Bulleit Experience opens at Stitzel-Weller

The worldwide growth of the Bulleit bourbon brand could mean more investment at the historic Stitzel-Weller Distillery in Shively, said the North American head of Bulleit's parent company after the grand opening of a visitors center there Monday.

"To maximize the potential of Bulleit going forward and globalize Bulleit, I think, is the biggest opportunity that we have," said Larry Schwartz, president of Diageo North America.

Diageo's current investment of more than $10 million at Stitzel-Weller includes the Bulleit visitors center; a bottling line for Bulleit and other brands; and a small craft still. Diageo also is building a $115 million distillery for Bulleit in Shelby County.

Bottling of Bulleit could be increased at the Shively location, he said, and the company plans to produce small amounts of whiskey in the new distillery. Diageo already has about 400,000 barrels of Bulleit and other whiskeys aging in 18 warehouses at the site.

"We'll have a lot of fun on this bottling line here," Schwartz said.

The visitors center, called the Bulleit Frontier Whiskey Experience at Stitzel-Weller, opens to the public Tuesday. It will be the ninth distillery on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

"This really is the house that Tom built," Schwartz said of the center, crediting Bulleit founder Tom Bulleit. "... Tom being the apostle for Bulleit really did make this happen."

Stitzel-Weller opened in Shively in 1935 and was run by Julian "Pappy" Van Winkle Sr., the namesake of the popular Pappy Van Winkle bourbons. Brands such as Rebel Yell and Old Fitzgerald, the name for which is still featured today in pattern letters on a brick smokestack, were produced there.

"We are the heirs of Pappy Van Winkle," Bulleit said, "and certainly the great brands that were distilled here through the years."

"It's thrilling to see firsthand the rebirth of this grand old distillery, which is one of the true cathedrals of American whiskey and literally walk in the footsteps of bourbon legends and iconic brands," said Eric Gregory, president of the Kentucky Distillers' Association.

Normal hours for the visitors center will be Wednesdays through Sundays with tours featuring aging barrels in a warehouse and artifacts from the distilling history of the property.

The Bulleit brand is selling more than 600,000 cases this year, up from about 40,000 cases a few years after Diageo bought the brand in 1997, Schwartz said.

Reporter Gregory A. Hall can be reached at (502) 582-4087. Follow him on Twitter at @gregoryahall.

Bulleit Frontier Whiskey Experience at Stitzel-Weller

Where: 3860 Fitzgerald Road

When: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with the final tour at 2 p.m. Beginning Sept. 24, the site will be open Wednesdays through Sundays.

Admission: $10 for adults. Includes a tasting for those age 21 and up.