Parker Beam was more than Heaven Hill’s Master Distiller Emeritus, he had a standout personality that is remembered fondly by many. He was passionate about making quality, consistent whiskey, which made him a much revered and lauded figure in the American Whiskey industry.

In 2007, Heaven Hill launched Parker’s Heritage Collection to honor the legacy of the sixth generation Master Distiller. In 2010, Parker was diagnosed with ALS (also called ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease) and​ waged a very courageous and public battle with the dreaded disease before passing away on January 9, 2017. During his fight he was dedicated to raising awareness, fundraising enormous sums for the ALS Association of Kentucky through his Parker Beam Promise of Hope Fund (The Promise). The Parker Beam Promise of Hope Fund was established by Beam and his wife Linda as a research and treatment endowment that has seen millions of dollars raised.

Additionally, the past seven editions of Parker’s Heritage Collection from 2013-2019, including the “Promise of Hope” Bourbon, the “Original Batch” Straight Wheat Whiskey, the Kentucky Straight Malt Whiskey, the 24-Year-Old Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon, the 11-Year-Old Single Barrel, Orange Curaçao-finished Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey,  and Heavy Char Rye Whiskey, respectively, have raised more than one million dollars toward ALS research and patient care through contributions made by Heaven Hill for each bottle purchased. With the 2020 14^th edition, Heaven Hill will again contribute a portion of the proceeds from each bottle sold to the ALS Association.​​​​​​​

The 14th edition of the annual ultra-premium release is a 10-Year-Old Heavy Char Bourbon, which continues the interaction of barrel char across varying mashbills, this time with Heaven Hill’s traditional Bourbon mashbill of 78% corn, 12% malted barley and 10% rye. Aged in heavy char (Level 5) barrels, as opposed to the customary Level 3 for Heaven Hill, the resulting flavors carry intensified notes of the traditional Bourbon. Consisting of 102 barrels aged on the sixth floor of rickhouse Y for 10 years, the heavy char brings forth a caramel and maple sweetness, as well as slight smokiness developed after 40 Kentucky seasons in the barrel.​​​​​

The second heavy char edition of the series advances the study of how a more intense char allows the liquid to penetrate deeper into each barrel stave and the effects on the resulting flavor. Bottled at 120 proof (60% abv) and non-chill filtered to preserve all the flavor compounds, this Bourbon showcases the broad range of Heaven Hill Distillery’s 1.8 million barrels of aging inventory.

Today, nearly four years after his passing, Parker’s legacy and traditions live on through each release of the Parker’s Heritage Collection, The Promise, Heaven Hill’s distillery practices, and our visitor center experiences. Cheers to the life and legacy of Parker Beam!​​​​​​​