The Ingram Distillery Welcomes Visitors For Tours, Tastings
Visitors to The Ingram Distillery in Columbus, Ky., can take in views of the Mississippi River, explore a floating barrelhouse, taste “river-aged” whiskey for themselves and bring home a bottle or two.
The grounds of the distillery, which produces the O.H. Ingram and Ingram Uncharted brands of bourbons and whiskeys, officially opened to the public April 24 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Each Thursday, Friday and Saturday, guests can choose from various tour experiences, including the Barge to Bottle Classic Tour or a private chartered experience. A “Mellow on the Mississippi Retreat” includes exclusive tastings, a chef’s dinner and an overnight stay.
While walk-ins are welcome, booking online at ingramwhiskey.com is encouraged due to space availability. To celebrate the whiskey’s “river roots,” any visitor with a TWIC gets 10 percent off their purchase.
Founder and CEO Hank Ingram said the idea for the distillery started with a question: “What did the river once do for American whiskey that we’ve forgotten?”
“My family has been in the river business for five generations, going back to my namesake, the first O.H. Ingram, shipping oak logs in 1857,” Ingram said. “In the early days of bourbon, barrels moved by river, and that time on the water helped shape the whiskey. We wanted to bring that history back in a modern, intentional way.”
When he says the products are aged on the river, Ingram means it literally.
“Our floating barrelhouses are custom-built inside former grain barges moored on the Mississippi River in Columbus, Ky.,” he said. “The barrels spend their entire maturation life on the water in our unique microclimate, exposed to the river’s motion, humidity and temperature swings.”
Ingram said the process works because the river is always acting on the barrel.
“The motion keeps the whiskey moving in and out of the wood,” he said. “The daily heat swings open and closed the pores of the barrel. The humidity helps keep the barrels moist and changes the way the whiskey matures. It creates a smooth whiskey with complexity.”
From a flavor standpoint, people have described the whiskey as smooth, rich and layered with “notes of caramel, vanilla, baking spice, oak, dark fruit and molasses,” depending on the expression, Ingram said.
“What I’m proud of is that the whiskey has an authentic story you can taste,” he added.
Others are tasting the difference, too. Both the Ingram Uncharted bourbon and the O.H. Ingram Flagship bourbon have scored 95 points in back-to-back years at the International Wine & Spirits competition, putting them in the top 10 percent of bourbons scored.
Ingram founded The Ingram Distillery in 2015. Originally, the company had one floating barrelhouse in Wickliffe, Ky., before moving to Columbus in 2023. That move was driven by growth.
“Going from one barrelhouse in Wickliffe to two at the Columbus location, we increased capacity for up to 6,000 barrels now,” Ingram said. “It also gave us an incredible bluff-top property overlooking the Mississippi, right beside Columbus-Belmont State Park.”
It was always the dream to open the Columbus location to the public, he said. “We have a beautiful, historic property and a whiskey process people really need to see and feel to understand. Visitors can walk the grounds, step aboard the floating barrelhouse, taste the whiskey and take in the river views.”
The ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the transition from a whiskey brand people have heard about to a destination they can experience, he said.
The current “fleet,” as the company calls its offerings, includes Uncharted Bourbon, O.H. Ingram 105 Proof Bourbon, O.H. Ingram Rye, a Single Barrel program and a yearly Flagship Bourbon release. He singled out Uncharted Bourbon as among Ingram Distillery’s newest releases available for purchase.
They are available in eight states — Alaska, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin — and online through the company’s website.
Looking ahead, Ingram said, he expects growth to mean more barrels on the river, broader distribution and more ways for guests to engage with the company’s brands.
All this work is worth the effort to age whiskey on the river, he said.
“It’s history, science and a deep love of the river coming together in a glass. We’re proud to be making whiskey in a way no one else is, and even prouder to finally invite people to Columbus to see it for themselves.”
Featured photo caption: The Ingram Distillery cut the ribbon April 24 to officially welcome the public to its facility in Columbus, Ky. (Photos courtesy of The Ingram Distillery)
