Woodford Reserve Distillery

Nestled among the rolling horse farms of Versailles, Kentucky, Woodford Reserve is home to one of America’s oldest working Bourbon distilling sites. The story begins in 1812, when distilling first took place on the land that is now the Woodford Reserve Distillery.

The distillery itself boasts historic stone buildings and a pure water source from the local Glenn’s Creek. The modern Woodford Reserve story began to take shape under Brown-Forman, with the brand launched in the 1990s.

Former Master Distiller Chris Morris, who led the distillery from 2003 to 2023, was responsible for a number of experimental expressions, including Double Oaked, Rye, Malt and Wheat. In 2023, Elizabeth McCall became Master Distiller, continuing Woodford’s tradition of combining Bourbon heritage with experimentation and modern whiskey-making.

Since its recent expansion in the early 2020s, Woodford Reserve doubled its capacity with 6 copper stills: 2 beer stills 2 high wine stills, and 2 low wine pot stills (previously it had used one of each). Using long fermentation and maturing in new, charred American oak barrels, its bourbon is built around a mash bill of 72% corn, 18% rye and 10% malted barley that achieves the balance of sweetness, spice and rich malt character for which the brand is known.

Today, Woodford Reserve is one of Kentucky’s best-known Bourbon distilleries.