Stitzel-Weller Distillery

The whiskey seller W. L. Weller & Sons and the A. Ph. Stitzel distillery worked together during Prohibition, selling spirits under a medicinal license.^2,7 They merged in 1933, though Wikipedia gives 1935.^2,7 Julian "Pappy" Van Winkle Sr., Alex T. Farnsley and Arthur Phillip Stitzel built the distillery just outside Louisville's city limits to avoid city taxes, and for its water.^1,2,3

Its brands included W.L. Weller, Old Fitzgerald, Rebel Yell and Cabin Still, made in a column still 60 inches across and aged in open-window warehouses.^2,4,5 Farnsley died in 1941 and Stitzel in 1947, leaving Van Winkle in control.² When he died in 1965, his son Julian Van Winkle Jr. took over.²

As a condition of the sale, Julian Van Winkle Jr. could get old stocks from the site and keep the Van Winkle brand name; Norton-Simon renamed it Old Fitzgerald Distillery.^2,3,5 Norton-Simon placed it under Somerset Imports, and in 1984 Distillers Company Limited acquired it.^2,5 Guinness took over the Distillers Company in 1986.^2,8 In 1987 Guinness combined the Distillers Company with Arthur Bell & Sons as United Distillers.^8,9 In 1992 United Distillers stopped distilling, moved production to the newly built Bernheim Distillery in Louisville, and kept the warehouses ageing whiskey such as Bulleit and Crown Royal.

After a $2 million plan announced in February, the site opened to visitors on 16 September 2014 as a showcase for Bulleit bourbon.^1,3,6 Diageo also planned a new bottling line and a small still for trying new ideas, bringing its 2014 plans to more than ten million dollars.^4,6 As of 2017 a single still was working, used for trials and research.² In January 2025 Diageo said it would close the bottling line in April and move most ageing to Shelbyville and Lebanon over 2 to 3 years.^4,11 The line closed in 2025, while a small amount of whiskey is still made here for Blade and Bow.^4,11 By July 2025 the campus, with 15 rickhouses, the warehouses where barrels age, was up for sale, without the distillery building or its intellectual property.