The Party Source to Build a Distillery

[jburlowski]

And it sounds like a sizable investment:

Http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20110830/NEWS0103/108310338

[BradleyC]

Great article. Thanks for posting. I look forward to following their progress.

[clingman71]

If this were FB, I would have "like"d this post.

[jcg9779]

Very interesting. How long does it usually take for a start up distillery to actually bottle a decent product? Would they start bottling after aging for two years just to get the product on the shelves while they age other inventory?

[TomH]

I just went to FB and did just that

If this were FB, I would have "like"d this post.

[DeanSheen]

"We're not sparing any expense in order to do this at the very top level of quality," Lewis said.

Looks like a nice project.

PS is cutting out the middleman. This will be a nice tidy profit center for them once it gets rolling.

[Josh]

Didn't they invest in a microbrewery a while back? What happened there?

[cowdery]

Smart.

So many of these micro-distilleries are woefully under-capitalized, especially for producing whiskey. The implication is that they have enough money to do it right.

This looks like a scale similar to Steve Nally's distillery in Wyoming, which makes about 20 barrels (53 gallon) a week. Roughly speaking, that gives you about 20,000 cases a year to sell, not a bad little brand.

It could take anywhere from 6 to 18 months to get everything built, installed, and broken-in, and because of the ambitious building I'm guessing it will be closer to 18. Ideally, they should shoot for a five-year-old product as a starting point (we've had enough 'white whiskey,' thank you very much), so assuming they are close to starting the clock, that means late 2017 to early 2018 before there is anything to drink.

[cbus]

Awesome! Can't wait!

[Gillman]

Smart. (et ainsi de suite).

Gary

[mark fleetwood]

We live near and frequent PS often. Great place. This sounds great for PS, but wouldn't Beam, HH, Saz and all the other producers be upset that a retailer is producing something that only they had been producing? I guess just about every retailer does it now with their own generic brand -- especially groceries -- but distillers go through so many hoops and regulations that you'd think the absolute last thing they want to see is the place that sells their product start selling its own product.

[cowdery]

If you sell 10 million cases a year, as Jack Daniel's does, how worried can you be about someone who sells 20 thousand?

Remember that Sazerac, a big producer, is owned (through that same 'family member' runaround) by the same person who owns Republic, a huge distributor in Louisiana and Texas. Everybody has their fingers in everything.

I've often said that some store should up its game to become the retailer for whiskey tourists. I thought it would be someone closer to the distilling centers, but Party Source is convenient for anyone traveling into the state from the north via I-75 or I-71, making it a good place to begin or end a Kentucky visit. And it's not that far from Frankfort, the nearest distilling center.

They're in a good position to pull this off because they have a lot to sell even before they have actual product from the distillery. I assume a bar/restaurant will be next.

Let's hope Lewis has a big family.

[mark fleetwood]

In that case, have at it boys.

Plus, big $ investment like this to build a distillery might help the Newport/Bellevue area restore its former glory as sin city. Just need a casino or two and a few gentlemen clubs (... oh yeah, they have that already).

[wadewood]

It could take anywhere from 6 to 18 months to get everything built, installed, and broken-in, and because of the ambitious building I'm guessing it will be closer to 18.

Or if your KBD, then it could be 18 years.....

[OscarV]

I hate to be the killjoy here but who cares?

I have had some of the Party Source's seleted bottles and they were at best lame.

And it just ain't me. A lot of my fellow SB.com members have dissed their selections also.

So, the question is, are they going to make good or bad whiskey?

Only time will tell.

In the meantime skip Party Source and go see Brian at Cork 'N Bottle, he does a great job picking barrels for his store's private bottles.

[Bourbon Boiler]

Are they really cutting out a middle man? Don't they have to sell to and buy from a distributor?

[jburlowski]

I hate to be the killjoy here but who cares?

I have had some of the Party Source's seleted bottles and they were at best lame.

And it just ain't me. A lot of my fellow SB.com members have dissed their selections also.

So, the question is, are they going to make good or bad whiskey?

Only time will tell.

In the meantime skip Party Source and go see Brian at Cork 'N Bottle, he does a great job picking barrels for his store's private bottles.

We're usually on the same wavelength but I've got to disagree (at least a little) with you here, Oscar. I think you are being a bit harsh.

I've like some of Brian's (CnB) choices (e.g., OWA #49) better than others (which can be mundane). Same is true of Jay at TPS (e.g.; his EC18 choice is outstanding and I recall you liked his Bowman rye and at least one of his Willett picks).

But to broadly label either one as "lame" or "bad" is simplistic and, to some degree, inaccurate and unfair. FWIW, I'd hazard a guess that I've tried more of each store's selections then you have. Doesn't make me "right" or you "wrong" but perhaps gives a different perspective.

Whether it's new expressions or barrel-picks, the challenge for each of us is to pick what we like.... regardless of the source.

[cowdery]

If Jay is the person selecting barrels from the PS distillery for sale in the PS store in 2017-2018, you probably won't like them, Oscar.

As for 'cutting out the middle man,' they can't unless Mr. Lewis wants to make some other family member a distributor. They will (unless the law changes by then) have to do paper transactions from the producer to the distributor and then from the distributor to the retail entity, but the bottles won't have to physically go to the distributor.

In some states the law allows small producers to sell directly, but obviously distributors don't like that. I don't believe Kentucky allows that at this time.

[tmckenzie]

It does look like the outfit Steve Nally has. It will be interesting to see how the whiskey turns out. Aging will be the biggest difference between the ps distillery and Steve's place.

[OscarV]

We're usually on the same wavelength but I've got to disagree (at least a little) with you here, Oscar. I think you are being a bit harsh.

Just speaking from personal experience and reviews by others whom opinions I agree with.

Now then, am I right or wrong?

I don't know, again just opinions from my past experiences.

[cowdery]

It does look like the outfit Steve Nally has. It will be interesting to see how the whiskey turns out. Aging will be the biggest difference between the ps distillery and Steve's place.

Water too. That's been an issue for Steve, coming up with enough water.

[BourbonRob]

Good business sense....they're ready for bourbon to hit the main stream once again...stock up now...

Rob

[tmckenzie]

Water too. That's been an issue for Steve, coming up with enough water.

When I was out there he was still trucking it in, but was planning on a line being put in. If I was him, I would put heat in the warehouses. The whiskey will set dormant for most of the year. He has his way of doing things though and I think it will be good whiskey, just different.

[bourbonv]

If Wyoming Whiskey is looking for a longer aging period for their whiskey, they should leave the warehouses without heat. Think of them being all lower level for aging.

Mike Veach

[Tom Troland]

It is interesting that The Party Source appears to be planning a big column still rather than the smaller pot stills usually favored by micro distillers. One reason might be they they have the capital to install such a big rig. But they must feel that column distillation (with, presumably, a doubler) is superior to pot distillation, at least for American whiskeys. Of course, Woodford Reserve produces pot still bourbon. But when I compare their pure pot still whiskey (Master's Collection) with Brown-Forman column still whiskey (Old Forester), I am not convinced that the pot still product is superior. Might it be that column stills are actually better for distilling American whiskey? If so, I wonder why? Perhaps corn and rye just do not react as well to a pot still as barley malt.