KBD to start distilling any day now.

[cowdery]

At least now you'll be able to stop asking for the source of their whiskey!

Doubtful. They've got a very long way to go before they can stop buying whiskey and that may not even be their plan.

[p_elliott]

At least now you'll be able to stop asking for the source of their whiskey!

I going to have to agree with Chuck on this one. I don't foresee KBD producing enough whiskey for their needs. Secondly they have established brands that they need that purchased whiskey for to maintain the profile.

[hectic1]

I going to have to agree with Chuck on this one. I don't foresee KBD producing enough whiskey for their needs. Secondly they have established brands that they need that purchased whiskey for to maintain the profile.

Really...you know for a fact that they aren't going to be able to produce enough whiskey to satisfy their distribution needs? You know for a fact that they're locked into a specific profile for said brands? Didn't your beloved WT just make some changes to their products?

By my math they'll be able to produce roughly 4600 barrels a year which is a pretty good amount of whiskey. Now it's going to take some time, at a minimum 4yrs before we start seeing KBD distilled bourbon making it's way into their bottles. I would have a hard time believing that they're doing this and still plan on being dependent on other distilleries to meet their needs.

[Josh]

Really...you know for a fact that they aren't going to be able to produce enough whiskey to satisfy their distribution needs? You know for a fact that they're locked into a specific profile for said brands? Didn't your beloved WT just make some changes to their products?

By my math they'll be able to produce roughly 4600 barrels a year which is a pretty good amount of whiskey. Now it's going to take some time, at a minimum 4yrs before we start seeing KBD distilled bourbon making it's way into their bottles. I would have a hard time believing that they're doing this and still plan on being dependent on other distilleries to meet their needs.

We don't know for a fact that they've started barreling anything yet. Why would they want to change what has been a very successful business model for them?

Seems much more likely to me that if they do start/have started distilling, they will keep the NDP/Bottler thing going and add their own product to the mix in brands like Kentucky Vintage and/or use their own distilled stuff for new brands.

Of course I have no right to ask or speculate about such things.

[callmeox]

Yeah, look for the KBD sourced Willet Estate bottlings any day now.

Man, the KoolAid is strong in this thread.

[White Dog]

We don't know for a fact that they've started barreling anything yet. Why would they want to change what has been a very successful business model for them?

Seems much more likely to me that if they do start/have started distilling, they will keep the NDP/Bottler thing going and add their own product to the mix in brands like Kentucky Vintage and/or use their own distilled stuff for new brands.

Of course I have no right to ask or speculate about such things.

It has been a successful business model up until this point, but as bulk bourbon and Rye becomes more scarce, this could be their plan to counter that.

[p_elliott]

Really...you know for a fact that they aren't going to be able to produce enough whiskey to satisfy their distribution needs? You know for a fact that they're locked into a specific profile for said brands? Didn't your beloved WT just make some changes to their products?

By my math they'll be able to produce roughly 4600 barrels a year which is a pretty good amount of whiskey. Now it's going to take some time, at a minimum 4yrs before we start seeing KBD distilled bourbon making it's way into their bottles. I would have a hard time believing that they're doing this and still plan on being dependent on other distilleries to meet their needs.

I don't know a fact about anything about KBD distilling and neither do you.

[hectic1]

I don't know a fact about anything about KBD distilling and neither do you.

Thanks for telling me what I know and don't know again Paul...I'm so blessed that you provide that service for me!

[p_elliott]

Thanks for telling me what I know and don't know again Paul...I'm so blessed that you provide that service for me!

You'll sleep easier !

[tmckenzie]

I cannot figure out why a lot of comments in this thread have been so negative. so they have taken a long time to get going. Good for them. Probably did it when they had money to spend to keep from borrowing money. That is smart. They have sense enough to make a good product, and I bet they will do so. That is a hell of a lot more than I can say for a lot of the other microdistillers.

[kyrocklover]

I currently like the product(s) they are putting out right now and I'm looking forward to this product.

[White Dog]

If Willett has actually risen from the ashes, and we still don't know for sure, we better get them on Josh's Whiskey Tree fast.

Hey Josh, why don't you ask Drew for his mashbill percentages? I'm sure he'll tell you. :lol:

[tommyboy38]

I look forward to trying some KBD after it ages.

[Josh]

I cannot figure out why a lot of comments in this thread have been so negative. so they have taken a long time to get going. Good for them. Probably did it when they had money to spend to keep from borrowing money. That is smart. They have sense enough to make a good product, and I bet they will do so. That is a hell of a lot more than I can say for a lot of the other microdistillers.

