A New Attraction at Slugger Museum Will Let You Blend Your Own Custom ‘Bourbon’
Doing a barrel pick at a bourbon distillery is an expensive proposition — an investment of thousands of dollars, typically yielding hundreds of bottles. At a new attraction downtown, you’ll be able to blend your own custom “bourbon” — tailored to your individual palate — for as little as $35.
Barrels & Billets will open Feb. 23 at 800 W. Main Street in Louisville as part of Hillerich & Bradsby Co.’s Slugger Museum, and tickets are already available for purchase online. The new attraction will be a full-on bourbon experience, with education about the distilling process and the chance to create a single-barrel bourbon, bottle it and customize it.
Patrons can create a blend using six WoodCraft Bourbon Blender bourbons which include 200 Year Oak, European Oak, American Oak, Cherry Wood, Maple Wood, and Smoked Oak bourbons. During the experience, guests will learn the art of bourbon blending and more before the blending process begins. Once the blending experience is complete, guests can have their recipe bottled onsite to take home.
Hilllerich & Bradsby’s connection was obvious to the company, per a news release. For one, the Louisville Slugger baseball bat makers have a link to whiskey, as the original family immigrant, J. Frederick, was a barrel maker. Of course, the company also has years of expertise with consumer experiences like its famous Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory.
Blend your bourbon your way, according to your taste, at Barrels & Billets. Photos courtesy of Hillerich & Bradsby Co.
“Some may be wondering why a sports and attraction company is getting into the bourbon business, but Barrels & Billets is actually a continuation of H&B’s long history of creating uniquely Louisville experiences for our fans and guests,” John Hillerich, President & CEO of Hillerich & Bradsby Co., said in the announcement.
Ohio-based WoodCraft was founded by Doug Hall and Joe Girgash to offer everyone the ability to have their own custom bourbon, and at a reasonable price. The duo have worked through Covid-19 and regulatory hurdles to open its first attraction in Louisville.
Consumers can create their custom bourbon three ways:
Enjoy a one hour blending experience, while learning about the art and science of master bourbon blending
Work with a 2 minute Artificial Intelligence Bourbon Wizard
Buy a custom Bourbon Blending Kit to do at home guided by an internet accessible video.
At the end of the experience, customers will have a chance to re-create their bourbon, have it bottled and labeled onsite, to take home with them.
WoodCraft says it will continue to expand the franchising of the free-standing WoodCraft Bourbon Blending Machines in stores, as well as fractional franchising in over 20,000 distilleries, breweries, and wineries. The space requirement for the system is small, meaning just about any type of business can franchise one for its customers.
Also, the company is working to develop limited edition bourbon releases for franchisees to sell. To learn more, potential fanchisees can visit www.BourbonFranchise.com.
