Castle & Key opens the first satellite tasting room in Louisville. Four things to know

Fifty-five miles separate downtown Louisville from the stunning grounds, iconic stonework and highly sought-after bourbon at Castle & Key Distillery.

But starting Thursday it has a "second home" right in the heart of Derby City.

Castle & Key 502 opened inside the Omni Louisville Hotel's Falls City Market, becoming the first satellite tasting room of its kind downtown. This outpost for the Frankfort-based distillery features a small gift shop with a robust bottle selection and a bar where guests can try spirits and classic cocktails.

Eventually, we may see similar concepts spring up. The Kentucky General Assembly last year passed a bill that creates the opportunity for distilleries to create a destination experience, similar to California's Sonoma and Napa Valley wine regions.

Here are four things to know about Castle & Key's news satellite shop at 400 S 2nd St., and what Louisville can expect in terms of other tasting rooms down the line.

What's the difference between a tasting room and a distillery?

Think of this as a retail shop with a small bar inside. You'll be able to shop through bottles just as you would at the distillery. The bartender will be able to answer your questions about the spirits and serve you a cocktail or a pour of bourbon, rye, gin or vodka. There aren't any tours to take at this satellite shop, and the company doesn't make any of its bourbon in Louisville. It's meant to be a bite-sized experience that brings Louisville visitors up close and personal with the brand, even if they don't have time to venture outside of the city.

"The biggest thing we wanted to do was make sure that if folks can't make it out to the distillery, that they still can connect with the brands here in Louisville," said Sydina Hoza, director of hospitality for Castle & Key.

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If you enjoy the cocktails at Castle & Key, you can make them at home

The bar menu features three classic cocktails: The Restoration Rye Old Fashioned ($12), the Millville Mule ($10), and a gin and tonic ($10). Castle & Key bottles its own syrups for the Millville Mule and the Old Fashion, and both are sold at the distillery's Louisville satellite. The recipes for those cocktails are printed on the side of those syrup bottles.

The distillery doesn't make its own tonic syrup, but the one the bar uses is also available for purchase in the shop.

Why did Castle & Key choose to open at the Omni?

Castle & Key is based out of the Old Taylor Distillery in Frankfort. The property is known for its iconic castle structure and picturesque gardens where Bourbon Trail guests stroll the grounds while sipping on cocktails. The entire distillery has an old-world elegance to it, and despite a shared sense of luxury, on the surface, it could not be more different than the extremely modern Omni in downtown Louisville.

At the same time, though, Castle & Key has had a longstanding partnership with Omni through the hotel's cocktail program. When the retail space became available, the Omni approached the distillery about the project, Hoza said.

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Castle & Key 502 is a fitting addition to the other bourbon-themed amenities at the hotel such as the Pin + Proof speakeasy bowling alley and The Library Bar.

There are other tasting rooms within distilleries, but this is the first satellite in Louisville

It's not hard to find a distillery bar in downtown Louisville that will pour you a flight, but a distillery satellite like this was only recently made possible through the passing of House Bill 500 in 2022. Among its provisions, the new law allows distillers to sell bottles at gift shops and open satellite tasting rooms.

Castle & Key 502 is the first tasting room to open in Louisville since that law passed, said Louisville Tourism Chief Marketing Officer Stacey Yates, and at least one other is in the works. Bardstown Bourbon Co. announced in November plans to open a "brand experience" at 730 W. Main St. by the end of this summer.

"I think it is just gonna open the floodgates for truly cementing Louisville's role in bourbon. ... This goal to make us the 'Napa of bourbon' was really out of reach without the proper laws to help these businesses advance," Yates said.

As bourbon tourism in popularity has grown, bringing in more attractions is important, Yates said.

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Right now most bourbon experiences are booked out more than a month in advance. Smaller operations like Castle & Key 502 provide opportunities for visitors that haven't planned ahead or maybe only have a short time between one convention meeting and the next.

Reach reporter Maggie Menderski at 502-582-4053 and mmenderski@courierjournal.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Bourbon tasting: Castle & Key opens tasting room at Louisville hotel