10 Aug 2025 - Castle & Key Distillery; Glenn's Creek Distillery

 

Toasty warm and sunny here again today topping out at 90F.  Liberty had some more GI issues last night, but seemed to be doing OK today.  Trials and tribulations of traveling with a 12 year old pup.  The campground started emptying first thing this morning and continued throughout the day. We had a leisurely breakfast and then saddled up and drove south a bit to the Castle & Key Distillery, one of two on the list for today.  

I had not heard of this distillery before, but I had heard of it's founder, Colonel Edmund Haynes Taylor, Jr, i.e. E.H. Taylor of the Buffalo Trace fame.  In 1887, Colonel Edmund Haynes Taylor, Jr. built a new kind of distillery destination in Millville, Kentucky. Inspired by European architecture, the site featured a Castle, a classical Springhouse, and a Sunken Garden. What he built became the birthplace of bourbon hospitality and tourism.  Apparently the distillery changed hands several times and sat empty, falling into disrepair badly.  In 2014, the Old Taylor Distillery, which was in ruins, was purchased. Then they got to work, building a consortium of like-minded people, often from outside the industry, who shared their vision. Together, they did not renovate the distillery - they restored it!  And a beautiful job they did! 

The drive to the distillery took us through some beautiful Kentucky countryside.  Most of these distilleries were built near one of their prime raw materials - water!  So it is very common to find distilleries out in the country and near streams.  This one is no exception.

As we rounded the corner the castle came into view, and it did not disappoint.  The scenery was simply awesome!  It is easy to see how this became a true destination.  

I tried to get tickets online for a tour but they were apparently sold out so we came here today taking our chances that something might become available.  If not we would visit the gift shop, take in the beauty of this place, and move on down the road.  We got lucky and they had a couple openings in the 1200 hrs tour.  

Since we were early, they suggested we go to the Taylorton Station building which used to be the train station for those visiting the castle. Remember we said before that in the late 1800's E.H. Taylor built this place "for bourbon hospitality and tourism".   So he built this train station which is now where they serve bourbon cocktails.  Doreen and I each got a cold drink and then waited near the stream and the springhouse for the tour to start.

So this is the springhouse.  Again, a European bathhouse theme.  Inside the springhouse is a key-shaped spring that is still used today.  They do not use the spring water in the bourbon but they use it in the process to help regulate the temperature of the mash as it cooks.  

So crystal clear you cannot see that this is 10 ft deep in water.

Soon our tour guide, Miles,  arrived and the tour was underway.  I was not sure what to think about him to start with but he was very knowledgeable and "animated" which added to the experience!

The tour took us through the distillery which, like the others we have toured, are shut down this time of year for maintenance.  There were workers performing various tasks but there no mash cooking and no alcohol being distilled.  That likely lowered the temperature inside but you could not prove it by me.  Outside was nearly 90F by then and the humidity was nasty.  Of course there was no air moving inside the buildings, so the exit was none too close.  Some pictures:

Cooling coils in the fermenter tank help to keep the mash at the appropriate temperature

Part of the gin distillation process.  Gin is triple distilled.  Not a fan of gin!

Back outside we passed a beautiful garden originally created by E.H. Taylor as part of his vision of  European architecture, sunken gardens, etc and then we walked past the Ric House (also called a rack house or warehouse) where the barrels are stored to age.  

If you are around many distilleries you will see a dark colored coating on many of the buildings and other nearby objects, almost resembling soot.  It is actually a type of fungus called Baudoinia Compniacensis, also known as whiskey fungus, according to Food & Wine and HowStuffWorks. This fungus thrives on ethanol vapors released during the aging process of whiskey, also known as the "Angel's Share", that portion that escapes the barrels during the aging process.  It's a common sight near distilleries, particularly those with large numbers of aging barrels, and can appear as a sooty, black growth on various surfaces. Rumor has it they used to call it the "tell-tale" fungus as the Feds would look for this back during Prohibition as evidence there was illegal booz being produced!

Our next stop was the tasting room.  Miles explained the three bourbons we tasted and how they differ. 

Following the tasting we exited through the gift shop.  I am not normally fond of a wheated bourbon (the middle one) but this one was really good, so we bought a bottle to take home and share with others.  

We thoroughly enjoyed touring the Castle & Key Distillery.  Such a beautiful facility and great spirits!

The next stop, Glenn's Creek Distillery, was just down the road so we loaded up in the truck and headed down there.  Again, we had no reservations so we took our chances and stopped by.  Turns out they do not do tours but they do tastings - OK well twist my arm!

The Glenn's Creek Distillery is not much to look at!

Notice the black stuff on everything.

So we stopped by Glenn's Creek Distillery and proceeded to the visitor center.  On the way in, we passed a sign that explained a bit.  I had never hear of Glenn's Creek but I've surely heard of Old Crow!  The Old Crow Distillery has a rich history tied to the pioneering distiller James Crow and the whiskey that bore his name. Originally, the distillery was part of Oscar Pepper's operations and was later named in honor of Dr. Crow after his death. The distillery grew to become a significant producer, reaching a capacity of 1,600 bushels per day and 125,000 barrels for storage. After a period of decline, the distillery and brand were sold to National Distillers and later to Jim Beam, ultimately leading to its closure. It reopened as Glenn's Creek in 2013.  So now you know!  Again, the facility was nothing fancy but we were greeted by a friendly lady and opted for a tasting.  

We tried three different bourbons and they she brought a bottle out of the back room which was really good, and the one we ultimately bought.

The bottle we chose was signed by the namesake which was awesome.  We will ration that one out for sure.  As we exited the distillery we noticed an old pickup truck covered in the "Tell-Tale" fungus, and then down the road, an RV also covered.  This stuff is everywhere!

As I wrap this up, Liberty's GI issues continue.  We have medication for that which we have given her, and we will see how she is doing tomorrow.  We have a tour reserved for 1100 hrs at Woodford Reserve.