizable brands produced at the distillery. The list is much longer, but many brands have non-disclosure agreements that prevent publicizing the collaboration.
Master Distiller Steve Nally
In an industry where legendary Master Distillers have become synonymous with their brands, think Jimmy Russell at Wild Turkey and almost any of the Beam family. Steve Nally rides a little under the radar but his contributions to bourbon whiskey have been extensive. Steve Nally was employee number one at BBC, and his influence continues today. As the former Master Distiller at Maker’s Mark, Steve is a gentleman who has won accolades from his peers and the bourbon industry. Steve and his wife, Donna, are members of the Bourbon Hall of Fame. In fact, the only other husband and wife enshrined in the hall are Bill and Marjorie Samuels of Maker’s Mark. Steve rose through the ranks at Maker’s Mark, eventually named the Master Distiller. In the earliest days of the bourbon craze, he would find people standing at the gates wondering if they could walk the grounds. He became the de facto tour guide in those early years at Maker’s Mark. His impact is a critical component of the successes at Bardstown Bourbon Company. The bottom line is that he is a good person.
Your chance to hear Steve discuss bourbon
This week, I had the privilege of discussing two new releases from the Bardstown Bourbon Company with Steve Nally and Bardstown State Manager Brian Gluth, along with my great friend Charlie Berry. Find out the background on the Bardstown Bourbon Company collaboration with Silver Oak Wines and an exciting wheated bourbon release. WATCH HERE.