NEW HAVEN, Ky. — The Dant family who leads Log Still Distillery and local officials in Nelson County cut the ribbon on the distillery’s tasting room, signifying a major step forward for a two-phase project expected to create 146 full-time jobs with $36 million in total investment.
Built by Buzick Construction, the tasting room’s primary focal point is a Vendome Copper mini-still. It also features an overhead bi-fold door that opens as weather allows so visitors can enjoy outside tastings with a view of the Kentucky countryside.
The tasting room opens to the public on May 18 and will premiere Log Still’s initial spirits. Debut products include Monk’s Road Dry Gin, Monk’s Road Barrel Finished Gin, and Monk’s Road Fifth District Series Bourbon: Cold Spring Distillery, the first in a rotating series of bourbons named for historic pre-Prohibition distillers in the region. Company leaders plan additional products, including bourbon and rye whiskey under the Monk’s Road name and Tennessee whiskeys under the Rattle and Snap label.
Leaders of the startup distillery on Dee Head Road in southern Nelson County moved forward last month with a $24 million Phase 2 investment to establish Dant Crossing, a 300-plus-acre campus that is home to the distillery, including the newly opened tasting room, and other amenities. The announcement followed a Phase 1 investment of $12 million unveiled in 2019 to establish the operation at the historic site.
New jobs created across both phases of the project include distillery and bottling operations, hospitality, event operations, and restaurant positions.
Dant Crossing’s first amenities debuted earlier this year with the opening of the Homestead Bed & Breakfast and the Poplar Cottage rentals. Additional amenities are expected to open later this year, including an amphitheater, restaurant, train depot, and event/conference center, with plans to add a visitor’s center, museum, and gift shop in 2022.
Log Still’s recent investment adds to a wave of recent economic momentum in the commonwealth, as the state builds back stronger following the effects of the pandemic.
The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) in May 2019 preliminarily approved a 10-year incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based agreement can provide up to $500,000 in tax incentives based on the company’s Phase 1 investment of $12 million and annual targets of:
- Creation and maintenance of 20 Kentucky-resident, full-time jobs across 10 years; and
- Paying an average hourly wage of $26 including benefits across those jobs.
KEDFA in May 2019 approved Log Still for up to $100,000 in tax incentives through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act (KEIA) based on the company’s Phase 1 investment of $12 million. In March 2021, KEDFA approved the company for up to $500,000 in tax incentives through KEIA based on the company’s Phase 2 investment of $24 million. KEIA allows approved companies to recoup Kentucky sales and use tax on construction costs, building fixtures, equipment used in research and development, and electronic processing.
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