Distillery Tour

Wilderness Trail Distillery Celebrates 10 Years + Tour and Tasting

If you’d told me ten years ago that I’d be standing in one of Wilderness Trail Distillery’s warehouses not only celebrating a milestone 10th anniversary, but also toasting with a 10-year-old wheated bourbon straight out of the second barrel they ever filled, I’d call you insane.

Anybody with any sense can see the this bourbon bubble is no where near popping. Back when I started this blog in 2014, just a mere four months after Wilderness Trail founders Shane Baker and Pat Heist filled their first barrel of wheated bourbon, I could walk into just about any liquor store and talk at length about any brand on the shelf. Nowadays, that’s a much different story. There are so many new brands from distilleries of all sizes. There’s no way in hell I can keep up. But that speaks to the popularity of the American whiskey industry.

I’ve got to be honest – I didn’t know much about Wilderness Trail going into this trip. The New Orleans Bourbon Festival (I’m on the board of their backing non-profit organization, Raising Spirits Society) did couple of barrel picks for the 2023 festival, but I wasn’t part of that and, thanks to COVID-19, couldn’t attend this year’s festival. So I was pleasantly surprised when I was invited to a tour of the distillery to celebrate its 10th anniversary. Of course, I jumped at the chance.

I’m glad I did.

Their story is an interesting one. Where the big distilleries lean on a lot on their history, heritage, and “this is how we’ve always done it” mentality, Wilderness Trail goes the opposite direction. Shane Baker and Pat Heist, two scientists, were in the yeast business for years, supplying the stuff to lots of industries, including whiskey distilleries. Of course, they’d get calls at all hours of the night with questions and yeast-related problems. Turns out their yeast wasn’t the issue 99.9999% of the time. They could point to another part of the distillation process that was causing issues. After a few years of problem solving distillery problems, the two guys decided to start their own distillery.

With their scientific background (and a great palate), this made so much sense. First, they had to stand out from the pack, so they went with a sweet mash process. Most of the larger distilleries use sour mash, which uses some of the spent mash from a previous batch in a new fermentation. Wilderness Trail said nope. They maintained stringent cleanliness standards and constant testing to make sure wayward bacteria didn’t inject their mash with unwanted aromas or flavors. On top of that, they decreed that all of their whiskies would be Bottled-In-Bond. For the uninitiated, that means their whiskies had to be distilled in one distilling season at one distillery, aged in a bonded warehouse to at least 4 years, and bottled at 100 proof.

Wilderness Trail uses a combination of pot and column stills, which again helps them stand out from most others. They’re also able to reclaim most of the water from the spent mash before shipping that out to farmers for feed. That water goes back into warming the stills, which is great for energy savings. The tech’s been around since the 50’s. Why other distilleries aren’t utilizing this is beyond me.

One area they also keep tight reigns on is wood management. Their barrel staves season for 18-24 months, which is more than the average distillery. Their barrel entry proof is rather low compared to the rest of the industry, with their whiskey entering the barrel at 110 proof. New make can’t enter the barrel at more than 125 proof for it to be bourbon. As the majority of their standard releases leave the barrel at between 113 and 116 proof, they don’t have to proof down their whiskey as much. It also tends to make for a richer tasting experience at 5-6 years old.

Their first bourbon is a wheated small batch. The mash bill they decided on is 64% corn, 24% wheat, and 12% malted barley. That’s a decent amount of barley, compared to most other distilleries. Small Batch isn’t an official term by any means, but for Wilderness Trail, it typically means between 20-25 barrels. What’s interesting here is they maintain a consistency between batches. Obviously, the more barrels in a batch, the more homogenous the flavor of the batch. In other words, individual barrel characteristics are essentially persona non grata in a very large batch. Part of their process includes using several yeast strains during different distilling seasons. One yeast for warmer months, and another yeast strain for colder ones, as fermentation times change in different temperatures. They actually have thousands of yeast strains in their possession, and found that about 40 work for brewing and distilling purposes.

Their other bourbon uses rye as the secondary flavoring grain. The mash bill percentages remain the same: 64% corn, 24% rye, 12% malted barley. This makes for a great compare-and-contrast between both of their bourbons. Lastly, their rye whiskey features a mash bill of 56% rye, 33% corn, and 11% malted barley. Look for tasting notes on all three expressions in the next post.

Dr. Pat Heist enjoying a pour of Wilderness Trail 10-year old bourbon from the second barrel they filled.

One of the highlights of the trip was tasting their upcoming 10-year-old bourbon. We got to taste it straight from the second barrel they ever filled. It came out of the barrel at about 119 proof. I didn’t jot down tasting notes, as I as caught up in the rare, reflective and celebratory moment. Dr. Heist tasted this for the first time along with the rest of the folks on the press trip. For a lack of a better phrase, it was a pretty special moment. The bourbon itself didn’t drink like 119 proof… it felt more like 100 – 105 proof. It was pretty dark in color. I do remember lots of dark sugars and some fruit and spice on the nose. The palate was robust, with hints of brown sugar, dried stone fruit, baking spice, and a touch of oak. The finish was rather long and warming, with bittersweet oak and vanilla. In other words, amazing. I compared it to other 10-year-old wheated bourbons I’ve tasted, and Wilderness Trail might have easily bested them. This release, by the way, will be KY-only. Expect only a few bottles to hit the market – remember, they are literally using a handful of barrels here.

Every time I visit a distillery, I expect to walk away with some knowledge about what makes them stand apart from others. In the case of Wilderness Trail, the differences happen in spades. I have a newfound respect for this distillery and its makers. This is one brand that has definitely earned a spot on my home shelves.

A big thank you to Campari and Wilderness Trail Distillery for the distillery trip. All travel and lodging expenses were paid for.

