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Castle & Key Distillery

4.9 (563 reviews)
ModerateDistilleries
Closed • 10:30 am - 5:00 pm
Updated 2 months ago

Castle & Key Distillery Photos

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Recommended Reviews - Castle & Key Distillery

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Brent W.

Although the bourbon wasn't my favorite, the property and service is excellent! This bourbon is young and I think it just needs more time. It's not horrible, it's just the completion is super steep. Buffalo Trace and Woodford Reserve is just down the road. However, in terms of property, this place is gorgeous. Even if you aren't a bourbon drinker, you'd love this spot. I tried out a small flight of the recommend bourbons. I enjoyed them, but for the price, I'm not sure I'd invest. At least, not at this time. But don't rule them out, I think they have a good thing in the making. This old abandoned E.H. Taylor Distillery has some potential. I'd recommend you go to Buffalo Trace early to catch the special bottles, then maybe hit Woodford Reserve. After that, go enjoy the grounds and tour of the Castle & Key Distillery. Then, head down the road to The Stave restaurant. It's a great spot with some great food.

Keri C.

We pulled up to a lovely location with absolutely gorgeous grounds to explore. It was quite cold out and we were a little surprised that their were no heaters or covered fire pits. The gift shop is huge, with adorable seasonal lighting, and lots to choose from. My friend and I have a slightly more alternative style, so it wasn't for us. But a great place in general to shop for most people. Unfortunately, the cocktails were wildly disappointing. And with this being a distillery and all, we just couldn't get past that. First we ordered an espresso martini. They poured it out of a keg over ice. Okay, sure. As long as it's good, that's fine. But my gosh! It was so syrupy. It really just tasted like kahlua over ice. Had no nuance. I actually couldn't take more than a sip. My friend also strongly disliked it, but she forced hers down (what a champ.) I actually went back and politely asked if I could just have gin and tonic instead. The bartender was very sweet and said no problem. And then, she poured a gin and tonic from the tap. I was shooketh. How is a gin distillery not pouring fresh gin and tonics? The cocktail was way better than the "espresso martini" but it was very sour and tasted mostly of citrus, but not fresh citrus, more like a really good sour mix. I could hardly taste the gin. I like gin! That's why I came here. So I found that odd. A great gin and tonic has a hint of citrus from a fresh lime slice or wedge, but the main flavors should be whatever botanicals you are featuring in your gin and the subtle bubbly bitter of tonic. Maybe this is how they make sure to provide great service to large crowds? I get that... but it just didn't hit the mark for us.

Sunken Gardens
Keith H.

Beautiful grounds, friendly staff, great tastings! Staff at Castle and Key were very knowledgeable on bourbon history and history of the property. Would like to meet the master distiller to get bottles signed.

Darlene N.

We first tried to visit in 2021 on a day the distillery was closed. When they visited the Dayton Art Institute Bourbon event, we chatted with them and decided to visit when we were planning to be in Louisville. I am glad we made it back (December 2025) and it will be a place we visit again. The tour was fantastic, we were able to see many aspects of the distillery and our guide was able to answer questions we had about the process and history of Castle & Key. Even though it was December, we took a stroll outside with fantastic Bloody Mary's from the bar. The waterside is pretty and the old truck was drawing a lot of attention for pictures. We purchased some of that spicy Bloody Mary mix and some other goodies from the gift shop. I cannot wait to visit again!

The main grounds
Ron A.

Castle & Key is one of those places you truly have to see to believe. We signed up for The Distillery Experience, which turned out to be a fantastic tour of the historic 1800s castle--now filled with modern distilling equipment. It's an impressive blend of old and new. Our tour guide, originally from South Philadelphia, was excellent--and yes, our group gladly filled in the song lyrics when the moment arose. It made the tour even more fun. As great as the guide and the history were, I was really there for the bourbon. At the end of the tour, we sampled several of Castle & Key's offerings. Like most tastings I've attended, the toughest part was choosing a favorite--they were all solid. Afterward, we headed to the gift shop, where my wife once again found a handful of must-have items. Castle & Key is one distillery you do not want to skip. If you miss it, you miss a lot.

Kenya G.

Beautiful grounds and loved seeing the history in the gift shop and spring house. The tasting room is extremely small so we waited for it to clear out since we were visiting with a baby. Spirits were good but not my favorite. Parking was plenty just across the street. Of all the distilleries, this was by far one of the most interesting to see but not the most welcoming in terms of staff. The vodka was the winner here, I still wish I would have done the tasting before going into the gift shop because I would have gotten the vodka over the bourbon.

Melanie B.

