Popular Kentucky Distilleries: Michter’s

Origin	Louisville, Kentucky, United States
Manufacturer	Michter’s Distillery
Established	Founded in 1753
Ownership	Chatham Imports, Inc.

In the 1950s, one of the distillery’s owners, Lou Forman, created the modern Michter’s brand name by combining portions of his sons’ names – Michael and Peter. However, the distillery fell on hard times and its owners declared bankruptcy and abandoned the premises in 1989, leaving the Michter’s name seemingly lost to history.

In the 1990s, whiskey enthusiast Joseph J. Magliocco and his mentor Richard “Dick” Newman teamed up to resurrect the Michter’s brand, filing for the unused and abandoned trademark. They decided to reestablish Michter’s in Kentucky, the heart of the modern American whiskey industry, to ensure access to the best talent and resources.

Construction on a new Michter’s distillery in Shively, Kentucky began in 2012, and the brand first experimented with a small pilot still in 2014. Michter’s now has three locations in Kentucky – the Shively distillery, the architecturally significant Fort Nelson Building on Louisville’s Museum Row, and 205 acres of farmland in Springfield.

Michter’s is known for its high-quality bourbon and rye whiskey products, including the Michter’s 10 Year Single Barrel Bourbon, Michter’s 20 Year Single Barrel Bourbon, Michter’s US1 Small Batch Bourbon, Michter’s 10 Year Single Barrel Rye, and Michter’s US1 Small Batch Rye. The earliest 10 Year bottlings are rumored to contain Stitzel Weller bourbon, while later releases likely use Old Forester and other distillates.

Popular Products

Michter’s 10 Year Single Barrel Bourbon

Michter’s 20 Year Single Barrel Bourbon

Michter’s US*1 Small Batch Bourbon

Michter’s 10 Year Single Barrel Rye

Michter’s US*1 Small Batch Rye

Timeline

• Michter’s Distillery was founded in 1753 by Swiss Mennonite farmer John Shenk in Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania
• In the mid-1800s, Pennsylvania Dutchman Abraham Bomberger purchased the distillery and it became known as Bomberger’s
• Prohibition forced the distillery to shut its doors in 1919, but it reopened after Prohibition was repealed
• During the 1950s, one of the distillery’s owners, Lou Forman, created the modern Michter’s brand name by combining portions of his sons’ names – Michael and Peter
• In 1989, the distillery’s then-owners declared bankruptcy and abandoned the premises, leaving the Michter’s name seemingly lost to history
• In the 1990s, Joseph J. Magliocco and his mentor Richard “Dick” Newman teamed up to resurrect the Michter’s brand, filing for the unused and abandoned trademark
• Magliocco and Newman decided to resurrect Michter’s in Kentucky, the heart of the modern American whiskey industry, to ensure access to the best whiskey talent and resources
• In 2012, construction began on a new Michter’s distillery in Shively, a Louisville suburb, and the brand first experimented with a small pilot still
• In 2014, Michter’s installed a 32″ column still and 250-gallon doubler and continued testing
• Michter’s now has three locations in Kentucky – the Shively distillery, the architecturally significant Fort Nelson Building on Louisville’s Museum Row, and 205 acres of farmland in Springfield

Famous Product Releases

• Michter’s 10 Year Bourbon and Rye Whiskey: Some of the earliest bottlings, specifically those beginning with 7k or 10h, are rumored to contain Stitzel Weller bourbon, while other pre-2015 bottlings likely contain Old Bernheim (Heaven Hill), United Distillers or Old Forester distillate
• Michter’s 10 Year Bourbon that begins with a “15” is reportedly from more modern Old Forester stocks and has a very different profile

Important People in Distillery History

• John Shenk: Swiss Mennonite farmer who founded the distillery in 1753
• Abraham Bomberger: Pennsylvania Dutchman who purchased the distillery in the mid-1800s, leading to it being known as Bomberger’s
• Lou Forman: One of the distillery’s owners in the 1950s, who created the modern Michter’s brand name
• Joseph J. Magliocco: Whiskey lover who, along with his mentor Richard “Dick” Newman, teamed up to resurrect the Michter’s brand in the 1990s
• Richard “Dick” Newman: Magliocco’s mentor, a former Marine with an illustrious career in the whiskey business, including running Old Grand-Dad, Old Crow, and Old Taylor for National Distillers
• Pam Heilmann: Current master distiller at Michter’s, previously the distillery manager at Jim Beam’s Booker Noe distillery
• Dick Stoll: The last distiller at the original Michter’s distillery, now in his 80s and actively involved in a new small distillery, Stoll & Wolfe

Significant Historical Events

• General George Washington visited the distillery during the Revolutionary War and purchased whiskey to fortify his men at Valley Forge
• Prohibition forced the distillery to shut its doors in 1919, but it reopened after Prohibition was repealed
• The distillery changed hands many times over the decades and frequently occupied a precarious financial position
• In 1989, the distillery’s then-owners declared bankruptcy and abandoned the premises, leaving the Michter’s name seemingly lost to history
• In the 1990s, Joseph J. Magliocco and Richard “Dick” Newman teamed up to resurrect the Michter’s brand, filing for the unused and abandoned trademark
• Magliocco and Newman decided to resurrect Michter’s in Kentucky, the heart of the modern American whiskey industry, to ensure access to the best whiskey talent and resources
• Construction on the new Michter’s distillery in Shively, Kentucky began in 2012, and the brand first experimented with a small pilot still in 2014

Source

[1] https://pabook.libraries.psu.edu/literary-cultural-heritage-map-pa/feature-articles/michters-distillery-whiskey-warmed-revolution
[2] https://www.thedailybeast.com/left-for-dead-the-comeback-story-of-michters-whiskey
[3] https://michters.com/legacy/
[4] https://thebourbonculture.com/whiskey-info/michters-distillery-past-present-and-future/
[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bomberger%27s_Distillery