Heaven Hill Launches Limited-Edition 13-Year-Old Bourbon to Honor Closure of Historic Deatsville Campus

On Thursday, Bardstown, Ky.-based Heaven Hill Distillery announced the release of Deatsville 13-Year-Old Bourbon Whiskey, one of the final bourbons to fully mature at the distillery’s soon-to-shutter Deatsville campus.

Crafted from a mash bill of 78 percent corn, 12 percent malted barley, and 10 percent rye, the bourbon was bottled from just 17 barrels, each of which matured on the third floor of Deatsville’s Rickhouse AA.

Whiskey production at the storied Deatsville campus dates back to 1844 when the T.W. Samuels Distillery was founded, though distilling operations ceased in 1952. In the early 1980s, Heaven Hill assumed control of the defunct distillery’s rickhouses, which today includes nine structures with a total maturation capacity of 167,000 barrels. Of the six aging sites Heaven Hill owns across Kentucky, the Deatsville campus is the only one built with tiered roofs, a design feature that allows for unique maturation to take place.

The shape of the roof allows warm air to rise to the top of the rickhouse and escape, while cooler air from lower elevations replaces it. The active airflow is known to impart subtle differences on bourbons depending on their position during aging. The Deatsville warehouses stand seven-stories tall, placing the barrels used for this 13-year-old expression on a middle floor where temperatures likely fluctuate the most.

“For nearly a century, Heaven Hill has believed that great bourbon is made by giving barrels the time, space, and natural airflow they need to become themselves,” remarked Heaven Hill vice president of American whiskey Susan Wahl in a press release. “This release pays tribute to the brands, barrels, and people who brought those rickhouses to life.”

And it won’t be the only release paying homage to this fabled site. According to the release, Heaven Hill has planned a multi-year tribute to the Deatsville campus, with more releases set through 2027 as the brand continues to wind down operations on-site. Over the next 12-24 months, all maturation will end at the Deatsville site, with barrels currently maturing there set to be relocated to other Heaven Hill rickhouses nearby.

Heaven Hill’s Deatsville 13-Year-Old Bourbon Whiskey is available for a limited time for a suggested retail price of $199.99.

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