The Kentucky Distillers’ Association announced that All Nations Distillery in Garrard County is the newest member of the nonprofit trade group that unites and leads Kentucky’s signature Bourbon and distilled spirits industry.
All Nations was founded in 2018 by Matt Shirah, its chief executive officer, and Ray Franklin, senior vice president. Located at 450 Southern Soul Way, the distillery is nestled among 230 picturesque acres near downtown Lancaster which is wet – allows the sale of alcohol – while the county is “dry.”
In fact, Garrard County was the birthplace of Carrie A. Nation, an anti-alcohol advocate famous for using a hatchet to demolish taverns before Prohibition. Many saloons proudly displayed signs that read, “All nations welcome except Carrie,” which is where the distillery took its name.
The distillery plans to celebrate the history of Carrie Nation and has even restored her stone home on its grounds. Its “All Nations” brands include an 11-year rye, a Kentucky Straight Bourbon, a 6-year small batch and All Nations Prohibition Reserve, a marriage of a 15-year Kentucky Bourbon and 11-year rye.
On joining the KDA, Shirah said, “The All Nations team appreciates the KDA’s advocacy and welcomes the opportunity to work with other KDA members. Our team is focused on making positive contributions to Garrard County, the great Commonwealth of Kentucky, and the Kentucky distilling industry.“
KDA President Eric Gregory said All Nations offers a distinct perspective on the industry’s rich heritage by educating consumers and tourists about its Prohibition-era history.
“They’re a great addition to the growing distillery presence along the U.S. 27 corridor,” Gregory said “On behalf of the KDA and its members, we thank All Nations for their investment in our beloved Commonwealth and proudly welcome them to our growing family of Kentucky’s finest distillers.”
Learn more at https://allnationswhiskey.com/.
A Class B licensed distiller, All Nations joins KDA as a Craft-level member aging less than 10,000 barrels a year and is part of a growing list of distilleries in the Bluegrass region including Wilderness Trail, Blue Rook and Kentucky Mountain Moonshine. Garrard County is about an hour south of Lexington, Ky.
The distillery also is now eligible to apply to join the KDA’s Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour®, which the association created in 2012 as the nation’s first and only tourism attraction to showcase the flourishing artisan distilling movement.
Founded in 1880, the KDA is the voice for Bourbon and spirits issues. Its diverse membership produces the overwhelming majority of the world’s Bourbon, from legendary, global brands to emerging micro distilleries that are building the next generation of the timeless craft.
Bourbon is one of Kentucky’s most treasured industries, a booming $9 billion economic and tourism engine that sustains more than 22,500 jobs with an annual payroll topping $1.23 billion each year, and pays over $285 million in local and state taxes and $1.8 billion in federal alcohol taxes, more than any other state.
A key export, distilling has the state’s highest job spin-off factor among top manufacturers; buys at least 17 million bushels of corn and other grains every year, mostly from Kentucky farm families; and is currently investing more than $5.2 billion in new stills, warehouses, bottling lines, tourism experiences and more.
Bourbon production has skyrocketed more than 475% since the turn of the century.
Kentucky now boasts more than 11.4 million barrels of Bourbon aging in warehouses across the Bluegrass, the most in its revered distilling history. Distillers filled more than 2.6 million barrels in 2021 alone, the fourth consecutive year that production topped 2 million.
Attendance at the KDA’s Kentucky Bourbon Trail® and Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour® distilleries has surged more than 300% in the last 10 years. Total attendance in 2021 was more than 1.5 million visits, just below the pre-COVID record of 1.7 million visits in 2019.
Visit www.kybourbon.com and www.kybourbontrail.com to learn more.