Home » Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort breaks ground on expansion project

Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort breaks ground on expansion project

Sazerac investing $70 million to expand three distilleries, create 110 new jobs

FRANKFORT, Ky. (April 30, 2014) – Gov. Steve Beshear today joined company officials and local leaders to break ground on the Buffalo Trace Distillery expansion in Frankfort.

Buffalo Trace is one of three upcoming expansions parent company Sazerac is celebrating. Projects are also in the works at the Glenmore Distillery in Owensboro and the Barton 1792 Distillery in Bardstown. Sazerac plans to invest more than $70 million in the three distilleries and create 110 new jobs.

Buffalo Trace Distillery
Buffalo Trace Distillery will invest more than $20 million to add a new 83,000-s.f. warehouse center in Frankfort.

“With more aging barrels of bourbon in Kentucky than people, bourbon remains a signature industry in Kentucky,” Beshear said. “To see three iconic distilleries expand their operations shows that the world’s taste for bourbon is soaring. Sazerac’s investment will continue to grow this legacy.”

Sazerac is the largest bottler of distilled spirits in the Commonwealth and employs 1,300 people statewide. The company is expanding all three distilleries to meet projected growth and demand for bourbon.

“We appreciate the support that the governor, city and county officials have shown us, and we look forward to continued growth of all our facilities in Kentucky,” said Mark Brown, president and CEO of Sazerac.

Buffalo Trace Distillery

At Buffalo Trace, the 228-year-old distillery will invest more than $20 million to add a new 83,000-s.f. warehouse center in Frankfort. The new portion of the warehouse will be connected to the existing distribution center and will have a state-of-the-art Automated Storage and Retrieval System (AS/RS). Buffalo Trace plans to add 40 new full-time jobs over the next two to three years.

The company is investing additional funds in the project to ensure that the new building maintains the distillery’s current look and feel from an architectural standpoint, thereby enhancing its status as a National Historic Landmark.

Glenmore Distillery

Sazerac will invest approximately $45 million to add a new 223,000-s.f. distribution center at the Glenmore Distillery in Owensboro. The company also will purchase additional equipment, including an AS/RS, and make improvements to existing barrel warehouses over the next two years. The distillery expects to create 20 new full-time jobs.

“Our community is fortunate that Sazerac has chosen the Glenmore facility to expand with an automated storage and retrieval system,” said Owensboro Mayor Ron Payne “The investment that this facility will bring to our community is significant.  We take pride in knowing that this facility has been in our community for such a long time and that it continues to be a viable part of it.”

Learn more about the Glenmore Distillery here.

Barton 1792 Distillery

At the Barton 1792 Distillery, Sazerac plans to invest approximately $5 million to purchase equipment to increase production capacity. The 182-acre distillery also expects to add 50 new full-time jobs over the next two to three years.

“This most recent expansion at the Barton 1792 Distillery is great news for Bardstown and the more than 200 people who work there,” said Bardstown Mayor Bill Sheckles. “We thank the company leaders for their continued investment in Bardstown and Nelson County, and look forward to a long and prosperous relationship.”

Learn more about Barton 1792 here.

State support

The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) has given preliminary approval for tax incentives of up to $7.4 million through the Kentucky Business Investment Program.

The performance-based incentive allows a company to keep a portion of its investment over the term of the agreement through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets.

Bourbon distilling contributes nearly $2 billion in gross state product each year, and has more than doubled its importance to the state’s overall economic activity in the past 13 years. Kentucky exported $383 million of its distilled spirits in 2013, a full 21 percent of the U.S. total.

For more information on Sazerac, visit sazerac.com.