What’s Coming
Horse Country, Lexington – A new tourism product has been created to take the visitor behind the scenes to learn about Thoroughbreds, beyond what you see as they thunder around the track. Stops will include horse farms, veterinary hospitals and more. Tours are anticipated to begin in Spring 2016
Contact: Anne Hardy (859) 351-8438 www.kentuckyhorsecountry.org
Angel’s Envy Distillery, Louisville – Ground was broken on July 9, 2013, for the new Angel’s Envy
Distillery on East Main Street in Louisville on Whiskey Row. Opening is projected in 2016. Located in a
19 th century building known as the old Vermont American Complex the new distillery will produce bourbon and related products. www.angelsenvy.com
Boundary Oak Distillery, Elizabethtown - The first legal distillery in Hardin County in a century,
Boundary Oak plans to offer bourbon, moonshine and other distilled products. They hope to begin welcoming visitors in 2016. www.boundaryoakdistillery.com
Dueling Barrels Distillery – Pikeville – Bourbon distilling is coming to Eastern Kentucky. The distillery, owned by Alltech, is scheduled to open in Spring of 2017. Its name is tied to the famous Hatfield &
McCoy feud. The brewery and distillery will offer moonshine, bourbon, beer and ale. www.duelingbarrels.com
Dueling Grounds Distillery – Franklin – Set to open in Spring of 2016, this small batch bourbon maker.
Their bourbon is a few years away from hitting the market. Until then, they will introduce their clear whiskeys, Kentucky Clear and Kentucky Sunshiine The distillery has joined the Kentucky Craft Distillery
Trail.
O.Z. Tyler Distillery – Owensboro – A $25 million renovation of the former Charles Medley Distillery has begun. The distillery was originally opened in 1885, but productions were ceased at the location in the early 1990’s. Conventionally and rapid aging techniques will both be utilized to produce bourbon and whiskey. The opening is projected for the late fall of 2016.
Country Boy Brewing – Georgetown – The craft beer company started in 2012, has quickly become successful and is opening a second location in Georgetown. In addition to the expanded production facility, the location will have a taproom and offer tours. An anticipated opening date is not yet available.
Old Forester Distillery – Louisville - The Brown-Forman Corporation is making a $30 million investment to open a distillery and bourbon experience for its founding brand, Old Forester, in two historic buildings on West Main Street in Louisville on Whiskey Row. They expects to open the Old Forester
Distillery in the fall of 2016, building on the company’s strong bourbon whiskey heritage by creating a world-class distilling operation and visitor destination that showcases the craftsmanship and authenticity of Old Forester, the first bottled bourbon. www.oldforester.com
Michter’s Micro-Distillery – Louisville - Michter’s is renovating the historically and architecturally significant Fort Nelson Building at 801 West Main Street in downtown. The projected completion will be in
2016. It will be l ocated on Louisville’s Museum Row, directly across the street from one of Louisville’s top tourist attractions, the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory which attracts nearly 300,000 visitors a year.
T he Fort Nelson building’s striking exterior is a classic example of 1890s cast iron architecture. www.michters.com

The Ark Encounter – Williamstown - he Ark Encounter, opening phase one on July 7, 2016, is a one-ofa-kind, historically themed attraction. As the largest timber-frame structure in the US, the 510-foot-long full-size Ark is designed to be family-oriented, historically authentic, and environmentally friendly.
Additional phases will be added over the years. The Ark Encounter, as sister attraction of the popular
Creation Museum and is located in Williamstown, Kentucky (south of Cincinnati and 40 miles from the
Creation Museum). https://arkencounter.com/
Speed Art Museum Expansion & Renovation – The Speed Art Museum in Louisville has undergone a major expansion and renovation of its facilities, encompassing 200,000 square feet of new and renovated interior and exterior space. Closed since the fall of 2012, they are anticipated to re-open in March 2016.
The design includes the construction of a new North and South Building, 150 seat theater, Art Park and a public Piazza. With the new transparent design, the Speed will welcome visitors to a space that integrates art and nature. The total master plan consists of three phases. www.speedmuseum.org
Paristown Pointe – Louisville – Paristown Pointe, a neighborhood established in the 1800’s, is set to receive a $28 million renovation that will transform it into a arts and culture district. Officials expect to break ground on the project in 2016. http://paristownpointe.com/
Kentucky International Convention Center – Louisville – The Kentucky International Convention
Center is closing in August 2016 to undergo a $180 million expansion. The new design will enable
Louisville to compete for meeting and convention business currently being lost to larger cities. Changes include a transparent design to the exterior of the building, expanded meeting rooms, as well as, pursing becoming LEED Silver Certified.
Diageo Bourbon Distillery Coming to Shelby County – The new distillery, whose official name will be
The Bulleit Distilling Company, will have state-of-the-art warehouses. They have also made a $2-3 million dollar investment to be environmentally-friendly. Bullleit ranks as one of the fastest growing small batch whiskeys in American. The 150+ year old family recipe uses a large amount of rye grain, which gives
Bulleit a distinctive taste. The distillery is scheduled to open late 2016. www.diageo.com
Bardstown Bourbon Company – Scheduled for completion in 2016, the new $25 million, 45,000squarefoot distillery will be located in the Nelson County Industrial Park and will include a visitor’s center.
The second phase will include an event center and boutique hotel.
Rabbit Hole Distillery – This craft distillery plans to locate in the trendy Nulu section of Louisville. They already have some moonshine products on the market and will produce bourbon and rye whiskey.
Completion is slated for the end of 2016. www.rabbitholedistilling.com/
Bowling Green Auto Shows - Bowling Green is becoming an even bigger hub for national automotive events and welcomed 12 major auto shows in 2015. Check http://www.visitbgky.com/events/ for what is planned for 2016.
Contact: Telia Butler, Bowling Green Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, telia@visitbgky.com
21c Museum Hotel, Lexington – Scheduled for opening in April of 2016, the hotel will be housed in downtown Lexington’s historic Fayette National Bank Building which was designed by the New York architecture firm of McKim, Mead & White. Visitors and members of the community can enjoy curated exhibitions and cultural programming along with fine dining. This boutique hotel will be comprised of 88 guest rooms.
Contact: Futureprojects@21chotels.com
Appalachian Wildlife Center, Bell County - The Appalachian Wildlife Center will be a one-of-a-kind facility in southeastern Kentucky offering unique and diverse opportunities to view and learn about the wildlife and wild landscapes of the region. The center will be developed on a large tract of reclaimed mine lands. The purpose of The Center, projected to open in 2017, is to serve as a significant tourist attraction and be a world-class conservation education and research facility. http://www.appalachianwildlife.com/index.html

International Bluegrass Music Center, Owensboro – The new $15 million facility, which will replace the existing museum, will much larger, have a 500-seat concert hall, 2,000-seat outdoor concert arena, a research library, teaching rooms and a rooftop restaurant overlooking the Ohio River. The Center is scheduled to open in 2017. www.visitowensboro.com
2017 Solar Eclipse, Hopkinsville – The place to be during the total eclipse of the sun on Aug. 21, 2017 is just outside Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Estimated to last two minutes and 40 seconds at this location, this is longer than any other place on the planet. The Hopkinsville/Christian County Convention and Visitors
Bureau is already making plans for this event.
Contact: Hopkinsville/Christian Co. CVB – 270-885-9096
Kentucky Department of Travel & Tourism
500 Mero St. 22 nd Fl
Frankfort, KY 40601
502-564-4930
Updated 2/1/16