Reopening Precautions and Revised Hours of Operation

After a long break due to COVID-19 restrictions​, we are so excited to welcome our Kentucky visitor center teams back! The Bourbon Heritage Center (BHC) and the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience (EWBE) reopened to the public last week under the revised hours of operation listed below:​​

Bourbon Heritage Center

Thursday – Saturday: 11:00AM – 5:00PM

Sunday: Noon – 5:00PM

Monday – Wednesday: Closed

Evan Williams Bourbon Experience

Thursday – Saturday: 11:00AM – 5:00PM

Sunday: 1:00PM – 5:00PM

Monday – Wednesday: Closed

Additionally, the teams have been hard at work ensuring all employees and guests are safe. New safety guidelines are in place at the BHC and EWBE including mandatory masks for employees, credit card only transactions in retail, and enhanced cleaning protocols. Though staff is required to wear masks, guests are not, but are strongly encouraged to do so. ​

Tours have been cut down from one hour to 45 minutes each, which eliminates select rooms that are too small for proper social distancing. Those rooms still included have been set up specifically promoting social distancing by removing and spreading out furniture accordingly. Each tour is limited to six guests and one tour guide as opposed to the typical 20 – 22 guests on each tour. 

Signage has been provided by the Kentucky Distillers’ Association to all distilleries across the commonwealth. This means guests will see consistent signage, colors, and fonts at any distillery they visit. These protocols and hours of operation are subject to change as guidelines throughout the state are revised.

“Reopening of our centers was almost like a grand opening. We have all new protocol for retail, tours and tastings along with capacity restrictions. Even with all of the new guidelines in place, our guests have all arrived full of excitement with smiles on their faces. We are so proud of the hard work our teams have put forth to make the reopening a success!”

– Jeff Crowe, General Manager of Visitor Experiences

“We all dressed in brightly colored Hawaiian outfits, put on good music, and made our first day back so much fun for both employees and guests. We had a line outside waiting to get in, and some guests even camped out overnight. We are blessed to have such a great company to work for!”

–​ Anne Marple, BHC Operations Manager

“It felt like the first day of school! We were all nervous about reopening, but super excited at the same time. It had been so long since our team had all been together, and it was awesome for our EWBE family to be together again (socially distanced, of course)! We know every day will be a learning experience until we get used to the new protocols, but our team is the best and ready to continuing teaching the world about Evan Williams Bourbon and Heaven Hill!’

– Ashley Cuyjet, EWBE Operations Manager

Click here to learn more about distilleries opening across the Commonwealth via the Courier-Journal.