Kentucky’s Buffalo Trace Distillery quest to meet demand is charging ahead, but the distillery is warning its bourbon fans it will still be a few years before supply catches up with demand.

Some of the projects include a second still house which will double capacity; eight new fermenters added to the existing 16; a new dry house; a new cooling system including mash coolers, chillers and cooling towers; and a $43 million wastewater facility, which will allow the massive facility to be self-sufficient in its treatment of wastewater.

Upcoming infrastructure projects for this 246-year-old Distillery in the near future include a new mill house, which will be located close to the original location of the hammer mill from 80 years ago.  The mill house will increase the grain grinding capacity to match new distillation capacity by replacing the current hammer mills.  Corn, wheat, rye and barley are trucked into Buffalo Trace from various non-GMO farmers in the region, but then must be ground on site before the grains can be used to make bourbon. 

More barrel aging warehouses are also planned, as well as another craft bottling hall which will allow Buffalo Trace to produce more single barrel and small batch bourbons.

“We’ve made great strides in our expansion so far, but we still have a long way to go in order to meet the needs of our fans,” said Master Distiller Harlen Wheatley. “We continue to take all the proper steps to ensure every barrel is of the highest quality as we increase supply.”