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Inspections of barrels will take time at flooded Kentucky distillery

Signs of renewal are underway at the Buffalo Trace Distillery in Kentucky since floodwaters that inundated the whiskey-making campus receded. But executives say the painstaking task of inspecting any bourbon barrels touched by the high water will take time.

The historic distillery has resumed shipping spirits and hopes to reopen its bottling operation in the coming days, Jake Wenz, CEO and president of the Sazerac Co. and the distillery, said Friday. The campus could reopen to visitors soon on a limited basis but for now is closed to guests through Sunday.

“Restoration of this National Historic Landmark is our top priority to ensure a quick return to making quality, award-winning whiskey and welcoming guests from around the world,” Wenz said in a release.

The Frankfort, Kentucky-based distillery — which produces some of the most sought-after bourbon brands — was inundated by floodwaters from the nearby Kentucky River after days of downpours overfilled rivers to near-record levels across parts of the Bluegrass State.

Now that the murky floodwaters are gone, the cleanup at Buffalo Trace is progressing. Teams of engineers and restoration experts have been assessing damage in the buildings that were flooded.

Workers were able to move some barrels of bourbon to upper floors of storage warehouses before the prolonged rains produced the flooding.

Inspections of any barrels touched by the flood began Thursday and will continue until each is carefully assessed, a process that could take several weeks to complete, the distillery said. It hasn’t said how many barrels were affected but said it doesn’t expect any meaningful loss of inventory.



(AP Photo Jon Cherry)
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