Distillery Name: Limestone Branch
Distillery Location: Lebanon, KY.
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Limestone Branch distillery started operations in 2011 in Lebanon, Kentucky, owned by Stephen and Paul Beam, direct descendants from one of the three branches of the Beam family that started the bourbon industry in Kentucky in the late 1700s.

Luxco had 50% ownership of the Limestone Branch distillery until Midwest Products of Indiana (a.k.a. MGP) acquired Luxco in January of 2021 for $475M allowing MGP to provide ingredients and expertise to the portfolio of brands.

Limestone Branch distillery does each step of the whiskey-making process in a non-automated fashion and uses the same yeast strain from Guy Beam and Minor Case, who were Stephen and Paul’s ancestors.

The distillery has two whiskey experiences: The Limestone Branch Distillery Tour and Taste of Limestone that allows sampling their core range of whiskies without a tour. This review is for a Taste of Limestone.

The Whiskies at Limestone Branch Distillery:

Minor Case Straight Rye: 2-year-old rye distilled in MGP, honoring Minor Case, the great grandfather of Stephen and Paul, and seventh-generation distiller in Kentucky in 1871. This straight rye’s mash bill is 51% rye, 45% corn, and 4% malted barley.

Bottled at 90% proof, aged in white American oak, and finished in ex-sherry barrels.There is a good balance between the sweetness of the sherry and the spicy flavor of the rye. This rye won a gold medal winner in the San Francisco Spirits Competition in 2018.

Yellowstone Select Straight Bourbon: The flagship bourbon of Limestone Branch takes its name from the famous national park in Wyoming, with one dollar of every bottle sold of Yellowstone Select going towards the National Parks Conservation Association.

Yellowstone bourbon was made by Yellowstone distillery in the 1880s, with J. B. Dant (an ancestor of Stephen and Paul), as one of the distillery’s founders. Diageo bought the Yellowstone distillery in the 1990s and sold the Yellowstone brand to Luxco, who asked Heaven Hill to make it until the brothers reached an agreement with Luxco in 2015 to bring the Yellowstone brand to Limestone Branch distillery.

This 93% proof straight bourbon comes from 4 and 7-year-old bourbons. The mash bill is 75% corn, 13% rye, and 12% malted barley.
A gold medal winner in the San Francisco Spirits Competition in 2018 displays flavors of caramel, vanilla, and oak.

Yellowstone 101 Limited Edition Finished in Armagnac Casks 2020 Release (Distillery Exclusive): A 101% proof straight bourbon from a 7-year-old bourbon finished in Armagnac barrels (A distillate from white grape varieties like Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanch, and Colombard made in the Gers department of France, often described as having a fuller aroma and flavor than its more famous cousin, Cognac) and 15-year-old aged bourbon.

I tasted a subtle fruit flavor from the Armagnac, but the corn dominates the experience, as the mash bill is the same as Yellowstone Select Straight Bourbon. A good purchase if you visit the distillery.

Yellowstone Handpicked Collection Single Barrel (Distillery Exclusive)
A five-year-old bourbon bottled at 115% proof with the same mash bill as previous bourbons. A fruit-forward bourbon and pepper spice and wood notes, very nice!

What I liked about the experience at Limestone Branch 🙂

• A cozy tasting room and picturesque grounds honoring the history and tradition of the Beam family invite you to sit and relax with a whiskey or cocktail on the outside patio, without a doubt, one of the most relaxing experiences of our Kentuck trip.The tasting offered good whiskies, Minor Case Straight Rye, and Yellowstone 101 Limited Edition were my favorites due to the unique flavors of sherry and fruit from the Armagnac casks.

What I did not like about the experience at Limestone Branch 🙁

• I would have liked a little more transparency about the source of the whiskies. Some of the expressions above combined Limestone Branch’s whiskey with whiskies from MGP and at least another undisclosed distillery in Kentucky.

Score: 3.75/5 ⭐

Discovery Limestone Branch and its heritage in this video.

Check other reviews here. Do you want to see more pictures from Limestone Branch Distillery? Click here.