Buffalo Trace Distillery working to reopen in ‘limited capacity’ after historic flooding

FRANKFORT, Ky. (WDRB) -- One of Kentucky's most popular distilleries spent much of this week under water and now, hundreds of people are working around the clock at Buffalo Trace to clean up the mess left behind.

"In our 200 plus year history ... we have lived though a few floods,” Buffalo Trace Master Distiller Harlen Wheatley said.

But this week brought some of the most severe flooding Buffalo Trace Distillery has ever seen. Instead of tour groups of excited visitors, cleaning crews in white suits and orange vests could be spotted all over the iconic stop on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail Friday.

Water reached many buildings on the historic distillery's campus ranging from production spaces, to the stillhouse, to the visitor center. As for the precious product aging on site -- workers moved many bourbon barrels before the flood, but the high water did reach some.

"Some of the barrels were affected by the floodwaters so not all of them were moved successfully,” Buffalo Trace Distillery General Manager Tyler Adams said. “So part of our flood preparation plan does involve that, but the historic level of the flood was something we hadn't seen here before."

Buffalo Trace won't know how much bourbon is lost until a thorough inspection process is complete. Based on historical knowledge from previous floods, Buffalo Trace says it has been successful in recovering any barrels that might have been affected by flood waters.

"We do not expect to experience any meaningful loss of our inventory,” Wheatley said.

The distillery says bottling operations could resume as early as next week.

"Our distribution center and main bottling operation did not take on floodwaters and thus distribution began today, we actually shipped out this morning,” Wheatley said.

The big test will be getting the distillery ready for visitors ahead of one of the busiest seasons of the year. The Kentucky Derby is now just weeks away and typically brings in thousands of tourists to Buffalo Trace each year.

"We are committed to welcoming the visitors back especially as we lead up to Derby, so that is a focus for us,” Adams said.

It’s also a focus for the surrounding area currently struggling after hundreds of homes were impacted by the severe flooding. City leaders hope visitors will bring in a much needed boost over the coming weeks.

"It's a big tourism driver in our economy and we're going to do everything we can to make sure they get back operational as soon as possible,” Frankfort Mayor Layne Wilkerson said.

The distillery will remain closed to the public through Sunday, April 13. Buffalo Trace hopes to welcome visitors back in a limited retail capacity early next week. It anticipates using its visitor check-in area temporarily as restoration work continues on its visitor center.

Priority will be given to tour ticket holders who had their visit canceled due to flooding. The distillery says those visits will be made accessible via an email reservation system. More reopening details will be shared as they are available on Buffalo Trace Distillery’s social media pages.

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