ANDERSON COUNTY, Ky. (WDRB) -- It's a case of the old becoming new once again as an abandoned distillery, that produced some of the most renowned bourbons ever, is coming back to life near Lawrenceburg.
Starting more than 140 years ago, bourbon was produced in Anderson County. Names like Hoffman and Ezra Brooks, and then in the early 80s, it started becoming legendary.
"Julian Van Winkle the Third comes here and is bottling some of the most incredible bourbon that everyone is aware of," said Andrew English.
Andrew English, with Old Commonwealth Distillery, speaks with WDRB on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. (WDRB photo)
But the famous Van Winkle bourbons moved production from their small distillery to Buffalo Trace in 2002. The former location turned into a sign manufacturing shop, until a small group of investors thought it's bourbon history couldn't evaporate forever.
The group is bringing back production and naming it after one of the original brands: Old Commonwealth.
"We're getting close," English, with Old Commonwealth Distillery, said Wednesday. "It's gone from being on life support to being something that is tangible, that will have releases of bourbon soon."
As construction continues, so does a steady stream of neighbors who often stop to tell of their connections to the iconic property.
"'Hey my grandfather worked there, my mom worked there, we used to come and play in the creek,'" English said, recalling what neighbors have told him.
One of those neighbors stopped to talk with WDRB on Wednesday.
"Everybody they hired has been from Anderson County, mostly, to do all the work here. They're helping out the community is what they're doing here," said Sam Alves, who lives near the distillery.
In nearby Lawrenceburg, the judge executive couldn't believe his ears when he heard about plans for Old Commonwealth a few years ago.
"It's a once in a lifetime opportunity, and we're so fortunate that they chose Old Commonwealth to revitalize and turn into a staple in our community," Anderson County Judge Executive Orbrey Gritton said.
In about eight months, the Bourbon Trail will lead to the reimagined distillery.
"Most everything is original. We've done some structural repair to keep it good," English said.
The sign maker who sold the building also went to work to put the new name on it.
"It does feel good," said English. "I thought we were a little crazy to start and we probably were a little crazy, but I'm proud of where we've come."
Investors also bought 150 acres across the creek behind the property so they could put up a distillery and some rickhouses in the coming years, but it's also land with an interesting story.
A gravesite for William Campbell, a descendent of the sixth Duke of Argyle, who, legend has it, snuck his way to America from Ireland inside a whiskey barrel on a ship. And maybe, just maybe, he had a premonition about the land, because now his headstone will soon be overlooking many barrels of bourbon as Old Commonwealth comes back to life.
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