KENTUCKY BOURBON TRAIL® TOUR ADDS 21c MUSEUM HOTELS IN LOUISVILLE & LEXINGTON AS TOP-LEVEL SPONSORS

For Immediate Release – July 27, 2022

FRANKFORT, Ky. – The Kentucky Distillers’ Association announced today that 21c Museum Hotel’s original Louisville location is now joined alongside 21c Lexington as an official, top-level Barrel sponsor of the world-famous Kentucky Bourbon Trail® adventure. 

Andrew Carter, Area General Manager for both 21c Louisville and 21c Lexington, said partnership with the Kentucky Bourbon Trail® is a natural fit.

“We are honored to be an official sponsor of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail® tour. We look forward to being a place for Bourbon travelers to recharge, refuel and reflect between tours,” Carter said. “This will also enhance our presence as a destination for Bourbon explorers and is a great way to collaborate with our local distilleries and the Kentucky Distillers’ Association.”

Located in the heart of downtown at 700 W. Main St., 21c Museum Hotel Louisville is the flagship property for the locally founded boutique hotel chain bolstered by world-class art collections and acclaimed chef-driven restaurants, including Lockbox in Lexington and Proof on Main in Louisville.

What began in 2006 as an effort by local preservationists and contemporary art collectors Laura Lee Brown and Steve Wilson to restore and revitalize their beloved hometown has since developed into an award-winning boutique hotel brand with properties across the country. Currently, there are nine locations with plans for more to come. 

“21c Museum Hotels are well known in Kentucky and beyond for providing unique, elevated experiences for hotel guests, restaurant diners, locals and travelers alike interested in visiting the museum galleries,” said Mandy Ryan, Director of the KDA’s Kentucky Bourbon Trail® experiences. 

“Visitors to the Bourbon Trail™ are always looking for ways to round out their trips to our legendary distilleries by choosing the best dining, accommodations, and attractions Kentucky has to offer,” Ryan continues, “and our partners at 21c deliver all three in spades.” 

For more information about 21c Museum Hotels, go to www.21cmuseumhotels.com.

The hotels join the Butchertown Grocery Bakery, Campbell House Hotel, Independent Stave Co., Marriott Louisville East, Mint Julep Experiences, Pegasus Distillery Experiences, Seelbach Hotel and VisitLex as Barrel level sponsors.

There are eight KBT® and Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour® distilleries in Louisville including, Angel’s Envy, Evan Williams Bourbon Experience, Michter’s at Fort Nelson, Old Forester, Rabbit Hole Distillery, Stitzel-Weller Distillery, Kentucky Peerless Distilling, and Copper & Kings Distillery. There are four KBT® and Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour® distilleries in Lexington including, Town Branch Distillery, Barrel House Distilling Co., Bluegrass Distillers and James E. Pepper Distillery.

Louisville is an official Gateway of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail® and home to the Frazier Museum at 829 W. Main St. on historic Whiskey Row, which also serves as the KDA’s official Kentucky Bourbon Trail Welcome Center®. Lexington is an Official Trailhead to the Kentucky Bourbon Trail®.

Kentucky Bourbon is one of the Commonwealth’s most historic and treasured industries, a thriving $9 billion economic engine that sustains more than 22,500 jobs. Bourbon-related tourism and hospitality jobs are vital to Kentucky’s economy. 

Bourbon visitors took 1.5 million distillery tours in 2021 – down only 14% from the pre-pandemic record in 2019 of 1.72 million tours. Total attendance would have set a new record in 2021 if not for distillery closure and tour limits due to Covid.

The KBT Craft Tour® set their own record in 2021 clocking in over 600,000 distillery stops – that’s a 35% increase from the previous 2019 record. 

Learn more at www.kybourbon.com and www.kybourbontrail.com.

About 21c Museum Hotels

21c Museum is a multi-venue museum located in nine cities. One of the largest contemporary art museums in the U.S., and North America’s only collecting museum dedicated solely to art of the 21st century, each property features exhibition space open free of charge to the public, combined with a boutique hotel and restaurant. It was founded in 2006 by Laura Lee Brown and Steve Wilson; philanthropists, preservationists, and collectors, committed to expanding access to contemporary art as a means of catalyzing revitalization and civic connection. 21c presents a range of arts programming curated by Museum Director, Chief Curator Alice Gray Stites, including both solo and group exhibitions that reflect the global nature of art today, as well as site-specific, commissioned installations, and a variety of cultural events. The organization collaborates on arts initiatives with artists and organizations worldwide, including Speed Art Museum, North Carolina Museum of Art, MASS MoCA, Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, Creative Capital Foundation, Creative Time, and others.

For more information visit 21cMuseumHotels.com

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For more information about the Kentucky Bourbon Trail’s sponsorship program, contact Amandalin Ryan at [email protected].

The KDA is a non-profit trade association founded in 1880 to promote, protect and elevate Kentucky’s signature Bourbon and distilled spirits industry. Visit www.kybourbon.com and www.kybourbontrail.com to learn more. 

KENTUCKY BOURBON TRAIL®, BOURBON TRAIL™, KENTUCKY BOURBON TRAIL CRAFT TOUR®, KENTUCKY BOURBON AFFAIR™, KBT™, ORDER OF THE WRIT®, KENTUCKY DISTILLERS’ ASSOCIATION®, and KENTUCKY BOURBON TRAIL OFFICIAL SPONSOR® and associated designs and logos are trademarks/service marks of the Kentucky Distillers’ Association. Enjoy like a true Kentuckian–Responsibly.