People at home told us we HAD to come here while we're in town! I'm glad they did! It is an absolutely beautiful place. The buildings are old and not everything looks great. But the grounds! We walked the botanical trail and all around the place - except where we weren't allowed. It's very scenic. We didn't get drinks - the line was constantly long, plus we had a bit of a drive back to our hotel in the city. The only food came there came from food trucks. It took 45 minutes to get lunch. I wish there were other options. I'm not a fan of food trucks because they do take a long time and there were so many people trying to get some lunch. Other than the frustration of trying to get some food, it was very nice!

What a wonderful place to experience in the heart of bourbon country! The staff was knowledgeable and super friendly. The bourbon, moonshine, and absinthe were world class. Highly recommend visiting this family owner distillery in the heat of bourbon country.

Dean S.

In the area and were told we needed to go here as the grounds just along Glenn's Creek. Sure enough, the grounds are so pretty even with the dismal weather. The castle is what 1st grabs your attention. It's kind of crazy that it's here in kind of the middle of nowhere. We walk in to the store and you get to see all sorts of history. You can check out the old fire places(not too sure if it's even called this when it's that big? Looks like a couple furnaces to me.) Folks working here were super nice. There was a food truck but we weren't hungry. There's a bar. A nice bathroom. We made the mistake of not planning ahead for a tour so just wandered around the grounds that are very well maintained. Very relaxing atmosphere out here and we were betting that this place would be bustling during a warmer, nice day... Fall colors were pretty!

Mary H.

We stopped here at the end of our day as part of the craft trail. Absolutely beautiful grounds and campus. We grabbed and drink and enjoyed a walk around. We didn't stay long as they were closing shop. On the way out we stopped by the gift store and it had very good quality products inside. Would definitely come back here again and do a tour.

Castle and Key waterfall.
Lovoria W.

We love this place! It is absolutely beautiful, rustic old buildings, photogenic castle, waterfalls and botanical garden are quite lovely. The staff are friendly and engaging. The giftstore had all of the fares from the distillery, plus some Keeneland Racetrack clothing. They have a food truck and the small bar has refreshing mixed drinks and a charcuterie board for sale. The restrooms are very nice and there is a complementary iced water dispenser in the gift store which is a life saver on a super hot Kentucky day. This distillery is a nice place for a couple or a family outing as the kids will love the waterfalls, the picnic area and the lovely botanical garden. You are free to enjoy the property at no cost. There is a tasting room and you can reserve tickets for the distillery tour. This is a must see distillery, among the top most beautiful.

Erin B.

Beautiful property, great tour from Meika. She gave us a wonderful in depth history of the property as well as the bourbon distillery. Gift shop had very unique and high end products. Areas outside to "just hang out & enjoy" was wonderful- give yourself some extra time between tours to enjoy the grounds. Overall a great experience. Having food for purchase would have made this an even more enjoyable day.

Front of the distillery where you will enter when on the tour.
George B.

We took a tour and it was very informative about the history of the property. The grounds are beautiful, and see and smelling the mash (smells like bread) was an awesome experience! Also, check out the gift shop. On the tour we tasted their bourbon, rye, along with a bourbon ball (Yum!), and a gin drink. Very much worth the cost of the tour. After our tour we enjoyed a picnic on the grounds, and would definitely recommend doing so, as well as touring the grounds.

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23 days ago

Great history of the site provided, great tour of the facility with history of how each product is produced and great products to enjoy.

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4 months ago

The whole experience was great! Fun and informative tour, great tastings, and wonderful staff

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Ask the Community - Castle & Key Distillery

Is Castle and Key dog friendly, and where on the property? Thank you

Hi Terri! Thank you so much for inquiring about pets on our property. Castle & Key is responsible for assuring the health and safety of all guests. In keeping with this objective, we do not permit guests to bring their pets on property. We love our… Read more

Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

Woodford Reserve Distillery - Still room

Woodford Reserve Distillery

4.3(617 reviews)
2.6 mi
•$$

We did not have food on this visit. We enjoyed a few cocktails in the beautiful outdoor area before…read morea tour. We tried the spire and double oaked old fashioned and they were perfect. Service was quick at the indoor bar. The distillery itself is beautiful, the grounds and decor. Bethany did an amazing job with our tour.

