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                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience (formerly Heaven Hill Bourbon Heritage Center)

                      Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Experience
                      Old Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center Sign
                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience
                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience
                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience
                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience
                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience  Entrance
                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience Entrance
                      Gift Shop - Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience
                      Gift Shop
                      Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center  Gift Shop
                      Gift Shop
                      Entrance to Tasting Rooms - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      Entrance to Tasting Rooms
                      The Founders Room - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      The Founders Room
                      The Founders Room Bar - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      The Founders Room Bar
                      Connoisseur Experience - Fitzgerald Tasting Room - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      Connoisseur Experience - Fitzgerald Tasting Room
                      Connoisseur Experience - Fitzgerald Tasting Room - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      Connoisseur Experience - Fitzgerald Tasting Room
                      Five Brother Bar & Kitchen
                      Five Brother Bar & Kitchen
                      Barrel Rolling Practice Course - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      Barrel Rolling Practice Course
                      Bottling Facility - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      Bottling Facility
                      New Rickhouse - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      New Rickhouse (watch a video via link in text)
                      Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Experience
                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience
                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience
                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience  Entrance
                      Gift Shop - Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience
                      Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center  Gift Shop
                      Entrance to Tasting Rooms - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      The Founders Room - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      The Founders Room Bar - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      Connoisseur Experience - Fitzgerald Tasting Room - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      Connoisseur Experience - Fitzgerald Tasting Room - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      Five Brother Bar & Kitchen
                      Barrel Rolling Practice Course - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      Bottling Facility - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
                      New Rickhouse - Heaven Hill Distillery Bourbon Heritage Center
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                      Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience
                      (formerly  Bourbon Heritage Center
                      1311 Gilkey Run Rd.
                      Bardstown, KY 40004
                      (502) 337-9593

                      External link opens in new tab or windowPeek inside the New Heaven Hill Warehouse (watch video)

                      Heaven Hill Distillery has been family owned and operated since 1935, and Heaven Hill Brands is America's largest independent family-owned & operated distilled spirits company. They produce a wide array of spirits, including some of our favorite whiskeys. Heaven Hill's brands include: Elijah Craig bourbons and rye, Evan William bourbons, Pikesville Rye, Rittenhouse Rye, Old Fitzgerald bourbons, Larceny bourbons, The Parker's Heritage Collection, William Heavenhill bourbons, Mellow Corn, Bernheim Wheat Whiskey, Henry McKenna bourbons as well as several sold under the Heaven Hill label. Other brands with more limited distribution include J.T.S. Brown, J.W. Dant, T.W. Samuels & Chicken Cock to name a few.

                      Unlike many of the other large distilleries, visitors are not able to tour Heaven Hill's distillery.  The main distillery, the Bernheim Distillery, is located in downtown Louisville and is home to their two 70-foot column stills. A small artisanal distillery, which can be viewed by visitors, is located in the External link opens in new tab or windowEvan Williams Bourbon Experience, on Whiskey Row in Louisville. Heaven Hill's Bardstown campus houses their bottling facility, which also is not open to visitors. However, visitors can enjoy the Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience, which is located next door.

                      The Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience has recently undergone a major renovation and expansion. The first phase was completed in late 2019 and included new tasting rooms and an expanded gift shop.  The new gift shop offers a wide selection of Heaven Hill paraphernalia and whiskeys, including the occasional limited release, although these generally sell out quickly. The new tasting rooms, the Fitzgerald Tasting Room and The Founders Room, are spacious and offer an upscale atmosphere. The "Library" is also a  beautiful new room which features an incredibly long wooden table which can be used for meetings or special events. The second phase of expansion which opened to the public on June 14, 2021, involved the construction of a restaurant and bar, called The Five Brother Bar and Kitchen, as well as expanded educational experiences. The External link opens in new tab or windowYou Do Bourbon Experience, where users have the opportunity to sample 3 or more barrel strength whiskeys, and then have the opportunity to bottle their own whiskey, became fully operational in Fall 2021.



