A year ago, Bourbon Country Herald announced plans for a major expansion that would increase Heaven Hill's whiskey-making capabilities at its Louisville Bernheim Distillery by some 40 percent. On June 2, 2008, a ribbon-cutting ceremony just outside the new fermenters signified that the project had been successfully completed. Using a pair of giant ceremonial scissors, Heaven Hill president Max Shapira snipped a crimson ribbon as Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson, Congressman John Yarmuth and a host of distillery VIPs and local dignitaries looked on.
Specifically, the expansion includes the installation of four new fermenters, a new mash cooker, a new grain handling system, a 53,000-gallon whiskey tank and much-needed boiler reconditioning.
When asked how the major renovation went, Master Distiller Craig Beam, who headed up the project from the beginning, said, "Very well," although he laughed and admitted there were a few times when he "held his breath."
7,000 bushels a day.
As a result of the huge increase in output, Craig Beam says his responsibilities in overseeing the input are expanding as well. "We'll be using over 7,000 bushels of grain a day," he says, and it's his job to contract with the farmers and schedule the deliveries to keep distillery operations running without interruption. It's a demanding task because there are only about three days from the time corn arrives at the distillery until it starts on the journey to becoming whiskey.
But according to Craig, all this isn't just about increasing production. The new facilities are as much about preserving the quality and characteristics that have made each brand and style of whiskey the preferred choice among so many different individuals. And doing it efficiently and responsibly. Craig says the new fermenters and mash cookers have been designed to use thousands of gallons less water to clean than the older equipment. And by fully enclosing the huge new fermenters to protect them from the summer sun, cooling requirements have been greatly reduced as well.
Meeting increasing demands worldwide.
A global increase in the demand for the distillery's four styles of Straight American Whiskey--Bourbon, Rye Whiskey, Wheat Whiskey and Corn Whiskey--made the Bernheim expansion a top priority. A few of the most popular Bourbon brands made here include: Evan Williams Black Label Bourbon, Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage-dated Bourbon, Elijah Craig 18-year-Old Single Barrel Bourbon, Elijah Craig 12-Year-Old Small Batch Bourbon and Parker's Heritage Collection Bourbon. The distillery also produces Bernheim Original Straight Wheat Whiskey, Rittenhouse and Pikeville Rye Whisky and a number of straight corn whiskey brands.
