Bulleit Visitor Experience and Bulleit Distillery Review
Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Reception Area - Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Gift Shop - Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Distillery -Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Distillery - Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Control Room - Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Tatoo Paintings - Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Grain Display - Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Yeast Strains Exhibit -Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Fermenter Porthole -Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Fermenters -Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Still - Partially visible as it extends between floors
Still Exhibit - Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Barrel Exhibit -Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Tasting -Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Organic Cocktail Garden -Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Cocktail Bar - Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Side patio -Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Bulleit Barn -Bulleit Distillery - Bulleit Visitor Experience
Bulleit Distilling Co Visitor Experience
3464 Benson Pike, Shelbyville, KY 40065
502-647-5799
BulleitVisitorExperience@diageo.com
Situated on 300 acres in Shelbyville, KY, halfway between Lexington and Louisville, is the home of the new Bulleit Distilling Company. After 30 years, Bulleit finally has a distillery of its very own, and along with it, a brand new visitor center. In 2014 Diageo, Bulleit’s parent company, broke ground on the construction of this new venture. The Bulleit Distilling Co. officially opened in March 2017 followed by the impressively large Bulleit Distilling Co. Visitor Experience in June of 2019. The very spacious center houses a retail area, cocktail bar, 3 tasting rooms/event space, as well as plenty of visitor seating around the warm welcoming double sided fireplace. Just out back is the organic cocktail garden where ingredients used in Bulleit cocktails are grown, and where plenty of patio seating awaits in warmer months.
The Visitor Experience is open 6 days a week, Tues-Thur 9:30-5, Fri-Sat 9:30-6, and Sunday 12:30-4. Monday, the center is closed. Tours are $20 and include an interactive tasting. A tasting only option is available for $16. Reservations for tours and tastings can be made online at 
bulleit.com. The number of tours vary by day with the most frequent tours being given on Friday and Saturday. The Bulleit website will display all the available time slots along with the number of spaces available for each slot. As with most distillery tours, reservations are recommended, especially on the weekends.
bulleit.com. The number of tours vary by day with the most frequent tours being given on Friday and Saturday. The Bulleit website will display all the available time slots along with the number of spaces available for each slot. As with most distillery tours, reservations are recommended, especially on the weekends.
There is currently only one type of tour given at the Bulleit Distilling Co Visitor Experience, The Frontier Whiskey Experience. The tour begins just inside the visitors center as is usual for most distilleries. Our guide, Owen, began with the customary introduction to the Bulleit brand with a brief history lesson. Unlike some distilleries with a long storied past, Bulleit began it’s foray into the bourbon market in 1987 as a resurrected mid nineteenth century brand. Although a relative newcomer, Bulleit has garnered some interesting history of its own.
The distillery area proper sets back behind the visitors center and is reached via a quick jaunt on the distillery shuttle bus. After Owen’s brief introduction and history lesson, it was onto the shuttle and off to the distillery. The ride to the distillery reveals the huge expanse of the property and the beauty of the newly constructed distillery buildings and barrel warehouses. Upon entering the distillery, courtesy of several oversized picture type windows, we were afforded a great view of the mini NASA like control center. The considerable amount of cyber equipment in this room monitors all distilling operations from mashing to fermenting, and of course, distilling.
Leaving the latest in technology behind, we made our way up to the third floor where grain became the topic at hand. A terrific hands on display of the grains along with informational wall diagrams awaited us. Bulleit uses corn from local farmers, but sources its rye and barley from outside the state. After a brief discussion on mashing/cooking the grain, we moved on to another helpful display which facilitated Owen's discussion of Bulleit’s proprietary yeast strains. There are five yeast strains used at Bulleit, and we would soon see them in action as our next stop was the unbelievably large fermentation room. Twelve 20,000 gallon tanks, all three stories tall, are housed in the area. Fermentation only takes approximately 3 days and then the fermented mash (aka distiller’s beer) becomes still-bound.
With massive fermenters comes an equally massive still. Vendome of Louisville, KY built this 52 foot tall, 42 inch in diameter copper still which allows Bulleit the capability to distill 24/7. There is also a unique micro-sized Vendome copper still with a large section of its front removed which serves as an exceptional visual aid to help Owen explain the distillation process. For those wishing to reinforce what was presented, diagrams and other information outlining the distilling process are highlighted on the walls.
The distillery proper portion of the tour came to a close with the topic of barreling. Once again Bulleit has a terrific visual display on hand. Charred barrels are cut in half for a great view of the inside of a barrel, and the barrels are displayed stacked on palates exactly as they are in the barrel warehouses. This is a nice touch given the fact that currently Bulleit does not allow tours inside of their actual barrel warehouses. That's too bad, since Bulleit uses a different method of barrel storage. Ricks are out and pallets are in. Instead of rolling barrels into storage, Bulleit stands theirs on end, 6 per pallet, and 6 pallets high. This allows more efficient storage in the warehouses with each warehouse being able to store up to 55,000 barrels.
With barreling and storage addressed, it was back to the shuttle and time for perhaps the most popular part of the tour, the tasting. Tastings take place in one of 3 event rooms at the visitors center. Four samples are offered, Bulleit Bourbon, Bulleit Bourbon 10 Year Old , Bulleit Rye, and Bulleit Barrel Strength Bourbon. The tasting is interactive. Along side each sample is a small canister (referred to as “olfactory balls”) with a unique aromatic particular for that sample. The canisters are used to magnify the senses leading to a more enjoyable tasting experience. In addition, different music and lighting selected to heighten the tasting experience is utilizing during the sampling of each whiskey. Bulleit again sets itself apart from other distilleries. Alongside new state of the art technology, equipment, and buildings come new ideas pushing the envelope for creating the most enjoyable visitor experience. From beginning to end the Frontier Whiskey Experience is engaging. Learn a little, drink a little, and relax a little at the new Bulleit Distilling Co Visitor Experience!
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Please note that Distillery Hours and Tour/Tasting Availability may vary. Please contact the distillery or check their web page or social media for details before you go.
| Days of operation | Tues-Thur: 9:30am-5:00pm Fri-Sat: 9:30am-6:00pm Sunday: 12:30pm-4:00pm Closed Mondays and Major Holidays |
Paved Drive / Lot | Yes |
Motorcycle Parking | No |
| Motorcycle unfriendly features | No |
Number of tours per day | Tuesday-Thursday 4 Friday-Saturday 7 Sunday: 3 |
Length of Tour(s) | 1 hour |
Advanced topic tours? | No |
Advanced topic tour names | N/A |
Tours by owners /distillers available? | No |
Number of different types of tours | 1 |
On-Line Tour Reservations Available | Yes |
Advanced Reservations Recommended/Required | Yes, on the weekends |
| Cost for tour(s) in $ | $20.00 Free under 18 and anyone with military ID |
Tasting Included? | Yes |
| Number of samples included in tasting | 4 |
| Tasting Only Option? | Yes |
| Tasting Only Option Cost | $16.00 |
High-end tasting option? | No |
High-end tasting option cost? | N/A |
Designated Driver Option | Inquire in person at the distillery |
Handicapped Accessible? | Yes |
| Souvenirs included with tour? | No |
Gift shop | Yes |
On-Site bottle sales? | Yes |
| On-site food: Restaurant/Cafe/Snacks | No |
| On-site Cocktail bar | Yes |
| On-site event space | Yes |
| Should I visit? (Yes, Perhaps, No) | Yes |
| Unique Features | Beautiful new state of the art distillery |
Website | |
| Date Visited | February 2020 |
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