Urban Stillhouse is Louisville's latest momument to 'bourbonism'
Bourbon tourism has been given a name by Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer: Bourbonism.
The mayor defines that as the act of coming to Kentucky and enjoying good bourbon and food. We've seen Fischer drop this term here and there. Today he got a big reason to use it when Deerfield, Ill.-based Beam Suntory Inc. opened its new Jim Beam Urban Stillhouse at Fourth Street Live in downtown Louisville.
The stillhouse provides an urban visitor center for fans of Jim Beam bourbon, which is made just to the south in Clermont. Visitors to the downtown attraction can learn about the process of bourbon-making and bottle their own Jim Beam without taking the 30-minute or so drive out of the city.
Of the 5.6 million barrels of bourbon aging in Kentucky, about 2.5 million of them belong to Beam Suntory, Matt Shattock, Beam Suntory chairman and CEO, said just before a confetti cannon fired and the doors of the stillhouse were opened.
"Kentucky is the absolute heart of our business," he said, noting that the company has distilleries in Clermont and Boston, Ky., a major distribution center in Frankfort and offices and this new visitors center in Louisville. "It's really great to be here in the heart of the entertainment district. Bourbonism is just going to grow and grow in this state."
See, now Fischer has other people saying it.
The mayor took the podium just after Shattock and made the point that a rising tide lifts all boats. Jim Beam isn't the first distillery to open a tourist attraction in downtown Louisville. The Evan Williams Bourbon Experience opened on Main Street in Louisville a few years ago. And the $45 million Old Forester Distillery is expected to open on Main Street in 2017.
Jim Beam also has a larger tourism attraction in Clermont called Jim Beam American Stillhouse. Jim Beam Master Distiller Fred Noe said that adding the Louisville attraction was like "putting a new room on your house."
Wherever people decide to visit, Noe said, "it all comes down to one core belief, and that's making good bourbon."