This is a beautiful distillery but my least favorite tour of the three tours we've taken on this…read moretrip (Rabbit Hole and Stitzel-Weller were the others). There are two buildings and you check in at the one building, near a parking lot, but then get on a tour bus and they take you to the other building, which has the gift shop. It seemed a bit counterintuitive to start at the other building, then. Before this, I was super hungry, so we went to their bar area in the gift shop and ordered the charcuterie, which ended up just being like a metal box with some meats, cheeses, and other things, and a bag with a few pretzels in it. Disappointing especially for $33, although it kinda worked out because we only had a half-hour before the tour. I didn't know that Woodford Reserve has actually only been around since 1996 but the campus they purchased has buildings from 1890 and later - I would've loved to have heard more about that history even though it wasn't technically Woodford's. At the end of the tour, they return you to the gift shop and that's where you do the tasting - there is a private tasting room. I should probably note that we did the basic tour - it was $35 and my husband said you could get a similar tasting to the one we got, in the gift shop area, for $30, which made the tour only $5, which isn't bad. I did end up buying a pin, a magnet, and a sampler box of their bourbon treats (chocolates etc. - expensive, at $46 or so, but looks good) and my husband bought a few of their bottles. However, next time we are in Louisville we can probably skip this one, I'm thinking.

Photos
Woodford Reserve Distillery - Distillery Tour

Distillery Tour

Woodford Reserve Distillery - The welcome center

The welcome center

Woodford Reserve Distillery - Rick house

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Rick house

Wild Turkey - Tasting room

Wild Turkey

4.5(312 reviews)
7.2 mi
•$$

I missed my tour because I neglected to account for the time change (from Central to Eastern)…read more Completely my fault, and when I showed up, they were willing to change my appointment! The gift shop was full of good buys, of which I met my maximum.

For those of you doing the Bourbon Trail, each distillery offers its own mix of pros and cons. This…read morereview is just my personal opinion and should be taken with the appropriate grain of salt. The initial impression as you pull into Wild Turkey is that this is a manufacturing and industrial site first and foremost. While that does take away from the initial "wow factor" as a guest, it is understandable. Once you get past that, you arrive at the visitor center, which has a view that is absolutely incredible and outdoor amenities that would make hanging out there quite enjoyable. Unfortunately, the inside experience at the gift shop left much to be desired. We did not do the tour, so this is only based on the visitor center and retail experience. Upon entering, we were greeted by a friendly face and directed toward the gift shop. The bartender was friendly, but the other three employees had their heads buried in their phones and did not seem concerned with our experience or offering help. While that may not be unexpected in some places, at a location like this, especially after visiting Buffalo Trace earlier in the day, it felt very subpar. The bottle selection on the shelf was fairly standard and did not feel much different from what I could find at a local liquor store. Some prices also seemed higher than local shops. Of the 15+ bottles we purchased today, none were from here. We considered trying a flight or a few samples, but the prices felt more reminiscent of a downtown bar than a distillery tasting experience. While we were not on a budget, the feeling of being overcharged deterred us from moving forward with the samples we had been interested in. I will not say that I would never go back, but I would not put this at the top of our Bourbon Trail list either, unless maybe for the views and a picnic.

Photos
Wild Turkey - Hallway to the gift shop

Hallway to the gift shop

Wild Turkey - Rick house

Rick house

Wild Turkey - The fun drink I ordered!

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The fun drink I ordered!

Maker's Mark Distillery - Bar in welcome center

Maker's Mark Distillery

4.8(1.2k reviews)
44.6 mi
•$$

The Tour was amazing! we had the best time exploring the campus and learning so much, I forget our…read moretour guides name but he was great! However, it was the most expensive gift shop of all the distilleries we went to on our trip. Also, I personally did the dipping experience, and the staff was unfriendly and rude, left with a bad taste in my mouth. Worth the trip, but expect expensive gift shop, and don't be surprised if gift shop employees are rude.

Our Golden Ticket Tour at Maker's Mark was nothing short of exceptional, and a huge part of that…read moreexperience was our incredible tour guide, Laura. Without a doubt, she is the best tour guide we have ever had. From the moment the tour began, Laura's personality lit up the entire experience. She struck the perfect balance between being informative and entertaining, sharing the rich history and craftsmanship behind Maker's Mark while keeping everyone fully engaged. Her sense of humor and perfectly timed jokes made the day not only educational but genuinely fun and memorable. You can tell Laura truly loves what she does, and that passion comes through in every part of the tour. She made us feel welcomed, valued, and like we were part of something special. The Golden Ticket Tour is already a unique experience, but Laura elevated it to a whole different level. If you're planning a visit to Maker's Mark, we can't recommend this tour enough--and if you're lucky enough to have Laura as your guide, you're in for an unforgettable day!

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Maker's Mark Distillery - Private selection room

Private selection room

Maker's Mark Distillery - Blue roses

Blue roses

Maker's Mark Distillery - The cave!

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The cave!

Castle & Key Distillery - distilleries - Updated May 2026

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