                      As there is no distillery on-site, experiences at the Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience center around education and tastings. There are three such experiences currently. These are an opportunity to taste some of Heaven Hill's whiskeys while learning a bit about bourbon and Heaven Hill's history. Two different tasting options are offered: The Mashbill Tasting (3+ samples are offered, each from a different mashbill, and now including a rickhouse tour) and the Whiskey Connoisseur Experience (5 higher end samples are offered). You Do Bourbon is an experience offering a great opportunity to taste some barrel strength bourbons and a wheat whiskey, and then bottle your favorite. Follow this link to read our External link opens in new tab or windowHeaven Hill You Do Bourbon Experience review. Occasionally there will be special tastings or other events which will have limited availability.

                      I have taken the Whiskey Connoisseur Experience a number of times. It begins with a presentation on the background of the Heaven Hill Distillery, and then moves on to an in-depth tasting of five whiskeys. Each visit, several of the whiskeys sampled have differed, and each time one or two of their more limited releases have been included. On my last visit, we learned about and sampled Henry McKenna 10 Year Old Single Barrel Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon, Evan Williams Master Blend, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Bourbon Batch A122, Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel Bourbon and the Parker's Heritage Collection Bourbon Finished in Orange Curacao Barrels. It's a great opportunity to try whiskeys that are often a little more difficult to find.

                      In addition to the expansion of the visitor center, Heaven Hill is also increasing their barrel storing capacity. As of March 2021 they have 63 rickhouses spread across multiple campuses, with their newest site  being in Cox’s Creek.  They have also been filling their newly constructed giant rickhouse on the Bardstown campus.  Located directly across from the Visitor Center, it has a capacity of 52,000 barrels.  It's a beautiful show piece for the campus featuring a large entry area with floor to almost ceiling windows at one of the corners.  In the future, this section of the warehouse will be where barrel picks will take place. Other novel features of this rickhouse are wide center and side isles, allowing for easier access to the barrels. Ricks hold three rows of 25 barrels each, and the rickhouse is 7 stories tall. I recently had to opportunity to visit this rickhouse.  Check out External link opens in new tab or windowmy short video of Heaven Hill Distillery's new rickhouse  to take a peek inside.

                      The Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience is always on my agenda when visiting Bardstown!

                      External link opens in new tab or windowPeek inside the New Heaven Hill Warehouse (watch video)


                       

                       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

                      Monday - Thursday: 11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

                      Friday and Saturday: 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

                      Sunday: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m

                      Paved Drive / Lot

                      Paved Lot

                      Motorcycle Parking

                      No separate parking, but lot is very large

                      -Motorcycle unfriendly features

                      No

                      Number of tours per day

                      Magic of the Mashbill:

                      M-Th: 5

                      F-Sa: 6

                      Su: 3

                      Length of Tour(s)

                      90 minutes

                      Advanced topic tours?

                      Yes

                      Advanced topic tour names

                      Whiskey Connoisseur Experience, You Do Bourbon and other special tours/tastings

                      Tours by owners /distillers available?

                      No

                      Number of different types of tours

                      3

                      Additional Special Tours/Tastings available occasionally

                      On-Line Tour Reservations Available

                      Yes

                      Advanced Reservations Recommended/Required

                      Yes

                      Cost for tour(s) in $

                      Magic of the Mashbill: $18

                      Tasting Included?

                      Yes

                      Number of samples included in tasting

                      Mashbill: 3+

                      Tasting Only Option?

                      Yes

                      Tasting Only Option Cost

                      Whiskey Connoisseur: $25

                      High-end tasting option?

                      Whiskey Connoisseur has 5 higher end bourbons; Special Tastings occasionally available; Tasting of Barrel Strength Whiskeys in You Do Bourbon

                      High-end tasting option cost?

                      Connoisseur: $25

                      You Do Bourbon: $40

                      Designated Driver Option

                      No

                      Handicapped Accessible?

                      Yes

                      Souvenirs included with tour?No

                      Gift shop

                      Yes

                      On-Site bottle sales?

                      Yes

                      On-site food: Restaurant/Cafe/Snacks

                      Coming Soon

                      On-site Cocktail bar

                      Yes. Five Brothers.

                      On-site event space

                      Yes

                      Should I visit? (Yes, Perhaps, No)

                      Yes

                      Unique Features

                      New expanded visitor center with  enhanced educational experiences and new restaurant(coming soon)/bar.

                      Website

                      External link opens in new tab or windowhttps://heavenhilldistillery.com

                      Date Visited

                      October 2022

                       

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