Maker’s Mark, the Mint Julep, and the Road Ahead

As I stared at the buffalo head mounted above the warm crackling fireplace, I thought to myself, “why am I here?” ‘Here’ was the Historic Botherum, the incredulous Lexington home owned, renovated, and decorated by famed gardener, landscaper to the stars, and the quintessential Southern gentleman, Jon Carloftis. This was the beginning of a press trip sponsored by Maker’s Mark.

My thoughts were quickly interrupted when I was handed a mint julep. After all, this was Kentucky in springtime, and juleps are in season. The refreshing cocktail and some small bites came courtesy of the inviting Ann Evans, former executive director of the Kentucky Governor’s Mansion.

We were given the tour of the house, but it wasn’t until we explored his extravagant basement bar and enjoyed a pour or two of bourbon that I realized two things. First, Mr. Carloftis has an eye for design. The decor of his home is really something to behold. My wife, who was also on the trip, described the home as ‘southern masculine whimsy’. The man is clearly talented. Second, he loves his Maker’s Mark. In addition to dozens of Maker’s bottles displayed around the house, liquor closet, and basement bar, every one of his decanters held the famous wheated bourbon. Carloftis designed the landscaping at the distillery including the meandering pathways, something of which he is extremely proud. Trees at the distillery were also trimmed to provide a clear line of sight for visitors. Thankfully, I didn’t have to wait long to see this for myself.

The next day was the main event – the visit to Maker’s Mark. The hour long trip from Lexington featured long winding roads, plenty of silos, and countless bathtub Marys. Upon arrival, the pastoral beauty of the distillery grounds I’d long heard about quickly came into focus. This is one picturesque distillery.  Hell, even Master Distiller Denny Potter told me how gorgeous the distillery looked just a few days prior at the New Orleans Bourbon Festival.  The dark brown buildings with their Maker’s Mark signature wax red shutters stood out against the surrounding Kentucky greenery. It seemed right out of a painting. And the keeper of that little slice of whisky heaven, Maker’s Mark COO and grandson of the brand’s founders, Rob Samuels, Jr., was the perfect person to walk us around. I doubt anyone is more knowledgeable about the brand. Like Carloftis, Samuels is extremely proud of the work being done at the distillery. After all, it’s in his blood.  Whisky-making in the Samuels family goes back many generations.

The tour of the grounds was amazing. It is a pilgrimage every bourbon fan should experience. The word “handmade” appears on every label of Maker’s Mark. There is a certain charm in the quaintness of the distillery that lives up to that description. From the small stillhouse and wooden fermenters to the fact that every label is still printed by hand using a letterpress. The wax dipping is also done by hand instead of by machine. Make no mistake – this is no big, automated factory. It’s a “model of purposeful inefficiency,” as Mrs. Samuels put it.

One clear violation of that phrase is the new cavern carved into a limestone shelf that allows the distillery to create Maker’s 46 and Maker’s Mark Private Select year round instead of only in the winter. When Bill Samuels, Jr. created Maker’s 46 years ago, he discovered it could only be done in the winter. Otherwise the barrel-stave finished bourbon didn’t come out right. So, in an effort to efficiently make the expression year-round, Maker’s carved a massive chunk into a nearby limestone shelf. It houses Maker’s 46 barrels, Private Select barrels, and a tasting room.

But what struck me as most interesting was what Maker’s Mark informed us of as we shared a dram of their whisky at the edge of their solely controlled, limestone-filtered water source. The distillery’s Environmental Champion, Jason Nally, preached the importance of sustainability. A native of the area, Nally used to dirtbike in the backwoods surrounding Star Hill Farms as a kid. Now he studies just about every aspect of that same natural space for the distillery. For Nally, understanding and working towards a future that breeds sustainability is key not only for the future of distilling, but of a much larger picture – one of a cleaner planet. It was an impassioned plea from someone knowledgeable who clearly cares.

From a distilling standpoint, Nally wants to make sure the lake is clean to ensure that pristine water source will always be available and that oak growth in the forested area nearby flourishes. By the way, all this work being done does not harm local wildlife. In fact, all the area animals and insects are being studied as well.

This environmental stop along the tour wasn’t just for show. This year, Maker’s Mark has committed to removing 75,000 pounds of trash from the world’s oceans and waterways.  It’s bigger than the standard ‘giving back to the community’ line we often read about.  While that is certainly applauded, what Maker’s is doing seems bigger.  Another way we’ve seen change in a non-obtrusive manner came by way of using paper straws in cocktails instead of plastic ones. Every julep we were served on this trip featured a paper straw or reusable silver straw.

It was impressive to hear of Maker’s Mark’s efforts. They’ve come up with the hashtag #CocktailsForCleanups.  Use it every time you post a photo of a Maker’s mint julep or any other cocktail to bring a little awareness to their efforts. Know that in a microcosmic kind of way, it can at the very least help spark a conversation, which can be as refreshing as that ice cold, minty delight known as a julep.

Thanks to Maker’s Mark team and the EVINS team for the trip. Though my travel expenses were covered, neither group suggested nor held any editorial control over this post. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Behind the Scenes at Heaven Hill

Heaven Hill's warehouses.

Heaven Hill’s warehouses.

On an especially cold late-March morning, I pulled up to the parking lot of Heaven Hill’s Bourbon Heritage Center in Bardstown, KY.  This was my first time in bluegrass state.  I took in the sights and sounds of the crisp morning before I walked into the Heritage Center.  Josh Hafer of Heaven Hill graciously invited me to tour the facilities there, which include their warehouses, bottling plant, and aforementioned Bourbon Heritage Center.  I had a feeling this was going to be an unforgettable morning. (more…)