I can't speak for anyone else, but my skepticism is not because it has taken them a long time, but because every few years somebody would post and say they were ready to start any day now or had gotten their first grain shipment in or something and then we wouldn't hear anything from them again for another year or two. It got real old.

[Ejmharris]

Check out Tweet from Drew 8 hours ago:

https://twitter.com/bbnboy/status/162707815159439360

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Josh]

Check out Tweet from Drew 8 hours ago:

https://twitter.com/bbnboy/status/162707815159439360

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Well, that seems to be pretty good evidence, and a good looking still at that. Thanks for posting EJ!

[Gillman]

Interesting about the pot still. Is this a second run, the first being done in a column still? Or is it the first, with the second being done in...? Any information?

What did Willett's use when it operated?

Gary

[barturtle]

Interesting about the pot still. Is this a second run, the first being done in a column still? Or is it the first, with the second being done in...? Any information?

What did Willett's use when it operated?

Gary

I don't think the pot still was an original part of the operation.

I'm pretty sure both the column and doubler are the originals and were either still on site or tracked down and repurchased.

[Rughi]

I don't think the pot still was an original part of the operation.

I'm pretty sure both the column and doubler are the originals and were either still on site or tracked down and repurchased.

[cowdery]

Willett was making fuel ethanol at the end so they wouldn't have needed a doubler and they probably had to do some work on the beer still to make it suitable for whiskey-making again (i.e., take out rectification plates, put in copper).

As for the attitude, look at it this way. Imagine you've been seeing a woman (or man) and she (he) tells you that you will be allowed to consummate the relationship "soon," and then keeps telling you that for 20 years.

It's sort of like that.

[doubleblank]

"To clarify the things that have been posted about our company, I will tell you everything. I am Even's son Drew. I designed the website, very basic indeed but it serves the purpose. We are going through major rennovations at our plant. We have completely gutted our distillery and will be producing again later this fall. As for the pot distillation process, everyone uses one. But our pot still has a specially designed Corcorhan film tray section that purifies it even more. As for our current stock, we are having it made under contract using our formulas that have been dating back to the Willett days. We are having a new copper pot still that is being made at the moment and will be delivered to us toward the end of this month. This will be independent from our standard distillation process. As for production we will begin producing sometime in Sept./Nov. We plan to mash about 200 Bushels a day. If anyone has any questions feel free to send me an email or a private message. Oh, and as for the picture, it's all I had. We are going to reshoot another picture upon completion. And for those of you that mentioned HH, they used to bottle our Old Bardstown for KY, but we bottle it now. And one more thing, our warehouses are not empty which many of you may have believed."

The "tude" mostly comes from this post here at SB from July........2004 by Drew Kulsveen. And many more thereafter.

But glad to see they're in operation.

Hey Rodger, many years ago I made a visit to Vendome and was pointed to a still purportedly from the W&F plant in Juarez MX. Did KBD have it repaired and buy it?

Randy

[Rughi]

...Hey Rodger, many years ago I made a visit to Vendome and was pointed to a still purportedly from the W&F plant in Juarez MX. Did KBD have it repaired and buy it?

Randy

You know, I may have mis-remembered the whole thing, but I thought that Even had bought it at auction and brought it back from Mexico after it had been used to distill Tequila for a long time.

I found part of why I thought this from a thread 4 years ago, but re-reading it, there were a few similar, but not identical, thoughts of that still's history, the Beam family, Vendome, and Waterfill & Frazier.

Starting at Post #59:

http://www.straightbourbon.com/forums/showthread.php?p=121593&highlight=waterfill+Willett+still#post121593

[T Comp]

You know, I may have mis-remembered the whole thing, but I thought that Even had bought it at auction and brought it back from Mexico after it had been used to distill Tequila for a long time.

I found part of why I thought this from a thread 4 years ago, but re-reading it, there were a few similar, but not identical, thoughts of that still's history, the Beam family, Vendome, and Waterfill & Frazier.

Starting at Post #59:

http://www.straightbourbon.com/forums/showthread.php?p=121593&highlight=waterfill+Willett+still#post121593

Thread drift here but the photo Bettye Jo then links back to, of her family of Beams, that she posted back in 2002 is awesome. I enjoy some of these "dusty" posts almost as much as the liquid stuff :cool: .

[cowdery]

My understanding is that the still from Juarez is the one Joe Beam took there at the beginning of Prohibition. It's well worn and more of a museum piece (would that there were such a museum) than something that could or should be put back into operation.

[MacinJosh]

We don't know for a fact that they've started barreling anything yet.

As of today, I can tell you for a fact they have.