We are lucky in Columbus to be so close to the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and its many stops. Last month we visited a couple of distilleries before spending the weekend in Louisville with friends. And easily one of the highlights of the trip was the visit to Castle & Key Distillery just outside of Frankfort.
Beth had been to Castle & Key a few years ago, and was excited to return. The distillery and its grounds enjoy one of the richest histories in a region full of great stories.
As you park on the street and walk up to the store, you’ll immediately notice the eclectic mix of buildings that sometimes border ruins, random sets of train tracks, and landscaped grounds.
The grounds, including the shop and bottle shop, and a small cocktail bar or snack shop, are open to the public, but if you want the full experience, we recommend booking your tour in advance. The standard tour lasts about an hour and is offered several times a day from Thursday to Sunday.
Tours start right outside the main store. If you’re lucky, you’ll have Rich as your guide. He is the perfect combination of expert historian and comedian, with an enthusiasm that sometimes borders on Baptist preacher fire.
I won’t share the full history of Castle & Key, but the short version is that it opened as a distillery for Colonel EH Taylor in 1887. He built the grounds to include dozens of buildings, creating a complete experience for guests with gardens, parties, music and more beautiful functions. He even managed to extend the railroad from Frankfort to his distillery.
The distillery eventually changed hands before becoming National Distillers, weathering Prohibition and falling into ruin. It was finally abandoned in 1972 and reclaimed for scrap for the next 40 years, before a new pair of owners recognized its value and bought the 113-acre site and its 27 buildings for $950,000 in 2012.
They began the slow process of restoring the buildings one by one, uncovering Colonel Taylor Gardens and other infrastructure, restoring a working distillery, and hiring Kentucky’s first female master distiller, Marianne Eaves (who has since has moved on).
You’ll need to book a tour to get the full story, but here are a few highlight photos!
The tour ends at an underground bar, where your guide will take you through a tasting. We tried their Restoration Rye, a gin and tonic with their Harvest Gin and a gin mule.
Be sure to take some time to explore the gift shop in the old boiler room.
The former Taylorton Station, its arrival point for trains from Frankfort, is now a snack bar and cocktail bar.
You can have an adult drink, coffee, snacks and more. If the weather is nice, you can find places to sit or walk around the grounds. It’s the perfect stop to end the tour!
To book a visit to Castle & Key visit here: castleandkey.com/visit-the-distillery/experience-calendar
Castle & Key Distillery
4445 McCracken Pike
Frankfort, KY 40601
(502) 395-9070
Website: castleandkey.com
FB: Castle & Key
IG: @castleandkey